I’ve decided to resuscitate my blog. Ironically at the beginning of April, which marks the beginning of Stress Awareness Month. There does rather seem to be an Awareness day for just about everything these days, but this seems rather a major feature in my life at the moment, so I thought I’d share what helps me unravel the knots in my shoulders, the whirring sound in my brain and generally help me keep my sh*t together on a trying day.
I’ve always been a stress bunny. And I recognize the patterns I can spot in myself in lots of the women I see in clinic. Jaw clenches. Sleep quality plummets. Worries and anxiety mount, and hurtle around on a loop until they completely derail your higher cognitive processes, making decision-making a nightmare. Skin gets dry/bumpy/red/unhappy. Retinoids and good moisturiser can only help you get away with so much if the stress persists, after all.
So to make my decision-making easier, I’ve finally got myself an organizational tool (Evernote)I can stick to (I have a number of abandoned ones with half-finished to-do lists cluttering up my phone that just didn’t click). And I’ve mastered the art of not saying yes to everything. That was a hard one, I’m not going to lie….
And that when I’m feeling really troubled, the only thing that reaffirms life is the euphoria that follows physical activity to the point of exhaustion (Psycle), accompanied by electro-beats. And short, effective yoga routines (BohoBeautiful) I can do anywhere stop my computer arm cramping from overuse.
And with all of that, I might get a decent night’s sleep. Which is the key to it all. And maybe there’s something that comes with the realization that stress is an inevitable part of life. Just the right amount helps us perform, achieve our goals and satisfy ambitions. But the big stuff, the stuff that really knocks you for six, is the stuff you don’t see coming (Baz Luhrmann wisdom – EveryoneShouldWearSunscreen). But maybe by practicing good stress management most of the time, it can become a habit; one that makes you that little bit more robust in the face of true adversity. Wishing you all a stress-free April!
