Managing Strong Feelings

 

The humanitarian crisis in Ukraine has many of us feeling helpless. Sure, we can open our wallets and send money or buy much needed supplies to be sent to aid the refugees. Yet, beyond those actions, what more can we do? As gas, oil, and other prices surge, this adds another layer of stress over things we cannot control. The frustration or anger that can well inside us from situations that are out of our control chips away at our peace of mind and releases stress hormones which, left unattended, can lead to health-related problems.

However, there are things we can do to manage the emotional toll. The capacity to manage strong feeling, emotions, and impulses involves being able to:

• take action without being impulsive and responding out of emotion
• put emotions to the side when clear thinking and action are required
• use thinking as a way of managing one’s emotions

When we allow ourselves to get worked up, we are needlessly causing our bodies to go into fight-or-flight mode. That's why perspective is so important. I remember my mother, who was a young woman during the World War II era, talking about the rationing of bread, flour, sugar, and other staples. I, myself, remember gas rationing back in the the 1970s. And while we are not there (and hopefully will not get there) think of all you do have.

The people in Ukraine are losing there homes, businesses, schools, towns. On February 23, sixteen days ago from the writing of this post, people in Ukraine were living life as we live it today..... planning weddings, graduations, awaiting the birth of a child.....all the thing that are part of the normality of everyday life. And then it all was shattered. In two weeks time, nearly two-million people fled from their lives as they knew it on February 23.

Take a few minutes to think about that. Imagine yourself waking up on February 24 and having to flee your home, your town, your life as you knew it, with little more than the clothes on your back. Think about this when the urge to complain about the price of gas as you fill up your car....the car that will then take you to the store, to your workplace, to the comfort of your home.

Perspective. Perspective can and will make the difference in how your manage your emotions and your stress.

Managing Strong Feelings

"Never cease trying to be the best that you can be. That's under your control. If you get too engrossed and involved and concerned in regard to the things in which you have no control, it will adversely affect the things over which you have control." - From John Wooden on True Success (View video)

The frustration or anger that can well inside us from situations that are not only out of our control, but have nothing to do with us, chips away at our peace of mind and releases stress hormones which, left unattended, can lead to health-related problems.

The capacity to manage strong feeling, emotions, and impulses involves being able to:

• take action without being impulsive and responding out of emotion
• put emotions to the side when clear thinking and action are required
• use thinking as a way of managing one’s emotions

When we allow ourselves to get worked up, particularly over the small stuff, we are needlessly causing our bodies to go into fight-or-flight mode.

To learn more how to management circumstances that are out of your control, visit Live A Flourishing Life.

Have a joyful day everyone. And remember to live a flourishing life.
Rita
www.ritaschiano.com

Calming the Mind

"Calmness of mind," James Allen wrote, "is one of the beautiful jewels of wisdom. It is the result of long and patient effort in self-control." So how can we do this in the midst of a hectic workday? Often we stress about things we cannot change: the economy, the weather, our commute to work. Recognizing the difference between what we can and cannot change can help us live more peaceful and productive lives.

Managing stress is a pathway to healthy living, and mindful breathing is the conveyance that helps the mind and the body to relax and focus.

Mindful breathing is a simple practice and one with multiple benefits: increase focus, lower heart rates, and the metabolizing of stress hormones, especially cortisol, which is harmful to our health. It takes as little as ten conscious breaths, less than sixty seconds, to ease oneself out of a stressful state. And mindful breathing can be done anywhere — in the office, the car, the elevator, the privacy of a bathroom stall.

When you feel anxious, overwhelmed, or stressed, try this simple mindful breathing exercise:

• Breathe in, filling your diaphragm with your breath. Focus solely on your breath as it fills inside you, shutting out all other thoughts. 
• Then breathe out. 
• Next, begin to silently count your breaths as they arrive. Notice the brief periods of quiet as one breath ends and before the next one begins.
• Repeat this process until you’ve counted 10 breaths — not allowing any other thoughts to distract you. 

 In just sixty second, the approximate time is takes to do this simple exercise, you will feel greater peace accompanied by increased steadiness and balance of mind.

By choosing mindful breathing instead of coursing through a self-perpetuating cycle of stress, you begin to create and reinforce the habit of managing your stress rather than your stress controlling you.

Have a joyful day everyone. And remember to live a flourishing life.
Rita

To learn more about how you can live a flourishing life, please visit my web site, www.liveaflourishinglife.com.

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Resilience, as defined by the American Psychological Association, is the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant sources of stress. It is the ability to "bounce back" after a major disruption in our lives.

Yet, there is another realm of situations, also out of our control,... (Read full post at The Huffington Post and AOL Healthy Living.)

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