Don’t Stress Out Over Summer
health self-care stress Jul 26, 2017
Doug Hahn, HeartMath Certified Coach
“Just relax--it’s summer vacation!”
That may have worked when I was a kid, but now I’m not so sure. Asking around, here are some responses I hear:
Alisha: Well, first I badgered my teenage for 3 weeks to get a job. Then I ferried my kids around town at least twice a day to all their activities I signed them up for to keep them out of trouble. All this while I’m scrambling for freelance jobs.
Ken: We had to return early from our Appalachian backpacking vacation because my girlfriend was in so much pain. Beautiful mountains and back surgery all in the same month.
Rob: My one coworker quit, then the other took vacation, leaving me to work 60 hours a week and cancel my vacation. My grandkid had his first little league game - I missed it.
Julie: I had my summer all set: 6 different camps for my 10 year old, with a week of family vacation (I started reservations in April). Of course, then she got sick. And I’m worried about my job.
Tom: We went to Disney for vacation. 25 hours in the car with screaming, carsick kids. And a week of rain and watching tv in the hotel sandwiched between. Not the quality time with my kids I was hoping for.
Mary: Well, I’m moving to another city. So that sums up my whole stressful summer.
OK, so maybe I only asked my stressed-out friends. Stress is our body and mind’s reaction to events dragging us out of balance in a negative direction. Sometimes it’s a shove like Ken’s case. Sometimes it’s a constant tug like Mary’s. There are ways to counteract this negative reaction and help strengthen our stability. Everyone has something different that recharges them and brings them back to balance. Summer is the time of year when we can find it easier to engage in these activities to build up our resilience. Even when we have all those stress causing drains, we also have recharging activities that counteract stress. We can...
Don't let the summer pass you by. The more stress you have, the more you need to find what you need to do to recharge your body and mind. Help yourself regain your center.
