A post that we’re popping onto here from our socials.
Basically, we shared the above image and the content below for our wellbeing Wednesday posts that we like to do – usually in our private support group on Facebook. (Which can be found here if you’re interested – feel free to join for tips, advice and support) But after we hit the share button, we looked at it and realised that it was rather long for a social media post – ooops – but wanted to keep it there for people to see. It seemed right to share it here too as so many people said they found it helpful. Apologies to those who are seeing this again for the second time. (Or third if you also follow us on Insta!)
A cute, little piece of artwork from Katie Abey with a very important message for us all – especially on #wellbeingwednesday
Whether the pressure we experience is from internal thoughts or societal rules*, the more time we spend looking at what is placing us in a stress mindset, the better we become for it.
To explain the process, if we are feeling under pressure and stressed:
Take a break – of whatever length you need. Things will always be needing to be done whether you power through and feel rubbish or take a breather, get some clarity and come back stronger. As we do this more often, the length of breaks usually shorten – we become better at assessing and looking at our needs.
Look at where these pressures are coming from – are they from sources that are there to improve you or something you care about? Do the pressures help you to work on what you love? Are the pressures necessary in that way? Are they going to serve a purpose to help you press on and achieve what you wish to? (Because there is a place for pressure at times) Are the pressures real** or socially constructed “shoulds” and “musts” or even things that you are pressuring yourself to do based on unhelpful thoughts such as people pleasing to name a common one.
With your insight about these pressures, create a plan of action. How will you proceed? Utilise the pressure to help you get through? Realise that they’re not ones you need or that serve you, so you can drop kick them and get into a better frame of mind? Is it too hard to decide and you need to take a longer break or ask for some support? Getting perspective really gives us the power on what we need and what to do. (There’s a reason it’s in our business name and the website is perspectivepower.co.uk lol)
If you’re finding this process difficult or can’t seem to work out the source of the pressure you’re feeling, talking to a trusted person really helps to get back some balance in our lives and mindset. It might be that a friend helps you feel less alone, that someone suggests a helpful idea or coping strategy, you find a way to prioritise, delegate or drop some tasks or expectations, or any number of other things.It’s definitely worth the time exploring.
As always, our therapist and coach Lu is on hand for chatting things through and helping with this process. She can help you learn more about how your mind works and help you with the things that might be getting on top of you. Helping people through psychotherapy and hypnotherapy, coaching and accountability, ‘body doubling’ and relaxation sessions or even just that safe space to process and work through things, is what she loves to do.
So don’t hesitate to get in touch to see what she can do to help you if you’re struggling. There’s no judgement and a variety of payment options to make it as accessible as possible. She’d love to hear from you even for an initial free chat/walk somewhere pretty.
Happy Wednesday lovely people! Drink plenty! 
(GOODNESS! Apologies, that was longer than planned!)
*Societal BS 
** ‘Real’ here does not mean that they are not real thoughts and feelings that we experience. It’s a reference to whether they are pressures that are from sources other than ones explained by the social constructions or unhelpful thoughts. It does not mean they are any less of a pressure or stress. They’re tricky to handle too.