09/22/2025
When working with clients who are seeking stress management, I often hear the same phrase
“I just want to get rid of all my stress.”
And I always respond,
“That would be very difficult.”
The reason is simple. As long as we are alive, it is impossible to live completely free from stress. Even without doing anything special, simply going about daily life exposes us to stress.
Whether it is physical discomfort, changes in our health, the weather, our surroundings, or even noise, we are constantly facing external stressors in our everyday environment.
Our mind and body respond to stress much like a metronome or a pendulum, always moving back and forth. When that swing leans too far to the side of stress, the body and mind become overloaded, leading to a state of being “overstressed.”
Therefore, the first step in stress management is not to aim for eliminating stress, but rather to consider how we relate to stress and how we regulate that constant swing.
❤️
