Overcoming Stress During Empty Nest

Life is full of transitional stages...graduation, marriage, new career, motherhood, a new move, kids going into school for the first time, kids graduating, divorce or being widowed, aging and empty nest are just a few that you may be currently experiencing or have faced at one point or another in your life.

Many of these life changes can be difficult to maneuver through with joy.  I can check many off that list that I've experienced so far in my life and I can honestly say I didn't always deal with them with grace....BECAUSE CHANGE CAN BE HARD! 

I was reminded again during my most recent life change, empty nest, that changes can be stressful...let's not kid ourselves, life is stressful and how we deal with stress ultimately determines how much joy we have in our lives.  

Stress doesn't necessarily have to be a negative thing though. Wouldn't you agree that without stress you'd probably be less determined to accomplish your dreams and goals in life? It's those stressors that move us to change the current situation or "transitional stage" we are in and how we feel about it. 

I recently learned that there are two types of stresses...eustress and distress. Eustress is the type of stress that usually creates a positive outcome like the stress you feel buying a house or the stress that comes with learning something new. The outcome of these two examples is a positive one...a new house and a new hobby or career. 

Distress causes a negative outcome and usually is brought on by not being prepared and comes from things we can't control such a death. Negative thought patterns such as worrying and being fearful of things we can't control can most definitely be distressful as well. The outcome is most often anxiety and depression. 

So how do we deal with both so that we can find joy (being present, being purposeful, being grateful and finding peace in our life)  during the transition we're each facing right now? 

Just being aware of the two types of stresses in our lives and their outcomes, will help us to not react but be more thoughtful to the different stress that comes along due to this new phase in life. If we think of the situation we're in as a eustress (positive stress, one that will bring a good outcome) not a distress (negative stress, negative outcome), we can use this new phase in life as motivator to move us to take action to find joy in this new stage in life.  And know that distress can be turned into eustress if we make a positive change in our thinking and actions. 

I completely understand this isn't an easy task and it usually doesn't happen overnight, at least for me it didn't.  I created the Love What's Next Project to bring eustress (positive stress to gain a positive outcome) into the lives of women going through a transitional stage in life so they can discover what's next and figure out how to love this new phase they're in. Through simple, daily challenges (eustress, positive stress) participants design and create a life they love! 

xoxo
Nicole 

What our Love What's Next Project participants are saying and how they've take the stresses in their transitions and turned them into positive outcomes ...

"Had two great interviews! I’m grateful for my new opportunity, increased income and feeling validated yesterday by being considered for two jobs." -Jennifer LWNP participant

"Here’s my spontaneous “redefine normal” favorite moment so far. I was walking out of Target today when this gentleman asked if I could buy him lunch. I asked him if I could join him. We had a pretty amazing conversation about life and choices and belief systems. " -Carrie LWNP participant

"So I finally got a run in! My goal was a mile and I made it 1.25 Miles. Woohoo!"- Rauna LWNP participant