I admit, living right during menopause and enjoying a low-stress life is a challenge, but it is possible! No matter how you define stress, the foundation for handling stress, sadness, misfortune, or any of those emotions that surface during difficult times requires the right tools. One such tool is consistently being conscious of making good choices.
We all desire love, understanding, and recognition, but do they bring us serenity? Not necessarily. Managing stress requires self-examination, honest self-examination. Don't be afraid to bring your inner conflicts out, follow through with doing what you know is right, and use self-discipline to refrain from doing that which you know is wrong.
Here are 3 tips that will help you develop the mindset to overcome the stress you experience during menopause:
1. Don't try to make the world bend to your will.
Trying to get everyone to do things your way goes beyond stress. It's a frustrating, hopeless exercise that will drive you nuts. It's okay to tell people what you want them to do, but then let them do it their way. There's a random nature to life. Sure, we all make lists and set out with a plan and goals in mind. But if what you're after is a low-stress life, then your life has to include an element of letting go. Sometimes what you'll find is better than what you were looking for in the first place! The world and people will not bend to your will anyway, so why bother getting yourself all worked up. Making choices about what you will and will not get stressed about is important, and it IS a choice.
2. Recognize that for every negative, there's an offsetting positive.
There's a principle that you may have called by many different names. It's called the Natural Law of Balance. The universe is in balance. Think about electrons and protons, night and day, male and female, hot and cold, and life and death. The reality is that for every positive, there's an offsetting negative, and for every negative, there's an offsetting positive. Balance is the natural order of the universe.
While we can look at menopause and its symptoms as purely negative, there are also many positives. We are older and wiser, our children may be grown and on their own, leaving us more time for ourselves, we know by now what makes us tick, what's important and what we value. There are all kinds of positives once we look for them.
The nice thing about it is that when you understand and believe in universal balance, you automatically look for the offsetting positive in every negative situation. Again, it's a choice and seeing the offsetting positive will help you live a low-stress life during menopause.
3. Control anger and bitterness.
Remember Ralph Waldo Emerson's famous words: "For every minute you are angry, you lose 60 seconds of happiness."
Anger will drain you like no other emotion. During menopause we can be angry and bitter about all the changes our body goes through, about our lost youth, about what we didn't accomplish that we thought we would, and hundreds of other coulda, woulda, shoulda things. I prefer to save myself a ton of aggravation rather than create a ton of aggravation, and I find making the choice to control my anger and bitterness essential in this regard.
Whenever I become angry, I give myself time to cool off before saying or doing something I'll regret. It's amazing how much of that angry edge will dissipate over time. Then when the edge is less sharp I can decide what action, if any, to take.
Worrying about stress can do more damage than stress itself. Use these 3 tips and watch your stress melt away. You'll create the low-stress menopause lifestyle you deserve.
No comments:
Post a Comment