Doing Well In Stressful Times

The New Year & Stressors in Life

Most people were so happy to say goodbye to 2020 this year because of all the stressors that had happened to everyone. It seemed like no one was immune to what was hitting all of us, some more than others. Many people will say that the last year has hit them on multiple levels and that it has been one of the most stressful times in their life.

All of us on one level or another have been dealing with a pandemic the likes that haven’t been seen in a hundred years, small businesses on Main Street being rocked, remote work, remote schooling, social distancing, and so much more. Our parents and grandparents worked through being at war, the depression, and many other stressors, but even they will say this last year is a topper.

How to Thrive When Life is Stressful

So how do you still feel good when it seems so much that is happening in your life is outside of your control? That is definitely the question before many of us these days and preeminent in our minds. We offer some tips below that we hope will help you navigate the stressful times we are in. These aren’t end-all solutions but we hope they make the road ahead easier to walk and more enjoyable.

Stress-DIY Projects to the Rescue

When life gets stressful it’s a great time to work on DIY projects. First of all, it keeps your mind and hands busy, plus you have a wonderful finished project after you have worked on your project. Whether you are building an outdoor shed, a guest shed, a meditation or workout studio, an office shed. or a playhouse for children there is a sense of accomplishment that comes with working on and finishing a DIY project. You can look through the Shed windows and More pages to see some of the great projects our DIY community has created.

Get Outdoors & Soak Up Vitamin D

Getting outdoors no matter what the weather is so important during COVID. Vitamin D helps your body’s immune system, plus even a small amount of sunlight helps with your mood in the winter. Breathing fresh air whether you are taking a walk, walking your dog, playing in the snow, sweeping the driveway, or cutting firewood helps you feel healthier and can lift your mood. There is something about fresh air that clears things and puts a new perspective on things rather than sitting indoors. So bundle up, breathe deep, and enjoy some outdoor time this season and help lift your mood.

Dig In The Dirt

Whether you want to plant vegetables, bulbs, or flowers, all of these projects are inexpensive and get your hands in the dirt. Dirt is good for your health on many levels. Digging in the dirt allows your body to come in contact with important probiotics that are in the soil-why our ancestors had fewer stomach problems than many of us today. You also get to create something of beauty, which enhances your backyard, deck, or patio. Dirt and digging in the dirt is very centering or grounding which helps stress melt away.

Be Thankful-Try a Gratitude Journal

Keeping a gratitude journal helps focus your mind on the positive things in your life. What we tend to focus on seems to increase in our lives, it’s just how the brain tends to work. I asked my grandfather how they coped with war and the depression and it was interesting the stories he shared of his Mom setting up tables in the front yard to feed people that we’re hungry when they were not rich people and had 7 children.

She encouraged friends and those she met to find something each day to be thankful for, she believed if you thought about what was good in life it helped you get through the tough times. 7 children, the depression, and then 3 sons off at war and still when she died at ninety-nine and a half she was a positive person that found the good in life! She always told me that the only thing you could always control is how you look at things not always what shows up in your life.

How Do You Want to Feel?

Many times people create New Year’s resolutions at the beginning of the year, we have a new slant to share with you on that age-old tradition. Trying thinking of the year ahead and what you want to feel in the different areas of your life. Danielle LaPorte encourages people not to go for just for happiness, dig deeper and think how you want to feel about where you live, your career or business, your health, your relationships, how you want to spend your free time, and your religious or spiritual life.

How do you want to feel in each of those areas of your life? How we want to feel is what drives us to make decisions, so getting proactive about how you want to feel and making decisions that support feeling that way puts you farther ahead in your goals than resolutions usually do. The process of excavating your desired feelings is a project I just finished and it was eye-opening!

Reach Out to Friends & Family

My Dad has started calling one family member or friend each day. Some of these friends he hasn’t talked to in a few years, but they are so happy to hear his voice when they pick up the phone. We have lost a lot of human contact with COVID-19 and his idea not only makes him feel purposeful but it enhances other people’s lives also. He also has a text list he goes through each day where he sends out a couple of dozen texts to let people he knows letting them know that he is thinking of them. It might seem like a small gesture but small gestures can make all the difference in the world to someone.

Organize & Donate

Winter is a great time of year to organize our homes or shop. Organizing gives your life order, feels purposeful, and sometimes you even find lost treasures! We have just done this process a few times to closets, drawers, and our garage and have put together boxes of items that can find a second home by donating them to charity. If you can’t get out to drop off items, there are a number of groups from Goodwill to the Salvation Army to your local hospice chapter and others who will come and pick up especially larger items. Amazon has a Give Back Box that you can print a label and reuse any box, even your Amazon shipping box and donate items by dropping them off at the post office or a UPS shipping store.

Ask for What You Need

Finally and not least of all, when it comes to yourself, ask for what you need. I’ve mentioned this suggestion to friends and family and the retort many times, is that is scary and vulnerable. Yes, it is being vulnerable, but if you don’t ask for what you want the answer is always no.

Brene Brown speaks of leading with a strong back, soft front, and a wild heart–great advice she borrowed and added to from Elizabeth Lester the cofounder of Omega Institute in New York. But, it’s in keeping our hearts soft that we actually are the strongest. Shutting down our heart shuts off our most accurate signals from our body.

Did you know that your heart sends you nearly double the signals and messages or advice than your brain does? Trust your heart to give you the real scoop on what you need. Make a list of people that are your cheering squad that you can go to and honestly ask for what you need. Many times being vulnerable opens the door in other people’s hearts to lead with vulnerability also and a real heart-to-heart connection happens. Those heart-to-heart connections are what feed us and what we remember for a lifetime.

On a funny note, when all else fails, bake cookies! The task is purposeful, creates great aromas in your home, and gives you some great comfort food to munch on. We believe as a small business that it is important to support you with more than the best selection in shed windows and shed accessories this New Year. We are all in this together and we appreciate your support of Shed Windows and More and we wanted to give back to you from our hearts! Have a wonderful New Year and we are here for you!