Ways to Keep Stress Levels at Bay During Difficult Times

Hello friends!

So, I have to tell you guys that my life has been a bit of an emotional roller coaster lately. I hope that you recognize this blog to be a happy and positive place. My blog is an extension of my personality and my life, and I’m usually pretty upbeat. Plus who wants to read a blog that’s a downer? Not me, and probably not you. But, I also am a real person with real, sometimes crappy life happenings, and since I want to always be authentic in sharing my life with you guys, today I’m talking about it.

 

My grandma has been really sick. She’s not just a grandma I see a few times a year at holidays and get cards from on my birthday. She’s one of the closest people in my life. Longtime readers may remember that last year I was in New Jersey for nearly a month as she fought to get through cancer and a horrible bout of pneumonia. It was extremely hard to sit by her bedside in the ICU as she struggled, but she miraculously made it through. After dealing with chemo and radiation for months, she was declared cancer free for the time being…and now here we are, just a couple of months later, and the cancer’s back, she has a blockage in her stomach hindering her from eating or drinking anything, she has developed pneumonia once again, and is back in the ICU.

I’ve been stressed out by it all. It’s a sickening feeling to have someone you love so much suffer and be in pain, plus I live 3,000 miles away. This has all been happening in the midst of my taking a trip down to San Diego to go house hunting, and now in the process of buying a house there, and also in the middle of the busiest time for work, and going on a work trip to Las Vegas. I was going back and forth about when and how I could get to Jersey to support her and be there with my family in the middle of trying to close on a house and move next month, but you know what? I knew that heading to the east coast now is what’s best, so I booked a last minute trip there tomorrow.

I’m all about de-stressing and not worrying about little things in life, and so I tend to have pretty low stress levels. But let’s face it – some things in life cause a lot of sadness and stress, and my grandma being extremely ill is one of them. There’s no way around that and it is what it is, but what I have found helpful over the last month is to do certain things to de-stress as much as I can. It has definitely helped me, and I’d otherwise probably be quite an emotional mess during this time. Here are some ways I’ve been keeping my stress levels at bay:

#1- Practice mindfulness & positivity.  When thinking about big changes, life & death, it can be so overwhelming to contemplate it all in your head over and over again. The thoughts can suck you dry mentally. I’ve been trying to stay focused and present on the here and now, and to be mindful of the moment and all that I’m grateful for.

In terms of my grandmother’s life, I’ve been trying to focus on the pretty long life that she has lived, and all of the people whose lives she has touched. I think about how lucky I am to have had her be such a big role in my life. In terms of my trip back to the east coast at a less than ideal time, I’ve been trying to center my attention on being excited to meet my new nephew earlier than intended, and getting to spend quality time with my family and friends. I’m also reminding myself that no matter what, I have the strength to get through it.

#2- Find outlets. I find cooking and baking to be relaxing, so I’ve been making sure to spend time in the kitchen. Partake in whatever activities calm you.

#3- Just breathe. 

#4- Partake in exercise that feeds your soul. Our bodies recognize good stress and bad stress pretty much the same, so if I’m feeling really anxious and emotionally exhausted, I don’t do a really intense workout that’s going to deplete me even more. That’s why I’ve done a ton of hiking lately. On days when I’m feeling pretty good with pretty high energy levels, I’ve headed to the gym for workouts with higher intensity. It’s all about listening to your body. Exercise should be aiding you to better health not only physically, but mentally and emotionally as well.

#5- Sleep. To me, everything seems worse if I’m exhausted. Making sure to get enough Zzzzz time is always important, but during a stressful time it’s even more crucial. This is ironic since a lot of us don’t sleep well during stressful periods in our lives, but I think it makes things a lot easier to deal with.

Tell me, how do you cope with hard times?