In this life, you will face stress no matter what. It is a reaction to the challenges or changes we encounter. Most people experience stress as unpleasant, but perhaps this has to do with how we deal with it? How do you deal with this?

Preventing stress

Most people do not like stress and therefore we try to avoid it as much as possible. We create a situation for ourselves in which we feel safe and confident. A place where we can relax and be ourselves. This situation is also called the 'comfort zone'. And don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with the comfort zone. It's nice that in the Western world we have all the basic amenities at our disposal. That most people have a warm house to live in. And that for many people there is food in abundance.

But then, boom, something so unexpected, so moving, happens. You find yourself in a rollercoaster of ups and downs. Your emotions run wild, you don't know what's happening to you. And worst of all: you have no idea how to deal with this situation. You are under heavy pressure, also called stress. Everyone encounters increased stress levels at some point in their lives. It is important to find a way to deal with the situation that suits you.

You can learn to cope with stress

What many people do not know is that you can learn to deal with stress. You do this by consciously seeking out stressful situations. These are safe situations that, for your body and mind, feel a little less safe 😉 . 

A good example of this is cold therapy. This is the safe exposure of your body to, for example, ice water. You react to this quite violently, because your body sees this as a life-threatening situation. If you are not trained, you may experience a slight form of panic and want to get out of the water immediately. However, if you are properly guided, or if you breathe calmly yourself, you can learn to cope with the situation. If you get through the first fearful moment, you will notice that it is not that bad. You are so much stronger than you think!

Besides cold therapy, there are other ways to consciously expose yourself to stress. You can do this, for example, by exercising until you can't take it anymore, and then keep going for a while. Or by going to a very hot sauna. You can also give a speech to a large group of people. Actually, there are many ways to get yourself out of your comfort zone. If you keep doing this from time to time, you will learn to deal with stress better. We can do our best to avoid it, but we will encounter it anyway. 

Make yourself stronger, for you!

Do you dare to step out of your comfort zone? Or together with your team? We would love to help you with that.

Stop by sometime for a cup of coffee, and together we will look at the options that suit you.

Love & Peace,

Black & White Community

Doe mee met een uitdagende sportles, kom echt ontspannen met yoga of eet een heerlijke vegan maaltijd!