The 4 C’s to Combat Long-Term Stress
This year has been a tough one on all of us. We’ve met, and continue to overcome challenges as parents, students, employees and friends. As if the day-to-day stresses of sitting through blurry Zoom calls or maneuvering a plan for grocery this week aren’t tiresome enough on their own, we should consider the effect prolonged stress has on us all.
When stress becomes long-lasting and consistent, as it has for many of us this year, chronic stress can affect us in ways that run deeper than just feeling irritated. Cognitive symptoms of stress include memory problems, the inability to concentrate, anxious thoughts, and a mental focus on the negative. Emotionally, the onset of depression, anxiety, moodiness, and loneliness are among some of the problems that may accompany prolonged stress.
So how can we take steps to tackle this and mitigate some of the stress that comes with a turbulent environment? Building resilience is one key. Resilience is our capacity to bounce back from difficulty, to adapt to the fluid challenges that life throws at us. Resilience isn’t just something you’re born with, it’s a skill that anyone can develop by making changes to our thoughts and behaviors. I’d like to share strategies that I use with my patients that can help us build resilience. I call these 4 Dr. Abram’s Self C’s.
Dr. Abram’s 4 Self C’s
Self-Compassion
Think back to a time someone close to you made a small mistake. No big deal, right? Humans make mistakes. Self-compassion asks us to extend the same courtesy we generally extend to others, to ourselves. A habit of being gentle to yourself or analytic rather than reactive when you make a mistake or face stress can nip a snowball of negative emotion in the bud. Click through here to read a piece about certain distorted lenses we all sometimes see the world through, and how correcting them can save us undue stress.
Self-Conditioning
Our mental health depends on and interacts with our physical health. Making changes in our exercise routine, sleep hygiene and eating habits can drastically affect the way we feel and how we interface with stress. Actionable steps you can take to cover your basics are to ensure a healthy amount of sleep per night, 20–30 minutes of moderate exercise a few times a week, and a handle on your nutritional needs. It’s easy to forget that the cornerstones of healthy brain function need to be firmly in place to make sure we’re at our best.
Self-Conscientiousness
I talk about conscientiousness as it relates to how we conduct ourselves in relation to our goals. Conscientiousness is generally associated with doing our tasks thoroughly and intently, and your work is at its best when your motivations are aligned with your goals. Mindfulness and meditating on your intent are great ways to cultivate a habit of regulating your alignment with your day-to-day actions. Read an in-depth primer on aligning yourself with your goals in a detailed piece here.
Self-Care
It’s more than just a hashtag — self-care is an integral part of buffering stress and preventing burnout. Take some time to reflect on the daily habits and routines that help you feel well taken care of. For a comprehensive dive into the psychology of these routines, learn more here in my piece on self-care and habit loops. Find the activities that radiate joy and comfort for you, and explicitly schedule them in. This is time for you.
The next time you’re scheduling your week, or finding yourself seeking advice on how to get a grasp on tempering stress, let these four points anchor you. Compassion, Conscientiousness, Conditioning, and Care. Building habits of being kind to yourself during pivotal moments, taking care of your basic needs, aligning yourself with your goals and rewarding the efforts are, in my view, four solid steps you can take towards combating the effects of chronic stress.
Thanks for reading this piece! Next week, I’ll be posting part 3 of my Shadow series. Follow me here to get updated when it’s live! And click to follow me on instagram here.
