Achieving Serenity During a Time of Chaos


2013 seems to be a pivotal time of chaos and polarity. You may be noticing that as a result of this chaos and dealing with the problems of this day and age you’re feeling stressed. When under stress, your body assumes the age-old stance of “fight or flee.” There’s nothing wrong with this but there’s a problem associated with being in a constant state of alert. You’re not actually fighting OR fleeing but instead you’re confronting one stressful event after another. The original benefits of dealing with stress on a day-to-day basis have turned into liabilities in today’s world—there’s just too much continual stress to cope with unless you do something about your coping skills.

When you follow these basic steps, you will be surprised at how wonderful you feel. When you backslide, which often happens in the beginning, you will again be surprised at how much you miss exercising one or more of these four muscles. Do you have any of these symptoms of overload?

Anxiety
Headaches
Inability to concentrate
Change in appetite/body weight
Insomnia
Intestinal distress
Fatigue
Unexplained frequent illnesses
Depression
Flare ups of skin disorders


If you do, they may simply be symptoms of a one-time nature. However, if you have several or many of these symptoms on an on-going basis, it’s probably a good time to do something about them…it’s probably a good time to institute change in your life.

You can’t always control circumstances but you can change how you perceive and respond to them. Sometimes it may seem that the passage through modifying your behavior takes energy and is time consuming; you may fear failure when trying something new or different; you may have experienced that it’s hard to break a habit; you may not have clear goals or direction in life; the ultimate destination may be unclear.

People who are thriving and willing to go forward with modifying their behaviors are challenged by change. They have a sense of control and are committed to and intensely involved in what they are doing. There are actions you can take that will help you to deal with stress and, consequently, deal with change.

Here are 10 steps to reduce stress and make positive changes in your life: 

1.      Focus on the positives—identify what is going well in your life and be realistic about your expectations.
2.      Be clear about what you want, ask for it, and ask for help when you need it.
3.      Cultivate an attitude of gratitude—say thank you 100 times a day.
4.      Eat healthier food to fuel your body more effectively.
5.      Breathe deeply 40 times a day.
6.      Stay in touch with friends and make and keep standing play dates.
7.      Laugh or cry regularly.
8.      Minimize and simplify your life and/or your possessions.
9.      Exercise for at least 10 minutes a day.
10.  Consciously relax and meditate. You can do this on your own quietly or while listening to soft, instrumental music or you can listen to a guided meditation CD. 
11.  Regularly include massage and/or Energy Healings.

Start today to make a change in your life.  You’ll be so happy you did.  You have all the time you need by starting right now.