Are you stressing yourself?

Feeling too busy to finish every task you’ve set for yourself? Feeling like your job is taking too much of your “Me Time?” If so, you may be stressing yourself out. It’s time to get rid of self-induced stress.

Even if we accept the premise that our world today is a busy one, it’s also true that we place much of the stress we feel upon ourselves. Taking the kids to school every morning when they might just as easily take the bus; driving them to dance and sports and choir practice; picking them up after school when they might easily walk home; heaven forbid we do things the way our parents did, letting our children occasionally fend for themselves. That would make us terrible parents, wouldn’t it?

NO, it would not.

Are You “Over-parenting”?

“Back in the day,” even when many mothers stayed home as dad went to work, children actually got themselves to school; either by walking, riding bikes, or on the bus. At the time, no one thought less of their parents for letting them do this. In fact, many believed this showed resourcefulness on the part of the child. It was considered a good thing for children to take care of themselves, teaching them independence and self-reliance. Heck, it even led to improved self-esteem.

Today though, many seem to think allowing a child to think and act on her own behalf is callous and selfish of the parents. Of course, today we also have schools filled with non-active children who do nothing but play video games if mom or dad won’t take them where they want to be.

This type of thinking and behavior on the part of parents today increases the stress they feel. By devoting an inordinate amount of time to their children, time the kids might use to care for themselves, parents do not have the time to take care of their own needs and wants. They have no “Me Time.”

This self-imposed stress is exacerbated by today’s mass media.

Are you buying into a stressful lifestyle?

It is time to get a new cell phone? Heck yeah, the new ones are faster. Just like the new laptops, notebooks, iPads, and everything we’re being sold by mass media.

Once you’ve bought into the notion that you need tools to help you find more time in your life, you’ve also bought into the increased stress that mass media is imposing upon you. They may not be doing it deliberately; they may, in fact, be responding to the self-imposed stress in their own lives but – they are doing it. And we are letting them.

You can easily save yourself 30 minutes a week by letting your child walk to school once a week. You can save another half-an-hour by letting him walk home. Hey, he may even get some exercise out of it. And, he may even like it.

By making your child a bit more independent, you’ll do the same for yourself, freeing up the time you need to do the things you need to do for you. Then you won’t need that new, faster phone, will you? You won’t need a faster computer or faster car, either. In fact, with more time on your hands, you may just be happy with the stuff you already have, which will also reduce your self-induced stress.

Teaching your children to become more independent does not make you a bad parent. On the contrary, it makes you a good parent. If playing chauffeur for your kids is increasing the self-induced stress in your life, give yourself a time out from the routine and let them do things for themselves now and then. The benefits to both of you will be a huge improvement.

If you feel like a victim of self-induced stress… Contact us today for a consultation.