Simple Tips to Increase your Wellness while Decreasing your Stress

Article Title: Simple Tips to Increase your Wellness while Decreasing your Stress Article Author: Peggy Porter Article Copyright: 2006 Author Contact Email: coachpeggyporter@yahoo.ca

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Simple Tips to Increase your Wellness while Decreasing your Stress Copyright 2006 Peggy Porter Seeking Balance www.seekingbalance.ca

There are choices we make on a daily basis that increase or decrease our level of wellness. This level of wellness can make or break the cycle of stress in our lives. The higher our level of wellness, the more positive our response will be to that stress.

Where to start?

Put yourself first. Feeling stressed out and overwhelmed can only have a negative effect on those we interact with daily. When you look after yourself, everyone benefits. For all you moms attempting to balance motherhood and womanhood, check out my book YumME MumME Makeover at www.seekingbalance.ca . After reading it you will be motivated and inspired to improve your self care and create a more balanced life.

Positive thinking. The power of positive thinking is amazing. As you may have heard before, what you focus on expands. Negative thoughts can spiral your day into being totally stressful and unproductive. Negativity breeds negativity but creating a positive attitude can have a huge impact on you and your environment.

What's fueling you? How are you filling your energy tank-nicotine, sugar, caffeine? All of these can affect energy and mood, often becoming a substitute for good nutrition. Eat small frequent balanced meals to keep energy levels high and your mood stable. Stay well hydrated with lots of water and don't skip breakfast!

Exercise. This is the single biggest thing you can do to reduce stress and increase moods as well as energy. Consistency is the key so be realistic and set achievable goals. Buddy up and benefit from the socialization of it as well. For any Moms feeling stressed, exercise can be a real life saver and help prevent those MumME Meltdowns. For more ways, check out my FREE ecourse How to Prevent a MumME Meltdown at www.seekingbalance.ca and hit Free Ecourse.

Sleep. Make sleep a priority. If you are a shift worker, be extra vigilant and take short naps to catch up on missed sleep. Energy, mood, and ability to handle stress are all decreased when you are not getting the required sleep your body needs. Aim for eight hours.

Fun. Humor is a necessary part of life. The ability to laugh and have fun with family, friends and co-workers will enhance any situation. Lighten up and laugh often. There is nothing better for the soul.

Prioritize. What's important to you in your life? Are you spending a lot of time doing things that you don't want to be doing? If so, consider giving them up and do more of what you want to do and less of what you SHOULD do.

Live in the present. How many things do you worry about on a daily basis that never happens? So much of our energy is wasted doing this. By focusing on the present and dealing with events as they occur, many of our stressors could be eliminated. Experiment with meditation. Its benefits are very powerful.

Ask for what you need. Communication is necessary for healthy relationships. Tell people what you want and need. They cannot read your mind. Set clear boundaries for yourself and expect people to respect these boundaries.

Be grateful. Being grateful for what you already have increases the feeling of abundance and joy in your life. Try starting a gratitude journal. Focus on the blessings in your day and many more will come!

My own personal experience with wellness has been ongoing. I challenge myself regularly to continue with and improve my level of health. The rewards have been enormous and have positively affected all aspects of my life. I invite you to start your own personal challenge today.

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) 2006 Peggy Porter Peggy Porter is a nurse, Wellness Coach, and author of YumME MumME Makeover-How to Balance Womanhood and Motherhood by Nurturing the Me in MumMe. If you are a Mom and want to start creating a healthier balance in your life, go to www.seekingbalance.ca and register for Peggy's free monthly teleclass and Ecourse! For more info you can also email peggy@seekingbalance.ca or call 506-832-0117.