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5 Tips To Stay Sane While Doing Life

March 10, 2015

By:

Erin Schrader

Computer :: HP Sprout 
I have made it no secret around here that anxiety and stress have been a rather large part of my life, and to be quite honest — who hasn’t been affected by it at some point in time? For some the feelings stay around for five minutes while for others, it can last for months. Thankfully as I have gotten older I have been able to distinguish certain triggers that bring me into the dark hole that is anxiety. Over the past few years I have quickly picked up on the fact that when I have too much going on, I lose it. But I don’t lose it in conventional ways like one may think. Instead of realizing “hey! I think I feel a little overwhelmed, maybe I should slow down a little!” I suffer from panic attacks at the most inopportune times (ie: driving, standing in line at a store ready to checkout, sitting in a meeting). It’s after this starts happening that I have to evaluate what would be causing it and then AHA! I realize that maybe working 3 jobs, trying to keep up a home, feed my husband, be social with friends and family, work out, and blah blah blah could be the cause of it all. I love being busy, I just don’t always love what being busy does to me. 
Because I know we all lead busy lives and get overwhelmed (hello moms, how DO you do it?) I thought I would share 5 ways I have found that help me keep my stress levels to a minimum. 
1. Write it down. 
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From the very important to the not so important (not that writing The Bachelor into your daily schedule isn’t important, but you know) just get it all down. I start every day with looking over my hour by hour schedule, penciling in what I would like to do when, and just get an overall feel for what the flow of my day will look like. This helps stay not just efficient and productive, but also helps me see if it is actually manageable or if I need to move some items to another day. I also make it a point to leave certain time slots empty. This allows for either grace when something has taken longer than expected, or downtime that I can do whatever the heck I please. I then spend a few minutes before bed every night writing down the next day’s to-do list. Getting it all out of my head and onto paper makes sleep so much easier. Which leads me to my next point…

2. Get some sleep.
Nothing makes me 50 shades of crazier than when I am sleep deprived. If I don’t get a solid 7-8 hours I am useless (all the mothers of newborns roll your eyes at my non-sense, I know). As of recently, Shawn and I haven’t been getting the best sleep of our lives. This could be because we haven’t slept in our own bed since February 15th due to this dust filled bathroom remodel project that has overtaken our bedroom leaving us to sleep in the guest bedroom on a mattress that is about as comfortable as sleeping on hardwood floors. Because of this I have turned to natural help, RESCUE Sleep Liquid Melts. I found these at my local Walgreens however I believe CVS, Whole Foods, and Sprouts carries their products as well. Because medicines freak me out, I welcome all natural products with open arms. They take the edge off just enough to make those eyelids of mine shut faster than my mind can remember that I need to fall asleep.
3. Do something ridiculous. 
This is probably my favorite on the list because it is the most fun and yields the most smiles. Get in the car, blare that ghetto music, dance to your hearts content, and just drive with no destination. Dust off your hula hoop and get down with your bad self. Listen to Nicki Minaj enough times (ie: 4,000) to memorize every word to one of her songs, just do something that feels good. 
4. Turn to help. 
Like I stated before, I am leery of meds – not because I think they are bad, but because I get so nervous and worked up over what they may do to me that it defeats the purpose of taking them in the first place. Because of this, I love when I find all natural products that I don’t have to fear taking to help relieve the stress. These RESCUE Pastilles are my go-to. I chew one when feeling anxious and it somehow magically helps calm those nerves of mine. I love it because I can throw the tin in my purse and have them around at all times. Not to mention they also taste great. For RESCUE coupons be sure to visit their website here

5. Know that you can’t do it all.

As much as we would like to think that we can, guess what — we can’t. And while I want to think that that thought sucks, it’s actually pretty darn refreshing. Know what you are capable of and do the best that you can. Know what you aren’t capable of and be okay with saying no. It doesn’t make you weak, it makes you wise.

What helps you stay sane while doing this crazy thing called life? I’d love to hear it! 

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

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