Working Mom Q: "My wife's an amazing woman, juggling demands of her career, our 2 year old son... and me! How can I help her counter the stress of her routine?"
By award-winning author and stress-relief expert Susie Mantell
Your appreciation of the pressure she's under is a great start.
Asking "How
can I help?" goes a long way. The body senses it's 'not in this alone,'
and lets go a little.
Here are a few 'Stress-busters' that might lighten her load:
1) Make coupons relieving her of household responsibilities: e.g. 'Good for 1
Free Saturday" or maybe "A Week of Dinners & Dishes". (Or...give her a
relaxation audio for the train or bedtime!)
2) Endorphins are released
when we're touched compassionately. Make a point of hugging, touching gently, maybe even a nice footrub?
3) Giving anyone under stress opportunities to talk about that can be a great gift. Just listen...and encourage her. It is sometimes simpler than we expect to help someone we care for.
Remember that freeing the mind even for a short while,
allows the body to replenish and restore. (see Tips & Strategies and more of these Q's & A's for some ways to do this.)
What a nice guy!
[Copyright 2000, 2008 Susie Mantell, Relax. . .Intuit (tm) LLC. All rights reserved.] Federal law prohibits use of this material in whole or in part without the express written consent of Relax...Intuit™ LLC. For Reprint Permission: Kindly email your request for guidelines, pasting in the full text of the specific article you wish to use, to info@relaxintuit.com We'll try to reply within 72 hrs.]
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