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Stress And Spirituality

The connection between stress and spirituality extends far beyond a religious context.

Spirituality is such a core part of the human experience. It provides with a broader context from which to bring understanding to life events that can often feel overwhelming.

Spirituality can also provide the foundation that your personal beliefs and value system can be expressed, and it can also be the experience where you feel the energy of something bigger than yourself that innately brings you to a place of stillness within yourself.

Spirituality is personal. Some examples of how it can be experienced:

  • Religion
  • Nature
  • Animals
  • Meditation
  • Stillness
  • Volunteering
  • Sunrise/Sunset
  • Ceremonies or rituals

From the perspective of coping with stress, it is very important to be aware of where you feel that most profound spiritual connection. That knowledge is a valuable part of any stress management bundle of tools to utilize when stressed.

For example, when I am stressed if I can go out onto the land and spend time with nature and the animals it innately activates my relaxation response. That spiritual connection facilitates a place my experiencing a depth of stillness that I do not feel otherwise.

Connection between stress and spirituality

There is another aspect of stress and spirituality that is equally as important for you to be aware of.

From the holistic perspective that I teach, in managing stress I talk about spirituality in terms of how congruent your actions and behaviors are in relationship to who you believe you are at your core.

The human body was designed to function best when in balance.

stress and spirituality balance


That place of balance is the goal in any stress management program. There is a balance point within each facet of who you are:

  • Thoughts
  • Physically
  • Emotionally
  • Spiritually

Signs and symptoms of spiritual stress

Think about that internal balance point in terms of a balance scale.

The key concept is that when you are in balance spiritually, your actions and deeds – your behaviors – are in perfect balance with the belief and value system you possess regarding who you are as a sacred human.

When you are out-of-balance spiritually, you may notice changes in your verbal and non-verbal behaviors like increased:
  • Bullying
  • Gossiping
  • Judgments
  • Making fun of someone
  • Rolling your eyes at someone
  • Walking away during conversations

There may be some small, in the moment, gratification for these behaviors. But, when people are honest with themselves, it is short-lived. The reason why is those types of behaviors are not an accurate representation of your true self.

They are a by-product of stress. When stress becomes chronic, it will impact ALL facets of who you are.

Steps to bring balance to stress and spirituality

I am a firm believer that,

“You can’t fix something that you cannot see.”


Here are the most important 3 stress management strategies I recommend:
  1. Take the Control My Stress stress management survey.
    It is a quick and easy survey that will increase your awareness of how progressed your stress levels have become, and how many ways that it stress is impacting ALL of who you are.


  2. Do more slow deep breathing.
    It’s important to commit to do more slow deep breathing, starting from the abdomen, more often throughout the day. There are many things in your life that you do not have any control over. But you have control over your breath.

    Starting your slow deep breaths from your abdomen will activate the vagus nerve. That will then trigger the relaxation response in your body. That is what you need to happen to bring your body back into balance.


  3. Increase your level of awareness.
    Before you get out of bed in the morning, think about your intentions for how you want to be in relationship with yourself and others.

    Oftentimes, if one can walk more focused attention and intentions throughout the day, it allows them to notice more quickly the behaviors that are more not representative of who they are.


When your stress and spirituality are in balance, you will feel more peaceful and calm. From that place of stillness, you will be able to be more choiceful about what your thoughts, actions, and deeds.

This practice will not only allow you to manage chronic stress, but it creates greater opportunities to just feel better you and the imprint you are making in life.








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Testimonials

“Ms. Churchill is the unique health care worker everyone hopes to encounter, but rarely does. She has an extraordinary gift that allows her to do much more than diagnose and treat.”
Abbie K. – Minneapolis




K., age 45, is a long term chronically PTSD disabled patient. She has had daily headaches for 20 years. Two weeks ago she reported that she had had 4 days of pain free time, and was having the exceedingly odd sensation of "smiling all the time". She and Cathi have made extraordinary fast progress together.
Dr. Cole




I referred C.L., age mid-forties, to see Cathi after a life of suffering the post traumatic stress disorder of parental sexual abuse over many years of her childhood, with major dysfunctions of alcohol and drug abuse, and with the disabling symptoms of migraine that have for more than twenty years become chronic.

She has lived with daily headaches that have not responded to any of the several drugs which have benefited many such suffering patients. She has needed chronic opiate treatment of her chronic pain syndrome.

In the few weeks that Cathi has worked with her, C.L. has begun to experience days without pain, periods of happiness, and a reduction in her opiate dosage requirements that represent a breakthrough in her stalled-out life as a single mom raising a teen-age daughter with only social security income resources.
Dr. Racer




“I first met Cathi Churchill eight years ago when she effectively helped my work unit through the stress of a hospital-wide layoff. I was impressed with her clear-minded approach and willingness to listen.”
Andy R.




N., age 60, is a hard driving attorney twenty year patient of mine who hit the wall with chronic fatigue four years ago, and began to realize she had to learn to rest. She recovered enough to return to her workaholic lifestyle when she was stopped by a herniated cervical disc and resumption of her chronic colitis.

Working with Cathi, she is discovering "the way she does life" and learning to make choices about it. She came in last week, having "danced until dawn". She is learning to dialogue with her body in effective ways.
Dr. Cole




“I stumbled upon Cathi after my recent heart attack that was brought on by stress. I was scared of having another one, and didn’t know what to do. I had lost hope. Working with her has changed my life. I’m so grateful."
Debbie – Canada




M.S., a woman in her late forties with progressively more and more disabling rheumatoid arthritis since childhood, whose most recent problems have arisen over the last two to three years as complications of immunosuppressive therapy for her disease. The complications have been associated with the severely disabling chronic pain of recurrent herpes neuralgia for more than three years, and for the past 15 months, recurrent osteomyelitis in her right lower mandible.

The second, more alarming (even life-threatening) problem has caused months of diagnostic and therapy confusion among her many consultants, three successive resections of the bone over the last six to eight months, and the still ongoing threat of more relapses of the smoldering bone infection and chronic pain only made bearable by chronic, massive doses of opiates.

In the few months since M. began to work with Cathi with several modalities: stress management, therapeutic touch, guided imaging, and others, her life has become more livable, as she has become able to bear the pain and the discouragement of unresolved disease.

She has relied on many of the methods for maintaining hope and getting through overwhelming discouragement by using the inner resources she has learned with Cathi.

My hope as her primary physician, is that Cathi and M. will be able to continue to work together to maintain that inner strength and hope as she faces yet more months of pain, and further repeated surgery.

Thank you for the healing guidance you've been able to give her thus far.
Dr. Racer




“I sought out the help of Cathi during my divorce, and found her to be an insightful and compassionate coach. Her ability to see deep into the heart of an emotionally stressful problem is, I believe, unique and I would highly recommend her service to anyone.”
P.R. – Brooklyn Center




S., age 48, is a Laotian patient of mine with 15 years of chronic abdominal pain. She has had an extensive medical worked up, and nothing ever worked. Cathi saw her over several months.

S. has improved! Cathi established a trusting relationship with her, and helped her to effectively break through her wall of silence and grief about her son's mental illness, and taught her how to "change her thinking".

S. now comes in smiling, notes some unusual continued symptoms, but no longer has chronic abdominal disabling pain.
Dr. Cole




“Control My Stress is so amazing. I want to thank you, again, for such a valuable resource.”
Tony.


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