stress Archives - Dr. Marie-Claire Moreau

Mar 19 2019

My Happy Formula

If you’ve followed me a while, you know I love to share how to lead a happier, healthier life by calming emotional [stress] responses. The ideas and techniques I write about aren’t just practices I use with others — I use them myself!

Each of us has the potential to be affected negatively by things around us. The important thing to remember is that even if we cannot always avoid contact with stressors, we can still change the way we react. That’s where tapping shines as a solution for combating the negative effects of stress (mental, physical and emotional). In becoming aware, we begin to notice our own reactions. By checking reactions, we can extinguish their effects by tapping them away completely!

It took me years to understand the roots of certain things going on in my life, and a good bit of time to start feeling whole again. But once I did, I began applying EFT to everything I do. That’s why I say, “try it on everything”. You’d be surprised what a simple round of tapping can do!

I’m sharing a script today that I like to call “My Happy Solution” because it always sets me up for having an amazing day. It’s based on the idea of “priming”, and works by preemptively letting go of anything with the potential to rattle me throughout the day. While others prime themselves with vigorous exercise, affirmations, or even powerful stimulants like coffee or jumping in a freezing pool, I find that tapping is the perfect priming technique for me.

Use your own language to make this even more effective as you tap along:

Tapping for an Amazing Day

Karate Chop: Even though I have no idea what today is going to bring, I honor all the feelings I have about it, and I love and accept myself anyway. Even though this day could go in many different, unpredictable directions, and I won’t be able to control some of it, I’m up for most anything, and I love and accept myself anyway. Even though I may face things today that try to unbalanced, destabilize, confuse, frustrate or upset me, I’m really curious about how it will unfold, I’m ready to have an incredible day

Eye Brow: I’m letting go of any thoughts, fears, anticipation, worries, or other emotions that have the potential to get in the way of me and having an incredible day. It’s safe to let these go.

Side of the Eye: I’m letting go of any guilt, regret, shame, blame, anger, resentment, frustration, impatience, or other thoughts or feelings that stand in the way of me and having an amazing day. It’s safe to let these go.

Under the Eye: I’m letting go of any stress, any anxiety, any discomfort, any nervousness, any imbalances, and any other sensations keeping me from having an amazing day. It’s safe to let these go.

Under the Nose: I’m letting go of any physical sensations, pain, cramps, tingles, spasms, twinges, burning, dryness, fatigue, weakness, and any other physical reminders that might keep me from having an amazing day

Chin Point: I’m letting go of people, places, things, circumstances, situations, weather, emergencies, surprises, changes of plans, traffic, unexpected shifts and anything else standing between me and having an amazing day. It’s safe to let these go.

Collarbone: I’m letting go of guilt, regret, shame, blame, anger, resentment, frustration, impatience, aggravation, guilt, regret, shame, blame and any other thoughts or feelings that stand in the way of me and having an amazing day. It’s safe to let these go.

Under the Arm: I’m letting go of any stress, any anxiety, any discomfort, any nervousness, any imbalances, any anticipation, any worry, any fear, any emotional discomfort, any physical sensations, any severe reactions, any unplanned emergencies, and anything else keeping me from having an amazing day. It’s safe to let these go.

Top of the Head: Letting it go. Letting it all go. And so it is, and so it shall be.

I tend to repeat things while tapping, which is why you might notice some duplication in this particular script. Normally, I would continue with several more rounds until I feel grounded, eager and ready to start my day. I change my scripts all the time to suit whatever I may be processing at the time. You can do that, too.

Forgot your tapping points? Here’s a review.

In wholeness,

As a coach, writer, recovered over-doer and busyness addict, I understand the challenges of creating a balanced, healthy lifestyle while the mind tries to sabotage your success. In my journey to vibrant health, I created a personalized health system of nutrition and supplementation, lifestyle changes, and I retrained my mind and the energy of my body. I view my success as the formula to my happy, healthy life. I now empower other women to create their own personalized formulas, including the tools and strategies just right for them! Amazing life shifts come from our relationships. I look forward to helping you, too!

Nov 30 2018

Honoring traditions without harming ourselves

As if modern life wasn’t busy enough, there are certain times of year when many of us just take on too much. Holidays and celebrations which should be joyous can become overwhelming when we forget to apply the principles and practices that keep us healthy all year long.

For most of us, making family memories and honoring ancestral traditions is an important part of special days of the year. The intense pressure we put on ourselves can leave us feeling like failures if we cannot do everything we’ve planned, or completely unwell for overextending ourselves to the point of exhaustion and sickness.

In today’s video message, I address the notion of honoring family traditions and trying to do it all. If any of this message resonates with you, you can begin to explore all the ways of handling extra emotional charge this season.

As always, let me know if I can help. Now, watch this:

[Editorial note: I accidentally blended the phrases “east coast” and “western hemisphere” in this video.]

Much love,

Oct 29 2017

Healing Adrenals by Reducing Stressors

May contain affiliate links

I’ve been sharing advice about dealing with adrenal fatigue over the last few weeks. If you’d like to read the articles from the very beginning, click HERE . If you only want to back up to the previous article, click HERE.

I need to remind you that I’m not a medical doctor. What I am doing is sharing what I’ve learned in over a decade of research, years of personal experience, and a good bit of professional experience working with women who share this particular problem. I also remind you that traditional medicine doesn’t understand this dilemma the way I’m helping you understand it. Finally, remember that the only way to truly recover from adrenal fatigue/overload/exhaustion is to get to the source and take a holistic approach to resolve it. Trust me on this — conventional medicine doesn’t understand what you’re going through and has no idea how to help.

I know you’re anxious to get answers. So, starting with this post, I’m going to share specific things that work for many people. Obviously, you’re unique, so I make no guarantees. Also, there’s always the possibility that something else is going in addition to your adrenal imbalance. All that being said, you agree to read this at your own risk.

So, the first step to healing the adrenals is this: Eliminate your stressors.

Not stressed, you say? Think again.

It’s easy to look at our lives and wonder what could possibly be affecting us so profoundly that our bodies stay on high alert. Even I sometimes fall back into the trap of listening with my brain instead of listening to my body. Our brains tell us to look around at our beautiful homes and our healthy families, reminding us how happy we must be and how blessed we really are. And these are good things, don’t get me wrong, because gratitude is important for healing, too.

The problem is, our outer lives don’t tell the whole picture. Counting blessings doesn’t explain what’s happening with the adrenal glands. As in, why do we feel so crummy if everything else is going so well?

So, because the adrenals don’t function on logic, neither should your assessment of the number of stressors that are in your life. Modern living is full of stress, so people’s lists of stressors are usually quite long.

When tackling adrenal fatigue, it’s crucial to expand your understanding of stressors, and begin actively removing a bunch of them. Now. This isn’t the time to wait around for things to change (if they ever do). If you’re serious about healing the adrenals, you must take an honest look at what’s going IN and AROUND your body. You might be surprised what many of them are.

List of common stressors to eliminate (at least some). Starting now. #adrenalfatigue #notlazyorcrazy

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List of Stressors

People: Yes, even (often especially) family members, neighbors, close “friends”, people who annoy or disagree, people who are “vampires” of your energy or good will
Past emotional hurts: Even those we’ve long forgotten (especially those)
Jobs and Organizations: Those that suck your time, provide little fulfillment, or don’t suit your purpose
Commuting: How long, how often, and conditions thereof
Other health issues: Which can add layer upon layer of additional stress
Household toxins: chemical sprays, cleaning products, candles, air fresheners, beauty products
Other household toxins: carpeting, furniture, paint, pretreated fabrics, flame-retardant items
Outdoor toxins: swimming pools, bug sprays, lawn treatments, vehicle emissions
Positive things: Which can also be stressful, even if they’re fun (vacations, toddlers, out of town guests)
Plastic: water bottles, storage containers, mattress liners, and any non-safe plastic items
GMO foods: Research and anectodal evidence beginning to show many harms and dangers
Non-organic foods: Improperly handled, grown using pesticides, unsafe soils and packaging
Processed foods: Contain all manner of artificial ingredients, colors, sweeteners, and non-food
Caffeine and alcohol
Sugar: Plain sugar plus the sugar hidden in many foods
Indoor living and lack of sunshine
Electronics: Overuse of devices, sitting near devices, using too close to bedtime
Finances: Living above means and struggling, or sensing lack even where there is none
Lighting: Improper lighting, not enough light, light too close to bedtime

I’m not kidding when I say that ALL those things affect your body, therefore your health. There are others, but those are some of the major culprits when it comes to solving adrenal imbalance.

Which Ones to Eliminate

In my experience, people usually know specifically the people and things that are creating stress in their lives. But, thinking about disconnecting from those stressors creates stress for them, too. Weighing that situation adds to their stress, making eliminating stressors a tough problem in itself.

Despite how hard it might seem, everyone can at least identify at least 3 to 5 stressors (more is better) get rid of them right away. It’s important not to cave in, and to follow thru with the changes as consistently as possible. The rewards will show themselves eventually as a reduction in the level of stress the adrenals have to deal with each day. Ideally, one would take a long vacation and return home after several months completely stress-free. Since that isn’t usually possible, eliminating stressors a few at a time is the only way.

And what about stressors that can never be eliminated? That’s a topic for another article, but the trick is to eliminate those that are possible and train yourself not to react to the rest. I’ve linked a book at the end that might help with the problem of taking on the energy of difficult people.

Final Advice On Stress

It took a while for adrenal fatigue to set in, so it will take a while to go away #adrenalfatigue…

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Always remember that it took a while for adrenal fatigue to set in, so it will take a while to go away. Dealing with stressors systematically, one at a time, consistently and patiently, will help without a doubt. Though it may take a bit of time to start noticing the effects, a greater sense of calm will eventually return, sometimes within weeks, but definitely within months, and especially if you do some of the others things I’ll talk about in the next article.

Also remember the story about the camel’s back, where it took just one straw to cause the camel’s demise. Though it may have been that final straw that caused your adrenal fatigue to show itself, it took a lot of straws in your personal story to get you to that point. Removing that one straw might help with adrenal fatigue temporarily, but it will only take another straw to break you all over again.

Eliminating many stressors is really required for success. Remove as many “straws” as you possibly can.

Eliminating stressors a key component to dealing with #adrenalfatigue #notlazyorcrazy

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Ill keep sharing if you’ll keep reading. Follow me by entering an email address into the SUBSCRIBE box at the bottom of my HOME PAGE.

Book recommendation for “empaths” and others who take on the stress/negativity of others (affiliate):

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To your good health,

Sep 13 2017

Positive Things Cause Stress, Too

I remember like it was yesterday. Expensive coffee in one hand, deals and coupons in the other, I looked forward to Christmas shopping all year. Black Friday always kicked off the holiday season for me. It was the one day all year that was virtually guaranteed to put me in a good mood for weeks to come, so I’d never miss it, no matter the ridiculous amount of planning it sometimes took to get the morning off.

If I was so happy, then why did I feel so run down? And how was I suddenly blind-sided with panic without a clue there was anything wrong? I can almost recreate the dizziness, the heart palpitations and feeling drenched in my own sweat. I remember thinking I might actually tip over, and how embarrassing that would be in the middle of J.C. Penney. Finding a place to sit down in the bedding department, I called my husband, who talked me through it until I caught my breath. The attack caught me utterly by surprise, as I hear from so many other women who report experiencing exactly the same thing.

Miserable as that was, I gained some big understanding that day. I had a real awakening about stress, dominating the lies I’d heard for years from doctors and drug companies. I realized that positive life experiences can be stressful, too. It doesn’t just take negative stuff to earn a stress response.

It doesn’t just take negative stuff to earn a stress response.

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This is a really big idea actually.

It’s not what you believed about stress just a few minutes ago, is it?

See, I assumed relaxation and fun were antidotes for my stress, like some automatic way to cancel my symptoms. But what’s really true is that all kinds of experiences can be stressful, even positive ones. My body had just been on high alert so long, anything could have set me off — so it did.

Do you think you might be near a breaking point, too?

Have you considered where your stress is actually coming from?

Most of us think stress is a response to unpleasantness in our lives. But, if you think back to the last time you planned a party/welcomed a new baby/began an exciting new job, I think you’ll see what I mean.

Since that time, I’ve made life changes. Major ones. If you experience stress, you can make life changes, too.

Even a happy life can make us stressed out. Remember it’s the stacking of many things that make us overloaded.

To your health and healing,

Jul 27 2017

Things We Can’t Control

There is no worse feeling in the human experience than being out of control. Helpless and desperate, exhausted from trying, it’s a sense that events are swirling crazily around us, but we’re powerless to do anything about them.

I liken the feeling to being locked in a glass box on an old game show. Perhaps you can recall the scenes from long ago, those of frantic contestants trying to grab dollar bills in the air?

Feeling out of control is like reaching a hand into the abyss, trying to grab a bit of the chaos and tame it. It’s an urgent need to restore comfort, by controlling at least a little bit of something, but not being able to do even that. During those times when there’s nothing we can do, a terror often strikes from the futility of wanting to control what we ourselves cannot.

What to do when you’re feeling out of control #women #unbusy #release

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Surrender

It’s at these times that we must surrender. Anything else is either counter-productive or insanity.

Surrender doesn’t mean giving up. It just means recognizing that things are going to happen how they’re going to happen anyway. No behavior from us will amount to anything. And no amount of worry will ever change the outcome.

Surrender doesn’t have mean gloom and doom, either. We can remind ourselves that things always work out as they should. Recognizing that life is here to support us, not the other way around, is enormously comforting. Though we may not like it, surrendering is the only way to stop fighting against the tide.

They’re Just Thoughts

When feeling out of control, it can help to recognize that feelings are just thoughts. Looking at them as thoughts, we can begin to dissect those feelings, look at their underlying parts, and change some of them. One of my most beloved mentors refers to this as rewriting the book of our lives. The clearest explanation I’ve heard so far, I find it one of the easiest to implement, too.

Thinking different thoughts provides a different way of looking at things. Repeating the newer, more sane understanding of a situation — rewriting the book if you will – interrupts the out-of control-pattern, and enables us to change it into something else.

Release the Need

When entirely unable to control a situation, there’s still one thing we can actually do. Releasing the need to control, or to even get involved, is in fact entirely within our control. Asking ourselves if we can — at the very least – release the need to have control can have a major impact on how we feel.

Questions to ask include, “Can I let go of my need to be in control?” and “Am I willing to allow myself to see that things won’t be like this forever?” Answering these in the affirmative can be life changing.

Build Curiosity

Surrendering and changing thinking aren’t just comforting, but can even turn situations into a game. Knowing that life is happening before our very eyes, we can build a sense of curiosity about what happens next, then sit back to watch events unfold. I realize, for many, this is a stretch. Still, reaching this level of acceptance may be something to strive for.

Feeling out of control? Do this now.

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