Stress

Giuseppe · 02-17-2015, 09:56 AM

How do you cope with it?

WorshipJesus · 02-17-2015, 05:57 PM

Depends on the type of stress. Usually just accepting the situation helps a lot. If the situation needs to change, accept that it's happening and you'll find a way to change it. Reducing stress is rooted in the knowledge that God is sovereign and in control. Trust Him

**MtlMom** · 02-17-2015, 10:01 PM

Bracketing. I have used this techniques for many, many years. You mentally take whatever it is that's bothering you, and put it in a separate compartment in your head. That allows you to see everything else, including your many blessings, much more clearly. Otherwise, the negative situation pollutes all of your thoughts. If it's finances that are bothering you, create a mental file folder for "finances". When it starts to weigh on you, file it appropriately. This is also helpful in handing things over to God. When you go to mentally file something away, you realize that the file isn't there anymore, it has been moved to a different place.

PM me if you want more information about this. I have taught this to a lot of people.

Giuseppe · 02-17-2015, 11:49 PM

I'll try that. I just feel like I'm getting very stressed. I leave for uni at 6 am and I'm back at 6pm. Then I have church activities from around 7pm to 10pm. All weekend goes with homework and church stuff. This and noisy roommates is not a good combination

**bread man** · 02-18-2015, 01:45 AM

Foam earplugs are a great solution to noisy roommates

Giuseppe · 02-18-2015, 02:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bread man

Foam earplugs are a great solution to noisy roommates

I sleep with earplugs...

SomeCallMeTim? · 02-18-2015, 02:25 PM

For me, there are two kinds of stress. The first is more like pressure (I call it 'good' stress only for contrast). The second is more like worrying (bad stress). One way that I differentiate between them is by whether or not I am in control of the situation that gives rise to it. Bad stress is stuff that I can't control but still affects me. Good stress is something that I am responsible for or that I have some input in.

I think it is definitely possible to completely eliminate bad stress from your life. I don't remember the last time I was fretting over something that I had no control over. This comes straight from the sermon on the mount. It can be hard to articulate how I do this. If I feel the physiological effects of stress, I will take the time to think about the situation, and if I decide that it is out of my control, I make the decision to not worry about it.

'Good' stress usually comes in the form of deadlines - work-related, or school-related, or not. It might be something like "I have to clean the house before guests come over tonight." or something. This kind of stress doesn't bother me much. I make a mental schedule for when I need to have certain landmarks done by. I generally over-estimate how much time something will take so I have flex time, and can allow myself to relax if I am on schedule.

***beanbag*** · 02-20-2015, 08:10 PM

it sounds like maybe you have too much on your plate. church is great, and it needs to be part of your life on a regular basis, but maybe there are areas where you can scale back a bit. i realize it's hard to cut down school stuff, but i have had to step back from ministries because of stress from overscheduling. ecclesiastes says there is a time for everything. perhaps in this season you need to reduce your activities, and you can increase them again in a future season.