7 Steps to Managing Stress: Step 2
Step 2: Weigh the Size of the Load
Take an objective look at the stresses you face, and write them down if you can. Remember the small things too. Stress is cumulative, so the small things (the chores) count as well as the big ones (your job, your finances, and friendships). Beware of discounting the load in a way that many people do, thinking, for example, ‘everyone else copes with at least as much’ or ‘I should be able to manage, I could last year.’ A heavy load, carried for a long time, wears you down in the end, and different people find different things stressful.
It can be helpful to visualise it this way – your ability to manage stress is a large jug and every small stress you experience is a drop of water. For a long time your jug will hold the water with no trouble, but eventually it will become full and start to overflow. This might show itself in emotional, physical or psychological ways. And sometimes, when your jug is full to the brim, it only takes a tiny drop extra to make it overflow.
When we dismiss our stress load – when we say, ‘it’s nothing’ or beat up on ourselves for not managing better – it adds more internal pressure, adding to our stress levels. So it is important to acknowledge the stressors, and at the same time to know that we are doing as well as we can at this precise moment.
Take a blank piece of paper and at the top write ‘The stresses in my life’.Then jot down all of the things that are causing stress in your life just now, both big and small.
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