Stress managment

Some of you may know that I (Jen) have been helping out quite a bit with our hospital day camp recently. It is a very fun gig, playing with school age kids at the pool, the park and on field trips. I love the variety it brings to my day. The downside is that it also has added some extra work hours as well. There's no denying that the extra pay is nice, but there have been some challenges while trying to accommodate this extra time away from home. Between finding more babysitters, less time for cleaning, cooking, or bonding with the family, there's just been a little extra stress in my world. It's not terrible, but it is there.

A few years ago, GRMC implemented a stress management program called Heartmath for all our employees. At my first training I remember hearing that it's just a fact that we have stress in our jobs and lives and that can't be changed. We can, however, change how we react to that stress. That statement has stuck with me. No one lives in a pristine stress-free environment. Which means, we have all been in a situation that we could have handled better. But sometimes that initial reaction just makes it so hard to get out of the downward spiral.

I've had to find ways to minimize that type of situation. For me the process was initiated by our training by just making me more aware of how I behaved each time I didn't like something. Heartmath provided me with some great tools for managing the physical reactions we experience during stressful situations and I find myself utilizing them frequently. Whether it's just speaking less snottily to my husband or not losing my mind when the kids spill their drinks, believe me, I have plenty of opportunity for practice. We all have to find healthy ways to manage the big and little events that come our way. Sometimes exercise is one of them. Feel free to come work your frustrations out on the treadmill or relax in a yoga class. Try a massage or the Aquamed bed at Postels Community Health Park. If you're interested to know more about Heartmath, let our staff know. Whenever we feel that tension coming on, we need to have those tools in place to help us better handle tough situations. That's one of the things our staff is here to provide: an environment for stress relief.