With all of the lovely stress that life has to offer, how do you stay centered?

I dont, I’m pretty messed-up…... :)

If you had my mass, you’d find it’s hard to not be centered.

I think it is others that keep me centered. I wouldn’t be able to cope with it all by myself. I’m not good alone.

Sometimes I don’t. I cry and I get angry – Alex calms me down. Yoga helps and so does getting some perspective and thinking of all the inspiring cancer patients that I help and how they approach life and aligning myself a bit with their energy.

The love and support of my family.

I put music on over the speakers at the ranch and ride until I’ve calmed down. That helps the most. I have a few people who will listen to me vent about everything, too.

Exercise, meditation and random fits of rage. :)

I exercise. It helps a lot and makes you feel good to :)

I’m currently doing P90X, it’s intense!

fluther.

Eckhart Tolle.
If you can listen to him~ you will instantly be at ease.
He is a delite and reminds you how to be in the moment!

I don’t handle it very well. I’m in therapy. Sometimes I dream of faking my own death and assuming a new identity.

Running – The “runners high” effect is so relaxing I’m almost addicted to it. Really just allows me to relax, clear my head and put what’s important into perspective. Allows me to get a good night’s sleep, also.

Weight Training – Gives me another goal to work at, puts me on a routine, keeps me in line and boosts my confidence.

Reading – Makes me feel informed, feeds my interest in a variety of topics, allows me quiet time to relax and forget about everything else.

Video Gaming – A guilty pleasure, allows my mind to escape from reality for a few hours. Reality could be a real bitch sometimes.

Alcohol Therapy – Woohooo!

All of this stuff really makes me feel centered and balanced. If I go too long without one, I start to feel the strain from all of life’s hardships. @jonsblond Also, the love and support from my friends and family help me a great deal.

Music + a nice walk outside cures all of my stress.

Learn to take pleasure from the path rather than focusing on the destination, enjoy the little things along the way, never lose your sense of wonder, and don’t worry about what you can’t control.

It’s worked pretty well for me so far.

Most of what people regard as unusual stresses of life are in fact just normal stuff. Simply recognizing and accepting that fact is a big help. If you were a zebra, you would be silly to imagine that being chased by lions was some sort of unjust abberation-you would simply accept it as part of the deal. Same thing here. Having said all that, exercise is the best relief. Destructive habits like drinking or smoking are the worst.

I have this “thing” about essential oils. I stock a few, lavender, rosemary, geranium sometimes peppermint. I put them in my bath. On a very bad day, I’ll do that, but tidy up first, put on some really chill music, light some candles, and fling the oils all about my apartment. I have wind chimes and I also have music with rushing water and chime sounds in it.

I have a few meditation CD’S, one with chakra balancing, one for deep hypnosis and relaxation, I also have Louise Haye and power thoughts.

Or I will sit here and connect with my angels I have found on fluther.

Talking with my friends helps a lot
Long, fast walks
Trying to prioritize and not take on too much at once if I can help it
Recognizing the stressors and giving myself extra nurturing at those times

@Just_Justine Here’s a confession: I sometimes use some of my g/f’s essential oil washes in the shower.

I work harder (possibly on a project I think is more fun). It’s no wonder I have abnormally high blood pressure for someone as young as I am.

“thinking of all the inspiring cancer patients that I help and how they approach life and aligning myself a bit with their energy.”

@Simone_De_Beauvoir I have a lot of respect for you for what you do..

Friends. Friends are amazing. Then I have my guitar and music. These are pretty much what help me the most.

@jjmah thank you, that means a lot

My SO, my daughter and my lovely dogs, who are always there for me.

My beautiful girlfriend. I think if I had been through the crap I’ve been through these past years without her, the old me would have never been able to handle it.

But sometimes the only stopgap solution is Monty Python and a bottle of scotch. Canadian Whiskey works on a budget.

Swim and play guitar…real loud if the day warrants it which is nearly everyday for me!

I’m not sure what it means to be centered. For some here, it seems to mean calmed down—getting away from the influence of the stress they feel. For others it seems to mean getting a more realistic perspective on life. Still others think it means acceptance of that which they can not change. It also seems to mean some kind of ritual that changes their emotional frame of mind to others.

If it’s stress reduction—then I try not to think about what’s bothering me. If it’s a realistic perspective, I don’t even bother. I see things how I see them. I don’t know what “realistic” is. If it’s acceptance…. well, that doesn’t come easily. If it’s a ritual—I don’t have any home rituals, except possibly taking a walk, or being out in nature. I do have a weekly ritual which does help with many of these other items.

In truth, I’m not sure if I’ve ever been centered because none of these definitions seem to catch the essence of the concept to me. But what do I know? I’ve never felt it, so how could I know it?

Prayer and meditation.

@Cruiser Guitar… exactly the same as my SO. Rock and Roll music?

I “take weekends off”. I do all of my work during the week and spend the weekends doing everything I desire. Even eating junk food.. (gasp!)

Oh. And wine. ;P

I attempt to avoid stressors that are roots of the problem and engage in activities that I find relaxing and fun.

I cry, pray, play guitar and such. Cry out to God in general that he can lift me up and place me back on track.

@jeffgoldblumsprivatefacilities

Same here. Either together or separately, music and walking outside usually calm me down completely. Which is why I actually enjoy living 15 minutes away from school, having to walk this long comes in handy on test days. Plus it just makes you more alert and focused.

I blast music on my ipod, vent maybe once or twice, read and exercise. Especially lately… tons of school work, organizing trip to germany for three weeks, student council events that I’m running and now my grandmom’s funeral:(

Oh! And besides prayer and meditation, riding my Harley has a remarkable centering effect on me! : D

Perspective – keep it.

Family, Patience, time

Music, physical pain, & my Wolf & Kitten.

I take time to breathe. I’m sure people hold their breaths a lot more than they think.

@Disc2021 Great list…I read it, and guess that you’re not married, nor have kids. Maybe I’m wrong about that. I remember the days when I when I was addicted to running, and worked out regularly in a gym too. I liked running so much, I would make sure to do a 3 or 4 mile run, before I went to play soccer, lol. I understand, and actually long for, that addiction.

Then I met my wife (or…used-to-be wife). Everything changed, and most of that stuff went away, and then all of it when the kids arrived. Now, I’m a self-described load. Sure, she always said “go workout, I’ll be fine…”, but you know, it was never really true. I’m trying to find ways to get back to the exercise, because there’s nothing like it for feeling good about the world, once the exercise habit takes over.

In the meantime, my kids are my biggest center. Beyond that, my friends and (some of) my family. And my volunteer activities, with my kids school, and Little League. Wish I could find a job, that would just be icing on the cake.

I laugh, sometimes I even laugh when it’s not exactly appropriate to do so. It’s how I cope. Oh yeah, I shrug my shoulders a lot too.