12 Tips For Extremely Stressful Times
By award-winning author and stress-relief expert Susie Mantell
Following a catastrophe we all need some distance from the event to process what has happened as we heal. While "Tincture of Time" is doing its work, we can benefit from a wide variety of relaxation techniques. Each of us will experience any event from our unique perspective, through the filter of our personal histories. Similarly, we need to collect stress-reduction tools that work within our own lifestyle and belief system.
A Few One-Size-Fits-Most Stress-Relief Tools:
Healthy nutrition, pleasurable exercise, massage and restful sleep
Music & creative expression, journaling
Connecting with others & Laughter
Meditation and Guided Imagery
12 TIPS for EXTREMELY STRESSFUL TIMES
1) Cry when you need to,laugh whenever you can. Smiling sends an "all's well" message to the body/mind.
2) Find, and give, comfort. Gentle touch helps us to feel grounded and connected.
3) Take control of areas where you can. Avoid excesses,drink plenty of water and limit sugar, caffeine and alcohol. Rest.
4) Remember that feeling "normal" will be different for each person.
5) Know when to turn off TV/Radio/Internet. In troubling times, some feel safer by being very well-informed, but obsession and "information overload" can become a problem. Plan activities near bedtime that are soothing. Perhaps a warm bath, foot-rub, light snack, light reading, or quiet time with someone you care for.
6) Be alone when you need to, then balance with social support. Find ways to create meaning and to help in some way, volunteer, donate time, skills, resources or finances.
7) Write a "Comfort Letter" This is one of my personal favorites for coping with feelings that seem to overwhelm or preocculy.
- Set a timer for 5 minutes.
- Write a letter to someone real or imagined, living or not. This may be a historical figure, spiritual guide, faraway friend or a loved one who has passed on.
- (IMPORTANT: DO NOT SEND THE LETTER. This is an exercise just for you.)
- Scribble every worry out and all your anger or fear. Ask this person for insight and comfort.
- Stop when the timer rings, close your eyes. Take three slow, cleansing breaths.
- Reset the timer. Now write a reply FROM the recipient.
You'll be amazed! Writing meditation helps us reconnect with our higher consciousness, and to re-balance in stressful times.
8) Your concentration may be a bit off, so pay extra attention to safety,proofread work, but cut yourself some slack if you make mistakes.
9) If you care for others, allow yourself time and space to experience your own feelings and heal, ensuring strength, stability and stamina to help others.
10) If you sense that you or another could benefit from talking with a compassionate healthcare professional, local hospitals, physicians or clergy are good starting places.
11) Try, as much as possible, to release the past,and the future. Be Here Now. Mindfulness is the first principle of meditation for healing relaxation.
12) Listen to your intuition,and go about normal routine and activities as best you can. Routine is a great comfort. It has been said that "Success is getting up one more time."
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Award-winning stress-relief expert Susie Mantell ...is the author of the deeply soothing relaxation CD, "Your Present: A Half-Hour of Peace,” clinically approved for symptoms associated with stress and sleeplessness, depression and grief, anxiety, P.T.S.D., Fibromyalgia, caregiver stress, cancer, pain, divorce and addiction recovery. Featured in The Los Angeles Times, NBC, ABC, CBS-TV, Town & Country, The American Pain Society, Hazelden and The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, listeners include The Mayo Clinic, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, The Betty Ford Center, V.A. Hospitals,and Canyon Ranch (#1 Spa.) Customizing stress-reduction for Fortune 500 companies, distinguished hospitals and spas, Mantell has facilitated thousands in relieving health-related, work-related, chronic or traumatic stress. Her multi-sensory, mind-body techniques appear in national media, medical and corporate publications. Susie Mantell's Stress-Relief & Wellness Tips are intended as an adjunct to, not a substitute for, professional health care. Order “Your Present: A Half-Hour of Peace” and find more of Mantell’s stress-relief tips at www.relaxintuit.com