Stress - Coach for Your Dreams

7 Stress Busting Tips for the Holidays

Gladys M. Anderson Empowerment Specialist

Holidays are filled with joyous times spend with family and loved ones but can often be stressful as well. Some studies indicate that stress, depression and suicide are highest during the holiday season. To reduce stress, overwhelm and possible depression, consider some of these stress busting tips for the holidays, practice some good self care and enjoy! Start your list early. Even if you change your mind, you have a guideline in place for gift giving and shopping. I usually start my list early in the year as I listen to what my family and friends say are on their wish list. Of course, the list might change by December but I've already gotten a head start and can avoid the last minute buying frenzy. Budget wisely. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self-Care Practices Tagged With: Holiday stress, Holidays, Stress, Tips

Bad News is a Bummer

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Bad news is a bummer. It matters little if the news is life changing or a disappointing outcome; it can easily be a shock or a setback. Last week, my day started out as usual until I got a phone call from a relative with some pretty disturbing news that changed my whole outlook. When things like that happen, do you resort to hand wringing, crying, questioning "why", what if", and "if only”? I must admit, for a short while I was stuck in worry mode. After taking some really deep breaths to get centered, I focused on what I could realistically do about the situation. This is what I came up with to bounce back from worry: Be Realistic - Is there anything you can do to realistically change the situation? If you can change the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self-Care Practices Tagged With: bad news, Self-Care Practices, self-care tips, Stress, worry

Your life is a Sum Total of Your Responses to the Choices You Have Made

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Years ago, when I first heard the quote "our lives are the sum total of the choices we have made", by Dr. Wayne Dyer, I quickly discounted it just as a lot of people do. Because I was so wrapped up in my "stories" about what should have happened that I didn't see how I could possibly have been remotely responsible for how the choices I made were reflected in my life. As I gave the quote more thought, I came to realize it had more meaning for me when I interpreted it this way - Your life is a sum total of your responses to the choices you have made. Maybe I'm taking too much liberty with Dr. Dyer's quote but that's a choice I get to make. If you look at the quote as how the choices you made are connected to distressing thoughts, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self Improvement Tagged With: Motivation, responsibility, Stress, stressful thoughts

Pretty is as Pretty Does

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I often use to hear my grandmother say, “pretty is as pretty does” whenever someone complimented one of her grandchildren on their looks. It was one of those sayings that I heard often, but never really giving much thought to what it meant until recently. Recently, as I waited in a line [practicing patience], I overheard a well dressed, attractive young woman say to someone in a rather nasty tone, “what the *%&*^ are you looking at?” And, immediately I was transported back to my childhood hearing my grandmother’s voice, "pretty is as pretty does". No matter how well dressed, articulate or well connected you are if you are not pretty on the inside, you present your ugly side to the world – just like the woman I … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self Improvement, Setting Boundaries Tagged With: overwhelmed, practice patience, pretty inside and outside, Stress

What Happens to Your Body When You’re Stressed – Part 1

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Have you heard the phrase, "stress is a killer". Surely, that phrase should be a wake up call to get a handle on stress. But, unfortunately, most of us wear stress like a comfortable pair of old shoes. According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, two-thirds of office visits to family doctors are for stress-related symptoms such as fatigue, body aches, obesity and heart palpitations. These are stressful times for all of us and coupled with our day-to-day stressors, we can easily become affected by stressful symptoms. When you have a gazillion things on your to-do-list, you're overwhelmed by the demands on your time, and can't take a minute just for yourself, your body will respond to these stressors as though you … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self Improvement Tagged With: coach for your dreams, gladys m. anderson, Stress, warning signs of stress

The Effects of Stress and How it Shows Up in Your Life – Part 2

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I know you hear a lot about stress but unless you get a grip on stress, stress will get a grip on you and won't let go. The second article in this series is meant to give you concrete examples of how stress shows up in your life. I'm sure you have either experienced or know someone who seems prone to accidents, often gets burned while cooking, is always tired or gets frequent colds during the winter. It's not that you or anyone else is unlucky, unhealthy, clumsy or unfocused. These are all early warning signs leading to stress overload. Let's take a look at the effects stress has on your body. Physical Stress - Do you often complain of a headache or wake up tired? Here are some signs of physical stress: Frequent … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self Improvement Tagged With: coach for your dreams, gladys m. anderson, Stress, stress warning signs, warning signs of stress

How You Can Get a New Lease on Your Stressful Life – Part 3

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Stress leads to strokes, high blood pressure, obesity, and a host of other serious illnesses. Did I get your attention? Stress is not to be taken lightly. But the good news is, you can do something about it. Now that you are aware of the toll stress takes on your body and how to recognize stressful symptoms, here are some ways to help you get a better handle on stress:. Try new ways of thinking - Change the way you think and the things you think about will change. Work on releasing anger, frustration and worry. Worrying about tomorrow or yesterday wastes precious energy that could best be used to tackle the things you can change Learn to say "no". A sure way to add stress to your life is to fear saying … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self Improvement, Self-Care Practices Tagged With: Stress, symptoms of stress, the effect of stress on the body

10 Quick and Easy Tips to Reduce Daily Stress

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In today's media frenzy, you are constantly bombarded with news of tragedy, war, economic upheaval, and more and doom and gloom headlines. All this just makes you want to scream. You focus on the problems and not your reactions to them. That is where you open the door and let stress in. Here are ten quick and easy things you can do immediately to help keep your stress level under control: 1) Establish consistent routines - Put your keys away in the same place every day. Establishing a predictable, consistent routine allows more time to focus on other important things. Having things in a specific location cuts down on time spent looking for them and in turn reduces frustration. 2) Avoid Rushing - Keep a small amount of cash … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self-Care Practices Tagged With: Stress, the effects of stres, tips to handle stress

Relax, Rejuvenate and Rest

By Gladys Anderson Leave a Comment

Talk about an "aha" moment...I have had several the past couple of weeks as I lay coughing, sneezing and feeling like walked on dirt from some all-encompassing "bug". There's nothing quite as enlightening as not being able to do anything but lie still and take time for reflection. How often have I said, "take time for yourself", "take care of yourself first", etc. (you've heard it from me many times). Yet, there I was completely depleted mainly because I neglected to take care of the most important person - me. We often ignore all the warning signs - exhaustion, disturbed sleep patterns, lack of energy - while feeling like we're on a fast moving treadmill at top speed. Don't ignore these warning signs. This is exactly the time to … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Self-Care Practices Tagged With: relaxation, Stress, warning signs of stress, women

It’s True: You Can Get Rid of the Clutter Monster

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Do you know that a quarter of homeowners with two-car garages use them exclusively for storage and park in the driveway? How do we become such hostages to the jumble of odds and ends that once gave us pleasure and fond memories and now have outlived its usefulness? This week, I finally took on the gigantic task of clearing the clutter from my basement storage area and the garage! Whew! How many times had I said, "we really need to clear out some stuff of this stuff." It was merely a passing comment…didn't happen! So to solve the problem, I tried my best to ignore the growing mound of useless odds and ends that had taken over my space. I finally could tolerate it no longer. So amongst the empty soda cans, the unused boxes of … [Read more...]