This Fall, Stress Less
Sit down in a comfy chair, clear your mind, and - with your back straight - close your eyes…
Envision yourself sitting in a woods, preferably one you have recently visited, on a warm day. Relax your arms, lay them at your side, preferably supported on armrests, with your open palms facing up. Slowly fill your lungs to almost full, hold for five seconds… and slowly release the air from your lungs, letting it join the warm breezes you feel on your face.
While you are releasing the air, think of the wind gently rustling the leaves in the woods, as you are surrounded by the sounds and aroma of Fall. Do this slowly three times, daily if possible, but especially after a challenging day before you go to bed.
Now that I have a few of my readers in a better emotional frame of mind, I wanted to discuss this week some of my observations from my practice…
Over the last three decades that I have been practicing orthodontics, I have never experienced the level of stress, anguish, and general lack of ease in my patients’ and/or their parents’ lives as I have over the last several months. We have already talked about the oral ramifications and release of stress by clenching and grinding our teeth, which now, according to the American Dental Association, is the number two problem after decay in today’s dental patient population.
My personal take on this observation of increased stress is totally my own opinion, compiled by listening to and being in group settings with very learned individuals.
Just last Thursday, I was at a small, 20 or so, group listening to a Harvard professor in Beachwood on a totally custom designed orthodontic bracket that we hope to have by December of this year. Let me clear the air, I have heard several Harvard professors over the years and I am not mesmerized by the Harvard title. They put their pants on the same way I do! But they are privy to data, good or bad, that the rest of us aren’t. His comments on stress in today’s society reiterated what most of us have felt - we just don’t have a clear focus on where this Covid thing is going or where it will end. But we do know it’s not going to disappear overnight just with a vaccine. And up to this point in life, most of us had a fairly good grip on our future and a decent thumbnail sketch on our children’s.
But today, all bets are off! We are learning to navigate in a day-by-day existence. Personally, it’s not the way that many of you or I operate. I’m usually planning to go to an in-person dental meeting in-state or out, or like many of you, trying to put together a hike out west. This has created a lot of stress and tension in our families and society as a whole. I’ve talked to some parents who live on news reports and hyped-up social media; they make it sound like Armageddon is just around the corner because they saw the announcement on their phone!
Whoa Pilgrim, not so fast. Let’s really sit back and do a little personal eval of current conditions…
Truthfully, the world is adjusting itself to a new normalcy.
As you have heard many times, necessity is the mother of invention. Restaurants are opening longer and yes, curbside pick-up is still available, but we can go inside now with groups and no masks! That is a heck of a lot better than just one year ago.
We have a vaccine, for good or for bad, and generally speaking… going in baby steps… the world is figuring out how to exist with Covid.
Though we usually look to elected officials or people in-the-know to guide us through troubled times, this may be the first time in our lives where we need to look closer to home for answers. Michael Jackson, in his “Man in the Mirror” song, says it best, “If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, and then make a change.”
We have to do some soul-searching and evaluating of our personal core values today - more than ever before - and we need to do this not just for ourselves personally, but for our children and our community.
I feel a lot of our stress can be reduced if we take assertive steps to modify our own individual worlds and not wait for someone else to do it for us.
Let’s take a look at how this can play out…
Many people were happy during the early stages of the pandemic to listen every afternoon to the Governor’s update and prognostication of events and what we should be doing to stay safe. Times have moved on and we now have to personally look at choices, hopefully do our homework with background investigations, and then decide what is best for ourselves and our families.
We’re talking about choices of should we wear a mask or not, should we get the vaccine or booster and, this week, do we get vaccines for our family members five to eleven - all choices that most of us never thought of even two years ago! The answers to these choices then dictate, to some degree, our mobility and acceptance in society. Some of the choices we make can reduce our stress; others may increase it.
Do your homework and make the choices.
Procrastination and hope are not choices. I agree that to just jump in and be the first to do something during a first-time-ever pandemic may not be the best decision; but, after waiting months and months, a choice should be made to relieve yourself of this ever-present stress-enhancer.
Now, more than ever, we need to take care of ourselves both physically and mentally and show other family members - both young and old - that it makes sense and pays large dividends in the stress reduction department to stay healthy.
“So where is a good place to start, Dr. Pfister?”
I’m glad you asked. The Five Pillars of Health should be reviewed almost daily.
Eat Right - We are what we eat. Average weight gain over Covid has been placed at 18 lbs. For tips on nutrition, click here.
Hydrate - Hydrate with water, at least one liter a day.
Sleep - At least 6-8 hours a night.
Exercise - 3x week, one hour per session.
Tend to Mental Health - I added the fifth pillar as mental health, which I feel is the most important during Covid. Mental relaxation is key, I feel, to the other four pillars… hard to quantify or place norms on it, but we all need it and it probably varies on a daily or weekly basis for most of us. Most of us can’t just drop everything and go to the beach or mountain for some R and R, so we need to work on daily micro-dosing of mental stress reduction.
Inactivity kills the aged and builds mental stress in the rest of the population! If tread machines, ellipticals, and gym memberships aren’t your thing, then at least set out and walk, as much as you are able, and increase the distance and time as you are able. Be realistic - don’t start running marathons or even 5Ks until your ligaments are ready!
Remember - the key to any activity is getting into the proper routine and making it fun. Walk or run with a friend, family member, even your dog. Just take those difficult first steps and get going.
This weekend will probably be the peak of colors and no rain is predicted until next week! No excuses - head for Peninsula for the Tow Path, Kendal Lake, heck I grew up hiking Hinckley Lake! Take your kids and try to hit an ice cream stand when you are done. Ice cream with my parents growing up - one of my fondest memories.
Take the Covid by the horns and let’s all think positive and set positive examples for those around us because we can turn this pandemic around!
When in doubt… stop wondering, get out, and start wandering!
Have a wonderful Fall weekend Medina County,
- Dr. Pfister