Several years ago I read something that forever changed the way I thought about stress. It took a few more years but this very simple question has continued to have an impact on the way I deal with stress.
David Posen is a Canadian physician who writes and speaks on the topic of stress and it’s effect on his patients. The question he asked that had such an impact on me was “what if you only had a set number of stress responses, how would you use them?”. Say you are allotted a specific number of times that you can tax your body through having a serious stress response before your body develops a serious problem, would you use one of those responses when your child spills juice on the new couch, when a tourist cuts you off on a morning you are running late, when your boss gives you an extra shift during the holidays? The Little Book of Stress Relief
So now when something happens and I can feel my temperature rising, my heart starting to pound and the beads of sweat beginning to form, I try to take a minute and a breath and I ask myself “is this worth it”. Of course you can choose to say YES and reel yourself right up tight, go for it. But remember you get to choose whether you call out a five alarm fire or you go for a run, write in your journal or call a supportive friend. Does it work every time? Not for me, no way, but did it help? In the immortal words of Sarah Palin…You betcha. Give it a try see if it works for you. With stress reduction and resiliency strategies…every little bit helps.
