No matter how well we plan our lives, there are times when things happen that are out of our control. Accidents and illness happen; family or work crises arise; unexpected financial stress hits us. They can be the times we go into stress overload. Since they’re often unavoidable, what can we do to survive and make it through these times? The best way to cope is not to wait until difficulties happen, but to have some strategies and habits in place that contribute to our general well-being.
The three best things we can do are simple and needn’t cost us a cent, but are things that nobody else can do for us. We can’t do them for our children, but we can certainly encourage them to develop these daily habits to ensure they can cope better with life’s challenges. The best things we can do to ensure our well-being and coping skills are to ensure we get adequate sleep, be mindful and exercise.
Sleep deprivation takes its toll on the immune system. A good night’s sleep is not a luxury, it’s actually a necessity. Our brains prefer that we go to bed and wake up at the same time each day. There are no shortage of books and webpages that tell us how important sleep is and what we can do to improve its quality. Space doesn’t permit my going into it in any depth, however, I think a couple of reasons why we don’t get enough sleep are that we stay online too late and our sedentary lifestyle and jobs mean we aren’t moving around enough during the day. As parents, we definitely need to ensure that children do not have access to devices from at least an hour before their bedtimes, and maybe we need to establish the same rules for ourselves.
One of the downsides of our busy, connected lifestyle is that we don’t give our brains a rest from constant input. We do need to take time and stop for a few minutes each day. Sitting down (without our devices), taking some slow deeps breaths, observing how we feel, (but not dwelling on the past or future), relaxing our bodies and focusing on what’s going on right now is a surprisingly good rejuvenator. Always focusing on the past and future can generate chronic stress in us and so we miss the happiness of today.
Moving our bodies is the best thing we can do for ourselves, both physically and emotionally. Dr Robert Lustig* says that exercise sculpts our brains as well as our bodies. Any type benefits us. We can all find ways to build more movement into our daily lives. There are no shortage of resources available to help us and the following site by the Queensland Government is a good starting place https://www.healthier.qld.gov.au/move/.
Sleep, moving and being self-aware all help us in coping with day-to-day living and assist us in living a contented life. Next week, we’ll look at the fourth “C” of contentment raised by Dr Lustig. It might surprise you what it is.
*The Hacking of the American Mind: The Science Behind the Corporate Takeover of Our Bodies and Brains. (2017)
