[progressally_objectives]

Video

Lesson

Stress is a given, but being stressed out is optional!

That’s the number one takeaway I want to leave you with for this lesson.

We are going to experience stress. We need a certain amount of nervous system activation to have the motivation to get out of bed in the morning and engage with the world.

As I stated in the video, we experience stress when our perceived demands exceed our perceived resources. The key part of that description is the word “perceived.” How do you interpret what’s going on around you? Is this a challenge or a disaster?

If we can change our relationship to stress, we can change our life!

(This isn’t to say, exactly, that “stress is good for you.” We know that consistently high levels of stress can have a toxic effect on the brain and body. There’s a difference between changing how we experience stress — and thus making it less stressful — and simply being okay with unhealthy levels of activity that keep us in a near-constant fight-or-flight state).

Your Mindful Move

How do you deal with stress? Do you respond by catastrophizing? Or do you see stress as a signal that you need to act differently and more skillfully?

Check out the following resources for cultivating a more healthy relationship with stress:

10 Things Non-Stressed Out People Know and Do

Tips for Managing Stress from the CDC (includes helpful information for parents and teachers)

Befriending Fear: Working With Worry and Anxiety from Mindful Magazine

Mindfulness Meditation for Stress from Headspace