Expectations during the Holidays
A pastoral family has a different Christmas experience: it comes with the territory. You adjust expectations and ‘do the next thing.’ My list of the next thing is always quite different, however. LOL!
Reality
Then, just before Christmas, we welcomed Sadie into our family: a new life. Precious. Beautiful. So much life ahead of her! How exciting!
Christmas baby Sadie
January arrived, and it has just about slipped out the door…we just got our Christmas/New Year’s card out to family and friends this week-end…
So I could blame Sadie, but that would hardly be fair…
I simply have to take responsibility for not writing, and admit that I’m having to work harder to get back into momentum after the Christmas/life schedule.
It’s all good, though…even jotting down these thoughts is a start. And as I look over this month, I did add something to my activity list: I did three hikes, one with Ed and two with friends. And each one was helping to build momentum in one area of my life- more hiking!
Here are two photos of the views as we hiked, the Peralta Trail and the Pass Mountain Trail.
Peralta Trail- east valley view
Pass Mt trail
Expectations 2016
What‘s on your list of activities in 2016? Or, what are you looking forward to experiencing in 2016?
A cruise? A special trip? A family reunion? Another child, grandchild- or great- grandchild? More hunting? More golf? More family time? A new business? More shopping? More time or finances to a favorite charity or cause? Downsizing? Less stress? Relocating south? No debt? Fat loss-which translates into a smaller size?
Sounds fantastic!
The Unexpected
None of us, however, has a handle on the future, including this year. Unexpected events happen and it’s not always pretty. How will you,..how do you….handle the crises of life…unfulfilled expectations…results of poor decisions (yours or someone else’s)?
In talking to old and new friends over the last few weeks, stress continues to be at an all-time high. The end of the holidays does not signal the end of stress! For some friends, it seems to be one crisis after another: the death of a spouse; followed by an accident; followed by a longer-than-expected recovery; resulting in the loss of a favorite activity; resulting in low self-esteem and the need to re-invent oneself. Not pretty!
On the stress chart, those events put you at the top…and over the edge!
Managing Stress
So what can you do to manage stress? Short answer: the best you can….
A few more specific suggestions:
- Control what you can, and let go of the rest. As much as we would like to, we simply cannot control everything. Take some quality alone time- no distractions allowed- and jot down all the areas of stress you are aware of. Don’t forget to include finances and relationships (i.e. family and friends), two very common area of stress. Evaluate your list on the basis of your ability to control the outcome. Write down action steps that you can take to relieve the stress. LET GO of the rest. (definitely not an easy thing to do)
- Get a handle on some very basic lifestyle habits: hydration, sleep, spiritual life, activity, nutrition, supplements. Some of these areas may need some specific attention. As a wellness coach, I’m available for a complementary consultation. Feel free to get in touch with me via phone/text or email.
- Implement one or more stress management activities: exercise (something you truly enjoy doing), meditation, massage therapy, deep breathing, yoga, tai chi, a hobby, reading, listening to music, drawing, writing.
2016 can be your best year ever. If you’re not quite on track for that, please don’t hesitate to contact me. My phone/text is 480.382.8255; email is mari.dezago@gmail.com I look forward to hearing from you!
