Ways to lower cortisol.

@Julez1958 I can relate to saying no to peoples requests more than I did prior to my bc diagnosis.  I set realistic goals for myself now to not try to please others at the expense of my own wellbeing.  It can be difficult because I still have some PTSD caused by my last work environment.  Other than that I really enjoy my retirement.  Life is good. :)

@Cath62 I also was a single parent and had a lot of stress placed on me when my child was in the teenage years and I was juggling an emotionally charged job.  I had always wanted to be the homemaker and fully enjoy my parenting role, but life threw other challenges at me and I am sure that contributed to me staying in a work environment with a psycho boss.  We often sacrifice a lot when left raising children on our own, I can totally relate to that.

The changes I have made is not being a people pleaser, but I nearly fell into the trap when a psychologist I was seeing suggested I go back to my job.  I would have been going to return to a toxic environment to please her.  Finally I woke up to stop letting people pull my strings. 

I do care and love the people in my life, but I also can politely say no to anything that is going to cause me compromising my health and wellbeing.  I enjoy the simple things in life like going for walks, catching up with friends for coffee and a chat, going to the movies, gym/strength classes and reading historical books.  Life is good. :)

Thanks @FLClover. Took me many years to realise it's not enough to know what to do. It's putting it all into practice and actually making it happen. Took me nearly 60 years but I am now doing all these things and feel the best I have felt in years. 

@Cath62 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻♥️♥️

Hi all
I started mindfulness meditation some years ago and it has helped me with stress .
Other things are regular exercise, maintaining healthy relationships and a good nights sleep .
And yes laughter is important too .

I am better now ( since my diagnosis) at saying “ no” and being a bit more selfish.

Thanks @Keeping_positive1. Stress was something that impacted me for most of my life. My childhood had many complications from family and I know that it set me on a course where I had to deal with that trauma.

My first marriage ended when my son was 8 months old. Long story but it put me in the position of raising my only son on my own for 20 yrs when I met my now husband.

Unfortunately during those 20 yrs on my own stress was hard to be rid of just because it is very hard as a sole parent. I pushed myself to the brink sometimes to provide a good life for my boy. I didn't want my broken relationship impacting his situation in life. I drove myself pretty hard to ensure we had a home, education etc. 

I am extremely proud of my achievements as a sole parent however my health suffered alot. I had numerous operations for various things and the biggest of them all has been breast cancer. 

This was when I said enough!! The following is what has helped me.
#I retired at 57.
# I stopped seeing people who really didn't care for me and where toxic for me.
#I put boundaries around family and still do. 
# I walk alot every day.
#I practice deep breathing and meditation.
# I express gratitude daily. I use an app for this called Delightful but some people use journals.
# I have a keto type diet. Good healthy food really helps me and my health issues. My diet is supported by my drs. It's good for me and I am really seeing major benefits. 
# i take time to see friends 
#I do things i enjoy like going to the ballet or camping, planning holidays 

If there is a stressful thing that pops up I try not to get caught up and overthink it, but practice my deep breathing and meditation. I tell myself if I have no control over the stressful thing to let it go and I take deep breaths. It helps settle any anxiety and reduces stress for me.

Remember now is the only time that matters. Looking back and thinking about the past causes depression and worrying about the future causes anxiety. So staying in the present moment is peace and happiness. 

Laughter is the best medicine.  Although we may also need other medicine for certain ailments/illnesses. :)

So pleased @FLClover that you have made changes, it can only help in the long run. xx

I really like this thread. I’m also looking at ways to lower the stress in my life. Part of that is mediation, then there’s also cutting out toxic people from my life (which includes family members), not going back to the same job that caused me to have a burnout, not working until I feel psychologically ready to, and planning to move house as I’m not really happy where I am, and it’s having a big impact on me. I’ve also been happily single for almost two years and will remain single until I feel ready to be in a relationship that matches what I need. I’ve been seeing my psychologist again for about 6 months and doing EMDR with her to resolve childhood traumas that are stored in my body and also contribute towards illness. Lastly, I watched two docuseries by many cancer specialists on an integrative and holistic way to heal and prevent cancer and other illnesses, and a large part of that was emotional and psychological health, so I am implementing the advice offered from that. That docuseries was brilliant and has given me renewed hope in leading a healthy and cancer free life, minus all the debilitating drugs 🤞🙌🏻♥️.