This weekend I spent some much needed time hiking with my girlfriends and taking in the beautiful abundance of nature. Prior to taking this time, I was having a stressful week and experiencing overwhelm. This led to me being tired and drained which is a common reaction your body has as a result of stress. As a busy woman with lots of drive and a passion to create, I find it challenging to create a good balance between working enough, spending time with family and friends, as well as finding me time. Wherever I can, I try to remain in balance to help control stress.Stress has a lot of negative effects on our body. When I look back at my life, all of the times I was going through a difficult time; I was stressed and thus not able to find balance in my life. When I lost my Mom, I remember having many physical ailments manifest in my body as a result of dealing with the heartache. I had severe stomach pains, eczema, and a small spot on top of my head that I would continuously pick at. This is a common theme medical practitioners see in those who are dealing with extremely stressful situations and is a major factor in causing illness if stress isn’t managed. For a lot of us, finding a balance between work, play, family, and me-time is very difficult - but I want to remind you of how important it is to have boundaries and make YOU the priority; especially in times of high stress. There are so many factors that come in to play here, and sometimes we are aware of the exact cause, but most times - we are avoiding it. For me last week, I decided to tell my boyfriend how I was feeling. In sharing this with him, the things I was feeling became real because someone I loved now knew I was in a time of high stress. He was then able to help me talk through those feelings and hold me accountable to say the things that were truly causing the stress, out loud. Once you speak your truth, you will be able to put things into place which can help to actively change the situation. It’s when we avoid or ignore the signs our body is giving us, that we can get to a point of being so overwhelmed that it has harmful effects on our bodies. Whether you need to talk to a therapist, your partner, a friend, a family member or even just say it out loud to yourself; it can have a really powerful effect on your ability to move past the stress. It’s not possible to have perfect balance all the time, but at the very least, do your best to avoid the massive ups and downs of stress. If you experience overwhelm or stress due to a hormone imbalance or PMS, there are a few factors that can help to balance the surge. Try limiting sugars, caffeine, aspartame, and MSG as these can all have a negative effect and worsen the effects of a hormone imbalance. If you pay attention to your body and the signs it's giving you, you can change the outcome. It’s often a perfect storm that creates these feelings and emotions but it’s also up to you to work at it where you can to make some helpful changes and create more homeostasis in your mental and physical health. To all of you in a season of struggle I'm sending light and love your way! Michelle xo