In school we learn about cause and effect: What we do at one point will have impact at another point down the line. You can look at this in a negative way – choosing to do something you know has high risks, and you will receive your consequences (aka effects) of your actions.

Or you can look at things from a positive point of view: What you have done hasn’t worked so you are willing to change your actions by making better choices and staying focused to get yourself to a better place.

This can work for anyone, not just those folks who are in recovery. Or perhaps everyone at some time is in a state of recovering what they have lost but treasure and want to have again. Think in terms of truly valuable things, not the materialism so common today.

People in your life.

Your deepest feelings.

Joyful experiences.

Helping others.

Your list will look different because of your own uniqueness. Where do you find lasting joy? What does inner peace mean to you? Tranquility? What does it take for you to reach your greatest potential and satisfaction? How do you manage your stress?

Stress is caused by things like feeling a great deal of pressure for something – like deadlines or finishing something, or knowing you don’t have enough money available to pay a bill. Maybe a major life-changing event has thrown you into a tailspin – a death in the family, a divorce, a new job. You are worried and have little or no control over the situation. You might be overwhelmed by responsibility.

A number of years ago I told my doctor I was exhausted as I tried to cover all the bases in my world. He looked at me eye-to-eye.

“Do you ever take time for yourself?”

“Take time? There isn’t enough time for that!”

“Do you have a new book you’re dying to read? Do you sit down, put your feet up and listen to your favorite music for 15 minutes?”

“Wait. I’m allowed to do that?”

“If you don’t, you won’t be around to take care of all of the responsibilities you are responsible for – or think you are.” (Emphasis his.)

He armed me with information I could use to make some changes that reduced my stress level and with that, to focus more on my responsibilities and delegate back to the original owners the other responsibilities, thus taking back some control of my life. I love my family and friends, but there have to be some healthy boundaries. And that applies to you, too.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offer several things you can do to manage stress, like taking breaks from the news. Nobody needs a steady stream of news around the clock. Maybe life was better back in the day when Walter Cronkite gave us the evening news in one short half hour. Take care of yourself. Make sure you eat right, get exercise and enough sleep, and hang out with friends who are fun to be with, who are uplifting. Avoid drugs and alcohol because those things just create more problems. Get involved with community or faith-based organizations.

My mom taught us, “Think about what you want to do before you do it. Think about all of the possible consequences of that action. Are the consequences something you can live with for the rest of your life if you have to?” She has been gone for 12 years, but I can still hear her voice.

What you – or any one of us – do in one moment will cause a reaction … for yourself and for others. How you manage your stress will make a difference in your life. Will it be negative? Or positive? Can you live with your consequences if you have to?

Family Recovery Center has professional staff who are ready to listen when you have no one else to talk to. The goal is for the health and well-being of all. Contact the agency at 964 N. Market St., Lisbon; phone, 330-424-1468; or email info@familyrecovery.org. Visit the website at familyrecovery.org. You can find Family Recovery Center at Facebook. FRC is funded in part by United Way of Northern Columbiana County.