It's a crazy time to be alive
Did anyone really see this coming? I know I didn't. I didn't think I would be quarantined in a sublet apartment in Durham NC. I didn't think I would have a blog or an amazing side hustle. But here we are. Life looks a little different now. I sat down and wasn't really sure what I wanted to write about, what I wanted to say. I do have a lot I want to say but I'm not sure it's the right time so for now we'll talk about things you can do to keep your hormones in check while under immense stress.
First let's talk about your body and how chronic stress impacts it. Chronic stress impacts so many things: appetite, sleep, weight gain, mental health, and on and on and on. When you immune system is chronically active is causes an autoimmune response. What does this mean? Chronic stress causes increased or chronic inflammation in your body, which increases the amount of cytokines you produce, it's a viscous cycle.
There are four causes of stress:
Perceived stress (knowing you're going to get a shit assignment as a traveler)
Circadian disruption: light/dark disruption, jet lag, shift work, over exposure to blue light
inflammatory signaling (catching a cold)
Glycemic dysregulation (blood sugar out of control/diabetic)
(Institute of Women's Health)
How can we help support our bodies? Our bodies work hard for us and as you can imagine having our immune system "on" all the time isn't great.
Stress management is very important, especially now. I would say if you don't have great coping techniques or don't know how to control your stress, it's a great time to learn.
Let's bring down the stress in our bodies and decrease our inflammatory response from being "on" all the time.
*Mediation is an excellent way to help with stress. There are a couple of apps you can try. Headspace, Calm, and Insight Timer ( I have not used that).
*Yoga, another amazing way to move your body and also calm your mind. I use an app by Mary Oschner, I think it's called Mary Yoga.
*Journaling, you can write about whatever your heart desires. I used to get up and immediately write three pages in my journal, every morning before work. I would write about whatever came to my head. There are some great journal prompts out there too-if you need one let me know.
*Blue light blocking glasses are helpful, especially since we are on our phones and computers all the time now days. I have a couple of pairs. One from Felix Gray and the other from Klassy Network.
*Get some freakin sleep, like for reals. Not just five hours either. Listen you need more than that. You need at least 7 and i'm being generous there. Sleep is freakin important people. Jesus GET YOUR SLEEP. I have a HEPA air filter in my room, I sleep with mouth tape so I breath through my nose (see my instagram post) and I get to bed on time (maybe i'm old).
*Eat your veggies, actually just eat in general. Women chronically under eat. I'm not telling you to go fucking ham..I'm saying eat nutrient dense food. But eat, you know? You want ice cream? Have some ice cream!! Eat those cheeze-its but also maybe throw some veggies around somewhere and make sure you're getting enough protein.
*drink some water, maybe? I know, it's so tough to get enough water in during the day, i mean at all really. but i assure you-your body will thank you.
How you talk to yourself is also pretty important, so I encourage you to be kind to yourself. If you find you are always saying mean things, just once reach for another thought. Change the narrative. I know you can and you deserve to.
OMG...I almost forgot the most important thing, wash your hands!!
Those are just a few things to help support your body during this crazy stressful time. Be kind to yourself and your neighbor...we could all use it!!
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