FEELING STRESSED? READ THIS
Stressed Out? Here’s How to Manage
You’re chillin’ with your evening tea, minding your business — until those thoughts happen.
Your brain whispers, “You’re not prepared for that upcoming sales presentation,” or “You forgot to sign your daughter’s school permission slip,” and “Why did they like that IG photo?” Now you’re triggered into an endless spiral of stress. Thanks, brain.
When everything isn’t cake
Even inherently positive things can stress us TF out, like work or family. And right when we feel like we managed everything, we're hit with even more to handle.
Women can handle a lot (we're f*ing superheros) but our stress seeps into the rest of our life, affecting our sleep, energy, and health.
Just enough pressure is good, but there’s a fine line between a healthy challenge and constant frazzle.
Stress is a mind and body thing
Long-term stress can really do a number on your mental and physical health. Besides the frequent discomfort of headaches or stomach pains from the day-to-day grind, chronic stress can lead to more serious issues such as depression, heart disease, or other illnesses.
What it impacts on the reg may be more of an obvious bother to you.
Sleep
When you’re not getting the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep per night thanks to stress, your body is livin’ on a prayer. It needs sleep to be its best self. It’s no wonder that driving while sleep-deprived is as dangerous as drunk driving.
Unfortunately, great sleep is one of the first things to go when we’re stressed. An estimated 10-30% of adults struggle with insomnia. The #teamnosleep gang runs deep.
Food
Your digestive system doesn’t get off the hook, either. Stress impacts the way your body processes its energy and can lead to increased gas and gut issues.
Reaching for that second glass of wine while bingeing on your favorite drive-thru snack seems helpful at the time, but always leads to more problems. We know it’s hard, but that’s why a healthy diet is such a crucial part of overall wellbeing.
Sex
You don’t need us to tell you that stress doesn’t wait outside of the bedroom door. Increased cortisol levels from stress can lower your libido, making it hard to get in the mood or stay in the moment. It’s even worse when your love life or partner is what’s bothering you.
So we’re left with a conundrum: stress makes it harder to have healthy sleep, food, and sex patterns, but these are also what can help ease it.
HOW to manage and relieve your stress
Ok, so we know enough about stress and how it sucks — but how do we deal with it? There’s no one-size-fits-all approach. And even when we know things are good for us, it can be hard to actually get ourselves to do it.
Know how you recharge
You can’t be your own friend when you’re feeling drained. Identify what drains you and how to recover. It may be that social situations leave you on “E” by the end of the day. Get alone. Do something fulfilling. Read. Create. Watch Netflix.
The key? Let your family and friends in on it (not the activity, but your plans). When your kids know it’s “Mommy Time,” they’ll be more likely to respect your recharge and hopefully model these self-care habits themselves.Invest in your wellbeing
Whether your wallet allows you to go all out on self-care products or use what you have around the house, there’s something on the market for that. Some of our favorite products include weighted blankets, essential oil diffusers, calming night teas, House of Wise products, and bubble bath.
Professional services are another great resource that can help manage stress. Get a massage, visit an acupuncturist, or go to therapy regularly to release tension and keep negative stress spirals at bay.
Create a routine
Consistent habits produce real results. When you have a healthy routine to turn to, it will take a lot to throw you off of it. Here are some suggestions for starting your day on the right foot:
- Exercise 30-60 minutes a day: You don’t have to drop thousands for personal training or fancy equipment. A brisk walk/run outside or at-home workout apps help you burn calories, increase blood flow, and feel restored.
- Take CBD: Pop in a gummy or tincture drop to keep your body’s systems smooth sailing and your mind focused on where it needs to be.
- Meditate or journal: Set aside a moment (no phone!) to focus on your thoughts, whether through meditation, prayer, creative writing, or journaling. Sometimes the best way to deal with our overloaded head is to focus on it.
Set goals and find accountability for the best results. There’s really no excuse when your phone’s app store has thousands of exercise, breathing, and sleep apps that keep tabs on us at all times.
Managing your stress isn’t about perfection. We’re not robots. But there’s no shame in the stress-management game — we’re all getting by with a little help from our friends.
