Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Just Say "NO!"

The Mess of Stress

Try to Take Some Things off Your Plate


I know I haven't posted in a while there by breaking my initial promise to post daily or regularly. However, my reason for not posting these past few days is directly related to my topic today- stress! I have been feeling super overwhelmed recently for a variety of reason- emotionally taxing experiences and situations, an abundance of school work, a host of different responsibilities ranging from babysitting to this very blog, and many more things that I can't even precisely pinpoint at the moment. Regardless everything built up and exhausted me resulting in my sleeping through this entire past Sunday. (Literally I went to bed late Saturday night and didn't wake up til 5:30 AM on Monday.) I woke up Monday feeling completely out of sorts and dazed not to mention starving and dehydrated. While maybe my body needed this extra rest for relief it only served to exacerbate my mental stress because I planned on utilizing Sunday for work and to complete assignments. So Monday turned out to be a crazy day- I ended up calling my Mom to help me figure out what I was feeling and what I should do to alleviate some of the pressure and stress. She came up with a not so unique idea but it was one that probably never would of crossed my mind. Say no to babysitting for the next couple weeks, take a brief hiatus from the blog- take some things off your plate- and create more time for yourself to complete your work and relieve some of the pressure. A quote I came across, while searching for motivational stress relief, seemed to perfectly fit my situation:

"The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one 
thought over another."




-William James


Not only do we have the power to opt out of certain responsibilities and activities we also have the ability to give attention and concentration to some ideas or thoughts while allowing others to slip by. Deciding which thoughts are worth our time and expanding on and which ones don't warrant additional energy or are better off being forgotten is another way to eliminate stress from our life. Having a crazy amounts of thoughts, many of which are extraneous, bouncing around in our heads can create stress especially they manage to distract us or we are unable to prioritize them. Some stressors can't be avoided- school work, job responsibilities, unexpected life events. But, if you are stressed take a step back, look at your to-do list, and see what can be eliminated. If it looks like there is nothing, look again, is everything crucial? The answer is most likely no. So if you're already overly stressed and someone asks you to do a favor for them just say "No!" Maybe you have already agreed to do something and you're now realizing that it's just too much- it's never to late to go back and try to take some things off your plate. For the most part people will understand and actually be willing and able to accommodate your needs or requests. Stress exists, it is relatively inevitable, but life does not need to be as stressful as we often make it. Overextending yourself helps no one. In the end the tasks suffer because you are unable dedicate the necessary time and attention. Additionally and most importantly you are negatively impacted when you take on more than you can handle. Don't torture yourself by overburdening yourself. Open up your schedule- create more time for work but also for fun! Life is stressful but we are able to help ourselves in two ways: 1) Eliminate extraneous responsibilities, tasks, and thoughts when you can. 2) Give yourself a break, have fun, and enjoy life! Whether it's socializing with friends, watching a favorite movie, or getting a manicure gift yourself with a mini-vacation. You'll be surprised how refreshed you feel afterward and how much more productive you are able to be!

Look at the bigger picture and prioritize,
xo

Do us all a favor and don't let this be you...







Under Pressure, Queen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a01QQZyl-_I

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