Our lives are busy, from checking email, text messages to social media we are overloaded with “stuff.” When you add in relationships, friends, family it could feel overwhelming at times. In 2016 77% of us stated that we regularly experience physical symptoms caused by stress. While 73% of us stated that we experience psychological symptoms caused by stress. Are stress and anxiety the same time? You can CLICK HERE to read more about what is anxiety.

What is Stress?

Stress is a part of life, but why do we have it where does it come from? Stress is our natural response to events in life normally called the fight or flight. Think back long ago when we lived as hunter and gathers. When we would go out hunting if we came across a lion we would have to turn and run or fight the lion.

48% of people say stress has negative impacted their personal or professional life.

Without getting into the biological side of fight or flight, our ancestors who lived after facing a lion had a biological response. This response helped keep them alive and is what we call stress. This is a way to tell us “danger” or “pay attention to this.” The problem we face in today’s world of email, text, and Facebook is our bodies react to those things like that are a lion.

Sometimes stress is a good thing! When I had to take a big test in school I stressed out. This stress helped keep me focused and pushed me to study. It turns into a problem when it doesn’t go away. From work, money and the go go go of everyday life can lead to the negative effects. If you do not manage your own stress levels you can burn out in your career, harm your relationships, and even develop anxiety disorders.

Causes of Stress

Job pressure: Co-worker tension, bosses, to much work
Money: loss of job, medical expenses, debt
Health issues: terminal or chronic illness
Relationships: divorce, death of a close friend or family member, arguments
Media Overload: Social Network, email, dealing with people of differing political or religious beliefs on social media

Physical Symptoms

Fatigue
Headache
Upset stomach
Muscle tension
Grinding teeth
Dizziness

Psychological Symptoms

Irritability
Feeling nervous
Lack of energy
Wanting to cry

How to Deal With Stress and Anxiety

Everyone deals with stress and anxiety differently. I teach my clients to learn to develop a personal first aid kit. It can be a notebook, a binder, or a file on your computer. Your first aid kit needs to have a list of things that you like to do that help you recharge. Click here to see my first aid kit (coming in 2017) Your first aid kit must be broken up into different categories from daily, monthly, yearly.

Daily First Aid Kit

In your daily first aid kit, you must find daily actives that you can do that help you feel better and lower stress. I try to break them up into the following categories

Healthy: Running, working out, yoga
Personal: Journaling, reading, drawing
Relational: Calling my best friend, playing with my dogs
Spiritual: Watching a sunset, meditation

You can read more about developing dailies here (link coming in 2017)

Monthly First Aid Kit

Part of taking care of your self-includes planning important parts of your life. This might include a friends night were spend it with your closest friends. Date nights, family time, game nights. The key is to schedule a time to re-charge.

Yearly First Aid Kit

Go on a vacation. Make a bucket list and cross 1 item off every 6 months.

The overall goal of the first aid kit is to be mindful of taking care of yourself. Your first aid kit is not just something you write down once. You will update it, change it, and let it grow as you grow.

What are your biggest stresses in life? What things do you do to lower your stress?