Overwhelmed by life? Use some of these skills

Deadlines, work, bills, projects, chores, planning holidays and vacations, finances, the list never ends! There are many demands in daily life. These demands can pull us in many different directions and lead to stress. When you notice that your to-do list is bigger than you have time and energy to handle, that’s when the feeling of overwhelm and stress quick in.

If stress foes unchecked, the symptoms in your body and mind will linger and aggravate more.

At this time of the year, it is ok to have to handle some level of stress. But if you are noticing that you cannot even start paying attention to ONE item in your to-do list without feeling guilt about the other one hundred left to be done – than is time for selfcare.

You will need to apply selfcare when you feel tense, overwhelmed, worn out, or exhausted. You body might be telling you that you are stressed by having headaches, stomachaches, anxiety and depression.

Stress can be acute of chronic. In Acute stress you might be having headaches, back pain, nausea, chest pain, fatigue, worry, irritation, difficult concentrating, memory problems, restlessness, social withdrawal, increase use of substances, and so on.

Chronic stress might show up by you having sleeping issues, weak immune system, heart disease, anxiety disorders, depression, memory impairment, and substance use.

To help minimize stress, you could:

1. Find ways to build resilience. How you see stress, manage stress, and look into your future life without stress, use social support, practice optimist, have a sense of humor, elevate your spirituality, and increase your self-esteem, can help alleviate your stress.
2. Practice Positive Journaling. Try to introduce daily writing about your positive experiences, or your wishes for positive experiences. Appreciation goes long ways.
3. Practice gratitude – by journaling or voicing it. You can write about the positive experiences you had, or you can simply say “Thank you” more often to people around you, to show them your appreciation.
4. Practice relaxation techniques. You can google videos of how to incorporate relaxation techniques in your everyday life. You can use breath exercise, or full body relaxation. Do it often and as necessary.
5. Learn to manage your time better – be realistic of how much time will be necessary to complete a task/project.
6. Learn to prioritize your tasks – do the ones that are more difficult, or you don’t want to deal with FIRST. Then the others will be easier to complete.
7. Practice self-care – Schedule a massage, a pedicure, a talk to a friend, an outing that can bring you more energy and relaxation.
8. Pay attention to your negative intrusive thoughts. They are powerful, and you’ll end up believing them. Instead, fight those thoughts, and replace them with more positive ones.

At the end, having the necessary support from family, friends, or a therapist, will help you to manage your stress and survive the end-of-year stressors.

For more info about stress, contact us at www.tampatherapywellness.com