Are you stressed out?

We all experience stress on a daily basis. Worrying about our children, our jobs, bills to pay, things to do–is there enough time to do everything we need to do, or to do all we think we need to do?

According to Dr. Herbert Benson of Harvard Medical School, stress arises from any situation that requires one to adjust behaviorally.

There are physical, psychological and behavioral signs of stress:

Physical Signs: Headaches; fatigue; high blood pressure; insomnia; muscle aches; frequent illness; indigestion.

Psychological Signs: Anxiety; forgetfulness; irritability; racing thoughts; depression; feeling sad; feeling helpless; feeling anger; feeling hopeless; feeling defensive; feeling insecure; hypersensitivity; slowed thinking.

Behavioral Signs: Overeating; withdrawal; loss of appetite; insulation; impatience; burnout; poor job performance; argumentativeness.

Abusive behavior, whether against ourselves (e.g., alcohol and drug abuse) or others (like domestic violence) are manifestations of anger that stress can produce.

Before stress causes us to explode, we need to find ways to cool down, calm down and cope.

• Rest in Him. No matter what we face, we are not alone. We need to schedule our quiet time with the Lord. He said, "Come to me, you who are weary and I will give you rest."

God knows our worries, our deepest fears, our anger, our frustrations even before we tell Him.

We need to make time for prayer. We need to listen to God’s voice and He wants to listen to ours. God is bigger than any of our problems. Lift up everything to Him and let Him be in charge.

• Live in the moment. Unclutter your life and your schedule. Learn to say no to certain tasks. Avoid over-extending yourself. Do one task at a time and don’t forget that work can be delegated especially if you have people to help you. You don’t have to do everything. We are not superheroes.

I remember when I gave birth to my eldest, Kenneth. I wanted to do everything–feed him, put him to sleep, bathe him, in addition to fulfilling my other responsibilities at home. It got to a point though that I hardly slept. There were always many things to do and just so many hours in a day. I realized soon enough that I just couldn’t do everything. I also had to sleep and I also needed to relax. Otherwise, how could I have the energy I needed? I had to have it so I could give what was needed of me. You cannot give what you don’t have.

I also remember waking up one morning, carrying Ken in my arms. I sat on the rocking chair and breastfed him. As I did so, many things raced through my mind–things I had to do, things that needed following up, etc. Again, I became overwhelmed with so much that had to be accomplished for that day.

Then I looked at Ken. He reached out and touched my chin. All of a sudden I forgot about my "things-to-do list" and just enjoyed that precious moment with my son. At that moment, nothing else mattered. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in other things that we deny ourselves the simple joys of life.

Take a break today. Set aside daily time for yourself. Get away. Five to 10 minutes is a big help. Take a walk, read a book, sing a song. Anything. We always need diversions from what is stressful in our lives.

Sleep. We need sufficient sleep. Things will most likely overwhelm us if we haven’t been getting enough rest and sleep.

Forgive ourselves and others, too. Sometimes past mistakes or situations haunt us and cause anxiety. We have to learn to forgive ourselves. Once we ask God’s forgiveness, we are forgiven. Too often the problem is we are the ones who do not forgive ourselves.

Forgive others as well. We need to release pain and stored anger. Remember what Jesus told his disciples, "Forgive not only seven times but 77 times."

Talk things out. It always helps out if there is someone you can talk to about what bothers you. Find a family member or a friend you can talk to. Revealing your fears and worries to someone else already lessens the stress.

If needed, one can also seek professional help. There are Stress Management Classes and Programs on Time Management.

Get physical. Walking, jogging, taking up a sport, working out in the gym are great stress busters. We need to release our energy so it might as well be on something productive. We should release our stress in healthy avenues.

Avoid certain foods that induce stress. Too much coffee or alcohol is not good.

Don’t worry so much. There will always be changes in our lives, challenges we have to face. And while changes and challenges can cause stress, life goes on. We have to take things one day at a time, overcome our fears and worries a day at a time.

Let us never forget that the Lord is always there. We can pray for courage and guidance. He is bigger than our fears, bigger than our worries. Let us rest in His awesome love for us.

Have a stress-free day!

(For your comments or suggestions, you can e-mail me at jacqui-lou@hotmail.com.)