The American Psychological Association recently reported that current stress levels are the highest recorded in the last 15 years.
April is NATIONAL STRESS AWARENESS MONTH.
It is ironic that this time of year we would call attention to something that seems so “heavy”.
This time of year, we welcome SPRING!
We are out and about, feeling the newness of nature, blooms, sunshine, beautiful weather and more.
OR ARE WE?
The connection between stress and depression is REAL.
So how can we decrease our potential for both?
Take a walk! Or a run!
5 minutes of physical activity has been shown to decrease anxiety. 5 MINUTES!!
Studies show that 15 minutes of running can decrease depression by 26%!!
The temptation is to think that we can control stress. We can’t.
BUT we CAN control how we process, react to and plan to avoid stress.
It begins with RECOGNIZING the triggers and deciding, even saying out loud (or writing down) HOW you WANT to feel about and move through a situation or an experience.
Most of our energy is expended in anticipating a situation BEFORE it even happens.
Have you ever found yourself thinking, with complete certainty, “I bet this and that is going to happen and then this and that will cause me to be angry or frustrated”?
What you are doing is meditating…YEP.
BUT you are meditating on something in the future-and negatively.
How much more calming would it be to say, “This or that MAY happen but I do not want it to ruin my mood, raise my blood pressure or give me a headache” or “I do not want to argue with this person or lose sleep over that situation”?
So don’t!
Take a deep breath, fuel your brain and body with the oxygen needed to step into these situations POSITIVELY.
CHALLENGE yourself to adopt the term “NECESSARY OBSTACLES” rather than “stress”.
In this, you will feel confident when you overcome challenges.
You will learn how to navigate situations better and maybe others will follow the path you forge!
SO WALK IT OUT
