The Top 10 Self-care Steps While in Transition or Stress

Originally Submitted on 11/24/2000.

Sometimes transition is something we seek, sometimes it comes upon us unawares. Even if we seek it, it may not be what we expected. The green grass on the other side of the fence sometimes turns out to resemble a trackless desert without signposts once we get there. This is not the time to neglect our well-being, for poor self-care is likely to lead to poor decision-making. Most of these steps are part of basic physical and emotional self-care at all times, but during times of transition their importance is even greater than usual:

1. Sleep regularly but not excessively.

Keep your body in a routine that will allow it regular sleep. When it is sleep-time, practice letting go of your need for decisions and action. If you regularly have difficulty falling asleep, try getting more exercise, at least two hours before your sleep-time. Do not go excessively in the other direction and sleep your life away... your life awaits!

2. Exercise.

Not only will exercise help to rid your body, including your nervous system, of toxins that accumulate during stressful times, but a tired body is a body that is more likely to sleep well. There is also the bonus of better physical well-being, improved health, and the self-assurance that better physical tone can bring.

3. Eat healthily.

Junk food is the staple of the stressed. Unfortunately, it leads to imbalances within the body that result in further feelings of stress. Information on healthy eating is available in almost every magazine and newspaper, not to mention every web portal, so there is no reason not to know what foods are good for us. In times when extreme stress is causing stomach upset, some say that for a short while a "white" diet can be soothing to the digestive system... bananas, rice, cottage cheese, not too much fiber... just until things calm down - not for the long-term.

4. Journal.

In a time of transition we may lose touch with ourselves, focusing intensely on outside circumstances... those that led to our transition, those that we believe will bring us through it. A daily journal can help us to stay anchored to who we are, and what is happening within us. A gratitude journal (five things you are grateful for each day, not the same things each day) can help to focus the mind on the positives.

5. Stay in touch.

In times of stress and change many of us allow our friends and acquaintances to drift away. We stop communicating, they feel useless, drift happens. Don't let it. Call at least one friend, relative, colleague every day. Keep the communication positive, try to avoid whining. Know that people care about you, and hold on to that.

6. Don't focus on misery.

You may feel at a loss, without direction or connection, but know that there are many people who feel they have no options and who believe they would dearly love to be in your shoes. Know that you are at the centerpoint of your life, for, in transition, there are options open to you in many directions - rejoice that you have choice!

7. Meditate.

Your mind may be running in circles, chasing its tail like a purposeless puppy. Make it stop! Focus on silence, on calm. Go within. There you will find your strength, and your peace.

8. Remember that previous downs were followed by ups.

Think back to the high points of your life. Then, for each one, think of a low point that preceded it. Remember... that low point was followed by a high point. That's how life is. It can be so again.

9. Plan your vision.

So now you have open options. This is the time to decide again what you really WANT your life to look like. Perhaps in the past you have drifted into things, followed the wishes of others, taken whatever offered itself. Now is time to seek the direction for which you were born. It is already a reality in your heart - now is the time to uncover it and create it in your physical world.

10. Focus on new possibilities.

What have you wanted to do that life did not place before you in the past? Can you imagine them coming into being now? If you can imagine them, you can create them. The possibilities that you had to reject in the past because they were on the fork in the road that you did not take... how many of them are still awaiting you? These are your new pathways and your new signposts that turn the trackless desert back into greener pastures.

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