People like to throw around the churchy cliché, “I’m too blessed to be stressed.” But the truth of the matter is many empowered, Jesus-loving, devoted Christian women are spiritually drained, mentally worn out, and physically overloaded. But God wants us to be able to manage stress and lead holistically healthy lives.
3 John 1:2 NLT says, “Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.” As empowered Christian women, we need to take care of ourselves, not just spiritually, but physically, mentally, and emotionally. That means managing stress and making sure we’re not burnt out, exhausted, and over-extended all the time.
According to the brand new annual Health and Safety Executive (HSE) statistics, published today, there are higher rates of work-related stress for women than men. Over 27 million working days were lost last year and of those 10.4 million were due to work-related stress.
Even women who work from home (Holding down a family is a full-time job!) can get overloaded.
As a result, stress—the bad kind—causes all kinds of symptoms. It makes our blood pressure rise; breathing become more rapid; digestive system slow down; heart rate rise; immune system go down; muscles become tense; and sleep patterns be disrupted.
That’s not good.
Just because we love God does not mean we are super-human robots, completely unaffected by life’s harsh demands and struggles.
So how do we manage our stress and keep ourselves together? EEW Magazine is sharing some practical ways to help you do this.
Take Some Me-Time: Every woman needs (and deserves) some moments of peace. Naturally, we are nurturers and we try to respond to the needs of those around us. But being pulled in too many different directions leads to sure burnout. Every day, without exception, set aside some alone time to decompress, relax, and gather your thoughts. Don’t say, “I don’t have time for me,” because if you don’t take some, sickness, emotional overwhelm, and exhaustion will force you to do it. Then you’ll be miserable. So turn off the cell phone and computer. Tell the kids to give mom a break and retreat until your alone time is complete.
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article courtesy of EEWMagazine.com
