What Would It Take?

STRESS

Stress, it is a word we have heard over and over many times.

• Too much stress is bad for us
• We should reduce our stress
• We have to cope better cope with our stress

For some people stress is a thing that comes and goes. They have stressful periods in life, and then they return to normal, but for many of us stress is a constant and unwanted companion.

According to the Mayo Clinic1, the long-term activation of the stress-response system — and the subsequent overexposure to cortisol and other stress hormones — can disrupt almost all of our body's processes. This puts us at increased risk of numerous health problems. 

Those problems can be very dangerous, and indeed life threatening, but the other problem it may cause us is pain. Pain is a message from our body to our mind, asking us for help. 

I've talked about Tension-based pain [TBP] here on my blog, and in my book Back Story, and in my own experience tension can cause intense, and terrifying pain. Pain so powerful that can make you feel like your back has suddenly been broken.

If you are experiencing that kind of pain, or other severe physical pain, ask yourself what would it take for you to be rid of that stress? 

1. Remove of all the stress in your life.
2. Change your perception of your stress, so it no longer caused tension and pain.

The first option sounds easy enough; just quit your job, give away your belongings, say goodbye to everyone you know, and head off to a tropical island. 

Tempting, but it's probably not the best solution for most of us.

The second option will take some work that can only happen inside of us. 

• What are your stressors?
  
• What is the Real reason they bother you?
  
• Do these issues really matter in the grand scheme of things?
  
• Can you let them go?
  

There is an endless dialog in our society about the importance of taking care of our bodies; eating right, getting enough sleep, exercising and keeping active. All of those things are very important for our well being, but it would be very helpful for all of us to spend some time, and energy to keep our minds healthy too.

What would it take to change the dynamic between you and your stress? 
Not as much as you might think.

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1 REF: http://www.mayoclinic.org/stress/ART-20046037?p=1