15 June 2023

Live and Dare

 

Stress is an inevitable part of our everyday lives. A little bit can be positive, but too much stress takes a toll on the body and mind.

The goal isn’t to eliminate stress (that would be impossible) but rather to reduce it where possible and take time to recover from the stressors of daily life.

Take a minute (often)

“Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two deep breaths.” — Etty Hillesum

When life gets busy, there can be a snowball effect. Busyness begets busyness. And if we don’t take some time every day to interrupt the “snowball” from rolling, it gets bigger, faster, and harder to stop, leading to burning out or, to keep with the snowball analogy, crashing into a wall. This is prevented by regularly and intentionally pausing and taking time for yourself (even just a minute).

Build awareness

Regularly acknowledge how much you do and how much that requires of your body, mind, and heart. Deepening our awareness of how stress impacts our wellbeing can motivate us to interrupt the stress cycle and prioritize rejuvenation.

Set boundaries

Time is a limited and precious resource, so we feel best when we spend it wisely. Boundaries support us to choose meaningful priorities and let go of the things that don’t provide nourishment. To create a boundary that supports you, start with a value you have; from there, determine what you need to make that value possible and then determine how you can honor that need.

Bring ease into your effort

The tricky thing about stress is that it impacts the body’s ability to effectively do its job. For example, you might choose to eat a healthy lunch, but if you’re eating it while stressed (perhaps feeling like you don’t have time to eat and that you should be working), the body won’t be able to digest and absorb all of the amazing nutrients that you consumed.2

What causes stress in college students?



According to the American College Health Association (ACHA), 44.9% of college students experience more than average stress levels, while 12.7% experience overwhelming stress levels. With so many academic demands and responsibilities as a student, it’s expected that you might feel high levels of stress from time to time. But, when stress disrupts daily activities, you need to determine the cause of your stress and how to manage it.

Stress management tips for college students

1. Get proper rest and sleep
Many college students pull all-nighters, studying through the night to prepare for an exam, but this type of habit can lead to sleep deprivation and insomnia. 


Depriving your body of sleep can lower cognitive function, academic performance, and mental health. If you have trouble sleeping at night, try techniques such as avoiding excess caffeine, turning down the lights, or putting away technology at least one hour before bed.
2. Focus on health and nutrition


When you pair the freedom to choose what and when along with academic stress, college students are more likely to cope by overeating or undereating. Developing good habits like eating a balanced diet, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep can help manage stress and prevent dramatic weight loss or weight gain.
3. Be active
If you’re having trouble getting motivated to be active, try inviting a friend, changing up your routine, or exercising in short-time intervals. Adding just 15 minutes of physical activity to your daily routine can help your physical and mental health.


4. Have a stress outlet


Having a healthy outlet to turn to in times of stress can help calm your mind and clarify how to move forward in a stressful situation. Things like a hobby, social club, or physical exercise can all be outlets for relieving stress.

5. Find connections

The Mayo Clinic says that “social isolation and loneliness are associated with a greater risk of poor mental health and poor cardiovascular health, as well as other health problems.” College is a great time to make new friends. Joining a club or organization, talking to classmates, volunteering, or being on an intramural sports team can help create connections on and off-campus.












20 May 2023

Accept Yourself


Learning to be OK with all the pieces of you can be hard, but with some practice, you can learn the art of self-acceptance.

While there are always ways to improve and better ourselves, in the end, we are who we are.

After all, who doesn’t have good qualities they’re proud of and flaws they could do without? And we each experience success or failure at different times in our lives.

Learning to accept yourself for who you are can bring peace and calm to your life.

How to accept yourself

  1. Forgive yourself
  2. Practice self-compassion
  3. Use present moment awareness and mindfulness
  4. Acknowledge and love your abilities
  5. Ignore your inner critic
  6. Connect with loved ones who appreciate you
  7. Move on from disappointments
  8. Gain perspective on your limitations
  9. Smiling with my scars 
  1. Self-esteem refers to having confidence in your qualities and abilities. A person with higher self-esteem might feel worthy of good and positive experiences and feel able to handle difficult situations.

    In a 2017 studyTrusted Source based on data from 201 adolescents, researchers observed that a person’s self-esteem was linked to them having fewer symptoms of anxiety, depression, and attention problems.

    While self-esteem and self-acceptance are connected, self-acceptance refers to the act of embracing every aspect of yourself — strengths and weaknesses.

    You might think of it this way: Self-esteem is the quality of fuel you use, and self-acceptance is how you drive on that tank of fuel.

  2. From the moment we’re born, how we fit into the world is determined and highly influenced by our caregivers.

    This gives them a lot of power in terms of how we understand and see ourselves. For instance, if your caregiver encouraged, loved, and accepted you, your self-acceptance will often be much different from a child who experienced the opposite.

    When we start school, we’re measured by how well we perform on tests and in class, as well as how we assimilate with our peers. All this can contribute to self-worth and acceptance.

    As we get older, life circumstances, relationships, and how we’re treated by others can influence how readily we accept ourselves.

    It can be hard for many of us to accept ourselves if:

    No matter how your self-acceptance was shaped up until this point, there are practical ways to work on accepting yourself, right now, just as you are.

 

21 April 2023

Believe in yourself


 Believing in yourself can help you live a more fulfilling and satisfying life. It’s linked to greater resilience, improved mental health, and better decision-making.

Greater resilience

studyTrusted Source of 1,015 middle school students found that self-esteem positively predicts resilience. The authors of the study note that resilience can be thought of as a personality trait that can help you adapt to negative stressors and maintain psychological function.

When you believe in yourself, you have greater confidence in your abilities and your capacity to overcome challenges. This can help you bounce back from setbacks and failures and allow you to stay motivated and persevere through tough times.

Improved mental health

Believing in yourself can help reduce anxiety and stress, improve your mood, and boost your overall sense of well-being.

In contrast, 2019 research shows a link between low self-esteem and increased anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts.

Better decision making

When you trust yourself and your abilities, you’re more likely to make decisions that align with your values and goals. This confidence can give you the courage to make decisions that you might otherwise hesitate to make.

You’ll also be less likely to second-guess yourself or be swayed by the opinions of others.

Better relationships

When you believe in yourself, you’re more likely to form healthy relationships, less likely to rely on others for validation, and more likely to show up authentically in your relationships.

An analysis of 52 studies involving more than 47,000 participants looked at the links between self-esteem and social relationships over time.

Not only did the authors find that positive social relationships, social support, and social acceptance can help shape positive self-esteem in people of all ages, but they also found a significant effect in the reverse direction.

In other words, feeling good about yourself can improve your relationships.

Believing you’re “good enough” is extremely important for your overall well-being. It can improve your mental health, relationships, and decision-making skills, among many other things.

If you’re having one of those days, in which you’re feeling “less than,” take the time to ask yourself the five questions above. Remind yourself that you’re a unique individual who has so much to offer the world. You’re not alone.

08 April 2023

Feelings of Not Being Good Enough



 We’ve all felt “not good enough” at some point in our lives. Maybe you feel like you’ll never pass your exam, attract a good partner, or move up in your company.

It’s important that you challenge these thoughts because if you dwell on them for too long, they can turn into full-blown beliefs and negatively impact your self-esteem.

Here are 5 questions you can ask yourself when you’re not feeling good enough.

02 April 2023

Maa

 If there is anyone in the world whom I can trust in the most in challenging circumstances, despite adverse circumstances, with love, care for me, it is My Maa.


Every child has a wonderful emotional attachment to their mother.

I have intentionally used the word “child” here because for your mother you will always be small child, no matter how big, independent or successful you become.

Maa has relentless physical stamina for day-to-day household chores.

She takes care of every need of every member of the family, without any physical asset.

Getting up early in the morning, cooking food three times a day, washing clothes are some of her daily engagements which she obediently carries out.

Apart from this, she also provides much needed emotional support to the family.

And above of all this she is a well established business woman , An excellent Teacher and a computer programmer. And now she is also a politician and a social worker.  

Chief Guest in a Seminar For Women 

Sometimes I wonder if this life would not have been easy without Maa.

Maa gives the physical endurance and emotional strength she endures? I got an answer in love!

Her driving force is that love for me and other family members.

True, pure, devoted and selfless love. It is only with pure love in her heart that she can conquer all her physical exhaustion and reduce it 24/7.

I was always surprised by the devotion displayed by my mother to my family.

The love she had for me and other family members gives her extraordinary strength in trying times and she becomes courageous.

My mother is the most important person in my life.

Her importance affects everyone else in my life and I know that I cannot live a single moment without her blessings.

My mother’s emotional importance in my life, I think my mother is the most important person in my life.

Without her, I would have been the only animal apart from my mother, who would run from one place to another.

My life is not as easy as it seems, nor would I have been so caring and happy.

The importance of my mother can be ascertained from the various roles she has played in my life.

She is my main advisor; my most dedicated caretaker; and a best friend.

Gossip Time πŸ˜ƒ

There is no contradicting that a mother is the most important person for her child and the mother also shares similar feelings, perhaps more intensely.

I have made many friends in my life, but my mother is the one who is closest to my heart.

She stayed with me through the good & bad phase of my life, supporting me whenever the situation demanded it.

We too have had a delightful time together, just like the best friends do.

A best friend is who lives with you in happiness and sorrow.

When she tries to match my Height😁 
She is someone who never allows you to ask for time and does everything possible to make you comfortable.

For me, I don’t think anyone else is better for this role than my mother.

She is my best companion to date, and we both share a friendly relationship that has successfully stood the test of time.

My secret keepers in a frame✌  

She knows my secrets intimately and I know that her only true desire is to see me happy.

I have seen times when my so-called best friends left me during troubled times, yet, my mother always stood by me.

She made me happy through illness, sadness, depression, failures and all the wildest fantasies of life.

My mother is the one who drove me into darkness till dawn.

True Beauty πŸ’•

I still have many friends with whom I talk, play or spend time with them, but still, my mother is my best friend and tops the list with the highest marks.

Don’t two best friends like spending time with each other? Why not! How are these best friends?

 I could also say that my mother is my best friend because we like each other’s company.

Sometimes we enjoy being together so much that we hate being interrupted.

In a time when we enjoy the most together, we do not discuss business, but all other worldly issues, such as best friends do.

It is great to have a best friend, but it is fantastic to see your mother as your best friend.

The best part of it is that she never gets bored of your company and even when the two of you are separated, she never misses calling you.

It is a lifelong bond of friendship that I and my mother share; Playing, singing, gossiping and discussing our secrets and we both realize that we have found a friend for life.

My mother has always been my best teacher who has taught me life skills, social skills, academics, throughout my life.

Inspector of City 

She was undoubtedly the best teacher I had and also the most honest, as she was always present to teach her valuable lessons.

She can be busy, yet she always has time to guide me through it, whenever I need to or whenever she feels it is necessary.

With due respect to all my teachers from my school days to college; they were excellent and did a great job in shaping my moral values and career.

They all accompanied me for a certain term, after teaching assigned subjects, after which we moved forward in our lives, but, there is someone who was my best teacher and remains – My Mother.

Her advice regarding my career has never failed me and I am glad that I accepted it.

Whenever I faced confusion about my career, she was able to guide me successfully with life and people’s experiences.

The famous quote by an English poet, Rudyard Kipling- “God cannot be everywhere and therefore he created mothers”, best describes the value and status of a mother.

The phrase states that a mother is only equivalent to God, therefore she acquires the same personality and performs the same duties as you would be expected from God.

Parivaar ❤πŸ’“


Every mother in the world deserved an admirable appreciation for her love, dedication and sacrifice for her children and other family members.

I LAPPU MAA