16. building relationship with stress...

16.

​I know stress is mostly perceived. But knowing that does not change much. What else can I do to help myself?

You are exactly right. Knowing that stress is largely perceived and within our minds, so to say, does not automatically make it easier to manage. But there are some proven practices we can adopt:

• Mindfulness and Breathing: practice deep breathing exercises, yoga or mindfulness meditation to calm your nervous system. Why? Because stress always has a physical aspect.
  
• Reframing our thoughts: learn to challenge your negative, catastrophic thinking regularly. Ask yourself, “What’s the worst that could happen?” Often, reality is less stressful than imagined.
  
• Break big tasks into steps: overwhelm is the reason why we fail to take any action, so start breaking tasks into smaller actions.
  
• Accept the 2% as success: sometimes we see it as all or nothing - it is either everything on our to do list, or we have failed. But doing even 2% of what we have intended is much better than 0. Celebrate that!.
  
• Learn emotional regulation: this is the one skill that nobody taught us in school but it is the one thing that can change everything about our life. Learn to generate emotions, rather than be at their mercy.

Most importantly - know that sometimes it will be easier, and sometimes it will be harder. And that is ok. Trust that your journey is uniquely yours and that (this is my favourite mantra) … all will be fine in the end. Believe in something a little greater than yourself and trust that your potential is always far greater than the challenges you are faced with.

This sounds like spirituality is important for stress management.
            It actually is. The sense of meaning or purpose is one of the most powerful…