“The perfect no-stress environment is the grave. When we change our perception we gain control. The stress becomes a challenge, not a threat. When we commit to action, to actually doing something rather than feeling trapped by events, the stress in our life becomes manageable.”
-Greg Anderson
We all know by now that the effects of stress on our health are no laughing matter, and can literally be a cause of serious illness and early death. I have observe–not from just my own experience but from working with clients and paying attention to people in genera–that other people’s emotions and reactions can be a huge stress in our lives.
Think of people as carrying around their own trash every day, accumulated from their life traumas and experiences. This trash gets very heavy and in order to ease their burden they like to throw it at other people, in the form of anger, road rage, ridiculous reactions to things that really don’t matter, being unfriendly, gossiping, doing or saying hurtful things…you get the idea.
Unless you live in a bubble and depending on your environment you can be exposed to this onslaught of trash quite regularly. You may or not be aware of its effect on you, but let me tell you it is affecting you.
You may notice your energy changing, or your good mood disappears suddenly, or you just feel angry over nothing. We unknowingly catch other people’s trash and it becomes our own, and voila stress happens.
Granted sometimes it is our own stress, and we each have to be conscious of that and become aware of when we are throwing our trash at others and find a way of dealing with it. However, very often we are not just carrying our own burdens but also other people’s. So all this being said what can you do about it?
Shake it out, like when you shake a mat to rid it of dust and debris collected throughout the day.
How to Shake it out and off:
- Find an open space in your house where you won’t be disturbed or bump into anything. Find some rocking music, five minutes of time, have an open mind then let the shakeout begin.
- Start the music as loud as you like and close your eyes. You can start slowly at first and then pick it up a notch as you feel comfortable.
- Start by shaking your arms gently, and then add in your legs. Just let them shake like you are trying to shake off something you don’t want there.
- Once you get your arms and legs going then add your body into the movements. If it’s comfortable you can gently add your head… being careful not to hurt your neck.
- Then just go for it, and shake like nobody is watching. Go for as long as you like, five minutes or a couple of songs are good…even one song will feel good.
- When you are done relax and take a few deep breaths.
You will be amazed at how good you feel after. Step out of your comfort zone, open your mind and give it a try when you are feeling the weight of other people’s trash. Enjoy!
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