8. Be Your Own Best Friend
Only you really know what you need. Only you can make it happen for yourself.
Only you can decide what
is good for you, what is bad for you, what can make your life better, or
what will make it worse. Be an advocate for yourself. Stand up for what
you need. If you don’t manage your stress, who will? A best friend
should know you like he knows himself. Be your own best friend, and
that’s exactly what you’ll have.
9. Take an Anti-Stress Vacation
It’s vacation time. Do you
know where you are going? Another visit to see relatives? Another
cross-country drive with six people in the minivan? Another trek from
one tourist attraction to the next? If your vacation stresses you out
just thinking about it, you are missing the point of a vacation.
Vacations are for relaxation and renewal, a purposefully fulfilling
break from your regular routine. Make the most of your vacation weeks to
super-power your stress management.
10. Clear Out Unnecessary Stress
You can change your life for
the better simply by clearing out the stress that doesn’t have to be
there and managing the stress that does. You can feel better today, and
you can feel even better in a few days, a few weeks, a few months, a few
years. Stress management is for life, and with little changes here and
there, with vigilance, with monitoring, and with a continued commitment
to maximizing your individual potential by minimizing the things that
are holding you back, things can only look up.
11. Get to Know Yourself
Know thyself, know thy stress. You
are worth your own time. The more you know about yourself, the more
you’ll understand about what stresses you out and what you can do about
it. Pay attention to how you feel. Write it down. Keep track, and you’ll
understand more about what needs to be done and why you do the things
you do when life gets stressful. Also, keep building your stress
management network. Nobody can do it all alone. Let your friends and
family help you, and be there to help them, too.
12. Stay True to Yourself and Keep It in Perspective
If you can break past the
barriers, you can be that person you know you are inside. Trust in
yourself and have confidence in yourself, even when it seems like nobody
else does. Only you know your true potential. When things seem out of
control, step back to gain perspective. Ask yourself: What will this
mean in the scheme of things? What are your options? What are some
alternate strategies? Is it worth letting go of this one?
13. Control What You Can, Accept What You Can’t
You don’t have to accept the negative
effects of stress on your body, mind, and spirit. You don’t have to
agree to do everything you are asked. You don’t have to be overwhelmed,
overscheduled, or overworked. If you can control it, figure out a way to
control it.
You do have control over what you
say, do, and, in some cases, feel. You don’t, however, have control over
what other people say, do, or feel. If you can’t control it, you might
as well accept it. Anything else is just a waste of energy.
14. Take Care of Yourself
Stress is just something that happens
to us, that’s all. It doesn’t impact who you are inside, and its
presence in your life says nothing about you, except, perhaps, that you
are human. But if stress is hurting you, you can make it stop. Commit
to yourself, commit to stress management, commit to being happy, and
you’ll find that it’s looking like fair weather on the road ahead.
You deserve to love
yourself and feel good about yourself, no matter what your
imperfections. If you take care of yourself, you’ll be in the best
possible state to take care of others.
