Everything we hear about stress says it is bad.

And yet, we can’t live without stress. It is how our body responds to life. It enables us to adapt to any new situation, whether it is cheering at a football game or responding to a threat. We can’t eliminate stress, nor do we want to. It is normal and natural. When it is working for us, we set goals, make plans, go to work, enjoy the kids, solve problems and live productive and happy lives.

So if stress is so good, why should I be concerned?

Like any system, when it gets overloaded, things begin to breakdown. When there are more and more demands and expectations to work harder, faster, and increase productivity while still maintaining excellence, we become exhausted: physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally.

Let’s look at how stress works and the effect it can have on our lives.

We are a combination of systems that work independently yet interact and work together. Some of these systems are involuntary, occurring automatically without conscious thought, such as heart beat, temperature control and digestion. Our cardio-vascular system sends blood to all parts of our body without our giving it a thought. When faced with danger, the cardio-vascular system along with other body systems quickly interacts to make it possible for us to survive.

Our brain constantly receives messages from many different sources: touch, smell, sight, and sound as well as our internal brain messages. It then determines what to do with that information. Different parts of the brain are activated and hormones and chemicals are released to prepare us for some kind of action. Sometimes the messages come from pain; sometimes from our thoughts, beliefs or memories. Anything that demands our attention will activate a messenger system within us to “gear up” the body in some way to correspond to it.

The Fight or Flight Response

The fight or flight response is one of those quick responses to any kind of danger that helps us to survive. A quick example is if you opened your front door and found a snarling tiger looking you in the eye. Your brain immediately registers danger and starts in motion a whole series of commands and activations that will either have you fight, flee or maybe freeze. In the blink of an eye, hormones and chemicals are released. Our heart, circulatory system, adrenal glands, stomach, intestines, kidneys, liver, brain, lungs – in fact almost every organ in the body is activated in some way to meet this emergency. Blood is shunted away from our extremities, liver and digestive tracts to the heart, lungs and skeletal muscles. Digestion is put on hold. Glucose is dumped into the blood to provide energy for the impending fight or flight. Sweating helps take care of excess waste.

Once the danger is past, the body returns once again to a restful state; your heart beat returns to normal, your blood pressure lowers and your digestive system continues to digest your lunch. The problem we have today, however, is that the danger is not a “physical tiger” at the door, but a paper tiger – a perception of danger. We get geared up with no place to go. So our body remains activated with no way to return to a restful state.

In my next blog I will talk about what to do if you are aware of high stress in your life.

Marlene Anderson

Setting goals is just too stressful and I don’t have time for any more stress in my life!

If you are holding down a full time job, juggling appointments, and taking care of kids and a thousand other obligations, there is little time left for R & R let alone adding new goals. Won’t I simply be adding more stress to my life if I start adding new goals to my life?

It’s a fair question. Can I add pre-determined goals to my life without increasing my stress levels?

Let’s review the benefits of setting goals:

• I take charge of my life – I’m not dependent on others

• I am in charge of my time and how I spend it

• I determine how I will respond to adversity, roadblocks and other storms of life

• I am in charge of my accomplishments

What are the costs?

• I may need to organize and regulate my time and my life – I am a poor manager

• I may need to delegate and say no

• I may need to prioritize

• I may need to work with my family and others

• I may need to change my pool of friends

• I may need to set aside specific times to rest and relax

While it may sound daunting, setting goals and taking charge of our lives is liberating. The costs involved become benefits to all areas of our life. Freedom is the ability to choose our direction. Responsibility is our ability to respond to life.

In the upcoming weeks, I will be blogging on stress, how to manage it and how to reduce its effect on our lives – in short, how to make stress work for you!!

Marlene Anderson

This morning I wanted to share with all my friends and followers a new book that has just been published.  “It’s A God Thing” contains over 40 stories of real people and real life – stories to help you experience the heart of God.

One of my real life stories, entitled “Angels on Duty” is in this book.  It shares a time when I experienced the protection of angels.

I’m sure you will enjoy reading the stories from people who have experienced God’s comfort, protection, healing and provision.

The book is available on Amazon. com.  You won’t be disappointed.

http://amzn.to/1gSdzrU

 Blessings,

Marlene Anderson

We rounded a corner in the headland and glided into a little cove snuggled in the contours of the islands. After sailing all day with rising winds and a chop on the water, we were ready to drop anchor for the night.

Protected from the bluster and nip of the wind, the air was balmy and pleasantly warm. We quickly discarded our jackets, stowed the sails and set the anchor.

As our sailboat gently floated from its tether, we brought pillows from below and settled into the cockpit to enjoy the final magnificent display of a sunset in the San Juan Islands. Birds circled and cawed to each other. A sea gull glided down and settled into the water with hardly a ripple. A blue heron watched us from the shore before returning to snatch bits of food from the water’s edge.

 As the day made its journey into evening, wispy clouds reflected the changing colors of the setting sun: red – coral – grey and gold. As it dipped behind the edge of the earth, sky and sea melted together and became one. And the heart and soul and mind experienced a deep peace.

At the end of a long day “sailing” in our world of business and work, we are ready to drop anchor in some quiet cove – a special spot where the harsh winds of the day are blocked and we can settle down for a night of respite and reprieve from the harsh realities of the day.  Snuggled into the companionship of our loved ones, we share the day’s events and give each other support; it is where we commune in silence as well as conversation.

As you create and work on goals, schedule times of quiet and relief in your tiny quiet coves.  Without these moments of respite, sustenance and renewal, you will become exhausted and lose your resolve to complete your goals.

Marlene Anderson

Many of us watched as the Winter Olympics played out on our TV screens. Whether it was figure skating, snowboarding or other team sports, the competitors had spent many, many hours of practice and training to reach their level of competence. Time and money and effort were sacrificed every day for many years. You practiced whether you felt like it or not.

Few of us can identify with the personal resolve and determination required to become a gold, silver or bronze star medal winner. Yet, if we take our goals seriously, we are making a commitment of time and effort.

Setting goals is a mindset. The goal itself sets the direction and the roadmap. But on those dark days when we see no progress or we are just exhausted, we need to maintain that resolve to keep going, making whatever corrections are necessary.

With that said, if we have set unrealistic time constraints and tight scheduling for ourselves we will suffer from high levels of stress, potential health problems, burnout and family strain.

You are the master of your goals

It takes days and years to become a proficient musician or an accomplished athlete or a seasoned sailor. It takes time and many little steps to reach levels of proficiency. Any race that is won has had many hours, days and years in training and practice.

Become the master of your goals rather than a slave to unintentional and unhealthy action plans.

You do not need to abandon your goals – but make appropriate corrections and modifications when necessary.

Marlene Anderson

Goals are both liberating and demanding. We are required to use discipline and restraint to stay on course. Even when we have made a very detailed plan on how to reach our destination and have explored and made provisions for potential obstacles, we can run into unexpected setbacks that require adjustments or even a major redesign of our plan of action.

On a sailboat, the wind determines how your sailboat will move. With a headwind, you are required to tack back and forth in a zig-zag fashion to move forward. If the wind is too strong, you reduce the amount of sail you have up. If the wind dies down, you put up a light weight sail that can capture the slightest breezes.

The wind is the driver, the source of energy that moves you from place to place. The expert sailor knows how to take advantage of it.

Goals are the driving force – the source of motivation that energizes us to get to a new destination. The winds of life at the moment will determine the adjustments or corrections that must be made.

Knowing how to adjust your “sails” will allow you to compensate for whatever conditions you are facing, keeping you off the rocks and shoals.

When we run into problems or are not making the headway we want, it is necessary to step back and evaluate the situation.

While solving problems sounds simple, identifying the problem accurately is often more difficult and complex. We see the symptoms but may need more information and input to correctly identify and resolve the problem.

We see this all the time in everyday life. Relationships start to unravel. Marriages are headed for the rocks. The culture of the day is having an adverse influence on our kids. We see the symptoms of the problem, and make quick assessments and hasty decisions without considering all the factors.

Some things to consider when facing difficulties:

• What specifically is the problem

• Who is involved with this problem

• What corrections do I need to make personally

• What additional information or resources do I need to help resolve this problem

Goals not only set a direction, but help define who we are. Within our goals we learn about ourselves, who we are and who we can become. They make life interesting, exciting and enjoyable.

Marlene Anderson

Northern Washington is not only a beautiful place to live, but it offers unlimited opportunities to sail.

When we moved here, my husband and I joined a local yacht club whose members enjoyed boating and cruising together. While knowledgeable about sailing, we wanted to be part of a larger group of seasoned boaters who had cruised these waters.

They shared stories about sailing trips, hazards they encountered and mistakes that thankfully were not tragic. We learned what supplies to take when cruising long distances and where we could purchase supplies or fuel in desolate areas where there were few marinas or stores.

Cruising long distance in the San Juan and Gulf Islands requires more than taking your boat out for an afternoon’s sail – it requires preparation and local knowledge.

Serious cruising required that we be prepared for the unexpected.

What do you do when fog rolls so fast you have little time to orient yourself before visibility is reduced to zero. Are you prepared to handle your boat in strong winds that whip up huge waves requiring a drastic reduction in speed and knowledge of sailing your boat through eight + foot waves? When arrival at your destination is seriously delayed, are you prepared to enter a marina or anchoring place in the dark?

While cruising can be exciting and enjoyable, it can also be very treacherous if you are not prepared.

Serious goal setting also requires preparation of the unexpected. The obstacles you might encounter are probably more forgiving than the ones you might experience on the water. But unless you prepare for potential setbacks or obstacles, you might experience a lot of distress and give up on your goal.

Goals require an investment of time and money. Like any investment, understanding the risks as well as the benefits is important. Sailing required an investment in equipment that might never be used except in an emergency. When building our home, we had to be prepared for increased costs of building materials. Enrolling in a college degree program, one needs to be prepared for many hidden costs that might not be anticipated.

Do you have an emergency plan set up to handle the potential setbacks and obstacles you might encounter with your goals? Exploring possible solutions ahead of time for potential problems can save a lot of time, stress and energy.

Marlene Anderson