Tips for Managing Stressful Moments.

Disclaimer: This is for informational purposes only. I am not a doctor nor is this a substitute for medical for psychological treatment. Always contact your doctor if you are experiencing a health challenge.

Stress. Everyone experiences it and everyone has to learn ways to manage it. Stress is a necessary part of life and although it can feel overwhelming, it has a lot to teach us about our coping skills.

I for one have a few reactions that are clear signs I have been under an abundance of stress. Stress for me can cause something like an energetic clench. My body gets stiff, I take shorter breaths, and my mindset takes a complete plunge into pure distress. (You know, like there is no way this situation can get better, Nothing can help me. I am going to drop into a lake of destruction sort of mindset)

Stress unfortunately is a part of life and although we can’t always escape it, we can learn how to work through those moments with a few tools and practices. Listed are three different practices that tend to really help not only calm me down from an overwhelming situation, they can also be used to help manage extended exposure to stress.

1. Crystals: Considering I am an absolute Crystal Geek, my first choice to help manage stress will absolutely be the use of our earth provided allies. Crystals affect our bodies through frequency, vibration and entrainment. When we are in a state of stress our bodies are emitting an out of balance frequency which can lead to areas that get stagnant and can cause energetic imbalance. We can help keep the energy flowing as well as balancing the frequency by using calming, uplifting and grounding stones. Depending on the type of stress you are feeling will determine types of crystals to use. If you are stressed and feeling anxious, that is considered a high frequency imbalance and you will want to ground that energy to something more stable. If you are stressed and feeling depressed, you are going to want to raise that frequency some. And if you are just plain under a lot of weight, calming stones that support relaxation will be your ally.

- For overall needing calming: Lepidolite, you see Lepidolite is micanized lithium and has a calming effect when held in your hand.

- For Stress with anxiety: Garnet or Smokey quartz paired with Lepidolite.

- For Stress with Depression: Amethyst paired with Lepidolite.

We use these stones in a few different ways. The easiest is holding them to your heart and breathing slowly allowing them to affect your frequency from your Heart Center. This will allow the energy to go where it needs to and balance your whole field. For the use of the stones such as garnet or Smokey quartz, you can also place these near your feet or our pants pocket so they are near your lower energetic center. These stones ground you and will direct the misbalanced energy to ground out of your lower energetic centers.

This is a slower type of stress management and is helpful if you are aware you will be entering a stressful situation to have on hand.

2. Thymus Thump: I am a huge fan of this because it doesn’t require any tools and you can do it anywhere rather discretely. The Thymus is a gland located underneath your sternum. You can stimulate it by thumping firmly on your chest with both hands using your pointer and middle finger. I tend to hit about 2 inches lower than the middle of my collar bones, I thump repeatedly for about 30 seconds while breathing deeply and slowly. This activates your life force energy and centers your energy overall. It’s my go to for on the road stressful moments when I need to re-center then take action.

3. Controlled Breathing: I find anytime I get stressed I am known to not only HOLD my breath for a while, but I don’t take healthy deep breaths. I resort to shallow breathing. This isn’t good for you and with a little awareness you may find you also are known to do this. Proper breathing can help keep you focused when faced with stressful news or situations. The controlled breathing pattern I tend to stick with is breathe in for 3 seconds, hold for 3 seconds and release for 6. I find this pattern is not deep enough It causes any form of panting but also not short enough that it feels rushed. Do this while closing your eyes for around 5 minutes and you will be surprised how much easier it is to face this situation.

NOTE: Combining Tip 1. + 3. Is absolutely magical!

WE all have methods and practices that can assist us when faced with stress in life, these are my top three favorites that I use in my day to day life. They can be done the moment something stressful happens. Or when you are in long term stressful situations as a form of management and re-centering.

I also like to always remind myself, if I am breathing and alive then any situation can be altered. I am okay, you are okay, and we can get through it one step and breath at a time.