Happy Wellness Wednesday, Garden Fam 🌸
Today, we are continuing our Stress Awareness Month Series.
As you should know by now, chronic stress can be a real enemy to multiple aspects of our health, so I’m hoping our series will provide you with practices, tips, and mindsets you can implement to manage and minimize stress in your life, and live in the abundant joy and peace that God has for each of us.
This week we are diving into how you can manage stress in busy seasons. To clarify, physical, mental, and emotional stress can be a natural human response to life’s pressures, but can become unhealthy when we are constantly in a state of high tension or worry. In life, we should aim to minimize stress through practices like planning ahead and setting up systems and processes in our lives that allow us to care for ourselves and release stress on a regular basis. In the times when some level of pressure is unavoidable, such as when striving to achieve goals and meet deadlines, in caring for others, or even in working to fulfill God-given assignments, there are things we can do to manage the stress that exists, so that we are not just absorbing it and allowing it to wreak havoc in our minds, bodies, and spirits.
Check out today's podcast & the tips highlighted in the episode transcript below.
Let me know in the comments:
How do YOU manage stress in busy seasons?
Have a healthy & wholesome week!
Love you bunches 🍇
P.S. Check out today's sponsor, Reorganize with Rhaven if you need help minimizing stress by getting and staying organized.
Episode Transcript & Today's Tips
"The very first thing I recommend is to lean on God for His supernatural power and grace to carry out whatever it is that you need to do. Lean on Him, for His strength is made perfect in our weakness. I go into detail about this a lot more in the first episode of this series. Check that one out if you need more guidance on how to actually lean on God in order to live a life of less stress.
The next thing I would recommend is to consider your non-negotiable needs. Meaning, no matter what, I need these things in order to function at my best. These may change based on what season you are in, what you are working on, or other life factors, but take a moment to consider your bare minimum needs. What is the least amount of sleep you need in order to function? What meals can’t you skip? What spiritual and self-care practices are most important to you? Essentially, fill in the blank: “No matter how busy life gets, I absolutely need…”
For me, I’ve learned that I absolutely need at LEAST 6 hours of sleep, ideally 7. When I don’t get that, I function at such a lower capacity, which creates a bit more stress, because I can’t even effectively do what I set out to do for the day. In this season, working out is also a non-negotiable. Even if I have to skip a day, I know I need to honor my workout routine, because now that I don’t drink caffeine anymore, it helps me have sustainable energy throughout the day and allows my brain to function at a higher capacity. I also refuse to start my day without spending time with God. Not because of religious purposes or checking off a box, but because you build and maintain relationship by spending time. Plus, I need time with the Holy Spirit who knows all things, so that He may order my footsteps for the day. Lastly, y’all have heard me talk about this before, but smoothies and/or protein shakes really help me to get or keep going through my day.
You should also consider what can be the first things or habits to go when things start getting busy. For me, I’ll be honest, laundry, and especially folding laundry is usually the first things I neglect when things start picking up. One day, I will likely outsource this altogether, because not only do I hate doing laundry, but I always feel like I could be doing something else with my time when I’m sitting and folding clothes. This can also be pleasurable things that you can easily give up to build more time into your day and/or to save the energy for something else that is more important at the moment. For me, that’s watching tv or YouTube. For me, those are super luxuries that get cut ASAP when I need to buy back time for myself, especially tv. What are those things for you? What chores are not of utmost importance when you need the time back? What hobbies or pastimes can you do without when needed? Remember, you’ve already outlined your non-negotiable self-care things, so I am NOT suggesting that you neglect caring for yourself.
In fact, we’ll make that the next tip:
Ensure that you maintain some time to care for yourself—to nurture your needs, to laugh, to smile, to do something you enjoy, even if it’s not for as long or in the same way you normally would. You should have your non-negotiable self-care things outlined from the exercise I shared first, but still wanted to highlight this here. You must care for yourself in order to function at your best!
That brings us to tip number five: Mind what you are eating.
It can definitely be easy to junk-food out when you are super busy, because you feel like you don’t have time to cook or make healthy food choices, but healthy eating is even more important in busy seasons. Food is fuel, so you can’t put junk in your tank and expect your body to continuously function at high capacity and efficiency. It almost becomes counterproductive, because junk food often causes lethargy and brain fog, the opposite of what healthy foods will provide. Meal planning and/or prep, or at least taking the time to make the healthier food choice if you must eat out goes a long way. Your brain and body will thank you by operating in the ways they were designed to. If you consistently make healthier choices, you will likely notice that you are able to get more done, and even that you feel better while doing it. In 2023, there are many convenient ways you can do this without necessarily having to take too much time away from what you are working on by ordering your groceries, signing up for a meal planning program that delivers ingredients and recipes for your meals for the week, or even finding a meal prep program or chef who will deliver already-cooked meals for you to consume for the week. If you’re balling on a budget, you can also simplify your meals by eating one thing for breakfast all week, one or two things for lunch all week, and one or two things for dinner all week. Prepare them all at the beginning of the week and boom, you’re done.
Each of these options can also help you to minimize decision fatigue, which can often happen in seasons where you have to make a lot of decisions in a given day or week.
In that same vein, you can also consider how or in what areas you can minimize your decision-making on a regular basis, so that your thinking capacity can be reserved for what matters most. For example, can you pick out your clothes at the beginning of the week so that you don’t have to think about it each day? Can you lock in your morning and evening routines a bit more so that you don’t have to decide what to do when you wake up or as you prepare for bed? Are you able to delegate certain tasks and decisions to others in your household, on your job, or in your business? If you have a nanny, perhaps there are certain tasks that he or she can take the reins on so that you don’t have to? If you are a supervisor or CEO with employees, consider whether you can give them more autonomy in certain areas, especially if you tend to be a “do it myself” kinda person. Save your decision making energy for what matters most.
There are many more tips I could share here, but I think this is a good place to start. If you are already in a busy season, I wouldn't recommend implementing these all at once, but perhaps, start with intentionally leaning on God and also, outlining your non-negotiables. Then, go from there. If you’re not in a busy season, this is a perfect time to consider the things outlined above and start incorporating some of them into your life now, so that when things get busy, you already know what to do! This is especially true for those who know God is about to bring you into a busier season. Get ready now, so you won’t have to then!
That’s the end of today’s episode. I hope it helped you and I pray that implementing some of these tips helps you to live a stress less life! Now, I want to hear from you, what helps you to manage stress in busy seasons? I look forward to reading your responses!
If you haven’t already, check out our merch on our blog. We have some awesome faith-based hoodies, t-shirts, and notebooks to rep for the Kingdom or to be a shameless plug for The Garden of Epiphani out in the world!
Thank you again for listening and I will talk to you guys soon, God willing!
Love you bunches 🍇
Happy Wellness Wednesday, Garden Fam 🌸
I hope you are doing WELL & having a fabulous week.
As I shared last week, April is Stress Awareness Month, so we are continuing our series this week focusing on Work-Life “Balance.” I put quotation marks around “balance,” because realistically speaking, it’s not necessarily about giving equal weight to both, but rather about healthily integrating your work into the lifestyle of abundance that God has called you to and that you desire to live. With that being said, we’re going to call it work-life flow from here on out, because that’s really what it should be, a flow...
Check out today's Podcast!
Then, see the additional tips and the transcript below for more details!
Wishing you a healthy & wholesome week!
Love you bunches 🍇
P.S. Go grab some new glasses from today’s sponsor here.
More Ways to Maintain a Healthy Work-Life Flow
Take time to optimize your calendar
If you need help with this, check out my Personal Assisting site and consider hiring me to do it with or for you.
Establish different calendars for home and work, and even for the various types of events that may fall under each.
This will allow you to see everything in one place and schedule accordingly (and also look back to track “where the time went”)
Establish a good sleep schedule
Check out this blog for more details on improving your sleep
Plan and shop for your meals each week
If you’re super busy, Instacart is a life and time saver!
Use my code for $10 off your first order — RHAVENH1FC
It’s a great way to capture things that come to mind that you are not yet ready to attack.
Because you can create multiple projects, it can also help you to see both personal and professional tasks in one place and plan accordingly
Block out time on your calendar for focused, undistracted work
Turn your phone on ‘Do Not Disturb’ during this time — the more you finish during your actual work day, the less you will feel the need to work past your set time to end the work day.
You will likely find that you get more done this way!
If you are in a management or supervisory role, be sure you are delegating where you should be and not taking on everything —
You have a team for a reason; “Teamwork makes the dream work!”
Podcast Transcript
First, I want to debunk the myth that our work is separate from our lives or that the two are at odds with each other. In times when this seems to be our reality, we must reconsider our mindset, our approach, our work, or some combination of the three. Even if what you are currently doing to financially support your life is not yet what you feel you were called to do, it is still important to see it as a piece of the overall pie of your life. This approach is already a wonderful step in the right direction towards minimizing stress, because it allows you to see yourself as one person who does many things instead of feeling like you need to split or duplicate yourself to do and be these things separately. See your life as one big picture that includes your work and your life, and not as “work life” vs. “life life,” lol.
Next thing to note is that your work does not define you. It is pretty customary when you meet people for them to ask your name and then almost immediately follow up with, “what do you do?” This alone sets the stage for us to be defined by or find identity in the work we do. Even if what you do actually is a large part of who you are because you run a business or operate in a role you feel you were created to do, it is still a part of the overall pie of your life. Resist the temptation to define yourself by the work you do, even when others try to. This will help to prevent stress in the times when work or business is not going as well, because you will be able to see it as something in the business not working, and not as you being a failure. It will also prevent some of the stress that may arise in the event that God asks you to pivot, as He often does. When your work does not define you, you are able to see it as an assignment or purpose to be fulfilled, and can healthily remove yourself when the time comes. That’s not to say that there may not be grief involved, but it won’t cause a whole identity crisis.
That brings us to one of the key ways you can have a healthier approach to work and life: set boundaries for working and create time for rest, having fun, refueling, etc. This can be challenging when we grow attached to the work we do, especially when we are readily able to see the positive impact that our work has on others, on systems, on industries, etc. However, in order to minimize stress and build a healthy work-life flow, we must know when to turn down, turn off, and turn away from work. There will ALWAYS be something that needs to be done… literally always! Especially if you are an educator or entrepreneur—I’m sure there are many other roles that can be listed here, but those are two that I know personally. As such, we can’t let what needs to be done tell us when we will eat, take a break, check out for the day, or take a vacation. There may be a bit of preparation required to step away, but set boundaries for your work and honor them. For some, this may look like setting time boundaries—”I will start working at this time and stop working at that time”. For others, this may be setting a number of tasks they will [realistically] complete in the day and committing to stepping away when those are complete. For everyone, this should include setting aside time for vacations and staycations throughout. Don’t be the PTO hours champion! There’s no reward in that! lol. These options will require some observation and adjustments in the beginning to see what actually works, but once you’ve found it, stick to it and honor it until another major shift is needed.
There are also other ways you can build boundaries into the way you work to create your ideal flow. If you are an entrepreneur or have the freedom at your job, you can plan to do certain tasks on certain days. You can also set boundaries for when and how long you want to make or take calls in a day, or even set specific days of the week for you to make or take calls. This will not only help to balance your actual work, giving you time to actively work outside of calls, but it can also help in aligning your life. If you work from home (or even if you don’t) you can let your household know when you may need a bit more privacy and quiet time for calls, and when you may need to socially recharge a bit more afterwards. Resist the urge to make yourself available for a call at any time at the drop of a dime. Most roles do not require it, no matter how much of an “emergency” others may feel their concerns are. You can also set norms for whether you are available in the moment, or whether you prefer advance notice for calls. [Now, don’t go getting in trouble on my account if your job is a bit more strict, but there are usually ways to gently set boundaries, norms, and expectations in advance without ruffling feathers.]
Btw, if your job requires you to be super social, some built in quiet time each day is almost a must. Really, all of us could benefit from quiet time each day, because we are often pouring out whether it be socially, mentally, emotionally, or even spiritually. Build in some quiet time to recharge. Quiet time can look different for each person, but it should be a time when you don’t have to talk and can also be a time when you give your brain a break from heavy thinking. [Not recommending emptying your mind through meditation, but rather relaxing and giving your brain a break from strategizing and contemplating the intricacies of life].
There are SOOO many more tips I could share about working towards a better work-life flow, but the last one I will go into detail about here is to establish a firm morning routine! My morning routine is my baby and I don’t leave home or start work without it! Consider how you want to wake yourself up in the morning and prepare for your day. Do you need water, coffee, tea, or a smoothie? Are we working out? How will you spend time with God in the morning? Is it prayer, reading the Word, or maybe a combination? How will you command your day? Scriptural affirmations, a daily prayer or decree, checking out a devotional or sermon? What hygienic practices are important to/for you? Do you like to eat breakfast? If so, do you want to grab and go or actually make time for a traditional sitdown breakfast? Simply put, how will you fuel your spirit, mind, and body when you wake up, and how will you then prepare for your day? Write out the things you would ideally like to do in the morning and begin implementing them one or two at a time, giving yourself at least a week or two before adding something else. It may require some tweaking and rearranging over time and as your needs change, but consider what you need before you can show up as your best self and then commit to doing that, even on the days when you are not working.
For me, my morning routine is more of a checklist than a rigid routine. There are certain things I do in a specific order like spending time with God first thing and brushing my teeth when I first use the restroom, but the rest is flexible as far as timing based on what I have going on that day. So don’t feel obligated to perform like a robot once you’ve established your routine. And, once you’ve mastered your morning routine, I encourage you to consider what you want your evening wind down routine to look like. I’m still working on this one, but I definitely like to wash my face, pray, and play a game or two on my phone before bed. Consider what you need and establish your own evening routine using the process from creating your morning routine.
Having a healthy work-life flow can really help to maximize joy and fulfillment, and minimize stress and its effects on our minds and bodies. Work is a part of our lives, but it doesn’t have to be and shouldn’t be our whole lives. Begin to view it as a piece of your life’s pie and approach it as such. Remember that your work does not define you, though it may be a part of you. Set boundaries for your workday and how you will approach your work, and make time for rest and vacation. Built in quiet time each day is a must! Work on your morning and evening routines and watch how different your days will begin to feel and flow! I will leave a few more ideas in today’s blog for how you can level up your work-life flow. Send me a message or let me know in the blog comments: what do YOU implement that helps you maintain a healthy work-life flow?
Happy Wellness Wednesday, Garden Fam 🌸
I hope you are having a wonderful week! It’s Stress Awareness Month and we know that chronic stress is a huge enemy to our health, so we are starting a new series today. This month, I will be sharing ways to avoid and alleviate stress in various areas and seasons of our lives. Check out this week’s video to learn what the Bible says about managing stress and grab some additional practical tips for managing stress below!
Have a healthy & wholesome week!
Love you bunches 🍇
Focus Scriptures
1 Peter 5:5b
God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
1 Peter 5:6-7
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
2 Corinthians 12:8-10
Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Practical Tips for Avoiding & Alleviating Stress
Maintain your health staples!
Eat well
Consume a well-balanced diet
Sleep well
Quantity: Get enough sleep
Quality: Set yourself up to get the best possible sleep each night
Get active
Make an effort to exercise regularly
Do your best to get the nutrients (vitamins and minerals) your body needs
Check out our vitamins & minerals series for more information
This is a part of consuming a well-balanced diet, which can support mental health and stress management
Minimize and set boundaries for…
Your screen time
Increased phone and screen use is associated with higher levels of stress
Your ‘Yes’
Be selective with what you say ‘yes’ to.
Ensure that you are able to realistically take on the request before agreeing to do so
Allow God to lead and guide you as far as when to say ‘yes’ and when to kindly decline
Be okay with saying ‘no’ when you are not able to help, don’t desire to participate, or have been instructed by God to do so
Implement self care practices
Make a habit of doing things that you enjoy and that help you to relax and decompress, such as…
Taking baths
Going for walks
Stretching
Dancing (my personal favorite 😊)
Reading
Participating in your favorite hobby
Reduce or eliminate caffeine
Drinking more than your personal limit of caffeine can cause symptoms of anxiety
Make time for community
Spend time with family and friends who can support you in stressful situations and/or offer time away from the concerns of life
There are many more suggestions that may help you to manage your stress, but these are great starting points that can be implemented with any schedule, lifestyle, or situation. It’s up to you to decide how to do so!