Category Archives: Stress-Busting

“Moments are the molecules that make up eternity.” —Neal A. Maxwell

I teach mindfulness practices and mindsets to my clients. I am grateful for the power these skills have had in my life for reducing stress and in some areas removing it completely, and for it’s impact in increasing joy in family life and the enjoyment of life in general.

This video is a perfect demonstration of mindfulness in action. Mindfulness is a concept learned from Zen which if looked for you will find at the center of all spiritual traditions.

In regards to the question of “fair”:

1. Life isn’t fair. Waiting for it to be, or expecting it to be, is the fast track to suffering and  insanity; 
2. That being said, it is our responsibility to be fair and to make the systems we live in (family, government, work, etc) as fair as possible. This elevates us to a nobler status as human beings as itallows us to rise above “just what we’ve been given.” Doing so allows us to leverage our ability to create and improve.

The biology of touch is simply this: hugging, hand holding, encouraging hand on arm or shoulder, or a simple neck or back rub decreases cortisol (the stress hormone), increases oxytocin (the “cuddle” hormone that increases bonding) which both result in lowered blood pressure.

The biology is there within us to manage stress. Let’s use it, touch (human and yes, canine as in the picture above, too), frequently to help ourselves and others.

Thus, the important interplay of relationships, emotions and biology. Relationships are the key to so many aspects. It is in relationships that our emotions are challenged the most and thus we get the opportunity because of those challenges to develop emotion regulation and mastery skills. As we improve our ability to manage our emotions in our relationships we decrease the impact of stress on our bodies. Thus, the finding that people in long-term healthy marriages live on average seven years longer than their single or divorced counterparts. Less stress equals less wear and tear on our cells the emotional flood of cortisol and adrenaline isn’t as frequent nor as long-lasting. Less wear and tear = longer life. Further the oxytocin and endorphins that healthy relating release further ease stress and buffer our emotions from additional stress = longer life.

— For more tips, strategies and resources for creating truly GREAT relationships with self and others visit http://JonathanSherman.net —

Taught 11-year-old daughter learning to control her anger is as learnable as controlling a car via the speedometer, steering wheel, gas/brakes of emotion regulation. She felt bad before about not being able to control her anger and was crying, poor thing.

I’ll post the copies of the worksheets she and I came up with together and sometime I’ll describe the process in greater depth. For now, let me just share: She felt empowered! I love being able to help my children navigate the tricky waters of life.

In 2004, The American Psychological Association conducted a holiday stress survey and identified the top six stressors as follows:

1. Money
2. Gift-giving
3. Lack of time
4. Families
5. Diet
6. Children’s issues

This guide addresses each of these stressors in depth, as well as many others, with a focus on providing many more solutions than there are problems. That’s the way it should be.

This guide covers hundreds of ways to bust, cool, chill, deal and cope with all the various stresses of the holidays.

Pick yours up today at bardos.net/HolidayStressBusters

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