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Traffic Causing You Stress Too?

A traffic jam on a highway with many cars on the road.

This image is oh, so familiar, right?  Everyday we deal with traffic in Atlanta. No matter where we are or what time it is in the day, it seems this is what we find when we get on the road.

May is “Mental Health Month” and I realize how important our mentality is to our mood, our thoughts, our relationships, and our bodies.  Stress is a dangerous thing with lots of effects, which I’ll probably blog about soon.  However, I was thinking about Mental Health while driving to work, and I found myself stressing about the traffic.  Then I realized, “I stress about traffic a lot!”  It can easily get me going – whether it’s what another driver did or did not do, or all the lights turning red at the wrong time, or just being in a long line of cars.  There is nothing I can do about it, but yet I start to get anxious, my neck and shoulders start to tense up and before I know it, I’m rushing around, rubbing my neck and having to take time to myself to regroup.

Whether it’s traffic, work, family, or something else that is causing you stress, there are things you can do about it.  Every bad situation doesn’t have to be a stress builder.  Below are a few ways that have helped me with “traffic stress” and if you are one of these people, then I hope you will take the time to implement one or more of these to help your day be less stressful.

Leave expectations at home:  This is hard for me.  I always expect for my carride to be perfect timing and hassle free.  I’m not sure why, but I do. When I stopped that expectation and accepted the fact that there will be some red lights, a slow driver here and there, and maybe even missing a turn, I got less angry when they did happen.

Leave a few minutes early:  This has probably helped me  the most.  I’m the type of person that will try and get one last thing done before I leave and end up leaving just in time, or late.  This is a plan for disaster because I’m already in a rush.  Don’t do that to yourself.  Be intentional and think about the drive, not that last chore at the house – it can wait.

Enjoy the ride: Try to keep the car a happy place.  Put on your favorite music or Podcast.  Listen to some happy music.  When I do this, I find myself singing and letting other cars in front of me, because I am in a better mood.

People will understand: You can get anxious about whether or not people will be upset with you because you are late.  People (especially in this city), will understand.  It has most likely happened to them more than once.  And at this point, there is nothing you can do to change what is happening.  So try to accept the things you cannot change and let it go.

Therapy for your mind: Two things you can try.  One, you can meditate before you leave. Doing this will quiet your mind and give you peace on your drive.  You can also get a massage.  If you have been stressed and your muscles are tensing up and causing pain, then get a relaxing massage.  Massage not only can relax the muscles, but also reduce anxiety, depression, and improve your sleep quality at night, putting you in a better mood.

Be Grateful: Be grateful that even if you arrived late or had a bad traffic  experience, that you are alive and safe.  That is the most important thing. Take comfort in that and smile because it could have been worse.

So even though life stresses are unavoidable, there are many ways to cope and reduce the effects.

Find your way to LiveFree from stress.

Posted 2017-05-20

Breathing From The Right Place Reduces Stress

A silhouette of a woman against a background of words.

If you’re alive, you have stress.  Stress is a natural physical and mental reaction to good and bad experiences that can be beneficial to your health and safety.  However, if this stress response becomes chronic, it can affect your mind and body negatively, resulting in high blood pressure, muscle tension, anxiety, headaches, fatigue, and more.

You probably know by now that your Central Nervous System (CNS) controls whether you are in stress (flight or fight response) or relaxation mode.  Did you know your CNS also controls breathing?  When stressed, breathing becomes shallow, centralizing in the upper chest.  This is not what you want for long periods of time.  If you’ve ever watched a baby sleep, you’ve noticed their belly going up and down.  It’s because they’re in relaxation mode, which results in abdominal breathing.  That’s what you seek.

The good news is you can control your breathing, which means you can reduce your stress.  Studies have shown that practicing this style of breathing can reduce muscle tension and anxiety levels within 60 seconds.  So let’s give it a try:

  1. Sit or lie down.
  2. Place the palm of your hand on your abdomen, between your ribcage and navel.
  3. Close your eyes and start to focus on your breathing.
  4. Begin to inhale through your nose (not your mouth), feel the air flow through your nostrils.  Breathe in for a slow count of 1 . . . 2 . . . 3 . . . then exhale to a slow count of 1 . . . 2 . . . 3 . . .
    When you inhale try to allow your belly to expand NOT your chest.  Your chest can expand slightly, but your belly should be moving more than your chest.
    Note:  This can be hard to do in our culture where we are unconsciously tucking in our belly to look thinner.  Fight that instinct and let your belly come out.
  5. Do not take deep breaths.  When you inhale, your fingertips on your abdomen should only slightly part, this will help to reduce the risk of over breathing.
7.   Start by practicing for a few minutes per day.  It will become easier over time.
  6. If you feel dizzy, stop the exercise and let your natural breathing rhythm take over; you are probably breathing too deeply and/or too quickly.

So when you feel stressed, stop and do this exercise to calm down to help your body shift into relaxation mode.  Follow these steps and you will feel a difference.

Posted 2017-05-10

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