Stress Management The Right Way
Photo by Vladislav Muslakov on unsplash
It feels like it’s been a long winter already, and I can’t believe I’m saying that given the mild weather we’ve (mostly) had. But the exhaustion has really worn me out!
Stress
I’m not sure I can remember a time when I wasn’t stressed for one reason or another, to some degree or another. If there wasn’t something major to stress over, I’d default to finding multiple little things to stress over. I became blind to the fact that there may be something more going on, and instead believed this is just the way life is.
The Wrong Way
I always told myself I could finally relax when
A) the stressful situation was over
B) the to-do list is taken care of
Sure this worked for case A. But then what happens? Case B soon takes over. And let’s be real. Do to-do lists ever go away? It’s like my body is addicted to the stress! And the problem with this “if this, then” way of thinking is that I never actually got to the root of the problem. I thought for sure these were the sources of my stress. (Ok, sometimes it is the circumstances, but not always.) In reality, these are more or less symptoms of a deeper issue.
The (Possible) Real Problem
Now, this is only a self-diagnosis, but after some searching, it sure seemed like a good fit.
Adrenal fatigue
Hard to focus, hard to get up in the morning, fixated on problems, low stress tolerance, craving carbs, and bloating are just a few symptoms.
So it turns out, it may not be cases A & B causing the stress, but adrenal fatigue causing me to stress over cases A & B. Now that I have an idea of what’s going on, how do I fix it?
The Right Way
The first solution listed to improve adrenal fatigue was sleep. Huh, well that sounds about right. That’s the first thing I neglected in order to fix my stress.
The only time I had to tackle the to-do list was at night after the kids went to bed. By the end of the day, I was so tired, not a whole lot got done, even though I was staying up late. Lose-lose.
Now, my goal is to go to bed at 10 pm, 11 at the latest. Also, I’m going to use lavender oil to help calm me. I tried this route last night, and I’ve already noticed a difference.
Other means of helping adrenal fatigue listed were:
- low-intensity exercise for 45-60 min. every day
- get lots of space (ie. spend time outside)
- avoid all sugars
- increase potassium
- intermittent fasting
That’s a lot to change at one time, so I’m taking the slow approach and taking it one step at a time. Don’t want to stress myself out, you know :)
Very well explained.. when we were young we did not know about the "stress " thing . But as we grow and past the teenage we suddenly feel all is depends upon us. We get stressed by anything.
I think when we live for others and dont have time for your own then things gets different. So, just have some time for yourself can create a huge difference.
Completely agree!
Hi @hebrewhousewife! While I've been scarce on steemit I've missed seeing you around! How is that sweet boy of yours? Are you and your family coping and adjusting to ABBA's better way of eating? I'm sorry to hear about your stress. And yes, no pill for that. Although if there were it would come with multiple side effects. Did you know that the majority of people actually have adrenal burnout, and simply don't know it?! We live in too much of a contrived lifestyle. It is so very far from our Creator's perfect and pure design - the result (one of many) stress and adrenal burnout. There are some wonderful natural remedies. It is hard for me to advise you from SA but try a health store. The basics in the adrenal burnout (adaptogen) should contain things for calming as well as immune boosting. So Vit B, valerian, ginseng, chromium, echinacea and even spirulina. These are all amazing and a good adrenal burnout will contain most of these and probably more goodies. Hope this helps
Hey @buckaroo! How have you been doing? He is doing well. He’s growing and putting on healthy weight. Still having normal blood sugars. We are adjusting quite well to a new way of eating. We have a setback once in awhile, but nothing too major.
It wouldn’t surprise me at all! This fallen world has nothing to offer but stress if you ask me. Thank you for the suggestions. I’ve found some supplements for adrenal and cortisol support that I may give a try.
I hope the changes you are making will be helpful!
Stress is never a good thing!
Not recognized you say.....that is interesting!
Howdy hebrewhousewife! Very interesting that adrenal fatigue is not listed by mainstream medicine, that's amazing because I've been hearing about it for many years. But it looks like you are on your way to solving this issue, I think you're doing a fantastic job. Just think of all the meds they would have put you on if you went to the doctor about it!