National Stress Awareness Day

It’s National Stress Awareness Day today. Stress is the result when the demands placed on you outstrip your inner resources and ability to respond. It can be debilitating, and its effects can be cumulative and far reaching.

While stress is sadly very common, there is sometimes still a culture of shame and embarrassment about this very natural reaction to life conditions. Stress is your body’s way of reacting to let you know that things are out of kilter, that there is something that needs your attention and for some change to happen.

One thing you can look at to make a difference is expectations. Take a moment today to notice what is expected of you, and where the expectations come from. Which are from others? Which are yours? How can you change your relationship to these expectations to give yourself a sense of choice, and of control?