Stress Management
Content Courtesy of the Forever Young Podcast with Christiana Egi and Cherrie-Marie Chiu.
A lot of people are dealing with all kinds of stress that have been exacerbated by the pandemic. Our worry is no longer just about money, what to eat, what to wear, or where to vacation; we now worry about catching the virus when we venture out of our homes to go to the grocery store, get food. For those who work in essential services, they worry about catching the virus at work. Even those working from home, deal with the stress of sharing workspaces with other family members or children schooling from home. Try to watch TV, and you get bombarded by the numbers of people that are losing their lives to covid, and this only serves to heighten our stress levels. You just cannot get away from the daily impact of COVID-19.
Working and studying from home during the COVID-19 pandemic can be stressful. the daily impact of COVID-10 is felt significantly by not only adults, but children as well.
I like to take deep cleansing breaths when everything starts to get overwhelming, I think it removes the clutter from my brain and gives me a bit of clarity to deal with whatever is coming my way. Stress is normal. A small amount of stress is actually good for you because our bodies are engineered to handle stress. It's kind of like when people say they work well under stress. Our brains are amazing and hard-wired with an alarm system for protection. When our brain perceives a threat, it signals to our bodies to release a burst of hormones that increases hydrate blood pressure. Once the threat is gone, our bodies are meant to return to a normal, relaxed state. Unfortunately, the nonstop complications of today's world and living in a pandemic situation means that some people's alarm systems are really shut off.
Everyone handles stress in their lives differently. Part of it could be genetic, or a result of past experiences. You may have some friends who seem relaxed in almost any situation and then you have others that would react strongly to this latest stress. Most people react to life stressors somewhere between these two extremes. Stress increases our blood sugar and it weakens our immune system. This is why it’s important to learn healthy ways to cope with our life stressors. In fact, studies show that 98% of all degenerative diseases are stress-related. While can't always change what we face, we can definitely change how we react to them. We can prepare ourselves to give our brain and bodies a fighting chance against stress. Here are some ways to deal with stress.
The first is exercise. Exercise is so great because it lowers the stress hormone cortisol and releases endorphins. Endorphins are the happy hormone that helps improve your mood and is a natural painkiller. Regular exercise also improves the quality of our sleep, which is deeply affected when people are stressed. The good news about exercise is that almost any kind of exercise will help whether you walk, dance, practice, yoga, weight, lift or do high-intensity interval training.
Another great tool for stress management is meditation. It's the age old technique that can help reduce stress. My deep cleansing breaths are a good example and a good start to meditation. Meditation can help calm and heal the mind and body. People who meditate have increased self awareness that are more creative and imaginative and have reduced negative emotions and increased patience and tolerance. I know heading to a meditation class in person is not available right now, but there are lots of apps that do offer some guided meditation. Check out The Mindful Movement’s 20 minute guided meditation to reducing anxiety and stress, which is available on YouTube for free!
Also, an important part of stress management is time management. When you take time to plan your day and prioritize your to do list, you will be more focused on having everything done in your day. But. It also makes you feel a lot better, especially as you check off those items on your to do list. In addition to that, it also gives you the chance of dealing with the most important things first and then going down to less important items on your list.
One last tool we have for stress management is a healthy diet. A healthy diet of fruits and vegetables with good amounts of hydration will keep our immune system strong and in turn will help you stay attentive and help eat when you face stressful situations is.
Surround yourself with people who help you feel better. It is also important to hear another person’s perspective on something that you are dealing with, this helps reduce our own stress and clear our judgement. Getting information on someone’s way of dealing with a situation can help you see how to resolve your own situation more clearly. We should not stress about what people think about us. Actually, in the end, you'll find that people don't really think that much about you, you know. Believe in yourself and don't let other people distract you from your goals.
The most important thing is to dust yourself up and try again when you fall. One of my favourite quotes is from Thomas Edison when he said, “I've not failed, I have just found ten thousand ways that something won't work”. So stop stressing about what you cannot change. Focus instead on what you can do about it. Breathe and take a step back. Managing our stress keeps us younger, and guess what? You are never too old to become young!
The Forever Young podcast is created and produced by Christiana and Cherrie Marie Chiu. Produced and engineered by Elisse Hill. The podcast represents our opinions and those of our guests. The content should not be taken as medical advice. It is for informational purposes only. Please consult your health care professional for any medical questions. If you like our show, please tell your friends and leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts. New episodes are available every other Wednesday. Have questions? Email us at ourforeveryoungpodcast@gmail.com.
