National Stress Awareness Day
Wow first off, I haven't blogged in forever, which shame on me because blogging is one of the ways that I deal with stress. It's a moment for me to get lost in my own thoughts and type, type, type and get all my ideas out on paper. So today when checking out the trending tags on Instagram I noticed that today is #nationalstressawarenessday as well as #nationalcandyday. Can we just talk about how ironic it is that the Stress Awareness Day and Candy Day would be on the same day? Anyway, I was instantly inspired to write a blog post about being a lady boss and how to truly deal with stress in a healthy way (something that trust me I am not perfect at and still have to work at but something that I feel I know a few good techniques that I try to preach to myself whenever feeling overly stressed about a situation.) So here goes, I'll give you my tips & tricks that I honestly am more or less using as a handbook for myself.
1. First and foremost, maintaining personal time when you are "off work." This has become so much easier now that we have a storefront, but before the days of Ivory + Beau it was close to impossible for me to do this when working from home. I can't even tell you how many nights I would be up at 3am sitting in front of the TV sending work e-mails. It was exhausting and mentally draining. And the truth is, there are still times I struggle and can be caught checking my e-mail on my iPhone or instagramming while "off-the-clock." It all comes down to being present wherever you are, making sure that when on a date with your boyfriend you are paying attention to him rather than being glued into whatever issue you are facing at work. *There was even a study that shows that taking an e-mail vacation can reduce stress, so I'm not just talking out of my ass on this one. Work less, be more productive when you are at work. It's a real thing.
2. Being healthy, getting exercise and eating right. Just in general I think that these 3 things make you feel better about yourself on a daily basis, which helps your self-confidence and self-image. The more you are confident in your own shoes the less you are going to allow outside stressors to bring you down.
3. Don't beat yourself up but rather be grateful and proud of where you are in life. This is something I have lately been struggling with very deeply. I read this article this morning by Elizabeth Gilbert, "The Best Thing You Can Do For Yourself -- And All The Women Around You." It really hit home for me. Lately I have been beating myself up day after day for not being good enough, not being skinny enough, not being cheerful enough, not being fun enough, not already having a book, blah blah the list goes on and on. But rather than beat ourselves up all the damn time, think of how much more positive and less stressed out we would be if we celebrated the small successes rather than focused on the areas we feel we "fall short?" And even more important, stop comparing yourself to every other person who is your age or in the same field as you. You are on your own journey and yours alone. And it's an important one.
4. Talk to your dad more often, or mom or cousin or grandparents... whoever is someone in your life you look up to for advice, comfort, support, love who doesn't give you anxiety. I know for me whenever I talk to my dad I feel a sense of relief, calm, love, happiness. Even if we aren't talking about anything work related but just talking to talk about the little things going on. It's just sort of therapeutic.
5. Last but not least... when I am really stressed out, depressed or feeling down one of my absolute favorite thing to do is put on a show that I know will make me cry... insert Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice here OR if not in the mood for those I will put on a sad love movie or just anything that I know will bring on the tears. There is just something about getting a good cry that makes you feel so good afterwards and so just relieved as if all the weight came off your shoulders.
Head over to this list on Huffington Post that features 100 Tricks To Help You Destress that are tried, tested & approved. Happy National Stress Awareness & Happy National Candy Day! May it be filled with no stress and lots of candies... x, n
{Photo Credits} [1] Apt B Photography taken at The Collin's Quarter // [2]