STRESS
Jens Cole, Certified Professional Coach, ELI-MP, MDR
Coaching you to Captain your Mindsets, Commitments, and Actions! ~ Certified Professional Coach | Performance Specialist | Masters in Dispute Resolution | sports fanatic & performance junky
Happy Wednesday friends! Today's?Newsletter?is all about?Stress! Below you'll find:
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A THOUGHT TO CONTEMPLATE
Okay, I am going to nerd-out for a minute here, because this topic wildly intrigues me.?
I am going to address the topic of stress and why it's important to understand it, as the quality of your life significantly depends on it.?
This will be a 2-part series that I will cover across the next two weeks of newsletters!?
We all have things in our life that stresses us out. But the interesting thing I have learned about stress through academics, research, and experience is that stress is a perceived experience. Meaning what's stressful to one person might not be stressful to another.?
Its our perception or view of the situation that determines whether believe it be stressful or not
The other facet of stress that I have been diving more and more into with my research, is the length of time our bodies?stay?in stress mode. Much longer than we consciously know and feel.?
When your brain?perceives?stress, a switch is flopped?
And our Nervous system goes into overdrive to fuel us and fortify us for the perceived danger?
Sending stress hormones into our bloodstream, triggering your breath to speed up, heart rate to increase, and providing the sensations of being “wired” as you enter the flight, fight, or freeze cycle - known as a “stress response”
Sensations and behaviors such as rushing, panicking, feeling like your mind is going “a million miles a second”, worried, tense, anxious, you can’t sit still, anger, frustration, “hot and bothered”, blood rushing to your head, vision seems to be impaired, etc.
In moments of danger, that energy surge would help you fight or flight?
When it's all done and perceived crisis is averted, the stress circuits should switch off without serious harm long-term?
BUT when stress doesn't naturally go away, cortisol and other stress hormones keeps flowing and our stress flight or fight circuit can?truly?switch off, which leads to:
High blood pressure, lowered immune system strength, increased inflammation, elevated blood sugar, all increasing likelihood of deadly diseases…
This system is designed to energize and mobilize you to see the perceived stress through, to overcome the situation, to respond to the proverbial?sabertooth tiger.??
The problem is if you have the elevated level throughout the day that's when things become unhealthy and nonfunctional because your body is not shutting down and resting the way it's supposed to in its optimal cycle
The problem is in our advanced and much of the time protected society, we have subconsciously assigned the sabertooth tiger to something entirely different. Yet the degree of the stress still remains.?
Rather than a sabertooth tiger its running late to a meeting.?
Rather than a sabertooth tiger its doing well on a project for work or school to get a good grade or affirmation from a manager
Rather than a sabertooth tiger its an argument with a significant other or friend that you didnt plan to have
Rather than a sabertooth tiger its losing money in the stock market or getting fired
For some it can be as extreme as rather than a sabertooth tiger its getting your Starbucks drink order messed up by the barista…
Yup 100% that is real…I have seen some mean mommas go into fight mode when their pumpkin spice latte had oat milk in it rather than almond milk…no flight, all fight!!?
All jokes aside - the problem we face is that the upbeat, high-paced lifestyle many of us live, have associated and attached the?belief of needing to be stressed?to finances, business, professional success, social status and position, and relationship.?
Our bodies are well equipped to handle stress in small doses, but when that stress becomes long-term or chronic, it can have serious effects on your body
When you are?unaware?of?your relationship with stress?and or?the experience/circumstances that you perceive as stressful?that's when we can let it go unchecked and become chronic, to points where you are stressed out all the time, easily stressed out, or stressed out for reasons you can’t really pinpoint
And again, what's stressful to one more person, is not necessarily stressful universally.?
What someone in Los Angeles, CA might believe is stressful might be completely different from what someone in Paris, France might believe to be stressful.
Why does this factor matter? Because it proves that stress is a product of 2 things:?
(1) our perceptions/mindset, and (2) our environment (inner physical and outer world environment)
This means that we can actually control our stress by:
-Becoming conscious?of what is stressing us out. Can you name the source? Can you describe the circumstance and the variables that are influencing the feelings of stress?
-Figuring out?if it is functionally useful in overcoming the event to actually be stressed
-if not,?how we can reframe?our perception or belief on that subject, and create a system of accountability to push that reframing, so that stress is not our immediate response towards the particular circumstance?
There are 3 keys that I coach others through in learning how to manage stress day to day:
In next week’s article I will dive in deeper into the details behind each strategy for managing our relationship with stress
Stress management is rad and an amazing tool to being in more of a partnership with your stress rather than it controlling you but the ultimate process in the journey with stress, that people invest thousands of dollars in and where extreme levels of focused support are needed, is learning to change our inner belief system so that the way we see the challenges and strains differently, positively, so that stress response is not the response but things like joy, intrigue, curiosity, passion.?
The process of changing our relationship with the parts of our lives, with the circumstances, that we find ourselves stressed in, is a beautiful, transformative journey that with deep inner work, non-judgmental space to explore, discover, and find clarity, purpose, and action, and professional accountability to keep you on that path until real change is experienced.
And honestly, that is where I, as a Life, Mindset and Mental Performance Coach, come into play.??
When we are in the driver seat of stress, we can use it as a tool, we can consciously use it as a way to support us, to serve us, and fuel us in moments where WE FEEL we need it.
And then because we are in the driver seat of stress, stress won't be in our way, stress won't be impeding us from focusing when we need passion, joy, energy, intrigue, curiosity to drive us
While we can do good work under stress, our best work is done when we are not being inhibited by doubt, skepticism, fear, frustration, anger but when we are being moved by intuition, confidence, happiness, etc.
This?Inner Belief System Work?takes time in developing and restructuring, but with an expert coach who can create a safe space to do so, real progress can be made.
We will go even farther into the details and importance of this inner belief system work, how it differentiates in impact from stress management work, and how impactful it can be on how you exist and move in the world around you.
Check in next week for the second part of this 2-part series on STRESS!
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A QUOTE I HAVE BEEN ENJOYING
“If a child can do advanced math, speak 3 languages, or receive top grades BUT can’t manage their emotions, practice conflict resolution, or handle stress, NONE of that other stuff is really going to matter” - anonymous
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TIP OF THE WEEK
?One of my favorite ways to bring clarity to your relationship with stress is to ask yourself some questions.?
Is this a Threat or a Challenge??
Is being stressed serving you? Is it helping??
Are the feelings and emotions I am experiencing supporting me to actually get through, figure out, solve whatever circumstance I am that I am finding to be stressful?
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RESOURCES I HAVE BEEN PUMPED ABOUT!
The TV show?Limitless?Hosted by Chris Hemsworth on Disney+!!
It is all about longevity, health and wellness, and how we can treat our bodies and mind better so that we can enjoy this life we have been gifted!
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WINS FROM THE WEEK!
Two wins!!?
I am excited to begin work with a young athlete who is energized to master her mindset and tackle her goals!
I am getting my 1st podcast episode edited at the moment and am super excited to kickstart my podcast journey!
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If you are interested in learning more about coaching, know you need support and want to get started, or if you want to take advantage of a FREE 30-minute session, message me directly using the link below!
In my coaching process, I can first help to measure, quantify, and create clear awareness, “consciousness”, to your patterns of Being:
?Your common thought patterns, beliefs, and perceptions
?Your common emotional and energetic responses
?Your behavioral patterns and actions
So it becomes more efficient and attainable to create the changes and the systems of success YOU want to create!!
By tapping into your mindset and your neuroscience, energies, and behaviors I can help you clarify that which is serving and useful, while releasing that which is not!!
Whether through service or reminder, my goal is to help people be consciously, authentically, and energetically alive, control stress and judgment, and maximize joy, passion, creativity, wisdom, and productivity