Do you wake up feeling as though you haven’t slept at all, or maybe you’ve just dozed here and there? Do you have trouble completing a sentence before racing on to your next thought? Are you sick fairly often? Are you easily irritated? Are you stressed out about your spouse, your kids, your job, your family, your aging parents, your health, your money problems? Does thinking about your future stress you out?

If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions, you are not alone. You probably suffer from stress along with the better part of the human race and the bad news is, you are largely responsible for it! But that is also the good news, since you can do something about it.

Most of the time when you think of stress, you think of the emotional kind, the kind that comes from too much to do, or a deadline you’re in danger of missing.  But that’s only one kind; there are actually three different kinds of stress.

1. PHYSICAL STRESS. You sit at a computer all day. Your child watches too much television or plays video games long periods. You are overweight, perhaps even obese. Your posture is less than supportive. You’ve been involved in an automobile accident.
2. CHEMICAL STRESS.  What are your eating habits? Soda and chips rather than water and fruit? How about where you live: is there a lot of pollution, smog, unclean air, water with heavy metals? Do you eat a lot of fast food? Smoke cigarettes or drink too much alcohol? How about recreational or prescription drug use?
3. EMOTIONAL STRESS. These run the gamut from money problems, marital or relationship problems, aging parents, a tyrant for a boss, death of a loved one, a new job, moving to a new location.

All of these situations cause stress to the body that may compromise your nervous system and interfere with the ways in which your brain communicates with your body. The best way to cope with stress is to be aware of the three kinds, how they affect your life, and how you choose to respond to them. Change your thinking and you change your reaction to stress.

You can choose to eat better, get more exercise, talk over the situation with a trusted friend or professional. Try a fresh perspective. Focus on the good in your life, with gratitude for all you have. Do something nice for yourself. Meditate. Learn to shut out the disquieting voices in your head that cause stress in your life and replace them with positive thinking.  Al of these strategies will help you on your road to lifetime wellness.

Dr. Michael Gibson has committed himself to helping others to live the best life possible. After graduating with a Bachelor of Kinesiology from the University of Western Ontario, he received his Doctor of Chiropractic Degree and Masters of Science in Chiropractic Sports Science from Life University.   He is the co-creator of Life By Design, owner of The Wellness Group, and co-owner of CrossFit 613. His passion for empowering families runs deep. After experiencing the loss of his sister due to illness, Michael’s purpose became reaching and teaching as many as possible the foundational principles of an extraordinary life.  Since that time he has passionately pursued and been successful in living out his dream. He maintains a busy family chiropractic practice, a full speaking schedule and finds time to implement the principles and practices of Life By Design in his own life.