Photo by Tomwang112 - Getty Images
Santa under pile of presents
Are the holidays stressing you out? Well, chances are the Yuletide season per se, even with its frenzied shopping, glut of social events, largesse of food and booze and turbulent family dynamics, is not the primary culprit. If you believe it is, then you've likely been perusing the ubiquitous "How to de-stress your holiday" tips that populate the media this time of year. There's some useful information there, but, too often, one critical point is missing.
You see, there's solid research showing that, when pondering the source of our frayed holiday nerves, we should stop looking at the mayhem all around us and, instead, gaze inward to examine our core beliefs about stress itself. Allow me to explain. Most of us regard stress as destructive, both emotionally and physically, a premise reinforced by the avalanche of information about its deleterious impacts on cardiovascular health, mood, immune response, relationships, etc. Basically, the message is that stress makes us physically ill and mentally bonkers, particularly this time of year. Does it?
A long-term study of over 30,000 adults showed that those with high stress levels have a significantly increased risk of dying prematurely over an eight-year period. So, that means stress is harmful, right? Not so fast. This increased risk of mortality occurs if and only if we believe stress is bad for our health. In contrast, if one’s attitude is that stress is not hurtful, that, in fact, it can be a source of motivation and energy, this greater risk of dying evaporates. In fact, the study demonstrated that those who experience a lot of stress but don’t consider it harmful are even less likely to die prematurely than folks who have little stress at all.
Stay on top of the news of the day
Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays.
What gives? The obvious takeaway is that being hassled and harried is not the central problem. Instead, what we tell ourselves and, subsequently, believe about the impact of stress on our well-being determines whether it is harmful, harmless or even beneficial. If this sounds like the proverbial self-fulfilling prophecy wherein belief creates reality, that’s because it is. If we embrace the notion that stress is a positive force designed to help us meet a challenge, rather than a destructive adversary, then it is actually transformed from a potentially damaging influence to a healthy one.
Reframe Your Perspective
So, if you currently view stress as hurtful (which means, to you, it is), how can you reframe your perspective to get it working for you? It's not as easy as merely repeating, "Stress is my friend." Instead, tune into the physical sensations you experience when hassled (tight shoulders, churning gut, beating heart, etc.), and begin viewing them as latent energy rattling around inside you waiting to cut loose and get something done, because that's exactly what it is. This is not sleight of mind. This potentially positive energy is there to help you meet the challenge of the moment, to enhance your ability to adapt and perform.
Recall a time when you felt a lot of stressful agitation, yet somehow harnessed that energy to accomplish something productive or worthwhile. Chances are the process of channeling that energetic power into a positive action left you feeling more capable and satisfied. Basically, that’s the drill here.
Because stress manifests primarily through the body, the best conduits for harnessing and applying this energy are physical. When under duress, positive folks convert it into exercise, completing chores, physical play, creative projects, expressive pursuits and the like.
So, if we want to make the best of stress this holiday season, we don't need to take refuge in a cave or a bottle. We need to remember that holiday stress proves helpful or hurtful not based one’s situation, but on the attitude one takes toward that situation. As psychiatrist Viktor Frankl put it, the greatest freedom we possess is to “choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.”
For more, visit philipchard.com.
