24 Feb Overcoming Stress and Building Resilience
Stress is unavoidable and side-stepping all sources of stress is impossible. That’s not a negative thing by the way. Physical and emotional challenges are necessary elements for our growth. The key to having stress work in your favor and not letting it take over the quality of your life is to learn how to effectively manage stress and also build resilience.
While stress is inescapable in life, when our bodies are repeatedly exposed to a set of physiological changes (also known as the stress response), health issues can arise. But by identifying your warning signs for stress and developing coping strategies to help you manage stress, we can knock down negative stress cycles and build resilience.
A Harvard psychologist of the late 19th century, William James, himself a stressed-out melancholic, marveled at those he called “the healthy-minded” among us because they appeared to live happier and healthier lives as a result of their optimism and positive perspective on life. These people seemed to turn challenges and potential failures into material for opportunities and successes. Cultivating resilience helps us use our strengths to overcome challenges and become stronger in the process. Key characteristics resilient people exhibit: calm, innovative, non-dogmatic thinking, decisive action, tenacity, honesty, self-restraint, optimism and a positive perspective on life.
For additional reading on ways to manage stress, refer to the many articles posted on my blog.
Feel free to reach out if you need support finding an effective path to manage your stress. Naturopathic medicine is based on individualizing health through a focused, efficient means that address the underlying cause of dis-ease to ultimately help people gain more healthy years doing what they love in their personal and professional lives.
I treat patients locally at my Naturopathic practice in Vancouver, B.C.
To honoring your health potential!
Licensed Naturopathic Physician, Menopause Clinician, Acupuncturist, Author, and Health Educator