Stress Alternative

Stress alternative. 

I'm subscribing to the old fashioned paper again,  and have found myself enjoying reading it in the morning. Maybe, not so much the hard news, but more the human interest stories. I began reading an article by Leslie Barker entitled, 10 Ways to Stress Less, assuming it would be more of the same about how to handle stress. 

You know, things like exercise, healthy eating, meditation or even massage, but I came across something I had never considered before. We know that life can be stressful, but for some of us living in a perpetual state of low grade stress may be the result of trying to control every facet of life. 

She suggested "Questioning the validity," of your stress. She writes, "Will this matter in six months or even one month? Probably not. Life is sooo short."

Wow!  How incredibly simple is this advice?  Rather than try to add the stress of healthy eating, daily exercise, and time for peaceful "me" time, why not just ask one simple question?

Very FEW things are so important that they warrant the effects that stress plays on your body and immune system. When I think back to three years ago when I was sick for five months due to my compromised immune system, it made me realize that I was never getting that time back. 

I had worked so hard to be the "perfect daughter" trying to meet the needs of both my father and step-mother, and it was killing me. My mental health was balancing precariously, and my physical health had taken a nose dive. 

If I could have stopped to question the validity of all my worry, and incessant need for control, I could have answered a resounding NO!  I wish I had backed away enough to get a clearer perspective.

When you find yourself in a stressful situation, there's nothing wrong with the tried and true remedies, but don't forget to reassess whether in the long run will it make that big of a difference? If it won't then let it go.