So, how’s your September so far?

Ours is off with a bang!  The schedule leaves us with a few solid full days at home and only one evening away.  Exactly what this Mom needs to peacefully handle the fullness of activity.

This week and next, I’ll finally be sharing our curriculum choices for 10th, 5th, 2nd grades and preschool, so stay tuned!

Today, let’s talk serenity…

Week #35  Practice de-stressing in healthy ways

Moms, maybe simply women in general, seem to have the knack for allowing their stressors to build up to unhealthy levels.  Sure, there are some who blow up at every turn (and cause multiple issues for themselves and others)…

…but mainly, I think we stew, simmer, crockpot our stress until there’s the faint smell of burnout in the air.  I don’t have scientific proof, just numerous encounters with many, many women through the years.

The solution is not to avoid stress, that’s impossible.  Even things we’re happy about – planning a wedding, celebrating the holidays, preparing for vacation – tend to bring various levels of tension.

To our bodies, good stress is still stress, and affects us negatively.

Deciding on ways for supporting the known stressors in our lives, and practicing ways of healthy de-stressing, is vital and key to peace-filled intentional living.

Think with me – what do you do specifically on a daily, weekly, monthly or annual basis to allow for refreshment and refueling?  Which of these practices are known both to you and your family?

Healthy de-stressing should find priority in our to-do lists.  I encourage you to give it some thought, and to make a ‘next-step’ plan for practicing rest.

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Action Plan:  well, just what I said!  Jot down 2 things you’ll practice today or this week in order to refuel.  Think realistically within your schedule and means.

More to Read:  Why You Can’t Afford to Burnout as a Mom

Week #36  Consider journal writing as stress relief

Recently I found some 11 journals in my bedroom — these are not-yet-written-in journals waiting expectantly for my handwriting.  Ahem.  

That’s a really nice way of saying I absolutely adore paper and have quite a few {empty} journals.  Favored among all are my Moleskins in red (affiliate link) for doodling, writing notes, random drawing or actual journal writing.

Please don’t tell me how many trees went into the making of my notebooks! 🙂

All joking aside, significant proof exists for the health benefits of journaling, and I encourage you to consider the practice.  Journal writing is great for processing thoughts, working through emotions, recording your journey, sorting out feelings.

Conversations with good friends or mentors are helpful, but journaling over time offers you a peek into your history as an individual:  how you’ve grown (or not), how you felt when, what touched you and why.

Invaluable to me are also the 20+ journals in my home with actual words inside — an autobiography of sorts, a well-spring of information.

Maybe you won’t journal every day or even use pen and paper.  Find a way which flexes with your lifestyle!

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Action Plan:  How might journaling benefit you?  Maybe you’ll write only through a situation or about an event.  Start small and see where it takes you.

More to Read:  The 7 Benefits of Journaling :: Ann Voskamp’s series on Journal Writing – super excellent!