Health and Wellness

By Monica Thakrar

Managing Stress

Are you always stressed out? Do you feel like you have a million things to do and have a hard time keeping up with everything? Do you feel like you are giving time to everyone else around you but have a hard time taking some time for yourself?

Stress is a big factor in people’s lives these days, between managing ups and downs in relationships, balancing work and life and keeping up with the Patels. Right now the economy is adding additional stress to people’s lives with layoffs and financial worries. So how do you keep the stress in check and take care of yourself while doing everything you need to do?

Stress can be managed by recognizing what it is: a condition or feeling experienced when you perceive demands that exceed the personal or social resources you are able to mobilize. You may experience stress as emotional symptoms such as anxiety, worry or depression or through physical manifestations such as headaches, ulcers, insomnia or high blood pressure. The demands that feel overwhelming can be different for each person. So how do we handle these feelings?

Recognize that you have control over how you react to situations. Although we might not be able to control external pressures such as losing a job, breaking off a relationship or gaining weight, we have control over how we are going to react to them. Are you going to react by thinking, “Bad stuff always happens to me. I must have bad karma” or are you going to react by saying, “Although I lost my job, I have an opportunity to find something even better.” Putting a positive spin on your reactions can allow you to see things in a different light and find the opportunities in any

situation. By reacting positively or finding meaning in any situation, you are taking back control.

Take control of what you can. Stress is often triggered because we feel out of control or overwhelmed. If life seems to be spiraling out of control and you don’t know what to do, focus on what you can control. For example, if you feel like your job is in jeopardy, you can begin to network with people outside of your company who may know of potential jobs elsewhere or you can begin getting your resume ready in case anything does happen. This way you can feel prepared for whatever may occur or you can be pleasantly surprised when you don’t need to use the backup plan.

Take some time to relax. When life gets busy it is sometimes hard to take a step back and really get a perspective on what is really important. Take some time everyday for yourself (even just 10 minutes) to do something relaxing, such as listening to music, gardening, taking a walk or taking some deep breaths. Through relaxation we can recognize that in the big scheme of things, whatever you are going through is not as bad as it could be. The more you relax and take time to reflect on the bigger picture—family, health, spirituality—the less the small irritating things of life will affect you. It will also give you perspective on what to do in order to meet the demands you are facing.

Know that taking care of yourself is not selfish. Think of the instructions you receive on a plane: put on your own oxygen mask first before helping others. When life seems to be moving very fast, we often feel like we have to be doing something for others all the time, but this can only increase stress. If you do not help yourself first, you won’t have enough to give to other people and you won’t be at your best for others.

Sometimes we get so caught up in everything that we have to do and all the people we have to please that we forget that we have the choice of how we want to live our lives. From what to do on the weekend to which friends to spend time with to how to manage your boss at work – you make choices every day. With each choice we make, we can decide how to react and how to prioritize where we put our time and energy. Once we know we have choices, we can learn how to manage stress in healthier ways. Take the time to enjoy each day!

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