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Our Stressful World

Is it just me? I feel that I am always hearing terrible stories. A child with cancer, another with a terrible disease, etc. People my age with cancer, suicides and abandoned marriage you name it. I don't recall my parents at the same stage in life knowing so many affected people. Do I know more people than others or are peoples' issues more public because of Facebook?

It definitely forces one to reframe one's world. Our perspective is our reality and we can control this. I am having an incredibly stressful week. I have gone from "why me?" to "why cannot life be easier" to "wow I have so many blessings."

I always joke that if life was meant to be simple, instead of leaning about the trials and tribulations of the Imot and Avot (biblical mothers Sara, Rivka, Rachel and Leah and fathers Avraham,Yitchak and Yacov), we would be told how they sipped martinis on a sunny island. Clearly, we are supposed to experience challenges, stress and pain.

The question is how do we move along each day? What message do we send to our kids while managing our stresses? My way of coping is taking five minutes each night in bed before the Shema and thinking about everything and challenging myself to reframe even the most challenging situations.

Immas, how do you cope with stress? Please share your tips and secrets for a more stress-less life.

Tags: coping with stress, imma, jewish mom, jodi samuels, metroimma, stress, the number one site for jewish moms

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Comment by Evelyn on January 24, 2012 at 1:30pm: For the big stresses: world problems, illness, family crisis, I ask myself: what can I learn from this now? What, if anything, can I do to make the situation less scary, stressful, etc. Sometimes there isn't anything, so I just have to ask what I need to to right now to make my own little world feel better.

For the "little" stresses: traffic, root canals, annoying people, I ask myself: How much will this matter next week? In six weeks? In Six months? Next year? Trying to gain a little perspective helps shift my tendency toward catastrophic thinking.

Comment by wylie silverstein on January 13, 2012 at 1:48pm: Well ... no such thing as a 'stress-less' life ... however ... there are definitely ... different degrees of stress ... make sure you learn how to measure the different degrees ... and ... know that ... whatever is stressing you today ... will most likely be a distant memory ... next year at this time ...

You are correct in your assessment that the amount of terrible stories has increased ... environment... plastics ... something is generating far more illness ... especially in children...

So ... how to cope??? Breathe deeply ... put one foot in front of the other... don't get caught up in what is called "toxic worry" ...don't be stuck by fears of "what if ?" ...

Most daily stresses will pass ... if you are late ... so be it ... if dinner is not perfection ... just let it go ... if it an issue of health ... deal with it in every possible way ... get the best medical advice you can ... follow what the doctors say ... daven ... talk to Hashem ...

Just know that this is your life ... just the way ot is ... for whatever reason ... and ... as it is said ...

" Keep calm ... and ... carry on ... "

Comment by Alia Ramer on January 12, 2012 at 11:41am: I don't think you know more afflicted people. But in our parents' generation, cancer was said in a whisper and lots of problems were kept very secret whereas now we know there is no shame in our problems and we lean on each other.

And I think that's the key to stress relief. Knowing that there is a community around us we can lean on when our strength is low. I wrote about it recently on my blog. I hope you enjoy reading it, I always enjoy reading yours.