What Stresses You Out?
Have you ever taken the time to specifically identify the primary stressors in your life? As the article below from the Mayo Clinic states, “Effective stress management starts with identifying your sources of stress and developing strategies to manage them. One way to do this is to make a list of the situations, concerns or challenges that trigger your stress response.”
Why not do this right now? Take out a sheet of paper and a pen or pull up the notes feature on your phone and follow the simple steps below.
List as many of the stressors in your life as you can think of, no matter how big or small.
Categorize each of them into one of the two categories identified in the article - “external exasperations” vs. “internal irritations.” Read through the article to learn the differences between the two.
For each of the two categories, rank the stressors from the one that is causing you the most anxiety and harm to the one that is impacting you the least.
Looking at the top stressor in each category, identify one small step you can take this week to reduce that source of stress in your life, even just a little bit.
Complete each of those small steps within the next 24 hours.
This activity only takes 5-10 minutes but, if done often enough, will have a lasting impact on your health and well-being.
Read the full article: Mayo Mindfulness: Know your triggers for stress