Simple Stress-Reduction Strategies For Moms

Stress and anxiety – we all experience it and know how unhealthy unmanaged stress can be to our lives. While short bursts of stress are actually good for you, it’s the continual, long-term chronic stress that is damaging. Stress has been linked to almost every major disease as well as weight gain and obesity. When you’re stressed out, your body produces excess cortisol, the stress hormone secreted by the adrenal glands. This leads to premature aging and excess belly fat. Too much cortisol prevents the immune system from functioning properly, and releases fat and sugar into your bloodstream.

Stress and anxiety interfere with your immune system, putting you at an increased risk of allergies, autoimmune diseases, hormone disruption, heart disease, digestive issues and accelerates aging.

According to the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation, the more stress in a woman's life, the greater her weight. Another study in Molecular Psychiatry found that women are more sensitive to the stress hormone, cortisol, and are less able to adapt when levels are high. When you release high amounts of cortisol, your body stops making sex hormones and produces more stress hormones. Before menopause or andropause, our adrenals produce 40% of our sex hormones. After menopause or andropause, our adrenals produce 90% of our sex hormones!

Corticotrophin releasing factor (CRF) which acts as both a hormone and a neurotransmitter is triggered during stress and attaches to receptors on cell membranes in the brain's "alarm center," leading to an aroused mental state. Compared with females, male brains need more CRF to become agitated. In male rats, the receptors "retreat" inside the cells, eluding CRF to minimize stress. Even in the absence of any stress, the researchers found the female stress signaling system to be more sensitive from the start.

It’s well known that women have higher incidences of stress and depression, due in part because women have intense hormonal changes which cause them to react more emotionally to stressful life events. For this reason it is very important for moms to find ways to quickly reduce stress and depression, conditions which damage their overall health and wellness.

Many Causes of Stress

Relationships, deprivation of emotional fulfillment to self, divorce, your job, health problems, digestive distress, finances, environmental toxins, toxins in our foods, unhealthy beliefs, electromagnetic stress (computers, cell phones, microwave ovens, etc.), food sensitivities, unfulfilled psychological needs, imbalanced hormones and negative thoughts can all cause chronic stress and anxiety.

Although stress is life and life is stress, the key is to build resiliency when challenges arise, and stress management is recognizing the best way to respond to challenges that will inevitably occur in our lives.

Rest and relaxation are important, and may take the form of meditation, a hot relaxing bubble bath with Epsom salts and lavender, restorative yoga, listening to classical music, spending time in nature, or reading something spiritual or uplifting.

Breathe

Deep breathing releases endorphins that create feelings of happiness. It is the foundation to de-stress and heal, revitalizing and energizing every cell in your body. Allow yourself five minutes in the morning and evening to focus on deep, belly breathing versus chest breathing. Empty your mind of your day-to-day activities and focus on a 1-5 word phrase, a mantra, you like and repeat it over and over again, or surrender into the silence. Imagine yourself breathing in harmony and relaxation, and then when you exhale let go of stress and negativity. Studies show that this lowers blood pressure, releases healing hormones into your body, increases creativity and productivity, and enhances your ability to handle stressful situations.

Moderate exercise

Aside from strengthening your heart and lungs (two organs that can become physically affected from too much stress), exercise is great for your mental health too. Exercising increases the levels of endorphins in your body, which stimulate your immune system, reduce stress and put you in a better mood.

Don’t overdo it though! Include daily exercise lasting 30 to 60 minutes such as weight training, yoga, chi gong, and walking. You must be healthy, nourished with wholesome foods, and well-rested with balanced hormones to benefit and recover properly from more intense exercise. Working out too hard, too much and too often without addressing these other important variables compromise your immune system and endocrine/hormonal system.

Restful Sleep

When we sleep, the stress hormone, cortisol, is lowered, but when we’re sleep deprived, cortisol levels rise. Lights out by 10:00pm. Of course, this isn't the easiest thing for some people. Many moms have to turn to natural products that assist sleeping and reduce stress and depression, such as Kratom! According to the NIH (National Institutes of Health), the physical body repairs between the hours of 10:00pm and 2:00am. The mind/emotional/spiritual body repairs between the hours of 2:00am and 6:00am.

Turn off all communication devices at a set time each night This includes your cell phone, computer and fax. Remove electronic devices from your sleeping area to eliminate electromagnetic stress.

Get rid of clutter

Clutter will make your life feel more complicated than it needs to, while a clutter-free space is one where you can truly feel at peace. Also, commit yourself to eliminating anything or anyone that is not improving the quality of your life. Manage your “to-do” list and set boundaries.

Wholesome Nutrition and Hydration

Providing your body with the nutrients and water it needs is vital to reducing stress (and staying healthy). Stress can actually deplete your body of nutrients. Make sure to include smaller, more frequent meals with plenty of protein, fruits, vegetables, seeds and nuts. These foods contain stress-reducing vitamins such as magnesium, calcium, vitamins C and E, folic acid and B-complex. Our bodies require more protein when we’re stressed. Zinc and magnesium are the first minerals to be depleted under stress.

• Avoid all sugar, white flour products and processed, junk foods which cause more stress and damage to your body. Doing so will help regulate your insulin levels. When blood sugar drops, adrenaline is released to compensate which increases anxiety.

• Drink a minimum of half your weight in ounces of water daily. Add a pinch of unprocessed sea salt to your water. Many people are chronically dehydrated which may reveal as dry skin, brittle bones, hunger which is actually thirst and even depleted brain chemistry (neurotransmitters function in water).

Sex

Hundreds of major medical studies have shown that an active sex life leads to a longer life, better heart health, a healthier immune response, reduction in chronic pain symptoms, lower rates of depression and even protection against some cancers. Men who engage in sex (just 2x/week) have half as many heart attacks as men who only have sex once per month. In fact, a healthy sex life has been shown to extend life by as much as ten years. People who enjoy a meaningful sex life are less anxious, fearful and inhibited.

Music

Listening to slow, quiet classical music, is proven to reduce stress. Countless studies have shown that music's relaxing effects can be seen on anyone, including newborns. Music can help you get “into the zone" when practicing yoga, self-hypnosis or guided imagery, can help you feel energized when exercising and recover after exercising, help dissolve stress, and promote relaxation when you're soaking in the tub. Upbeat music can take your mind off what stresses you, and help you feel more optimistic and positive. This helps release stress and can even help you keep from getting as stressed over life's little frustrations in the future. Researchers discovered that music can decrease the amount of the cortisol produced by the body in response to stress.

Relax with Water

Water has been used since the dawn of humankind for reduction of stress. Water is our connection to life itself. Spend time near the ocean. Schedule time to soak in a relaxing bath. Add 4-6 cups of Epsom salts. This is one of the most powerful ways to relax and connect to your mind, body and soul.

Release control

You cannot control other people, events or circumstances. Direct your energy into things in which you can control. Be aware of your emotional state and the fact that you have the choice to change it.

Build Strong Friendships and Relationships

Connect with others emotionally, spiritually, and mentally. Stress can lead to feelings of depression and isolation. Surround yourself with like-minded people who make you feel good. Decide who and what is most important to you and center your life around those people and items. Resign from negative influences and situations, “energy vampires” and commitments that are not fulfilling to you. It’s okay to say “no” to invitations and events you really don’t care to attend.

Therapy

Sometimes it is best to talk to someone outside your circle of friends and family, as you can feel embarrassed and inhibited in sharing your innermost feelings with people who know you well. If this resonates with you, then you will be better served by getting phone counseling from a professional therapist. In this way, you can get expert help without even having to look someone else in the eye. This will help you to ‘open up’ about more difficult and embarrassing subjects, and will help to alleviate stress and anxiety.

The Stress Institute’s founder, Dr. Kathleen Hall states: “Friendships are strong indicators of mental, physical and spiritual health. Friendship is not a luxury, but is essential to work-life balance and your health. Studies show that isolation decreases immune functioning and increases mortality risk.”

Listen to your heart

Turn off your brain and get quiet with yourself. Listen to the voice of your heart. While the mind is the content of who you are, your heart is your essence. Your true heart is not subject to chaos or limited by pain, fear and neuroses, but is joyful, creative and loving. Some believe the heart can be too uncertain and even misguided, but that’s the head talking! It is the core, the essence of your being, a reservoir of joy, powerful love and infinite compassion that lies within you.

The magnetic field of the heart is 5000 times more powerful than the magnetic field of the brain and reaches out several feet from out body. Connect with, and nourish your spirit by listening to your heart.

Be charitable

Charitable acts have been shown to decrease stress, improve quality of life, and increase lifespan for the giver, while a person who receives, but does not practice charity, doesn’t experience the same benefit. Dr. Kathleen Hall, a world renowned expert in stress and founder of The Stress Institute, says that “altruism creates a physiological responses or ‘helpers high’ that makes people feel stronger, more energetic and counters harmful effects of stress.”

Attitude of Gratitude

Being grateful for what you have allows you to focus on the positive elements in your life and value the gifts you’ve already been given. Every night I pull out my gratitude log and list 5-10 things, events or people I am grateful for. Studies tell us daily gratitude exercises result in higher levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism and energy.

Leave your best mom stress releieving tips in the comments below. Take it easy!