How to Pretend You Are Zen when You Are Really Stressed Out

Whether your kids’ schedules have you frazzled to no end or your boss is hovering over your desk demanding those final reports now, appearing calm while under pressure is a talent not easily cultivated but definitely worth the effort. During a stressful situation, the body’s natural tendency is to go into hyper-sensitive mode and flee––which may cause you to exhibit erratic and somewhat insane behavior.

Rather than give in to the stress gods, practice a new approach during a harrowing situation that will allow you to at least appear as if you are zen on the inside rather than the real feelings of being stressed to the max. And as with anything you practice, the more you try this, the more your body will believe it and you actually will end up coping in zen mode when stressful situations happen.

1) Recognize when you're in a stressful position. A stressful situation will often sneak up on its victim, which may put you in an even more harrowing position if you're too busy convincing yourself that you're simply not coping fast enough with the problems being thrown your way. From dealing with the kids going crazy to being stuck in a 10 mile traffic jam, recognize the situation for what it is and know that now is time to put on your game face and take care of yourself.

2) Have a desk or window sill reminder for those stressful moments...