Managing Stress
Gabor Mate, in his book, When the Body says No: the cost of hidden stress, writes, "“The research literature has identified three factors that universally lead to stress: uncertainty, the lack of information and the loss of control.” This book looks at the role of stress in one's body - how stress affects people.
Perhaps you feel a lot of stress right now.
Signs of over - stress may include:
- Feelings of irritability, sadness or guilt
- Change in sleep patterns
- Change in weight or appetite
- Difficulty in concentrating or making decisions
- Negative thinking
- Loss of interest, enjoyment or energy in something you used to enjoy
- Restlessness
(Note 1).
There are many different ways to view and understand stress including:
Identifying the source of stress.
Differentiating what is controllable vs. what is outside of control.
Reduce tension with body calming strategies such as deep breathing and mindfulness.
Overtime, stress can build up and it often carried bodily.
Hilary Mcbride has a book called, the Wisdom of your Body where she writes, "“Our bodies are telling the stories we have avoided or forgotten how to hear - and sometimes our inability to feel our feelings (the messages that precede the alarm bells) means that our bodies have to scream in order to get some attention.”
Approaching our senses and the feelings in our bodies with curiousity can help begin to identify the impact of stress in our lives. (Note 2)
Perhaps you are feeling stress and overwhelm right now and want to shift your relationship with stress. Reach out today and one of our certified therapists can help you process and and learn new strategies for handling stress.
Notes
2. Hilary Mcbride has a book called Practices for Embodied Living that integrates with the book The Wisdom of your Body.