“Who said it is? I don’t need one, I’ve got no time for one because I’ve got lots of things to do.”
Well, while I admire your work dedication, I worry about your body and stress levels.
I’m sure that everyone longs for vacation or at least free time for themselves, but not everyone takes one.
Why?
Because they think that if they take one, then they wasted a lot of time since instead of being on a vacation, they could be working.
But don’t you know that if you don’t take breaks at least once in a while, your body or your mind will sooner or later give up because of feeling so overwhelmed?
TAKING A VACATION CAN SAVE LIVES
Yes, in fact, it is actually life-saving to take breaks.
“Okay, that’s too much. No one dies because of not taking a vacation or not taking breaks.”
Yes, true. No one, at least not directly, but a lot of people die from too much stress, and too much stress can be lessened by taking breaks.
THE SCIENCE BEHIND STRESS
Stress is when demands are higher than what you can do when you have too much to do that you feel like it’s never-ending and you always feel like chasing around in that hamster wheel; or maybe it’s too hard to do, just a few tasks but you have no idea how to get to the end of it.
Truth is, we all have normal levels of stress always present in our body because it’s part of our normal biology and without it we’re dead.
Read that again. I said, “NORMAL” stress levels. So they are supposed to be in that state only.
But different situations arise, which then makes the number of our stress levels go up and down, and when it’s too high, that’s the only moment we feel it or get the symptoms like headaches and irritability.
When the stress levels go up, the immune system goes down. When the immune system is down, it’s easier to get sick.
So yes, again, the basic way which is taking breaks, or a vacation, can SAVE A LIFE.
REGULAR BREAKS INSTEAD OF A VACATION
If you think that a vacation is still out of reach, then the technique is taking regular breaks over the day.
Stand up from your desk, jump or dance around a little, sing, jog, exercise, or do anything that you feel like doing as long as you take a break…
Because it helps your brain and system with stress hormones. Is it getting too high? Take a breather and give it time to go down.
Once it’s back to its normal levels, you’ll be surprised at how productive you can be because you feel great.
THE POWER OF MIND
Despite all the above-mentioned, one solution is always not best for all because of personality differences.
Some people don’t like moving, and you’ll be surprised at how they deal with their stress levels.
MINDSET.
Okay, I’ll elaborate.
They ACCEPT. They set their minds and give themselves personal affirmations like:
“Okay, today is a long day and I’m gonna do something so hard but I will do my best to get it done. It will take longer than the usual but it’s okay and it will be done in time.”
This plus breathing and a positive mindset save their day.
You can choose and use which suits you best, or try mixing it up!
After all, what’s important here is being able to control and manage your stress levels properly, so that you feel LESS STRESS, GET MORE THINGS DONE RIGHT, FEEL GOOD, and in the end, HAVE MORE REVENUE BROUGHT BY YOUR POSITIVITY!
‘Where does stress come from?” What a great question, isn’t it?
When we hear this question, we immediately think of the current causes of stress. But what about its HISTORY and SCIENCE?
“Wouldn’t it be fantastic if we could eliminate stress totally?“
“Oh, easy peasy. Just take a pill against stress hormones and the levels go down to zero. And we would live happily and calmly forever after.”
Well, if you still believe that way the I hate to break it up to you BUT…
IT DOES NOT WORK THAT WAY.
Our stress hormone system is part of life, of our normal biology, and with no stress hormones pumping around in your body –YOU ARE DEAD.
How is that… POSSIBLE?
THE STRESS THEORY
HANS SEYLE founded the stress theory in humans.
Seyle, who is a pioneer in stress research and nominated for the NOBEL PRIZE 17 times, borrowed the word “stress” from the technical world where it’s defined as “the amount of pressure any material can take before getting damaged”.
This has also been applied to our bodies, how much can our bodies take before they break? How much before our back breaks or our ankles get sprained?
When we’re talking about our bodies or our bones breaking, it all sounds normal but we haven’t until now started to talk about how much pressure our brains can take.
If it’s the brain we’re talking about, more or less it’s only “go home, sleep, and come back tomorrow”, or “rest a little and all will be fine” that we’ll get.
And in case you’re wondering, it’s probably because we can’t really see the amount of damage as we do with our limbs and back. We can’t see if it’s swollen or feel if it’s aching. There are no signs, it just suddenly happens.
And what we know – is that if it doesn’t function – it gets scary.
THE TRUTH
Truth is, stress-related brain dysfunction is NOT a mental illness but PART of NORMAL BIOLOGY.
Did you know that at the least, here in my country (Sweden), brain fog is still not as accepted as having limbing limbs?
But brain damage caused by stress today is more common than physical damage.
But how did we get this system, to begin with? Or, how did it all begin?
HISTORY OF STRESS
Let me start FROM THE BEGINNING.
Imagine yourself 200000ish years ago…
You live in a small cave, and then the savanna is spreading wide outside with all the beautiful wildlife... and you live together with a small group of other people.
You stay “indoors” and rest and sleep during the dark for 12 hours and are out working,hunting, seeking fruits, seeds and berries, when it is light for 12 hours.
In this case, you are just evolving as the modern human being from your older ancestors.
Then you are given 4 BASIC NEEDS – things you need to do TO SURVIVE in that environment.
SLEEP and REST to clear your brain and body and get rid of waste products.
EAT to get energy to your brain and body.
MOVE YOUR MUSCLES because you need them for the hunting and they are connected with your brain activity. It makes you think while you hunt – all to do the right thing in each moment – so YOU SURVIVE.
And PROCREATE– to make your RACE SURVIVE.
This is what you get and it is all regulated by your stress system set up AT THIS TIME.
THE BASIC SURVIVAL INSTINCTS
Because it’s basically survival back then, our ancestors had these 3 survival instincts:
1. Flight, or run as fast as you can away from the threat.
2. Fight, as hard as you can so you can eat, or lose then you become their food
3. Freeze, or fall down and play dead so the attacker loses interest
The ability to move around and think were the two most important tools that made the 3 instincts possible.
The system found the connection between moving and thinking to be important. Remember a time when you lose a thought and the thought came back the moment you moved? That’s what I’m talking about.
Your adrenal glands give adrenalineand noradrenaline for the acute system when we talk about life or death – eat or be eaten – fight or flight – or play dead.
And they produce cortisol for the long-term defense, the endurance.
This is it – and we can call it Version 1.0 of Human Biology.
And it was in a 1.0 surrounding on the savannah – a perfect match of systems – built in the balance!
HOW IT IS TODAY
“SO WHAT? What has this got to do with me and my stressed-out life lately?”
ALL AND EVERYTHING!
You are still – 200000ish years later, a 1.0 human being– functioning very primitively, like when your threats were wild animals and you were struggling to get food.
But now you live in a 5.0 or even 10.0 world.A 24/7 society with endless possibilities.
This is the challenge, what we have to overcome, overlap, or count into the equation on what to do now.
We need to tackle this in a totally different way.
“Food is given around the clock and you sit on your sofa as a potato and grow fat and stale. All the challenges you have at work need new solutions, and it is not okay to run away or smash your boss in the face when they ask you to do more work than you can handle – or fall to the floor and play dead for that matter.”
This is what we need to have in mind, this is why we feel this stressful time. And this is also why we tackle these challenges in such a clumsy way.
We function on reflex and want a solution NOW.But NOW does not always work in this world.
Still, we are swamped with quick fixes – “the market” has figured it all outsell stuff for immediate satisfaction – apps, gadgets, pills, alcohol, medication, drugs, and the like.
They might make us calm for a momentbut mostly they give us one more thing to keep track of.
What to do instead?
BACK TO BASICS
Look back to where we came from, how we are made to function, and adjust to that.
What is your most burning question about stress as a business leader?
You go to work every day. That is where you spend most of your awake time, especially if you are the boss. Shouldn’t that be feeling good, or even great most of the time?
Does it? Be honest with yourself.
Remember my last blog post, stating that 26% of the leadership felt uneasy about going to work, and over 40% in the tax paid systems workplaces.
Sad. Isn’t it? And scary.
Some years ago I asked a group of leaders: “What is your most burning question about stress?“
I got A LOT of interesting questions. And this one is not solvable in the easy way BUT it certainly needs to be addressed:
The question that I got was: “What can I do when the stress is not caused by me but by someone else who puts me in that situation?”
Honestly, it’s not very uncommon. We hear people most of the time complaining about something they didn’t even cause.
“I can’t control my situation! It’s absolutely unmanageable! My boss puts all the problems on my shoulders! My employees don’t do what they are supposed to! I always end up doing everything! My spouse has unrealistic expectations, and someone else always puts me in an overload!”
“I feel like a victim. The overload is killing me.”
Sounds familiar?
Okay, don’t get me wrong. Those situations are definitely normal. There is no quick fix or a one-for-all kind of solution as there will always be different solutions for everyone.
BUT what I can see, is the SAME PATTERN in all of them. You feel the threat from someone else’s problems – one way or another.
One step to clarity is to write about it. Laying it all down is a very good way to get clear on things, and you need it to know why things happen over and over again.
It is not about blaming yourself or someone else, but it is about the fact of what is. Put down all the pluses and minuses you find, and then organize them into themes. Ponder and rearrange if needed.
Depending on what pops up, the next step will be different for each and one of you.
It could be to talk to the person you find “dumping” their world on you. That could be your boss, your colleagues, your spouse, or whoever it was who did not see the pattern.
On the other hand, you might need to take drastic actions such as leaving your job or your spouse. Because you can not change them, you can only change yourself. If things end up in much more drastic actions, it might be good to ask for help.
The next question is completely different: “Is stress aging me? I feel like I aged 10 years last year! I feel tired like an old man/woman and I am still just in my thirties.”
The short answer is – YEP.
The longer version is yes, probably – if you are stressed for a long time. Short moments of stress are part of natural life. In fact, no one can claim they are never stressed, or they are lying.
Consequently, long-term stress will affect your immune system and cause many diseases, including bad skin, making you look older!
Also, it puts you at risk to get cardiovascular disease, stroke, hypertension, obesity to name a few. And not to mention, depression.
The #1 solution to this question is:Take breaks, lots of short breaks every day, or a long break in a month. Let your brain rest and your body relax and you will keep your stress hormone levels on a normal, healthy level – then you can function smoothly again. And you will get just as much done since you will do it right the first time.
The last question I want to share today is connected with the previous question: “Can I recover from long-term stress and regain my health?”
The answer to this is also YES.
Yes, you can recover and of course, it depends on how long it has been going on and if you have developed any irreversible damage. BUT IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS – you can REGAIN YOUR HEALTH and you can at least stop the progress of the chronic disease.
A medicine may or may not be a pill, but meditation is always medicine.
Today I want to talk about THAT medicine.
It is scientifically proven that meditation can benefit your brain by increasing focus; reducing stress, anxiety, and depression; improving memory, emotional awareness, and OVERALL HAPPINESS.
Doesn’t that sound like a good pill to take?
I have to admit though – it took me many years to understand this fact.
Being born in the 50s, I was a teenager during the Flower-Power years. I loved The Beatles! John was my favorite, and I still have all my vinyl records tucked away in a safe space.
In my world, I could not understand why there was so much hush-hush around it. You had to pay big money to learn the art of meditation and you got your private mantra – A MANTRA NEVER TO BE TOLD TO SOMEONE ELSE – or else…
BAD THINGS WOULD HAPPEN TO YOU.
Yes, that was the “story”.
I personally, was more into science and was repelled by the mysticism that was built up around the business – which was big that time.
Years went by and I did not think about meditation at all.
UNTIL ONE DAY, in 2015 – I attended a big event in California about “Building Your Online Business”, as I had started my own business ‘AskDrAnnika‘ a few years earlier and was ready to go global.
There were around 900 people in the room, and the session was about “Taking Good Care of Yourself While Working Online”.
He said: “NOW WE WILL MEDITATE TOGETHER”.
I WAS STARTLED.
My first thought was: “You are crazy, I don’t have a mantra and I guess most people don’t have one”.
Then he asks: “How many of you meditate?” and about 100 HANDS went up. That confirmed my suspicions – he was crazy to do meditation with just that small group of people.
BUT THEN he said: “We will all do this together. We will use the word ‘RELEASE’. Close your eyes and repeat the word SLOWLY OUT LOUD, if you can.”
And we all sat there, eyes closed, slowly repeating the word ‘RELEASE’ for 10 minutes.
AND IT WORKED!
Since that day, I use meditation as a tool in my de-stress work toolkit. Not my ‘teenage version’ of hush-hush and big business – BUT AS A FREE TOOL TO USE FOR ANYONE.
One of the most studied BENEFITS of meditation is STRESS RELIEF. It even relieves anxiety and can even boost your immune system.
THINK OF IT LIKE THIS:
“Your brain is a computer, with many windows and programs open at the same time. Meditation helps you close out windows you don’t need and use for the moment.”
That way, you can focus on what is essential and you will PERFORM ON A HIGHER LEVEL.
Today, I know there are a ton of different ways to meditate, and we all have different preferences. There is the “Breathing Anchor”, “Mantras”, “Guided Meditations”, or just simple walking, coloring, painting, stitching, or other textile handicraft.
You just need to find out what works for you.
I myself am a fan of textile handicraft meditational effects, and I have been doing textile projects all my life like weaving, sewing, stitching, and so on. So I, for one, am a witness to its calming effects.
I now encourage you to now TAKE A SHORT BREAK before you scoot on to your next thing.
Close your eyes and say the word “RELEASE” slowly for a few minutes, and may the rest of your day thereafter be calm, effective, and fun.
If you liked this – GET MORE EFFECTIVE TOOLS HERE.
Halfway into the first month of the year and with the celebrations past us, we are back to the reality of life – and most of our New Year Resolutions are – well, forgotten.
In most cases, that is a fact.
We generally feel elated with the idea of new year. We see new possibilities, set new goals, take on new opportunities, and even make all kinds of promises to ourselves – but then the moment we realize that we’re back into our daily lives, we lose track of everything; and since that is the life that we know, we find it easier to stay rather than move forward.
And just like that, our so-called promises, our #NewYearsResolution – disappears in thin air.
The question is, does it always have to be like that? Or perhaps, is there anything that we can do to stop the cycle from happening?
Of course there is one. Actually, there’s a lot; but this one is my favorite:
“RAISE YOUR STANDARDS – so you can turn your ‘SHOULDS’ into ‘MUSTS’.”
Now why, that out of all the possible things we can do, I chose this one? My answer would be simple – it’s because I believe that once you get to do this, the rest will follow.
Your standard is something that you set – something that you have the ability to control. You decide which level you want to be on.
So when I said ‘Raise your standards’, I meant that if you are stressed out, overweight, or you are a smoker, but didn’t want to be any of those – you don’t get to find excuses not to change. Because if you do, then that is the standard you set for yourself.
But where ‘MUST’ you start? Here are some steps that can help you:
Define what you want to achieve;
Identify how far you are from your goal;
List the specific steps you plan to take in achieving your goal;
Implement; and
Celebrate when you succeed – celebrate with everyone around you.
AND above all, ALWAYS REMEMBER TO RAISE YOUR STANDARDS.
This upcoming week I will travel through half of Sweden to a far away place and work in a health care center for 7 days.
Why do I take valuable time from my business to do that? There are several reasons.
First of all to help out. There is always a lack of doctors in Primary Care in Sweden. In this Corona virus era the lack is even bigger.
Because you are not allowed to work if you have any symptoms. Because a lot of the doctors are of high age and more at risk. Because some primary care doctors go to work in other facilities in internal medicine to help out there. Plus, some doctors are scared and don’t dare to work with patients right now, just like many others.
I am not scared, I am not in a risk group and I have the ability to use some of my time on this. This is my first reason.
Second, I want to stay updated. If I am going to do a good job as a mentor for stressed out business leaders I need to be up to date in my knowledge.
What does the world look like today?
What does science say?
What do people seek help for?
Are there any new big findings?
These are questions I get updated on when going out in real life and work.
And third, of course it gives some money to my company so I can keep working on developing my de-stress business. It also makes it possible for me to contribute to good causes, like being interviewed for both the EvolveUp for PeaceWeekend two weeks ago and for the Suicide Prevention Show taking place last week.
Both of those interviews were deep discussions about serious stuff. But nevertheless, it was fun discussions with lots of smiles and laughter. You see, smiles and laughter help our brain to produce feel good hormones. That helps us to feel calm and focused and the discussion leads towards solutions instead of towards anxiety.
You could say that a smile is one of the most important and powerful tools for stress management!
The video for the other interview is not up yet. I will share it as soon as I get it.
Do you to go off your trail in your current life to expand, help out, learn more or just to get away for a week or two? Whether you do or not write your thoughts on a piece of paper and ponder about it. What could you try out? Is there a place I can go to get new ideas and be updated? Write pros and cons and maybe you will come up with your next big thing in life! And put a smile to your thoughts! What is your next step?
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