Only eight days until we move to another state and a storm is brewing.
Here are my top strategies for maintaining my sanity in the midst of the pressure.
Trust God– Prayer, playing worship music and reading Scripture are all great stress busters. Even if I only read one Bible verse it gives me something to meditate on during high-pressured moments.
Take Time To Rest-I’m allowing myself to take a nap if I need to. Although it might seem that I have “wasted” this time, I find that I am much more productive when I am rested, rather than trying to muddle through things with a foggy brain.
Drink Water- Staying hydrated helps me think and helps my body function better.
Move- I try to take time every day for at least a short walk. It clears my brain, gives me a change of scenery and helps me to relax.
Be A Team Player-In the middle of tensions running high and the to do list running long I am trying to remember that my husband is not my enemy. Things go much smoother for my family when we are in unity.
Get Support– I have been asking friends for help. Thankfully others have talents in areas I am lacking right now (like the ability to think clearly!). You can ask for help with meals, childcare, organizing, packing and (best of all) prayer.
Make a List– I am using my Daily Organizer Page to make sure that I get the important things done and don’t forget anything.
Of course there are moments when it all goes out the window like last night when our car suddenly stalled while in the second lane on the highway. Thankfully we were able to get the car off the highway without incident and it re-started without a problem. My husband also forgave me for yelling at him in the midst of it, which is another reason that I love him.
You May Also Like:
Top 5 Ways to Deal With Stress
Thanks for continuing to share about the process you are going through.
It is helping many of us pray for you guys.
Have you thought about posting articles from abroad, maybe for http://transitionsabroad.com/ . You have a clean concise way of putting things and your words about living abroad frugally and wisely would be valuable for others to read. Maybe do it under a pen name as you are very connected to this blog and have mentioned the m word many times. (mind you I don’t think that is a bad thing, just could get you trouble down the road if people in your new country ever google’d you…
Blessings. Merry Christmas!
Herb
(we -my wife, two kids and myself – lived and worked in North India 14 years ago)
Thanks so much for your encouragement and for praying for us! I hadn’t thought about the implications of writing openly because we weren’t thinking we would be going this soon- :). I’ll need to take that into consideration in the future. That is really great that you were in India. Our pastor started an orphanage there-lots of work to be done. Blessings on your family!