It’s no surprise that stress multiplies during the season of advent. We have a lot of extra professional responsibilities that are a joy – but also taxing on us! There are special services to plan and attend, midweek service soups to make, devotions to write, church members to visit, and all the little details it takes to help others celebrate Jesus. We also may find ourselves helping people deal with their own holiday stress.
And those are just some of the potential stressors connected to our role as women in ministry. There’s also the stress of trying to get our own family ready for Christmas…advent devotions, decorating our home, gift shopping, card writing, trips to the post office, special food to make, and the extras we do to make the season glow at home.
Whew, when you write it all out, it seems like a lot. The last thing we strive to do as women of faith is lose sight of the reason we’re doing all of these things. It’s all to welcome our Savior!
So how can we manage the stress that is bound to come during advent? In the next 3 posts we’ll explore ways you can recognize and manage your holiday stress. The first step is awareness.
Recognize When You’re Stressed
Stress is an emotion that elicits a physical reaction in our bodies. Everyone’s physical reaction to stress feels unique to them. The trick is to be aware of what YOUR stress reaction feels like in YOUR body. Too often we are unaware, or ignore our body’s stress signals. When we are able to recognize the signs, we can mindfully address our stress.
To discover how stress feels in YOUR body, do a body scan in a stressful moment.
Complete a Body Scan
First, imagine that your entire body is being scanned, from head to toe. Don’t skip any part of your body, because stress can manifest in different locations, from our face to our gut to our spine and on down to the arches of our feet.
As you take your mental focus to each body part, feel what is happening there.
- Check in first with your head – is your scalp relaxed or tense? Do you have a headache or fogginess? Do you have several thoughts happening at once?
- How about your face – is it tight and tense? Are your eyes relaxed or do they feel strained? Are your ears slightly raised?
- Travel down to your shoulders and neck – are you shrugging your shoulders? Do you feel the need to stretch?
- Notice your breathing. Are you taking shallow breaths? Is your heart beating faster? Is there any tingling sensation in your chest?
- What’s happening in your stomach? Do you feel nauseous? Do you feel unsettled or gassy? Does your stomach feel empty?
- Check in with your back and spine. Does it feel achy? Do you have the urge to reach up and stretch?
- What are your legs feeling? Do they feel heavy? Is there any numbness in your thighs?
- Notice your feet. Are they relaxed or are you curling your toes? Are your arches stretched out or are they clenched?
Be Literal and Avoid Imagery
As you scan your body, detail the literal physical sensations you’re feeling versus using imagery to describe them. For example, “My heartbeat is faster and my chest is tight” versus “My heart is racing faster than a train and an elephant is sitting on my chest!”
Using images to describe stress briefly separates us from our bodies, because we are taking a small step back from the sensation by comparing it to something else. We are no longer in our body – we are in our brain, thinking about our stress instead of feeling it. Stay in your body and be as literal as possible with what is happening internally.
Stress Inventory
Once you have scanned yourself from head to toe, take note of where stress appears in your body. These are valuable signals from your body, telling you that homeostasis has been disrupted. I notice I’m stressed when I’m tensing my cheeks, and I feel tension behind my ears. These are signals to me that I need to stop and listen to my stress reactions. Remember, when we are able to notice we’re stressed, we can actually do something about it before it’s at a fever pitch!
How About You?
Take some time this week to do a body scan in a stressful moment. Get to know your stress signals, and where they manifest in your body. Building awareness of your body’s unique sensations allows you to tackle stress head on. Check back next week when we talk about intentional ways to STOP and deal with stress.
Bethel Wellness 