There is no doubt that stress and anxiety levels are at max output for most of us these days. The state of affairs of the world are up in the air and it’s a confusing and overwhelming time. I’m finding myself in a state of paralyzed fear; unable to act or think clearly. I’m hearing my friends saying they are also feeling stressed and unsure of the next move. I’m also learning that stress and anxiety present themselves in different forms for all of us. Not everybody experiences it the same; not everybody responds to it the same. It comes in different forms and leaves through different methods.

What is STRESS??? Stress can be defined as, “constraining force or influence: such as a physical, chemical, or emotional factor that causes bodily or mental tension.” It’s the physical and emotional pressure we feel all around and inside us when it appears our backs are against the wall.

How do we identify STRESS??? Stress increases our cortisol levels and this causes all sorts of reactions. Some ways that stress, depression, and anxiety may show up and be presented:

Changes in sleeping patterns: stress and anxiety will often cause us to sleep all of the time or not sleep at all. For me, I don’t sleep. I can’t turn my mind off long enough to relax and get reset. I know many people that find all they can do is sleep. It’s sometimes too overwhelming to move forward and sleep is the only form of peace. Consistent and healthy sleep patterns are essential for our mental and physical health. Getting out of a routine can quickly cause a vicious cycle that increases feelings of stress and anxiety.

Lack of appetite: Our stomach and digestive system are tied to our brain. As the stress levels rise we may find our appetite decreases. It’s important to note that sometimes not eating is an emotional choice in response to stress. Sometimes it feels like this is the one thing we do have control over and skipping meals might feel like you’re proving you’re in control. This can be a very dangerous thought. Don’t allow this to turn into something worse.

Lack of focus/action: Some people rise to the occasion and strive under pressure. Some become unclear on how to take action. This is my typical and current response to stress. I sit motionlessly and stare at whatever my task is but I can’t seem to take the first step. I come up with lists and lists of reasons I need to put that task off. I find any and everything to distract myself. And if I do get started, I can’t finish. When the stress and anxiety become so great we often find ourselves unsure of how to move forward. When it feels like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders it can seem impossible to take that first step forward.

Self-sabotage: This is one that has shown itself to me very recently and is new to me. For the last year, I’ve been learning to day trade. I put in months of learning the technicals and practicing in a simulator before I ever put real money on the line. And then I went live. I had a period of making small but consistent gains. I wasn’t risking much money but I was consistently adding a few dollars to my account. Suddenly I found myself having red day after red day. I had almost completely drained my account. I looked back and realized I was doing two things. I found myself paralyzed when I was in a trade. When a trade turned around on me and started to go red I would freeze and couldn’t get myself to cut the loss. Next thing I knew I was down a pretty good bit of money and took a bigger loss than was necessary. I also noticed I was getting into a trade that was not a good setup. It was almost as if I closed my eyes and randomly hit the buy button. After two weeks straight of losing money every day, I realized what was going on. I would close down my trading station and say to myself, “why did you ever think you could successfully do this. You’re going to fail at this.” I was talking myself into failing. My fear of failing was so great that I made it a self-fulfilling prophecy. Sometimes we get so caught up in our fears and the overwhelm that we subconsciously give ourselves reasons to fail. I see this with clients as well. Some sabotage their fitness progress and give up before giving themselves a chance to really succeed.

How do we deal with STRESS??? There are many different ways to reduce stress and anxiety. The key is to find what works best for you. It may change over time. It may change depending on the source of stress. What works for your best friend may not be what works for you. THAT’S PERFECTLY OK. That being said, there is one thing that is universal for getting through this. CUT YOURSELF SOME SLACK. It’s imperative that you allow yourself to feel what you’re feeling. Life happens and we are all forced to deal with that. You cannot beat yourself up for feeling however you feel. With that, try any or all of these methods and see what best brings peace to your soul.

Meditation: This is something I have been working hard at making a regular practice. Honestly, it’s HARD. I seriously struggle with this. It’s so difficult to sit and be with myself. It’s hard to not let my mind start listing off all of the things I should be doing instead. Five minutes feels like five hours. When I can get myself to calm down enough to just breathe, I immediately and always end a mediation session feeling relaxed and more collected. Meditation is great for lowing the cortisol levels in our system. Even as little as five minutes a day can bring levels to a manageable state.

Maintain a healthy diet and drink plenty of water: When we eat like crap, we feel like crap. Trying to cope with stress by constantly trying to fuel our bodies with processed garbage only makes the situation worse. Emotionally, it will add to the stress and anxiety. Additionally, it will physically bring you down and you’ll find it even harder to fight through. It quickly becomes an ugly cycle and a slippery slope. The same applies to our water intake. Not drinking enough water will lead to dehydration. This physically and psychologically adds fuel to the anxiety fire. Feed on food that sets you up for success and drink plenty of water!

Exercise regularly: Regular exercise has been proven to lower stress. It both lowers cortisol and increases serotonin, the happy hormone. Exercise releases chemicals that physically cause us to feel better. So it automatically puts you ahead of the game. But it gets better! Exercising regularly helps us stay healthy and look healthy. Improving our bodies will improve our minds and allow us to feel less stressed.

Consistent sleep: I know, this seems really difficult to accomplish if insomnia is something you suffer from when you’re stressed. But getting consistent and regular sleep is so important for our mental and physical health. Sleep is when our body recovers and repairs itself. Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day helps your body stay regulated. If you have the ability to nap, take it!!! It makes me sad to think of all of the naps I refused as a kid. Now I take them when I need them. For some, 20 minutes of exercise allows them to tire enough to fall asleep. When it comes time to fall asleep, turn off the TV, phone, any other distractions. It’s been proven that playing on our phones or watching TV affects our eyes and also make it difficult to fall asleep. When it is time, make your room dark and cold and try to allow yourself to just embrace the slumber.

Divide tasks and apply the 5-second rule: When I feel overwhelmed by all that has to be done I list out the tasks. Often times I’m taking on too much at one time and that is the cause of the stress. I’m trying to work through steps 8, 9, 15, and 22 but I’ve skipped 1-7, 10-14, and 16-21 because I’m not organized. That’s when I typically shut down and don’t take any steps. So the first part of this is to identify and prioritize the tasks. Break the project into smaller pieces that can be tackled. Then, apply the 5-second rule and act. What’s the 5-second rule? A while back I ordered the book, The 5 Second Rule by Mel Robbins. If you haven’t read it (or listened to it, I highly recommend it). I won’t give away all the secrets but long story short, when it’s time for action and I’m feeling too paralyzed to move, I count back 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 and then I just act. Once I start counting it is not up for discussion.

Focus on the positive: When it feels like everything around is going south, sometimes just using our energy to focus on the good is enough to get us through. Dave Ramsey says it best, “What you focus on is what you win at.” So focus on the things going well and you’ll manifest more of that in your life. Take a deep breath, think of the good things, and remember that you’re stronger than you think and you WILL come of this better than you expected.

Are these some of your standard methods of dealing with stress and anxiety? Do you have other ways you’ve found that bring you peace of mind? Leave a comment and let me know what works best for you!