Staying Phenomenal while Being a 21st Century Woman

Background

Happy “women have been crushing it for years" month! After rewatching Hidden Figures and watching Lidia Poet (a movie and show that pale in comparison to their real life), I salute these women for enduring so much for the freedoms we are able to live in today. Our roles are endless in the workplace, home life, and parenting. Although we are awesome at multitasking all the hats we wear, we aren’t necessarily the best at taking care of ourselves, typically prioritizing ourselves last. I’ve seen it time and time again either with female friends, family, or patients. Let's be honest, juggling the roles we play can pack on the stress. I must argue in order to efficiently take care of business and take care of others we must first take care of ourselves. To do that, we have to learn to be equally efficient at managing our stress. This is not going to be your routine list of generalized things that are typically regurgitated in response to stress management. I hope this article energizes you to think creatively about ways you can better take care of you while taking on the world.

First thing we must make clear is that not all stress is bad. For instance, if you are stressed about making a good impression on an interview, you will be motivated to dress to impress, prep honest responses to common interview questions, and have several copies of your resume ready to hand over at any point of the process. In this example, you see several benefits of the stressful situation. This person is motivated, excited, and focused. Her performance will be top notch secondary to her response to the stressful situation, increasing her chances of landing the job. This positive stress has been termed eustress and it is typically short lived. Stress can result in productivity, creativity, and resilience. Stress becomes negative when it puts us in a sense of distress. Distress leads to the opposite responses of eustress. One’s performance can suffer because of lack of focus, build up of concern, and the feeling that you can't cope.

Regardless of eustress or distress our body’s natural response to stress is generally termed fight-or- flight. It summaries the changes that occur in our body when we perceive there is a threat or stressor. Common hormone cortisol and adrenaline are released and this affects our various organ systems differently. For the cardiovascular system, it causes the heart rate to increase and blood vessels to narrow, stored sugar is released so your muscles have a source of energy to use, and muscles tense up so they are ready to be utilized. These are just a few examples of physiologic changes that occur in the fight-or-flight response. The problem occurs when this response is constantly turned on. There is evidence of chronic distress contributing to the development of various health conditions such as Diabetes, Hypertension, Heart Disease, Obesity...

Addressing the Issue

In order to develop a healthy way of dealing with stress, we will look at this from three categories: physical, mental, and emotional health. Ways to deal with any of these may overlap, but we have to ensure we are nurturing all three areas.

Exercise: Yep! I'm going to start off with that one. Exercise is so important for a variety of reasons.

First, it helps the body respond to that flight-or-fight feeling produced by stress. As noted above, stress leads to increase in blood sugar and exercise causes your muscles to utilize that sugar for energy. This aid in blood sugar control also helps in weight management, heart health, and brain health. This positive physical effect is just one of the many ways exercise improves our physical health. Exercise also releases endorphins which is short for endogenous morphine meaning it is it a substance produced by our body that mimics the effects of morphine. Endorphins can have a positive effect on one's mood and emotions. Now, I can easily tell you to get 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise (75 minutes of vigorous exercise if you're feeling spritely) with two days of strength training a week and call it an article, but that won't really help you, will it? The real question is where to find the time for it. Most people with busy schedules find it difficult to squeeze 30 minutes out of their day five times a week. What if you approached it differently?

• ❖  Knock it out early: This may require you to wake up a bit earlier, go to bed earlier, and/or prep for the day before to make time; however, exercising in the morning has been shown to lead to healthier choices throughout the day as well as better mood, better blood pressure and better sleep. See article When is the Best Time to Workout? https://www.health.com/fitness/morning-workout-benefits If you simply are not a morning person then do not torture yourself. Exercise is beneficial regardless of the time of day you choose to do it.

• ❖  Break it up: There is no rule that you have to do it all at once. Consider breaking up your exercise over the course of the day in three 10 min workouts or two 15 min exercise sessions (feel free to do more than the recommended 30 minutes). Spreading it out could make it more appealing to spend the time doing it, finding time to do it, and break up what could otherwise be a sedentary day depending on your occupation.

  Example: 10 min yoga flow in the morning to wake the body up
  10 min strength training workout at lunch
  10 min walk in the evening (incorporate the family to get them active too)

• ❖  Save time, exercise at home: Exercise does not equal gym. It is nothing like rolling out of the bed, putting on your deodorant and workout clothes, and simply going to your dedicated space at home to workout. There are a lot of FREE and paid exercise apps such as FitOn, Beach Body on Demand (BODi), and Studio SWEAT onDemand. There are even exercise videos on Netflix. This saves time by eliminating the commute to and from the gym and making it easy to get ready for the day or get ready for bed.

• ❖  Do the exercise you are likely to stick with: If you are dreading the workout, you are more likely to make excuses to not do it. If you love dancing and all it takes is a beat to get you moving, do your Zumba or some other dance workout and shake your groove thing! It doesn’t matter if your best friend is an avid Crossfitter or HIITer. If you tried it and didn’t like it, that is not a problem. Do the workout you would look forward to doing. If you don't know what that is yet, explore the possibilities and keep an open mind. The variety is endless from crossfit to pilates to cycling to kickboxing. That's just a few.

  Meditation: Meditation does not have to be cross-legged with eyes closed although this is a form that

  can be utilized. You can combine meditation and movement and do yoga which would have a positive physical and mental effect, journal your feelings with positive affirmations, or take time to focus on your self-talk. No matter how you choose to approach meditation, it also releases endorphins which positively impact your emotional as well as your mental health. The best way to meditate is to seek a quiet place where you can focus because this is an intentional practice. 8 Dos and Don’ts for Beginning Meditators | Everyday Health is a great article to guide you in starting your practice if you are new to meditation.

  Establish boundaries: Boundaries are a healthy way to communicate with yourself and with others

  where there are limitations. Boundaries exist everywhere and are a normal part of the day to day. If you drove up on the curb, you would have crossed a boundary and maybe get a ticket if the police saw you. Our personal boundaries aren't as obvious and have to be defined. Boundary-setting is important for both our mental and emotional health. Even though we can feel unlimited at times, we all have a limited amount of energy at the start of each day. Setting boundaries help to guard the use of that energy to keep you productive and engaged throughout the day. Over-extending yourself can lead to a mental fatigue that affects your focus and concentration as well as affect your mood driving negative emotions.

• ❖  Power of NO: Sometimes our extra stress is of our own making. Just because you are known as the person who gets things done, doesn’t mean you have to take on every project handed to you. One thing I’ve learned is that people do not mind putting extra requests on those they deem capable of doing it well. You have to protect your time to balance all the things you find important and this requires you to be able to say no.

• ❖  Planners are going to plan: Take time to prep for the next day by sitting down with your planner and determining what to set on the agenda for the day. You do have to be mindful to not set a superwoman task list that will only discourage you. As a reminder: there are only 24 hours in ONE day. At least seven of those are for sleep and 30 mins of those are for exercise (see above). Also consider eating, showering, dressing, conversing with family as some necessities for the day. From there, create a realistic day of productivity.

• ❖  Setting limits to your devices: People who are tethered to devices all of the time are typically more stressed because they never disconnect from checking email, social media, constantly texting, etc. Try putting your phone away or silencing it in the evening. For some, doing this may be more difficult than starting an exercise routine. If it seems impossible for you, start with one hour before bedtime.

Sleep: Sleep is important for physical, mental, and emotional health. Your body does a lot of repairing when you are sleep, especially if you exercise. There is research that those who get at least 7 hours of sleep have better immune system function. Those who do not get adequate sleep, tend to experience brain fog which makes one more forgetful, confused, and struggle with focus. Poor sleep also makes one more prone to negative moods such as anger and irritability.

• ❖  Best sleep environment: The CDC has the best list to create an environment that will promote good sleep (Creating a Good Sleep Environment | NIOSH | CDC). You want to darken the room as much as possible without creating any tripping hazards (utilize nightlights for walking paths), reduce noise, keep the room cool, and avoid working, reading, watching TV in the sleeping area. The last thing trains the body that when you lay down in this designated area, it is for sleep only. Also, it is encouraged to avoid screen time one hour before bed as there is evidence that screen time right before sleep can disrupt your natural melatonin surge to induce sleep.

• ❖  Disrupted sleep from to-do thoughts: If you are prone to waking up with thoughts of things to do the next day (hopefully planning ahead reduces this), try putting a notebook to the side to jot down anything that crosses your mind and wakes you up. This way, you can put the thought out of your head since you have written it down to help get back to sleep.

  Finally, the best way to tackle anything and to increase the chances of achieving the objective is to set S.M.A.R.T. goals. Goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound allow one to re-evaluate the progress of reaching the goal, provides something precise to work towards, and a schedule to stick to in order to keep you invested. Article: Guide on How To Write SMART Goals (With Examples) | Indeed.com detail breakdown of each part of the acronym and specific examples.

  All in all, being fantastic and fabulous do not prevent the negative effects from poor stress management. We will do the best service to others and ourselves to remember that, as phenomenal as we are, women are human, requiring attention to our physical, mental, and emotional health. Carry on.

  Disclaimer: The content of Optimum Health Primary Care, LLC whether posted on professional Website, Facebook, Instagram, any other social media site, web search engine or shared from followers is for informational purposes ONLY and do not substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, and/or treatment. ALWAYS seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare professional with any questions you may have in regards to medical information, medical conditions, or medical treatments and/or before undertaking a new health care regimen.

  Additional Resources:

  How To Set Healthy Boundaries – Cleveland Clinic
  Screens and Your Sleep: The Impact of Nighttime Use | Sutter Health
  What Is Eustress? A Look at the Psychology and Benefits (positivepsychology.com) Stress Effects - The American Institute of Stress