Steps to managing your stress

Most of you know that I am so privleged to be part of a cool collaboration with a few other coaches based here in Hawkes Bay, we call ourselves The Coaching Circle

A few weeks ago we hosted our sold out event Delight, an evening designed to support those wanting to DECLUTTER, DESTRESS and DECIDE what truly matters to them. Each of our amazing coaching spoke to their area of expertise and you guessed it!!! I spoke about stress or destress to be more precise. 

I wanted to talk about two focus areas in relation to managing stress which led me to open with acknowledging a place to start and how to do that.

Before we can start to manage our stress we need to be honest about what’s really on our plate. I call this a “stress stocktake". Taking an intentional moment to see what’s on your plate, what’s weighing you down, and what’s out of your control. Name it, acknowledge it for what it is. This is the first step. It gives you something tangible to focus on, moving away from the general throw away comments that we make about being "so stressed". What does that actually mean? What are you actually dealing with? With this knowledge you can start to tease apart the good stuff, the stuff that doesn't come with a sense of discomfort and the stuff that does. Then begins the work around what you can actually control.

Unfortunately you can’t think your way out of stress. Stress lives in your body, and your body needs a way to move it through and out.

That’s led me to talk about my second focus point which was completing the stress cycle. Because again It’s not just about reducing what’s coming at you—although that’s important. It’s also about helping your body feel safe enough to let the stress go.

If you’re noticing that stress is sticking around—tight shoulders, trouble sleeping, that wired-but-tired feeling—try pausing for a moment:

• How does stress show up in your body right now?

• When you’re not in stress mode, how do you feel? Can you name what it feels like?

• What would help you get closer to that feeling?

Once you’ve noticed how stress is showing up, you can work with your body to help it complete the cycle. There are some simple, evidence-based ways to do this—breathwork, movement, even a good cry or a belly laugh can help. Flick me a message if you’d like some ideas.