Tools for resilience

These healthy habits can make us more resilient toward stress, naturally:

• Get regular exercise.
• Practice good communication with others (which includes saying “no” when you need to).
• Take laughter breaks (cat videos, anyone?).
• Get plenty of sleep.
• Cut back on caffeine and sugar.

Tools for eliminating stressors

Here’s one of the biggest tips we can offer: Ask for help when you need it. We all get overwhelmed from time to time, and you may find that those around you would love to “trade” help to make everyone’s lives easier. For example:

• Find a carpool buddy so you can alternate taxi services to school, church, sports practice, etc.
• Share lawn-mowing duties with a neighbor, so each of you only gives up every other Saturday morning.
• Trade childcare with a trusted friend or neighbor.

Chronic stress is hard on both your body and your mind (and your relationships, too!). When your body’s stress response is activated over a long-term period, all your systems are flooded with cortisol and other stress hormones. This can lead to physical problems like:

• Headache
• Digestive issues
• Difficulty sleeping
• Weight gain
• Heart disease
• Stroke
• High blood pressure

It can also contribute to serious mental health problems, including:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Impaired memory
• Difficult concentrating

How can we manage stress over the long term?

Managing chronic stress is different from the ways in which we cope with stress in the moment. The goal is to reduce our overall levels of stress so that every day is a little easier to handle. It’s not as hard as it may sound—all you need is the right set of tools.

Chronic stress is hard on both your body and your mind (and your relationships, too!). When your body’s stress response is activated over a long-term period, all your systems are flooded with cortisol and other stress hormones. This can lead to physical problems like:

• Headache
• Digestive issues
• Difficulty sleeping
• Weight gain
• Heart disease
• Stroke
• High blood pressure

It can also contribute to serious mental health problems, including:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Impaired memory
• Difficult concentrating

How can we manage stress over the long term?

Managing chronic stress is different from the ways in which we cope with stress in the moment. The goal is to reduce our overall levels of stress so that every day is a little easier to handle. It’s not as hard as it may sound—all you need is the right set of tools.