Skip to main content

Just Say No to Stress


Stress is real for many people including myself.   This week I had a fellow nursing classmate and team member curse me out when I asked her had she done her work on our group project.  She hadn’t made any effort so she decided to drop the F-bomb in our clinical conference meeting about how ranted about how she was NOT going to do anything.

This was stressful and in this case unnecessary.  It was even more stressful because other students, her peers, just sat there and said nothing.  Basically, not one student had worked on the assigned worksheets for our project plan except myself so I was the “bad guy.”  Perhaps, this is the difference between being a 40+ yr old student and a 20-something who would rather wait until the last minute or pray that someone else will pick up their slack.

Sometimes stress is good and natural. It can motivate you, drive you to excel or achieve a goal. It occurs when we start a new job, buy a new home or plan a wedding.  It increases our mental focus and helps us to concentrate, increase our strength and stamina.  Unfortunately there is negative stress too. Negative stress due to strain at work, family, relationships, unrealistic expectations, inability to accept uncertainty and negative self-talk can be potentially harmful.

Constant stress in one’s life increases a stress hormone, cortisol.  Cortisol makes the heart pound faster, blood pressures go up, increase weight gain, increase nail biting, irritability and depression. 


So what can we do about managing stress?

Exercise is a good remedy.  No pills required.


·      Exercise increases endorphins, the brain’s “ feel-good” neurotransmitters making us feel happy and a sense of well-being.
·      Exercise improves mood and sleep that may be disrupted by depression, anxiety and stress.
·      Exercise of any type:  swimming, jogging, bicycling, yoga, tai chi, walking, and weightlifting for as little as 20 to 30 minutes can relieve stress.
·      Exercise with others can help one forget about life’s problems and share some laughs.

I am grateful for the four evenings I spent this week swimming, running, stretching and spinning. A little sweat is a good form of stress relief. There is nothing I can do to stop stressors, but I can do my best to manage them.

~StayFitt

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Fear, Feedback and Fuel

On Sunday, I started the Chicago Triathlon.  It was one of the largest in the United States.  The goal was to complete 1500m in Lake Michigan cycle 24.5 miles and run 6.2 miles in Chicago. I completed this race last year. It was both challenging and fun. This year the outcome was not what I had planned. I started the race surrounded by wonderful people, Some I knew while others were strangers. We all started the race together. Rough waters awaited. Lake Michigan looked menacing.  She churned and tossed us from the moment we entered the water. Here I am at the first bouy. My plan was slow and steady since I was not familiar with this type of water. So I swam. I remembered saying to myself, "Slow is fast". I focused on each stroke and thought of little else. I saw a friend swim by me. It made me feel great as I turned to the straightaway toward the finish. I could see the finish through my Rx goggles. I swam and swam. As I sighted for the tall buildings in the distanc
10 comments
Read more

Grit- Road to Chicago Olympic Triathlon

Definition  Grit in psychology is a positive, non-cognitive trait based on an individual's passion for a particular long-term goal or end state, coupled with a powerful motivation to achieve their respective objective. This perseverance of effort promotes the overcoming of obstacles or challenges that lie within a gritty individual's path to accomplishment, and serves as a driving force in achievement realization. Commonly associated concepts within the field of psychology include "perseverance", "hardiness", "resilience", "ambition", "need for achievement" and "conscientiousness".  This is who I am. Stacy the Grit.  Yes, I could spend a lot of time talking to you about my finish time and what I could improve upon yadda yadda yadda but anyone who reads my blog knows that I rarely focus on the outcome.  I focus on the process. I focus on how did I arrive at a specific point and time. I focus on the jour
6 comments
Read more

Bend or Break- RagnarDC

 So a running buddy called me a week before a 200 mile relay race from Flintstone, MD to Washington, DC. Her team needed one more runner to replace a person who could not attend due to a life event. I said, "Sure, I can do this."  I tend to be a "Yes" girl.  I like to say "Yes" more than "No." So there I sat in my pajamas not knowing what adventure awaited me. Six days after the call, I met the team for dinner and headed up to a hotel close to the course start. I must say I was nervous. I did not feel prepared. I observed how calm my teammates were and internally I was hoping to not let them down. See, I was Leg one of a 200 mile race. Leg 1-Rocky Gap Trail. 0500 There I was at the start. Pumped and ready. It was pitch dark when the race started. My 0500 wave started and off I went. I had a map of the course and followed the directions as best as I could. Before I knew it I was under a canopy of trees. It was dark. No, it was p
2 comments
Read more