All Stressed Up and No Where to Go!?!
It’s bad enough to be all dressed up and no where to go; but what do you do when you’re life is out of whack and you’re all stressed up? Where to go? How to cope? And most of all, what to do to make positive changes in your life, so that you no longer have as much stress as you did before.
You have got to start with the basics. You do that on two levels: First of all you must deal with the physical aspects of stress. Then, if you’re going to make any changes, you must deal with your lifestyle, values, and goals. The physical symptoms can be temporarily relieved through a variety of methods, but will continue until you make bigger changes—those aimed at the root cause of the stress. This means making sure you are living a life that is in sync with your values.
Dealing with the physical aspects of stress means taking measures that counteract the stress, such as meditation, walks in nature, deep breathing, yoga, massage, humor, prayer and aerobic exercise. It also means maintaining healthy eating habits and giving yourself joys on a regular (daily, weekly, and monthly) basis. These joys can be any of the above mentioned stress releasers as well as those activities which give you pleasure, such as gardening, handiwork, cooking, reading, writing, playing an instrument or creating art.
In order to deal with the deeper issues of stress you must look at whether or not you are living your life in sync with your deepest values. Is your lifestyle and are your goals in line with what you feel is of utmost importance in your life? To find out the answer, take this quick test: Quickly jot down your deepest values – those people, things, activities, beliefs, etc. that are most important to you. Now look over your datebook or calendar, your checkbook and your credit card statements for the last three months. Notice where you are spending your time and money.
If you are spending your time and money on those people, things, activities that you value the most, hurray(!) you are living your life in sync with your values. If you find (like most people who are unduly stressed or unhappy) that you are spending time, money, and energy in areas that are not as important, something must change for you to live with less stress. Either you need to change your values to match your lifestyle and goals, or you must change your lifestyle and goals to match your values.
Lastly remember there are two basic ways to deal with the stresses in life, and both involve making pro-active changes. One: If it is not a big stressor, you must change your attitude about it and let it go. Don’t hold on to a negative feeling associated with some minor stress. Two: If it is higher on your Richter scale of stress, then you must take action and deal directly with the stressor. This means talking to the person(s) who are triggering your stress or making adjustments in your lifestyle, goals, or values.
If you are all stressed up with no place to go, first deal with it on the physical level. Next take time out to reassess your deepest values and to check them against what kind of lifestyle you are leading and what your biggest goals are. Then have the courage to make the changes necessary to live in sync. When you are all stressed up in the future, remember these points and you will know where to go!
