Do You Want to Kill Your Stress Once and For All? Do This.

Kill Stress Once and For All

Stress has become an epidemic in our society. When someone asks “How are you?” the majority of people now answer “stressed”.

This is now a normal, accepted answer to which the reply is a nod in understanding, “Yes, me too.” It’s like we’re keeping up with the Jones’ to see who can be busier and more stressed out.

This has got to stop!!!!

There are obviously major reasons why we would feel stress, and this is our body’s way to kick on our adrenaline processes and potentially our fight or flight so that we can get through a trauma, injury, major life change or passing of a loved one.

But the daily stresses that are climbing and adding up need to be seriously revised.

The first problem is not having enough time to get everything done that life demands. The answer is that you need to ask for help.

Your children can be a great source of your home stress, so ask them to help you. Depending on their ages, give them special tasks to complete to help out around the house.

There is no reason your teenagers should hit the couch when they get home from school. They can help to start dinner, get their lunches ready for the next day and help to care for their siblings.

This is not taking away their freedom and childhood, it is giving them life skills and responsibilities that I promise, they will thank you for in the future. (What student wants to get to college or university, away from home for the first time and have absolutely no idea how to feed themselves? Let’s give them a chance!)

The most important thing you can do is to live in the present moment.

Right here in this moment (the only moment we actually have) there is no stress. We are consciously present. We are just working on this one task. There is no worrying about getting it done in time, ohh I only have 2 more hours, etc. because that is not living in the present moment. The stress arrives when we think about the future and think about how something will affect us when it arrives. But if we try to stay just in the moment we have, your stress will diminish drastically.

The other important thing you need to do is to detach from outcomes.

Put no weight or importance on the outcome of any event. This is again, living in the present moment. For many things, we literally have no control over many situations and worrying about them can make us crazy. The outcome will unfold over time and we will deal with whatever happens at the time. Because we will be practicing being present in each moment and taking things minute by minute.

We must begin to consciously decide how our lives want to look and feel.

I’m sure that you are in agreement with me, we’ve all experienced enough stress for the rest of our lives just in the past few years. It’s time to let go of the panic of worrying about the future and fretting about the past and choose, decide today, to make every moment one of joy and contentment.

It’s so much nicer to live in a mindset that you actively choose, rather than to be sucked into the societal pressure of being stressed all the time. Your health will be so much better, and your personal and family life will be much happier. Share this new mindset with your family and friends to help them reduce their stress. Obviously it takes some time to train your mind to stay present but over time it will get easier and you will have a much more serene life.

Meditation isn’t Supposed to be Frustrating!

I don’t know about you, but whenever I sit down to meditate, I have instant anxiety! I have got a to-do list that is growing by the minute, I have so many balls in the air that I feel like if I take my eye off of one just long enough to take my first meditative breath, they are all going to come crashing down.

Which is EXACTLY why I need to meditate!!!

So I am going to start meditating more regularly, and actively trying to turn off the panic that rushes toward me whenever I take a mini-break for myself to recharge.

I encourage you to join me in daily meditation!

Because really, what better way can we spend just 5 minutes than bettering ourselves!!

Meditation is an excellent way to reduce stress and improve your focus (once you get past the panic!! just kidding.)

It is particularly important for people who feel daily stress and find themselves in a routine that they can’t quite keep up with. It is an excellent way to quiet your mind and clear your thoughts of trivial issues to make room for more meaningful ideas to surface.

The best part is, you can carve out time for meditation any time you’d like throughout the day. Some people prefer to meditation first thing in the morning, to set the tone for their day, while others prefer to take a break over lunch, and find a quiet spot to meditate mid-day. It can also be quite nice to spend some time in the evenings meditating before you get ready for bed. This can be very helpful in turning off the days’ thoughts, aiding restful sleep, and calming your mind.

Here are some tips to make your meditation productive and enjoyable:

1. Find a comfortable place to relax. If sitting cross legged on the floor doesn’t do it for you, find a comfy chair. Make sure you are warm enough, because as you are not moving and potentially calming your heart rate, you may feel chilled. Throw on a warm sweater.

2. Make your new comfy spot a place that is relatively quiet. Especially for beginners, it is so easy to get distracted by others talking or moving about. If you can have a quiet room with a door that can close, even better!

3. It’s okay if you have racing thoughts. Part of the whole point is to take some time separating yourself from those racing thoughts to position yourself to be able to just observe them. Rather than connecting with them and feeling like the pressure of whatever you are thinking about, simply take the vantage point of looking down upon your thoughts and watching them float by. With no attachment, you can hover above them and not be affected by them.

4. What are you supposed to think about?? Well, nothing and everything! A great way to just let thoughts come and go is to focus on your breath. Be still and be one with each inhalation and exhalation. Notice how your breath feels inside your body. Notice the pause you take between inhaling and exhaling. That is really how you are in life while meditating – embrace the pause!! Feel the rhythm of your breath and imagine it is like the ocean waves. In and out, powerful and strong. Feel the gratitude that comes with feeling this moment of just being alive!

5. Guided meditations are a very nice option to listen to a recorded voice that will guide you along a visualization meditation. There are many on YouTube that you can enjoy that also have beautiful music accompanying your visualized journey.

Most importantly, the best tip is to try to meditate daily. The more consistent you become with your practice, the more you will look forward to this time you spend benefiting your whole being.

Just remember, an athlete doesn’t just work out when they’ve gotten out of shape – they work out every day to be their best self. It’s the same with meditation – we can’t just meditate when we feel stressed already – it should be part of our daily schedule.