Stress Management Magic

The benefits we experience when pets are in close proximity to us are really not recognized fully by most of us.  There is a powerful human-animal connection that is only now being fully recognized.

There have been many workshops held on the benefits of owning pets.  There were just a few scientific papers available on the subject a few years ago, though snow studies have revealed that pets boost survival rates for coronary care unit patients. That was an eye-opening finding.

People have known the healing effect for centuries, but recently new data on the role of chemistry in the relationship has been revealed.

When a person interacts with a pet, the central nervous system releases several hormones that cause feelings of pleasure.  One hormone in particular, oxytocin, seems to play a major role in reinforcing this bond.

The hormone creates a sense of warmth, nurturing and calm.  Simply petting dogs releases the same chemical in both humans and the animals!  Researchers know this with certainty, but are not clear as to how two species can produce feelings of peace, closeness and contentment in each other.

What is clear is the fact that this bonding is very helpful in managing stress of almost any kind.

Animals (particularly dogs) give unconditional love.  It doesn’t matter if the owner yells, or is unkempt, or even doesn’t offer the best care to the animal.  All the animal wants is love and approval by their owner.  They accept their owners and companions without qualification.  An animal’s acceptance

is nonjudgmental and forgiving. They don’t play psychological games people sometimes play.  They accept you the way you are.

Pet ownership particularly helps children to learn to read body language.  The experiences children have with their pets later develop into relationships with people, and actually helps develop more empathy for others.

Children who are fortunate to have a pet learn nurturing skills, and the responsibilities that come with it. They also have in store for them lots of fun to share with a new pet.

Over eons it is well established that touch is very important for the nourishment for our spirits and minds.  Sometimes people who have been neglected find it difficult to accept touch from other humans.  The relationship with animals, simply the act of petting a dog, can create feelings of security and warmth; feelings of love without demands humans often desire.

In cases like these, having an animal to hold, hug, and touch can make a world of difference to people who would otherwise have no positive, appropriate physical contact.

Astounding cases of pet heroism and loving acts prove that the interaction between pets and humans, even just passing contacts, are healing and worthy of categorizing as important relationships in the management of stress.

Find ot for yourself and consider, if you don’t own a pet, possibly adopting one for yourself and your family.  More fun and less expensive than therapy, pet ownership can truly be a healing factor in your life.

When stress is not managed well, you are headed to a potentially parlous journey of poor physical health, and possibly deadly diseases.  The risk you take by ignoring your symptoms of stress and the feeling of being overwhelmed by it, is life threatening.

Without a doubt mental stress unmanaged affects your physical health.

The body is all one thing, a coherent whole, with many different systems and functions.  There is no separation of parts when one is afflicted.

Your thoughts, what goes into the mouth, and how you treat your body all have an effect throughout the body.  Just like when something happens to one member of the family, it affects all the rest of the family, some more than others, but everyone is affected.

It is the same with our bodies.  If there is a tight muscle in the hip for instance, from a corresponding weakness on the opposite side, then that hip is favored because of the tension restricting its motion.  That puts a different strain on the foot, and with the foot in a different position; there will be a strain on other sets of muscles.  This is going to change the body’s general posture, affecting the positions of the internal organs. That, in turn, restricts the nutrition to the organs and changes the excretions and hormonal functions.

The chemical/psychological balance of the person is changed and this affects the individual cells in the body.  As the body and mind are affected, the person will think and feel differently, so he is going to assume still a different posture.  Then there is one more tight area, one more tension, one more cycle.  Everything we do affects all the rest of the body.

Humans are structural, chemical, psychological and spiritual beings.  The primary structure and the natural chemistry work together to influence the psychological, and vice versa.

A problem may exist in any part of an area, and disturbances that arise in other systems may represent the body’s efforts to compensate for the troubled system

To put our body in true balance, we must take into account all aspects of health – structural, mental and nutritional – as well as need for exercise and rest.

You only have one place to live – YOUR BODY.  Your body houses your intellect and your spirit, and will serve you well for many years if you take the time to learn to manage your stress.

Start today for this moment and for a better tomorrow.

Take a breath slowly in through the nose.  As you exhale let the carbon dioxide out slowly.

As you inhale again know you are providing for your LIFE.

As you exhale, picture negative thoughts flying out with your exhalation.

Take care of yourself and you take care of your family and friends.  How much will the works you do count if you find yourself mentally and physically sick from allowing unresolved stress to take control of you?

It’s a choice.

STOP!  READ THIS BEFORE DOING ANYTHING ELSE

It doesn’t matter if you are buying into the “black Friday” shopping hysteria, preparing for a trip, having company, or just fighting additional traffic in the stores and on the road.  If you are reading this, you must take just three minutes to do this mini-stress management post while reading it. It may save your sanity and save the holiday.

Take a breath right now.  Exhale.  Remember, when under pressure we stop breathing (at least adequately for good thinking).  Our shallow breathing doesn’t provide what we need to kick in optimum thinking for our brain. It furthers tension as muscles and ligaments tighten.

Take another breath, a bit slower, and deeper this time. As you are inhaling, think:  I am pulling in oxygen that will help me relax and regenerate with each breath.

Now exhale slowly through the mouth repeating in your mind:  I exhale all my worries and know I am doing the best I can.

Crying children, burned pie, dust on the coffee tables, financial woes, and short tempered citizens are all potential holiday “breakers”.  Don’t let things get to you.  In the long-term scheme of things, these little irritants won’t play into your life but for a nanosecond.

Breathe and think positively. Teach your brain to create those “cell impressions” from which you can empower yourself simply through your thoughts. Ultimately, if you are consistent, your body physiology will be changed for the good.

Stretch your arms high into the air and wiggle your fingers.  Roll your wrists one way, and now the opposite direction.  Take another deep breath and exhale and release any unforgiving thoughts or hostility.  Clasp your hands and stretch to the heavens.  Now shake your hands as you bring them down.

Put aside any doubt and release any tendency to “make things work out” or to force an outcome. Open your thoughts and your life to the source of all intelligence and let go of worry.

Worry changes nothing for the better. The only thing worry does is increase in increments, and cause more worry, more problems, and affect us physically in a negative manner.

Sit with lower back pressed to the chair and shoulders down and back.  Deep breathe.  You are empowering yourself.  Exhale.  You are making room for more healing oxygen.

Bend your right ear to your right shoulder.  Hold for a moment and breathe.  Now left ear to you left shoulder.  Breathe again slowly.

Spend time on thoughts that are positive and quality and you will draw those things to you. Be mindful of your oxygen intake, and as you exhale send all those negative thoughts into oblivion.

This day is yours – CREATE a beautiful one for yourself and those around you.

THINK before you speak. Take a breath and it will spark your intellect.

Remember words are sharper than any knife and they pierce the heart.

Take THIS opportunity to tell someone you love or appreciate him or her.

Make these moments of value and the worth of your actions will ultimately come back to benefit you!  It always works… The things you think and the way you breathe!

The things that you think, and the quality of your oxygen will ultimately become your life and health.  YOU ARE IN CHARGE OF WHERE YOU GO FROM HERE.

What is past is past. The future is but a “hope for the best”.  The moments you have are now.   Make them of value to you and those around you and create beautiful moments in time.

Don’t Hurry to Death!

Over thirty-three million people will be traveling by car this year for the Thanksgiving holiday. Tradition dictates we cook fabulous meals (which usually means you will spend more money at the grocery store), visit relatives, or have visitors for dinner, and take the time off, whether we can afford to do so or not!

Wow! The REAL thanksgiving will probably happen AFTER the holiday and time off work – if it comes at all!  Here are a few tips to actually help you enjoy what is supposed to be a festive time for family and friends. These are some “stress buster” thoughts to put into action.

Advertisers like to promote the standard “turkey dinner with all the trimmings”.  They like to sell us decorative items and special desserts.

Don’t BUY into the necessity of all they are selling.

Don’t feel obligated to invite people if you cannot financially afford to do so.

The day is meant to express gratitude for our bounty.  If you are healthy, or have a family or even just a place to rest your head at night, be grateful.  So many on this planet don’t have even meager food or belongings.  Keep those thoughts fresh in your mind.

If you are driving to visit, prepare in plenty of time to be relaxed during the drive.  All those last minute details, all the planning, all the hopes of a great time will be dashed if you find yourself in a head on crash because your stress level is out of control!  Take a breath.  Think about that.

Sing.  Take a breath.  Play positive music that makes everyone’s heart beat calmly.  Laugh together. Teach the family to breathe, and take a breath together!  This will help everyone.  It will create a calmer presence and less stress for everyone.

We are not guaranteed more than the moment. Be grateful for time together.

If you are going to share time with family or friends, then certainly, if you are running late, make sure you are considerate enough to call if you feel there is any chance you will not be on time.  The love those people feel for you should forgive the tardiness.

Don’t yell at the children because they are not flying on YOUR time schedule.  They are children.  Try to be flexible and remember what is important.  How great is a memory of someone screaming, “Hurry, we’ll be late for our Thanksgiving visit!”

Create a new “tradition”.  Really make the time festive and restful too.  Present whatever food you have with grandeur and say, “We are having food to eat tonight!  How wonderful is that!”

We all encounter stressful situations on a daily basis throughout our lives.  Some stresses are positive (such as a wedding or the birth of a baby).  Others are not so positive (illness, divorce, or an injured child).  The list goes on and on in both directions, and the stress increases in increments until you think “I can handle no more!”  You know you have to, but just can’t see a way to do it.

There is a way to “manage” your stress levels, increase your energy, and relax simultaneously.  BREATHE!

When was the last time you actually thought about breathing?  Have you ever? This involuntary function, gives us a free commodity we take for granted. Because breathing is involuntary, and air is universal, we are inclined to take them both for granted

When a stressful incident happens we actually keep ourselves from almost breathing at all.  You know – something happens and your body automatically assumes the fight or flight reaction. You hold your breath, your muscles tighten and you prepare for battle.  It’s instinctive.

The human body is an OXYGEN MACHINE!  When this chain of events happens we actually cut off the oxygen supply we need to provide to our brains to think optimally, to our muscles to keep them relaxed and supple, and to be able to confront the challenge before us in a positive manner.

You will begin to change the way you think and the way you manage stress when you begin to practice breathing techniques.  You will actually begin to change the physiology of your body – lowering your heart rate and even your blood pressure. You will find your life improved in every aspect. Those around you will even reap benefits.

Breath is a gift; a wonderful commodity you cannot buy. Breathing is the single most important gift we have, and yet we think very little about it. If you don’t think it is important try holding your breath for more than a couple of minutes. Without oxygen, we die.  It’s as simple as that!

By “cultivating” your breathing techniques you will find your energy level will increase and your stress levels will decrease.  The body goes through magnificent changes.  The quality of sleep will improve and in times of stress your muscles, tendons and ligaments can be more relaxed with your continuous oxygenation.  You will create pharmaceuticals from within that help pain control, and create endorphins, which will make you feel better (without popping a pill).

You may think it’s too simple.  Why haven’t you been trained to breath in times of stress?  Getting right down to the nitty gritty – you can’t package and sell 12 ounces of oxygen.  You might not need to go to the doctor so often (about eighty-five percent of medical complaints stem from ill managed stress that changes the physiology of the body and lowers the immune system). Quite frankly, we’ve been told, “you can only do so much to help yourself”.

NOT TRUE!  We have incredible minds that can produce literal miracles in healing and honing the body to become stronger and more resilient.

It all begins with YOU!  Do you want to see your intellect and skill functions become creative and dynamic?   Wouldn’t it be awesome to become healthier as you age and not the reverse?  You are in charge of what happens next.  We cannot change every circumstance of our lives, but we can change our thinking.  We can change our response to stresses, and radically improve our own health and energy level.

Miracles of healing and excellence in your life are available for you if you are willing to dedicate just a small portion to practice and retaining these techniques.

It all begins with your willingness to do 4 things:

1. Exercise your mind by practicing new thoughts.

2. Practice breathing exercises.

3. Believe that you will create new brain cell impressions (and you will).

4. Get in the HABIT of doing these things on a daily basis. Practice, practice practice!

There are 1440 minutes in one 24-hour period.  Surely you are worth devoting a minimum of 10 minutes of that time to truly improving the quality of your life!

No matter how much upbeat exercise you do, nor the amount of weights you can lift, until you tame your own mind and master your breathing, you will miss out on obtaining all the healing gifts and stress management aids that comes with these improved breathing skills.

The easiest and most effective way to begin is right this moment.  No matter where you are reading this, take a moment and sit up straight.

Let your shoulders relax downward and with a little effort, pull them back slightly.

You have opened up the lung area and now are prepared to receive a blast of fresh oxygen.  Take a deep inhalation through the nose.  Allow your lower abdominal area to fill up like a balloon.  Hold it for a moment.  Now exhale through the mouth and allow the “balloon” to empty from the bottom upward.

Your inhalations will relax and regenerate you.  Your exhalations are actually a housekeeping technique – sending out the old carbon dioxide and making room for oxygen.  You can also visualize sending any negative incidents or feelings right out with the exhalation.  Purge your body and make room for new life and new thoughts.

Begin to practice this easy type of breathing on a daily basis.  Whenever you have a “lull” at work, are waiting for a light to change, in a line at the grocery store, whenever you have just a moment.

No one will know you are arming yourself for a better life,  a powerful and free gift we all have!  It is a way to help manage your stress level at any time, any place.  Breathing and simple movements will empower you, and you will find you can   choose your response to circumstances.  The key to the whole thing is OXYGEN.

Oxygen is continually recharging our energy, so when we are stressed out and not breathing effectively, we find our energy level diminishes, as does the quality of our lives.

You may not have dominion over many circumstances of your life, but it is possible to have dominion over your own body and your choice of responding to life.

Get in the HABIT of using this wonderful gift more effectively.

Changes will begin to happen with every breath!

arming yourself for a better life

with a powerful and free gift we all have!

Oxygen is continually recharging our energy, so when we are stressed out and not breathing effectively, we find our energy level

A

You don’t need to pop a pill to find peace!

If you have watched anything on television or the Internet, or even listened to the radio, you have been bombarded with the advertising of pharmaceuticals.

Much of the advertising claims you will “calm down and find the peace you seek”.  Photos of a miserably unhappy person change to someone who is happy and full of joy.

Right along with the promises comes the required warnings that the drugs might cause worse problems than what you are currently experiencing.  This can include thoughts of suicide!  The problem of drug “overuse” – sometimes leading to death – has increased dramatically.

Come on! These advertisers seem to think they are dealing with stupid people. Those who buy into the programs are usually just uninformed about the pharmaceuticals each of us have within our own bodies.

Some people truly need medical help, and specific prescription help (this website does not diminish the importance of the availability of these things for these people), but the majority of human beings are capable of accessing help from within themselves.

The first thing we have to do in order to use our own healing capability, and reduce our stress level, is to exercise our intellect.  At the mental level you must come to the realization that ONLY YOU and YOUR THOUGHTS have any REAL control over your mental and physical health.

Thoughts held in our minds produce after their own.  Hence, your mind is your kingdom, and you must rule it wisely.  Release and let go of any thoughts that are unworthy of you.

Blame, shame, guilt, embarrassment, and anger are unworthy of being reiterating over and over in your mind.  Wipe out those useless thoughts that keep you in bondage and increase your stress level.  They can only build feelings of depression, criticism, resentment, and feelings of being unloved.  Replace the weak thoughts and strongly affirm positive thoughts.  Remember thoughts held in our minds produce after their own!

At your emotional level, try to practice positive attitude change

with the use of a positive sense of humor.  See the true humor all around you in puns, irony, oxymorons, and just plain silliness.  Laugh yourself out of your stress.

Positive humor helps condition the logical mind, and eventually it will yield to the omniscience of a calm and sweet spirit.

Hold in your mind thoughts, which include “I am becoming calmer”.  I am changing to positive thoughts, which will in turn decrease my negative stress level.  I am changing for the better.  My changes within will change my outward presence and my response to stressful situations.”

You are the captain of your ship and you want to sail calm waters.  Begin to make it happen today.  Take a breath and think of something that is wonderful (example: the color of the leaves in fall, or a laughing child).

Create your life and diminish out of control stress.  Take another breath.  Exhale slowly and cast out the negative.

Inhale again and begin to regenerate and relax simultaneously.

Here are two stress management techniques that will work RIGHT NOW!

Do you have just ONE MINUTE to spare right now to turn the day around?  If you don’t, you might as well kiss your fanny goodbye!

This life is demanding and brimming with a myriad of stresses (good and bad) for the majority of human beings.  If you are feeling terrible right now, stressed to the brink, and really want to begin to change your life, you need to do these short management techniques.

1.  EXERCISE your mind.  Accept the fact you may not have control over your circumstances, but you always have the choice in your response.  In order to respond with intellect, and not let your emotional trauma be in charge, read and do number 2.

2.  Take a deep breath, inhaling slowly (visualize the needed oxygen doing it’s work on your mind and body).  Now exhale through the mouth slowly.  Remember this is the purging breath and now you visualize all the negative thoughts flying from the fingertips into oblivion.

Sit up straighter with shoulders down and back.

Repeat number 2.  Read it again as you do it.

Empower your mind and give your brain the oxygen it needs to function optimally.  This isn’t “silly advice” nor “pie in the sky” techniques.  These are tried and true.

If you exercise your  intellect by choosing to think in more positive ways, you will find inner peace approaching.  The physiology of the body demands good oxygen intake in order to begin stress management for real!

Just doing these two things throughout the day will truly help your stress level to begin to be under your control instead of out of control.

It sounds too simple, and yet it is absolutely the truth.  Knowing that, why don’t you be decadent and indulge in reading and practicing number one and two again.

It is the way you live your life day by day

You will handle stressful situations much better by practicing breathing techniques, incorporating various stress management practices (such as yoga or meditation) and doing all the things mentioned on this website, and other fine websites.

However, a huge part of beginning to manage stress on a daily basis, involves how we respond to every day occurrences.

The Dalai Lama is a spiritual leader revered among the people of Tibet. He is a noted public speaker, worldwide, who shares his Buddhist teachings to promote ethics and interfaith harmony.

His “Instructions for Life” reflect thoughts that will, if incorporated into daily living, be very beneficial in furthering your ability to manage stress.

Please read them, take them to heart, and read them again.  Every thought will enlighten your life and lighten your load.

The Dalai Lama’s Instructions for Life

1.  Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

2.  When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.

3.  Follow the three R’s:

Respect for self

Respect for other’s

Responsibility for all your actions.

4.  Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

5.  Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

6.  Don’t let a little dispute injure a great relationship.

7.  When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

8.   Spend some time alone every day.

9.  Open arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.

10.  Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

11.  Live a good, honorable life.  Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able

to enjoy it a second time.

12.  A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

13.  In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation.  Don’t bring up

the past.

14.  Share your knowledge.  It’s a way to achieve immortality.

15.  Be gentle with the earth.

16.  Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.

17.  Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds

your need for each other.

18.  Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

19.  Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

Opt for Optimism

Research has shown that the majority of illnesses, including backaches, headaches, and even heart disease, can be caused or influenced by our feelings and our stress levels.

When we experience life changes-positive or negative-our bodies need time to recover.  If we have an optimistic attitude, it can help speed recover and may even keep you healthier than someone with negative attitudes.

By learning to look on the “bright side” you can help counteract the negative effects of stress and improve your overall health.

Look on the Bright Side

The classic definition of an optimist is a person who sees a glass as half full, while the pessimist sees it as half empty. Optimists choose to feel hopeful about how they see a situation. Optimists are positive thinkers who practice positive “self-talk”. Optimists tell themselves, “I can do it.  I will do it. ”

Surprisingly, optimism, or positive thinking, can help accomplish a surprising number of personal goals.

How to Become an Optimist

Find a role model.  Find someone who seems to make the best of any given situation.  Find out how that person maintains that attitude and copy the behavior!   Get in the habit of responding in a positive manner.  Chances are that this role model, even during difficult times, will get through the circumstance with fewer negative effects.

Practice positive self-talk.  Repetition is the mother of all learning, and the only way to change the habit of constant negativity, is by training yourself.   Tell yourself positive things for a month.  Make that brief commitment and follow through and it can change your life.  Leave out of your vocabulary negative words such as “can’t, won’t, or don’t”.

Practice positive affirmations.  Affirmations are positive, and motivating statements.  Use short “I am” statements:  “I am calm and will respond with intellect.”  “I am changing to become more positive.”  Say the affirmations out loud several times, and then imagine it happening.  You are in the process of creating new brain cells that are based on your positive thoughts and affirmations.

No one is optimistic all the time.  It just isn’t possible.  We are all human.  But anyone can learn how to adopt a more positive, healthier attitude.  When you practice being an optimist, you’ll be on your way to a happier, healthier body, mind and spirit.

Now take a deep inhalation of oxygen and think, “I am in charge of my attitude and the response to any challenge I may encounter.”

CREATE a wonderful day!

Yes it can!

Everyone knows that laughter feels good.  Laughter can make any situation a little more bearable, but did you know it could actually make you healthier?

Children laugh about 400 times a day.  Adults only laugh about 15 times a day, and that’s not the majority of adults.

Many of us get so wrapped up in the serious side of our jobs, whether it be in an office, working outside, or parenting.  The trouble with that is we simply aren’t laughing enough.  When we get so bogged down and serious, our stress levels spiral out of control.  Oftentimes we forget there is really still a lighter side to life.

How often do you let yourself laugh?  How often to you chuckle or really laugh until it hurts?  Not often enough I’d bet!

Laughter is really an all-around health booster.  According to “Science of Laughter” on the Discovery Health Web site, when we laugh, natural killer cells, which destroy tumors and viruses, increase.

Not only that, but Gamma-interferon (a disease-fighting protein, T-cells (important for our immune system) and B-cells (which make disease -fighting antibodies) increase too!

Blood pressure lowers with laughter, and you breathe more when laughing, thereby increasing oxygen in the blood.  That also encourages healing.

Be aware though, what “some people” call humor is not beneficial.  When jokes and laughter turn into jabs towards others, and yourself, you are no longer reaping the benefit of your laughter, and are in fact increasing pain and putting distance between yourself and others.

Healthy humor is a whole body experience comprised of three key components:

1.  Laughter, the reflexive and contagious physical experience.

2.  Wit, the cognitive experience.

3.  Amusement (or mirth), the feel good emotional experience enhanced when shared with others.

When these three elements are part of your “laughter” experience, you can be absolutely sure your body is benefiting.

Laughter really does lower blood pressure.  Many tests have shown that those who laugh heartily on a regular basis have lower blood pressure than the average person.

Laughter protects our hearts.  Laughter can help prevent heart disease.

The “humor factor” actually changes our biochemical state, similar to what the “flight or fight” syndrome does – only laughter changes are good.  It decreases stress hormones and increases infection-fighting antibodies.  It makes us more attentive, and increases the heart rate and pulse.

Laughter is a great workout for your diaphragm, abdominal, respiratory, facial, leg, and back muscles.  It actually gives us a good workout.  It massages abdominal organs, tones the intestinal functioning, and strengthens muscles that hold abdominal organs in place.  A hearty laugh can burn calories equivalent to several minutes on the rowing machine or an exercise bike.

Humor does improve brain function, which in turn helps relieve stress.  It stimulates both sides of the brain to enhance our intellect and learning.  It eases psychological stress and allows people to retain more information.

When we laugh our ability to connect with others improves.   Humor helps us to replace negative emotions with good feelings.

When humor enters it changes our behavior.  We talk more, make more direct eyes contact with others, our energy increases, and simply put, it makes us feel better

Look for everyday humor.  There is humor to be found!  There are things constantly around us that can incite humor if we let them.  Honestly, you can find silly things happening around you every day.

Look at children.  They can find humor in anything! Surround yourself with positive people.  Take a humor break and pick up a book of jokes to read.  When you start to feel pressured, pick the book up and read a few jokes.

I remember a time years ago that I went to the beach with friends.  Trying to impress the guys, I attached a long ponytail to my own hair.  I looked hot!

When asked to play volleyball I said, “Of course.”  I had a hundred pins holding the darn thing in.  We played for a few minutes and then my ponytail fell off!

Everyone looked shocked and I simply said “Time out”, and I set it by the sidelines and kept playing.  No one laughed or mentioned it, and the game continued.  I played hard and our team won.

When over, I put the hairpiece in my purse and my friend and I went back to the house.  Once the door was closed we burst into laughter and fell down on the floor and laughed until our sides hurt.  I’m still smiling.

Rather than suffer humiliation or embarrassment, I chose to ignore the stress, and just keep going.  It was the best thing I possibly could have done.

Remember, this is your life!  Don’t forget to have fun.  Enjoy your life.  Take a breath and take heart.  It will work out easier if you remember to laugh!

Smile now.  The good times are closer than you think.