Feel Good Friday - Let’s make it a Stress Awareness Day!

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

Happy Feel Good Friday!

It’s finally the end of the week and the best time to relax, renew powers, and refresh thoughts!

The topic that I want to touch on today is stress… How often do you feel stressed? And how do you deal with stress?

Though July is not a Stress Awareness Month (spoiler: April is). But it feels like a good moment to reflect — summer time!

So, the research started… I was surprised to learn that there are 3 different types of stress:

• acute stress, which can be caused by sudden events like a car accident, illness, or even positive changes like starting a new job or getting married. The good news? It’s usually short-term and doesn’t always affect your health. But when intense, it can develop into acute stress disorder, lasting up to a month.
• episodic acute stress, when stress becomes frequent and you constantly worry about the past or future. It can make you feel overwhelmed and anxious. Over time, this can raise your risk of high blood pressure, heart issues, and headaches.
• chronic stress, which is the most dangerous type. It’s long-term and ongoing, often with no clear end. Chronic stress can seriously harm both your mental and physical health.

Modern life is tough. And a lot of people live with these kinds of stress every day. Honestly, I feel like I experience all three types regularly. Do you? 

Is it possible to avoid the consequences of stress? I hope yes…

To cope with stress, I go for walks, jog when I can, play board games… - everything to try to keep my family and myself active and engaged.

So, what’s your recipe to reduce stress? Let’s make this Friday a Stress Awareness Day! :) 

btw, officially, the Stress Awareness Day is in November (to be precise, the first Wednesday of November), but why not celebrate it today? :)

[Lucas Modzelewski _Lumo_]

It’s not just stress, but also anxiety. Sometimes it’s hard to tell whether the feeling comes from the outside, the inside, or both.

I try to get to the root of the feeling and see if there's anything I can do about it - whether there's an action I can take to resolve the problem or cause... or if it's something beyond my control, and I just need to let it go and allow time or the universe to play its cards.

How do I reduce it?

• Make a decision - Don’t let intrusive thoughts win. If you keep avoiding a decision, the anxiety only grows and becomes more frightening.

• Take action - Don’t run or hide. If it’s within your power, do something. Taking action is better than wasting time overthinking.

• Shift your attention - If it’s out of your control, or if you need more data to act, focus on something you can do right now. It helps you build some positive momentum.

• Go for a long walk - Physical activity clears the mind. If your body is tired, it’s harder to get stuck in spirals of thought.

• *Drink water - If you’re feeling down and don’t want to do anything else, at least drink water. Worst case, it gets you moving - if only to the bathroom 😉

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

So true @Lucas Modzelewski _Lumo_ , sometimes even drinking water is a small first win that is needed :) 

[Amanda Barber]

Thanks for providing today's #feelgoodfriday post, @Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io - great topic!

I have to agree with @Lucas Modzelewski _Lumo_ that it's so hard to tell what's anxiety vs. stress. I tend to handle both similarly, but it's good to identify the difference.

TBH, I live in the United States and have had to limit my intake of social media (or any news) to try to ward off some of the stress I was experiencing. I also try to ensure I get plenty of sleep, drink water, and get some movement in every day. I started my day off with Pilates today and will take a walk at lunch! 🧘‍♀️

I also find that when I'm getting a little obsessive over things I cannot control, I need to take a moment to rest, practice some gratitude for things within my control, and refocus. 

Happy Friday, everyone! Here's to a day with minimal stress. 💜

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

@Amanda Barber that's true, limiting news/social media can really help :) Sometimes I do the same, hovewer, after a while trying to catch up with everything happening :) 

[Barbara Szczesniak]

My first year of college, I drove my roommate crazy because I did not get stressed before tests.

• She studied biochemistry like crazy, worried herself to death, returned sure that she had failed, and ended up with an A.
• I, on the other hand, studied upper-level calculus and complex analysis by tutoring other people in my class and did not worry about tests.

I explained to her my philosophy that:

1. If you know the material, there is no reason to stress.
2. If you don't know the material, stressing about it doesn't help.

Thank you for bringing back this memory for me, @Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io. I am having some work deadline-induced stress this week, which I'm dealing with by not cancelling my personal plans over the weekend and walking away from the computer when I feel the need.

[Susan Waldrip]

@Barbara Szczesniak , I love that you're able to do that! As I get older, I get better at it, but it's been a long time coming.

[Barbara Szczesniak]

Sometimes I think I dealt with it better when I was younger. Or maybe I had a mostly carefree life until I was about 25, so I could easily deal with any stress that came along.

I'm able to do these things now because, if I don't, my body forces me to walk away from the computer AND cancel my personal plans by attacking me with a migraine. 🤯

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

@Barbara Szczesniak you have a super-power! :) When I was in my early university years, I was just like your friend — stressed and anxious before every test and exam. But over time, especially by my final year, I became much calmer and more confident  :) 

[Susan Waldrip]

Thanks for this timely Feel Good Friday, @Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io! Most of my go-to stress relievers are mentioned by @Lucas Modzelewski _Lumo_ and @Amanda Barber, the other one I can think of for me is to purposely sit or lie down in a quiet place and do a body scan to loosen tension, starting either from my head and work down each body part and area, or from the toes, upward. 

[Barbara Szczesniak]

Ooh, @Susan Waldrip, I haven't thought of that technique in a long time. I remember someone coming to one of my classes in middle school (45+ years ago) and explaining it to us. Thanks for the reminder.

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

@Susan Waldrip , nice go-to stress reliever, I've never heard about it... Thanks for sharing this method! :) 

[Trudy Claspill]

My stress/anxiety is caused mostly by being in my head too much, overthinking and endlessly thinking about everything.

To combat this I do some that is very physical and requires me to focus my mind on my body - specifically I take ballet classes and have been doing so for almost 20 years (as an adult).

It requires that I re-focus my mind on my body to assess if I am using my body correctly and safely. I find that I have no room left in my head for all the other things that I stress about. And sometimes spending those hours focused on ballet manages to change my perspective or attitude so that i'm better able to deal with the other things.

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

@Trudy Claspill , wow, 20 years of ballet, incredible! My best friend used to take ballet classes and also said that it was her best way to reduce stress and clear her mind :) 

[Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM]

I probably should get a routine together to deal with stress.  I normally bottle it up and explode on something/one.

[Amanda Barber]

That's a solid plan...until it's not. 🙃

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

@Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM , that’s a very real and honest reflection 😅

[Gene Culling]

I would also recommend working out what your stress signs are. I was unaware of feeling stress until it was serious, but I now can see the little things that indicate I'm trying to get control/feeling out of control. If I find myself listening to a lot of metal or spending a lot of time cleaning up, then it's time to work out where the stress is.

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

@Gene Culling , spotting those early signs really helps to break the cycle before it gets overwhelming. Nice way to deal with stress, or prevent stress :) 

[James O_Connor]

Great topic @Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io! My go-to stress relieving tactics are:

1. Get to the gym - getting out of my head and switching my focus to lifting something heavy really helps me to reset. If I've had a stressful morning at work, I always find that hitting the gym at lunchtime makes the afternoon much easier

2. Meditation - I try to start every day with at least a 10 minute meditation, which usually sets me up right for the rest of the day. Focusing on breathing, or gratitude, or something other than my ever-growing to-to list makes me remember what really matters in life

3. Go to the cinema - I love movies and I love escaping into them. Something about the smell of popcorn and sitting in front of that big screen takes me back to some very happy childhood memories, so if the week has been a bit rough I will just take myself off to the cinema and lose myself for a couple of hours.

I also agree with @Amanda Barber - avoiding social media and news is a great way to avoid some of the stress building up in the first place. 

[Daria Kulikova_GitProtect_io]

Nice tactics @James O_Connor . Your approach really hits all the key areas: body, mind, and emotions.