Simple and Some Silly Stress Elimination Strategies

Do you experience stress regularly? If so, how does the stress get in your way of being actively engaged in, focused on, and passionate about your right line?
What is stress anyway? Where does stress really exist? So much has been written about stress that getting clear about stress can be stressful!

In working with clients or when delivering workshops I offer that stress is the collision of two physical objects and that the only place that stress occurs in an uncontrolled environment is in nature—two natural forces that collide create tension (e.g., tsunami).

Other stress is observable in scientific or human behavior.
Scientific Behavior: We control stress when we force two objects to collide—conduct tests in labs to ensure products withstand pressure and are safe.

Human Behavior: We are in full control of how we respond to two objects colliding because one of the two objects is us, with the other being an external event, another person, or something in the environment

We are the designers of our lives and have ultimate control over how we go through each day. So, accepting that stress doesn’t exist until we create it, physically, or mentally, means we can eliminate it. Consider the following strategies.

Eliminating Stress In-the-Moment
You can eliminate grabber, whiplash-like stress in 1-2 minutes using any one of the following activities:

1. STOP whatever you are doing
—Pause, be silent if in conversation
—Take deep breaths and focus energy on the place in your body where you noticed stress
2. Get out of your chair if you are sitting down
3. Take small steps if you are standing
4. Picture yourself in your most comforting place or keep a picture of a favorite place nearby and sneak a peek
5. Write anything
—Example: I am stressed out and I don’t know what to write. This is a silly exercise. Why on earth am I doing this? You must be kidding me.
6. Play with a small toy
7. Stick out your tongue
8. Tune in to a measure of your favorite piece of music

Eliminating Stress Over Time
You can eliminate underlying, nagging, and unable to shake-it stress over time by developing a regular practice of any of the following activities:

Easy to adopt
1. Sit in silence for 1 minute twice a day—1 minute can feel excruciatingly long in the beginning. If your mind is anything like mine, it may well go all over the place. Let it go wherever it goes. The idea is to develop a practice of sitting in silence.
2. Meditate
3. Journal
4. Exercise
5. Drink water

May be more challenging to adopt
1. Question your thoughts and beliefs
2. Create a different story
3. Reframe your language
—Some words cause physical stress simply by how they are they are formed in the mouth (e.g., words ending in “t”)

Use any of the strategies. Tada, no more stress.