At one time or another, we are under stress. Although, there are some people who appear stressed all the time. Have you met people who appear to be overstressed? Observe them. They are always in a hurry. Even the way they talk put you under stress. Worse, they expect you to respond spontaneously to them… without thinking. Oh, they really put you under stress! They talk and act as if they are carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders.

We are living in a fast-paced, stress-filled world. This is a fact of life. And our bodies were never designed to handle all kind all kinds of stress.

Stress is an overused word in our daily conversations. But more. Stress happens. Everyday. Every moment. Hundreds of experiences. Stress is an unavoidable consequence of life. A little stress, too much stress, or just the right amount of stress. A little stress is good. It keeps us on our toes. Too much stress is not good.

A traffic jam, sickness, death of a family member, shortage of funds, overload of work in the office, marital problems, low school grades of children – and many other things trigger stress. These stressors zap our ability to do our best. In other cases, we are frightened, confused, irritated, and burned out. More disastrous effects of stress in other cases. Depending on the person’s capacity for stress load. Emotionally healthy persons have a higher stress level than others.

We need to learn when to slow down. We need to know when enough is enough. We need to spend some time alone. To be still. To listen to our soul.  Unfortunately, many of us spend a great deal of time running. Running to catch up at work. Rushing to do errands. Eating fast foods. Living in fast forward. Huffing and puffing. Until we “run down”. No wonder more and more people get afflicted with diseases that are emotionally-induced illnesses. Millions of people are dying of heart attack and/or stroke each year. Billions doses of tranquilizers, barbiturates and amphetamines are prescribed to calm the nerves of stressed people. Millions of people have stomach ulcers because of stress. Thousands attempt suicide because of stress.

For the past (twelve) 12 years, I have been sending to thousands of subscribers (for free) from Monday to Friday through e-mail inspiring short messages that are quoted from some books. Many times I get very encouraging feedback.

Last October 31, 2012, I sent the following message to our subscribers (for free):

“Slow Down and Enjoy Your Life

“I’ve talked to many people who have made it to the very top in their fields. The one common regret I hear is that they succeeded, but at the expense of their families. They say, “If I could do it over again, I would take time to stop and smell the roses. I would be there for my children’s Little League games. I wouldn’t live so stressed and uptight, thinking, ‘If I could just get to the next level, then I’ll slow down and enjoy my life.’”

“Slow down and enjoy the journey right now. Take time for the people God has put in your life. They won’t always be there. The Scripture says in James 4:14 that our lives are like a mist. We’re there for a moment and then we’re gone.

“Every day, tell your spouse, your children, those who mean the most to you, how much you love them.” (Reference: “Every Day A Friday” by Joel Osteen)

Immediately, one of the recipients of the daily messages Berd Alba, Vice President – Operations Support Group of Li & Fung Phils., Inc. e-mailed me the following: “I just wish to thank you for sending all these beautiful inspiring messages… this particularly struck me since I am guilty of this but I am starting to slow down…”

Let’s all slow down and enjoy life. In this stress-filled world we need to slow down and relax. Otherwise, hospitals cannot accommodate people who get sick because of stress.

Have a joyful day!