You don’t have to look that far these days to see someone who is stressed out, society is moving toward fast pace, hyper speed, need it done yesterday world. This new mentality is exposing the average person to situation we’ve never experienced before. For the most part we tend to go along with the flow and accept these conditions as part of everyday life. However along the way we need to analyze how we are dealing with this new element and how our health is impacted.
Over this past weekend I needed a few things for the house so I went to the store, my wife and I live a fair distance to stores so we must plan our time carefully. Needless to say when I arrived at the store it was very busy, people were in a hurry getting what they needed that day and didn’t waste a minute in between. You could feel the stress around you as people were navigating the isles to get what they need. I bumped into a friend of mine who told me how busy his week was.
Interestingly enough the story he told was what the mind set of most people that day in the store. Working long hours with little sleep, a supervisor with heavy demands, a schedule which seemed unreachable, not to mention doing the work of three people…Sound familiar?
Stress can be weaved in the fabric of our lives, if left unchecked it can impact our live in a way we which can make us ill. My friend was experiencing that issue. He stated how tired he was as well as how much work was left for the week, the night before he had little sleep while going over a project in his head over and over, you could say he was quite stressed out!
The company he works for encourages extra hours to complete a project, yet with little sleep how can one think clearly? Are the decisions made the right ones? I’ve experienced that work load as well, after 8 hours our focus is not as sharp as it is at the start of the day. Don’t get the wrong idea I’m all for hard work and an a few extra hours to complete a project once in a while. The challenge becomes when companies like the one my buddy works for expose employees to and endless amount of work which requires long hours and little time off.
Health issues related to stress are on the rise, high blood pressure, hypertension, week immune system, only a few however stress can also lead to eating the wrong foods. Some would call this emotional eating, when a stressful situation presents it’s self instead of facing the issue and rolling up our sleeves some people avoid the situation and reach for comfort through food. This is very unhealthy, as more situations arise reaching for a quick way to feel better through eating junk food becomes common practice.
There are other health related issues which stress can cause, headaches, migraines, hair loss, as well as premature aging. All impact a quality of life. So what can we do to deal with stress?
Although there is no perfect answer and we all deal with stress differently, I’ve found setting aside time each day for some sort of physical activity reduces the amount of stress throughout the body, this can be walking, biking, running, lifting weights, or any other type of activity which raises your blood pressure. Be careful what you focus on, if negative thoughts are all you focus on, replace them with positive thoughts. Search for someone who has been in a similar situation as yourself, study them and see how you can do the same.
Lastly serve others, when we take the focus off ourselves and put it to someone who needs help, our whole outlook changes. Volunteering helps us put our lives in perspective. Creates balance and gives us a greater appreciation for everything in life.
Take control of stress before it takes control of you!
~Stay Strong~
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