Latest / RiseUp - Live Joy Your Way / Ep. 24 – Stress Busters

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Ep. 24 – Stress Busters · RiseUp - Live Joy Your Way

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: Today's episode is produced by my friends at Walk West.
• 0:03
  SPEAKER_01: If you're looking to grow your brand and generate leads through podcast or video production, head over to walkwest.com.
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, let's start the show.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Rise Up.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: Live Joy Your Way with Comedy Wood.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: It's time to step into your power.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_01: Everybody, and welcome to another episode of Rise Up, Live Joy Your Way.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_01: For those of you who are unfamiliar with me, I am Comedy Wood and I am a certified life coach that works with individuals on healing that relationship with themselves and ending the outsourcing of self-worth.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_01: All of this in an effort to go on to have healthier relationships and to be able to define success and happiness for oneself rather than living to those external validations or external expectations.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_01: So today in my house, it was a big day.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_01: Three out of my five kids ended up starting their virtual school year.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_01: I will freely admit that this has been a time of stress in our life.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_01: Getting, you know, the back to school shopping did not include just supplies for the classroom or new clothes.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_01: It was also about making sure that they had their desks set up the right way, they had ample study space, trying to figure out how we were going to work the schedule so that each individual child was able to get the quiet time that they need, that there was enough internet connection in our house to manage all of us.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_01: And of course the other stresses that are coming along with virtual school, which is how our sports are gonna look, and you know, the the emotional wellness of the children not being able to socially interact face to face with their peers.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_01: So all of these, including just being a working parent and trying to manage a work schedule while also managing the day-to-day virtual school, and it's not to say that uh the school is not being as supportive as they can be.
• 2:03
  SPEAKER_01: I am absolutely um grateful for everything that the school is doing to support the students.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_01: But it it's it is stressful, there's no doubt about it.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um, trying to manage a household and a working schedule and the school schedule all under one roof has been difficult, but it's it's one of those things where we have to recognize that first of all, we're not alone, and it's very important to uh be compassionate with oneself and then also to ask for help.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_01: Uh I will freely admit that being a perfectionist personality, there are times when I feel like it has to be done perfectly, and there has been a lot of growth on my part in getting used to the idea that there is not going to be, quote unquote, the right way to do this.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_01: There's going to be a way that we do it, and uh if it works for us and the children are happy and they are learning, then that's the right way for our family, and uh it's learning to give give ourselves grace as we go through this.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_01: And I know that I've done some episodes in the past on stress and being addicted to stress, but I feel that in this time and in the world the way it is, and again managing virtual school and work, we cannot talk about how do we manage stress enough in my mind.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_01: I feel like the more we talk about it and bring it into the light, we can actually start working through it.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_01: Because the truth of the matter is, is when we are in a state of overwhelm or we are in a chronic state of stress, it takes a toll on our bodies, whether we like it or not.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_01: Staying in that fight or flight mode and having that constant cortisol release and that constant um that constant high alert uh stress response in in keeping our brains in that in that that area where we think that we have to, you know, like I said, fight or flight routinely, it keeps us um, it keeps us uh it doesn't allow for our nervous system to actually ever calm down.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_01: And it can really have some damaging effects on our physical body.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um having that chronic level of stress will eventually deteriorate.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: I mean it could end up into high blood pressure, it uh it could end up with weight gain, weight loss, it could end up with uh pains where we don't expect them, you know, headaches, backache, neck pain.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_01: It can end you can end up with um digestion issues.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's just so important, I think, that when we're trying to live these joyous lives and be present in our life, we have to bring some of these topics to the forefront and we have to talk about how what are ways that we can try to combat um the stress that we're under, because if we stay in this in this constant high alert all the time, it it eventually does take a toll on us.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_01: And then that's you know, that's just the physical side, but then of course there's the emotional side.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_01: If we stay in that high alert place all the time, eventually our relationships deteriorate because we're we're entering into them and we are communicating with under such duress that eventually we start taking it out on each other, which is exactly what we don't want to do, especially in this time when we are all in the house and we have to not only be compassionate to ourselves but be compassionate to each other.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_01: So I just wanted to talk about some stressbuster ideas as we go through this and we go through the ongoing pandemic that we're facing, and and it's true, you know, each of us have our own reaction to it, each of us have our own opinion about the right way that we should be handling it.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_01: I know that there are plenty of parents who feel like we just have to send the kids back to school.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_01: There are plenty of parents who say no, we should not do that.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: So part of it is recognizing that we each are able to have our own opinion and being respectful of that, but then it's also how do we manage our own personal levels of stress so that we can make it through the situation that we're in without uh really having those emotional and physical tools.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_01: One of the things that I would suggest is keeping a stress journal.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, a lot of times I talk to my clients about journaling and and how it's so important to put pen to paper.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_01: You know, when when I say journal, some of them roll their eyes at me and some are like, well, I type things on my computer, I type them into my phone.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_01: Which typing them onto your computer or onto your phone, that is helpful just to get it it is a way to get things out of your head.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_01: But I do suggest that when journaling, putting pen to paper, old school style, it really allows that output channel for the brain to really to really release it.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_01: Um there is there is that connection between when you're writing something on paper with a pen.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_01: So one of the things when dealing with stress is to just keep a stress journal that keeps track of the situations that trigger the stress and your response to it.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_01: Because when you keep a journal of those triggers and the response, and you're able to maybe possibly see a correlation or a pattern in when the stressful episodes happen or are able to identify what could be the common trigger, you'll be able to more effectively address the situation.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_01: If we just walk around all day saying I'm stressed out, I'm stressed out, but there's no uh way to track what the triggers are, it's very difficult to do a pattern interrupt.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_01: It's very difficult to address that situation.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_01: So that would be one way to start combating the high levels of stress that you might be facing.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_01: And uh the second one is something I talk about all the time, which is laughter.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_01: And I know there are times when it feels like that's just silliness or it's impossible to think about when you are stressed out or or under these just crazy times.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_01: But laughter, I mean, we've heard it all before, laughter is the best medicine.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_01: The truth of the matter is that research has confirmed that laughter does release those neurotransmitters and endorphins that interact with the brain and are able to naturally create this antidepressant.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: And so when you know we look at it in laughter, not only does it increase our energy, but it really does reduce tension and it lowers the levels of cortisol and epinephrine and the stress hormone.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_01: So, according to some of these studies, when we do this, the laughter actually produces brainwave frequencies to those similar of those that you would receive if you were actually practicing a mindfulness meditation, which we all know that mindfulness meditation does help relax, it does help us focus, and it helps us raise our resiliency factor.
• 8:53
  SPEAKER_01: With that said, if laughter produces some of those same experiences, one would say and suggest that finding a way to bring laughter into your daily life is really important.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_01: And I talk about this just in in our daily life when we can raise that joy, raise that laughter, have a little bit of fun with our life, it automatically raises the vibration level.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: Now, uh from laughter, as I mentioned, laughter creates some of these same responses that happen in mindfulness meditation.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_01: So the third stress buster that I would suggest is trying to add a meditation practice to your daily schedule.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_01: And I know so many of us right now, as we're even talking about this, you know, we're talking about stress and the fact that we already feel overwhelmed.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_01: And it I know the initial thought is, I don't have time for that.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_01: And the truth of the matter is that we have to make time for that.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_01: We have to make time to slow down just for five to ten minutes, twice a day, you know, five minutes in the morning and five minutes in the evening, or ten minutes in the morning, ten minutes in the evening, just to allow the ability to quiet the mind, to give the mind a little bit of rest.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_01: It helps reduce these stress levels as we're talking about.
• 10:07
  SPEAKER_01: It does decrease anxiety, and it allows us to truly just breathe.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, when we're under these enormous amounts of stress, it's it we're breathing, but we're breathing shallowly, shallowly.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_01: It's about really getting in those deep breaths and really allowing that space to focus on filling our lungs with air, really breathing from our core, slowing it down and quieting our brain and allowing us that space to just allow the thoughts.
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_01: They, you know, and I say that I don't sit there and try to control the thoughts.
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_01: It's about letting them come in and out and giving it the space for that to be okay because that's what will help reduce the amount of overwhelm that we're feeling.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_01: Another really important thing as we're going through these stressful times is to get enough sleep.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_01: Again, I get it.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_01: We're under these, these, you know, all the to-do lists are huge.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_01: We've got our schedule to maintain.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_01: We have to make time to sleep.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_01: And I know this from personal experience.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I used to be the one who's sleeping, you know, with four hours of sleep.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_01: It doesn't work, it eventually runs you down.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_01: And in, you know, if you're already under stress and you try to muscle through it and you know, try to run on three hours or four hours of sleep, it's gonna catch up with you.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: So it's really important to make sure that you're getting a really um at least between seven and eight hours at a minimum in order to uh re you know replenish yourself and to fill that cup back up.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_01: Um and if you are struggling getting that that sleep, it's equally important to then try to at least get that meditation time in and allowing yourself to to have that quiet time.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_01: And then the other stress fuster that I wanted to mention was getting back with nature.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_01: And I know again, all of these ideas, the reaction could easily be, I don't have time for that, or that that how am I gonna make time for that?
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_01: One of the things that we have to recognize is that when we don't make time to refill our cup or we don't make time to calm, you know, add some calm into our day, our resiliency, if you think of it like a water level, right?
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_01: Our resiliency factor, and we don't actually uh do things to fill the water level back up.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um if we think of ourselves as a boat floating along that water, eventually our boat is gonna crash.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_01: We have to be able to raise the water level back up.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_01: And so one of the things that I suggest in terms of you know combating these high stress levels is to get back into nature.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_01: Go for a walk, get outside, breathe some fresh air, allow for that space to just be present.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_01: It you know, don't it and I talk about the concept of mindfulness and and how it's important to get present in the the current moment because we spend so much of our day either worrying about the past, which of course we can't undo or fix because it's done and gone, or we spend equally amount amounts of time future tripping and worrying about solving problems of the future.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's so important to get present, you know, reconnect with nature, reconnect with just fresh air if we can in order to calm down and not spend so much time in the past or in the future, but just really in the present moment.
• 13:36
  SPEAKER_01: So sometimes when you do take go for a walk and are able to just really um connect with the sounds that you're hearing, for instance, if you're walking and you're hearing the birds chirp or you hear the wind blow, or you feel the breeze, um, or you can notice just the leaves on the trees and just get present in the present moment, it allows your mind to quiet down and allows that monkey mind the space to just settle so that you're not constantly thinking of the very next thing that you're going to have to do.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_01: If you do feel that you would like some support on just managing the stress or managing the anxious thoughts that you're having or automatic negative thoughts that seem to be popping up on a day-to-day basis, feel free to reach out.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_01: You can go to chatwithcomedy.com and schedule a time to talk, or feel free to jump over to my website, comedywood.com.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_01: I have a lot of blog articles and resources available on different ways that you can manage stress and you know the anxious thoughts.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_01: So if there's anything I can do to support, I would really welcome you to reach out.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_01: And until next time, I'm Comedy Wood.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening to Rise Up.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: Always remember your uniqueness and the gift that you bring to this world.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_00: Life happens for you, not to you.