New Year, New Stress Relief Tool

As many of you know, I have spent the better part of the last 3 years in some form of treatment for breast cancer. It is why you haven’t heard from me in awhile. The latest round of chemotherapy, though not nearly as devastating as my first (different drugs), began to take its toll. My energy was sapped and sadly, the ball that I had to drop was writing this blog. But on December 21, I had my last round of chemo, hopefully forever (I will know if I am remission when I have a Pet/CT scan around Easter).

This is a long winded way of saying: “I am back”. Cancer has been a wild ride, and one of the few positives is that I have learned a thing or two about how to manage stress and whether or not a stress relief tool is actually effective. Here are a few that have worked for me including a new one in honor of the new year.

Living with the Unknown

The past year has been like some sicko’s version of a dark comedy. I still remember laughing with people in February, dismissively poking fun at the “Corona beer virus”. Little did any of us know what was in store. Living with cancer, I was probably better prepared than most since it turns out that cancer and a global pandemic share a lot in common. Both are:

• scary as hell
• unpredictable
• potentially life threatening
• unknown

As someone who has a hard time sitting still, I like to take action and solve a problem. This is impossible to do with the unknown. Instead, I have had to find tools to help me learn how to live with uncertainly.

Stress Relief Tools

Many of the stress relief tools that have helped me mitigate my cancer anxiety, deal with the many yucky side-effects of treatment and navigate the inevitable hiccups of life — none of which stop happening just because you have cancer or are living through a global pandemic, are things that I’ve already shared with you in past blogs. But since I find myself forgetting even the most basic thing these days, I wanted to recap my favorite old stress reducing tips:

• gratitude journal
• self hypnosis or meditation downloads
• EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique)
• rebounding on a mini-trampoline

I start everyday by writing 3 things in my gratitude journal and end it listening to a self hypnosis download. I also jump on my rebounder most mornings because I have found that even 5 minutes can literally flip my energy from negative to positive. I use EFT on an as-needed basis which is also the case with my new year, new stress relief tool – Free Form Writing

Free Form Writing

Free Form Writing is an unbelievably powerful exercise. I find it particularly helpful for things that do not have a solution like cancer or a pandemic or the health outcome of a loved one. It is a simple way to clear your unconscious and:

• release anxiety
• relieve depression
• stop a downward emotional spiral
• uncover negative love patterns
• improve physical ailments brought on by stress, anxiety and worry
• create an outlet for buried anger, resentment and frustration

Like me, I am sure that you have found yourself in situations where you are furious with someone who refuses to take responsibility for their actions, leaving you with no outlet to work through your anger. Or maybe someone you love is sick and you are terrified that he or she is going to die. These are both great examples of a situation where I have used Free Form Writing to help me through the emotional minefield of what I like to call life’s hiccups.

Free Form Writing Technique

The free form writing technique is pretty straightforward. Grab a pen and a piece of paper — and yes, you need to go old-school here — and start writing whatever comes into your head. You do not need to worry about it making sense, finishing sentences or, in my case, even words. I typically wind up with a piece of paper that looks like a giant pile of scribble. Oftentimes, my pen rips through the page and my hand hurts from the force of my words.

Once you have dumped all that needs to be said, take the paper and light it on fire. If that is dangerous (which it is in my apartment), you can also rip it into shreds and throw it in the trash. The key here is to give yourself a safe space to access your unconscious and release the shit inside. This is why you never worry about making it look or sound pretty, and you do not read it afterwards. I know it sounds like something that is too easy to be powerful, but I can tell you with certainty that this stress relief tool is a game changer. It has gotten me through some very dark times over the past 6 months. Give it a go and let me know what you think. Happy New Year!