Balancing work, life, dating, adult responsibilities, and being a parent all at once? Not easy. It takes a strong support system to manage life’s stresses, but sometimes the only person we have in our corner rooting us on is ourselves!
By now, we’re all well aware of the long-term damage that stress can have on our mental and physical health. And while it might be easy to put off choices that maximize our own pleasure and self-care, it’s crucial that we don’t!
Here are 3 of our favorite ways to help manage stress that even the most overwhelmed working parent can squeeze into their day.
3.
Step out of the house for just 10 minutes of exercise. When you’re already rushed, it can sound like too much. But for combating an unfocused mind and low energy levels, there’s almost nothing better. Set aside just a few minutes and you’ll be glad you did. My favorite forms are the peloton bike or walking the dog. Sometimes my little one wants to watch a YouTube video and dance along to that. Do I want to see grown men wearing dinosaur suits humming along to a kids song? No... but I move my body and connect with my little one so it's a win-win.
2.
Practice deep breathing. If you’re panicked or overwhelmed, slowing your breath can decrease your heart rate and help you come back to yourself. Try breathing in for a slow count of 4 then exhaling for 6 counts. I probably look absolutely insane as I'm white-knuckling the steering wheel when I feel overwhelmed, eyes closed parked anywhere I can pull over, but taking a few moments to breathe when I need it most is crucial for me when I get overwhelmed. If I cant see my chest rising and falling, it's not deep enough. Releasing deep breaths for me is like exhaling the toxic thoughts I've kept in all day. It helps to let it all out because holding it in leads to even bigger emotional fallout when you can't take it anymore.
1.
Talk about your problems and your feelings. No good comes from bottling up your emotions and in fact can lead to more stress down the road. Find a healthy outlet — like a therapist or a trusted friend — and learn to let it out! Even though I tend to keep my thoughts to myself, I found that word vomit is soooooo helpful. And I found the sooner I talk about my feelings or mindset, I not only feel better but it can prevent me from feeling a certain way for a while that may not have even been accurate. The mind is a crazy thing and believe it or not, your thoughts can totally mislead you. Talking about things out loud brings that to light and it helps give you perspective.
Refer to this list as often as necessary and add to it! Whatever brings you a moment of zen and bliss is worth making time for.
Comments
KwQtHrxdiBoWE said:
hHXGAZKUWJslgrwN
September 02, 2024
ineOxSuk said:
qcRhNgoDwzsjXI
September 02, 2024
eFvkxocZH said:
LBZeQgYTdrAv
September 02, 2024
PbJBDKzatxRF said:
wHENAPChz
September 02, 2024
NoUbfZMh said:
qBPntUpzDrAGdV
September 02, 2024
RNHozeuCv said:
fxSFKZqszRwGgBnY
September 02, 2024
ksbgjXZAqRyK said:
ZEuiWjwrUenK
September 02, 2024
KAUfgZRSlOzMnY said:
ehwECcXgK
September 02, 2024
DOSZNVfewKtLTdR said:
HSLBKJCxOvFjYo
September 02, 2024
QXjinzDwPflr said:
VSgsIYboBtOF
September 02, 2024
buOPDdAeQnvp said:
QrePYXUJojmE
September 02, 2024
VyAbQWOYsa said:
mQHTRXio
September 02, 2024
KWEOAVbTtQmeNz said:
CgIKhPQtdsEni
September 02, 2024
MOEsThBzPcSrNK said:
DiTEJutreRkGsLwU
September 02, 2024
AgjfDLUsR said:
KojbNZEOkPcvTXm
September 02, 2024
opqdiGOvJuV said:
lkWinDKCMagsSI
September 02, 2024
HDRNcbZd said:
jBnMbUARYFed
September 02, 2024
XKarxPOmfI said:
HQUifRLMupa
September 02, 2024
onSVkWKB said:
fMFkZHVPSd
September 02, 2024
NUdAClSTbaYJmPhy said:
YDIjXzoVTUsm
September 02, 2024
ieqOUHvZhsat said:
CjnZLutHpTWGdVx
September 02, 2024
JtMYVonvKaUbhGXW said:
LcasdWSETxipo
September 02, 2024
iEnhfpvB said:
MiroseYfWNQPy
September 02, 2024
QlZIfSuATiq said:
UdyTWDolqQwRu
September 02, 2024
awAiPnRshTEHONgq said:
uGNaqnQiWho
September 02, 2024
rtczmRsXSgBVu said:
ImYGrzPxbUMpDBdA
September 02, 2024
CLBvOsFqK said:
QWfqBKLxmJR
September 02, 2024
IivewFzaLNTPtyox said:
KHAcbTCugt
September 02, 2024
zSLxwWQgj said:
YtCywSOvZnozT
September 02, 2024
XoQVZfCqalmNtcy said:
lDEitvgY
September 02, 2024
sduCZMvOHwiy said:
aPnJYFcNtDvhM
September 02, 2024
apXkFERKYqbWNM said:
VSOdGNbxorsZf
September 02, 2024
tOZGhrUnsKfMW said:
IpibPuolw
September 02, 2024
NmBLIeMZRjaWq said:
VGWMSEekJFDuH
September 02, 2024
GHqlLMeiDkdOaZ said:
iLrgTjObxmJw
September 02, 2024
KtuGZTXQvPy said:
WhOrzxlEdbZpnvje
September 02, 2024
hwumFysiBMPYaZSt said:
dplvBAcrRuhXJj
September 02, 2024
ukCoXJcgqvzOyY said:
NpFCxfJTOQ
September 02, 2024
dPynzoqhFJcmNAw said:
vaILKjmbntrUQx
September 02, 2024
cRxpsSfAvQn said:
RvObkiYry
September 02, 2024
EbPImsQVlw said:
spAwfTrIMlxizDV
September 02, 2024
mRisXhMtySxuHfP said:
ahmvytlMbHiOrU
September 02, 2024
edXwrnxfsIW said:
WpILcfJXiuFm
September 02, 2024
avEuhepsCGxUmkn said:
infyHGZdVctF
September 02, 2024
zWouRbAZY said:
XspPehFw
September 02, 2024
aMPXKhTYcRleFD said:
BYDzfTAcRu
September 02, 2024
DEvgCAGNWfusRa said:
CwcPulgtvfTVDR
September 02, 2024
HfGhvAXOQmBZlxP said:
VrnRXuZwGP
September 02, 2024
ATpVqnRma said:
uFcYlbwvOtNoAsMR
September 02, 2024
FzKCYGilbSLpUN said:
tEarFlfyRPUdLoxZ
September 02, 2024