Our emotions become upset when we feel our needs are not met. We may be feeling the need for some quiet time alone, or we may crave company and laughter. We might feel the need to rest but feel too busy to take a break. We might feel unheard, disregarded, or just plain overwhelmed.

Whatever the case, and however you feel, there is a way to acknowledge and honour your feelings without feeding them and allowing them to grow into an all encompassing mass.

These five simple steps provide an opportunity for reflection and personal growth. Your feelings are validated but they are viewed in perspective. A funk might feel all encompassing and the only overriding feeling in your life right now, but there's a part of you that knows it won't be next week, or next year. It's a little thunderstorm, bought about by your own internal weather system. By processing your feelings in a gentle relaxed manner where you take a step back and observe, you can find balance and recover quickly without zapping yourself or someone you love with a bolt of lightning.

I am a proud 2010 Team Inspiration partner of Aspire Magazine’s “Mission to Inspire 100,000 Women in 2010”!

Aspire is giving away, completely FREE, 100,000 one year digital subscriptions. And there’s more… along with the FREE subscription, I, along with over 50 other conscious entrepreneurs have agreed to offer a FREE downloadable gift with every subscription. 

To get YOUR free subscription to Aspire click here along with over 50 free inspiring and uplifting gifts please click here

From the press release: Stress Free is the first in a series of iPhone applications and mobile programs from Deepak Chopra. It also represents the first time such a program is being released directly in an interactive mobile format, without first being released in a book. With his new series of personalized mobile applications, Dr. Chopra intends to provide people with the opportunity of making significant life changes by following daily habit-changing exercises on the go and throughout the day.

The new application combines evidence-based psychology research with traditional Vedic principles. The self-guided program walks users through a set of stress-reduction activities and skills. Throughout each step in the program, users are personally coached by Dr. Chopra in a series of activity-specific videos. Activities include self-reflective interactive exercises relating to one's body, self/ego, relationships and emotions, as well as journaling, questionnaires, music therapy, meditations, yoga exercises and personal nutrition tips based on the concepts of Ayurveda.

Life can be stressful and lonely as we rush from place to place and task to task. During periods of downtime due to ill health I learned that connecting with people who inspire me via the internet was helpful when I couldn't get out and connect face to face.

As I worked on my own recovery I took to blogging to share what I've learned through my own studies and experiences. My desire with Living by Design was to reach out to anyone struggling with anxiety or adversity and encourage them to remember that in every moment we have the chance to choose how and who we want to be.

Inspired by Probloggers recent invite to "Create Your Own Bloggers to Watch List" here's my quick review of some of my favourite bloggers that I recommend looking out for in 2010...

 

Stuff happens. We get sick, we get stuck in traffic, we have problems at work. Some days the scales are tipped in the apparent favour of disaster and we are challenged to remain buoyant and productive. If we’re already feeling a dash of self pity it’s easy to let negativity flourish and spread into areas of our life where it really has no place. From there it’s a slippery slope to wallowing in a pity party or a finger pointing festival where everyone else gets the blame.

So how do you keep afloat when “bad stuff” clouds your horizon? One of the most useful things I’ve learned (and I’m not saying I’ve 100% mastered it yet) is the art of boxing and processing.

Guest article by Adrienne Carlson of accelerated online degree.org

When we’re little children, we can hardly wait to grow older; this is because our parents and other adults seem to be leading lives that are more fulfilling than ours; we think that they get to do all the cool stuff while our lives are controlled by them. But only as we really grow older do we realize that an adult’s world is not as good as it seems when you look through the eyes of a child. It is filled with responsibilities, most of which involve a certain amount of stress and anxiety. In fact, the stress factor creeps in to our lives when we begin school, and the older we get, the more significant it becomes.

Photo by jhoc

Ayurveda and Yoga both recommend that we spend time each day practicing some simple breathing exercises (pranayama) for peace of mind and increased immunity.

One of the most popular and effective exercises is something called Nadi Shodhana, or alternate nostril breathing, a simple technique that controls the flow of vital energy (prana) to the brain and has a very calming and balancing effect.

Our senses are for acquiring knowledge from the outside world. That knowledge is then filtered by the discriminative powers of our  intelligence. But when our senses are constantly receiving incoming information without a break we get mental indigestion due to the mind being too full to digest and process information healthily. 

Photo by DillonH

We’re all too busy to fit everything we want to into our day. Over-committed and over-stressed, we rush from one task to the next with little thought for our own well being. And yet, we all want to be calm, peaceful and happy. Here are five ways to show yourself a little love and squeeze some peace into your busy day. 

Photo by Xanetia

Anyone who’s suffered from anxiety knows that it’s an all encompassing feeling that makes you want to run if you're out, or stay in if you're not. Then in addition to what it does to your mind, there are the very real physical symptoms of a pounding heart, gasping for air, sweating, shaking, and even feeling like you might pass out.

When you experience the full force of a panic attack and you are looking for help, you want something that feels like it respects and matches the scale of your anxiety. Anxiety is a big issue, so you want a big solution. Something that sounds like it can match that force, that life altering awful experience. Something that isn't new age, or old hat.

And that's way many anxiety sufferers don't want to try breathing exercises for anxiety relief. It sounds too simple and too small for such a big problem. I know, I've been there...