How\u2019s it going\u00a0 these days? Feeling torn apart with stress and worry, or are you cutting off the frayed edges of distress and patching up the problem areas of your life?<\/p>\n
With a grateful heart, I\u2019m encouraging you to identify the stress buttons in your life and develop your own unique solutions to cope.<\/p>\n
Life , like harvest, is stressful, but how you react to breakdowns and plugged goals really affects your physical and mental condition . Identify the stress problems you\u2019re reacting to so you know the causes of your stress. Combine monitors tell me my feeder or rotor are under stress, and I quickly slow down or shut off to avoid damage.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho or what ?<\/b>\u201d are your sources of stress?<\/p>\n
Grab a sheet of paper. Write out a list of stressors…mine are clutter, lack of computer skills , lazy committee members, telemarketers….etc.<\/p>\n
Stress facilitator Jim Cook says that \u201c as soon as you start to define the problem you can start to solve it.\u201d Now on your paper answer \u201cWhy is this stressful?\u201d Clutter in my son\u2019s room is stressful to me if I interpret his mess as my problem, a reflection that I am not a good parent because he has not disciplined himself (yet) to be tidy!<\/p>\n
How\u2019s your blood pressure as you write your stress button list? Are you angry, embarrassed,\u00a0 frustrated, hopeless, worried, upset , fearful? The negative emotions as part of our stress reaction cause inner fraying and tearing that is damaging to our health if left to be intense, continuously wearing on our minds and bodies. Cook says the \u201ckey is to get control over your emotions and use them as positive influences.\u201d Think how mad you were when the combine plugged for the umpteenth time and you had all that adrenaline pumping through you to wrench back the feeder chain. It\u2019s okay to be angry, but which emotions are causing the biggest impact?<\/p>\n
My stress buttons could be family, friends, coworkers, home situations, work events, community hassles or my habits. Sleeping in, lack of consistent exercise, clutter, and computer frustration top my list of stressors. I get angry, frustrated,\u00a0 and upset when these buttons \u201cpop\u201d and need to be re-aligned.<\/p>\n
So what\u2019s the solution?<\/p>\n
Recognize some things can be mended, and other stuff has to be thrown away and forgotten about…or just accepted as it is. Cook urges clients to look at the stress factor:<\/p>\n
1. rate the degree to which the reality of the situation can be accepted,<\/p>\n
2. rate the reduction of stress as a result of that acceptance.<\/p>\n
Some relationships in your farm family may be very testy and you\u2019ve already tried to \u201cmake things better.\u201d You can change your reaction and attitude towards others, but they are responsible for changing themselves.<\/p>\n
Consider tips to help you relax,\u00a0 \u201cSelf-care for stress reactions\u201d. You can take better care of your body and mind with what you feed it. Talking, hot baths\/showers, reading, journaling, playing cards, driving to the coffee shop, praying…find the repair kit that works for you. I had to laugh when I wanted to write this article my computer monitor stayed black as night…I phoned a computer whiz to help solve the problem…I\u2019m slowing learning !<\/p>\n
\u201cAll you have to do is look for an answer and you\u2019ll find one\u201d says Cook. \u201cAsk and you will receive.\u201d the Bible says. Things get stressful because we don\u2019t have a clue how to handle them. Gaining skill and experience with the attitude \u201cknowledge is power\u201d will help you cope. Work on your PMA…a Positive Meaningful Action that will help to improve the stressful situation.<\/p>\n
Books are where I often find help. Wes, my loving husband , teases that \u201cif Elaine read it in a book somewhere then she knows it will work, even though I suggested it (the solution) before she read the book!\u201d Make use of the Internet, toll-free numbers, and your local inter-library loan. Read your Bible.<\/p>\n
You\u2019re tired of\u00a0 \u201cmaking do\u201d with your ragged feelings and fraying problems. Time to learn how to mend with reinforcing that will ensure longer wear life… \u201cQuit hoping things will get better and start making things get better.\u201d encourages Cook. \u201cYou can start by dealing with the things that are causing you the biggest problems, or begin by eliminating some of the small things that can be taken care of quickly . You can attack the problem by dealing with the people, situations, and habits, or you can learn to control the specific emotions that are causing the stress.\u201d<\/p>\n
The only mistake you can make is to do nothing. Do not ignore the mending of you!<\/b><\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
How\u2019s it going\u00a0 these days? Feeling torn apart with stress and worry, or are you cutting off the frayed edges of distress and patching up the problem areas of your life? With a grateful heart, I\u2019m encouraging you to identify the stress buttons in your life and develop your own unique solutions to cope. Life…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[365,367],"class_list":["post-557","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-healthy-living","tag-inspiration"],"yoast_head":"\n