Even Good Stress is Stress

When my twins were born 5 weeks premature, they were place in the NICU (neo-natal intensive care unit).  I quickly latched on to the amazing nurses so that I’d gain insight on how to be a good mommy to such tiny babies. There were many lessons taught and learned, but the one that sticks with me still today is this….

Even good stress is stress.

Whenever an over zealous parent wanted to hold a baby too long, this nurse would kindly remind us.  In this case, it meant that even though the parent had good intent, too much stimulation for too long would stress the baby and cause negative outcomes.

The same applies to you.

How often do you overload your “free” time with social media, learning more about your industry, or all that extra reading you’ve been meaning to catch up on?  Do you over commit and over promise?  Maybe you volunteer in your community or on one of your kids’ teams. No matter what things you are doing to over-extend yourself, take time to evaluate that from time to time.

Ask yourself, is this benefiting me or my family or is it contributing to poor health or poor relationships?

It’s a tough dilemma and most of us live this life day in and day out.

Pause.

What can you drop from your list of commitments in order to get better balance?