By Sandra Tillinghast
October 2009 

Staying sane during the holidays can be difficult. What should be a time to enjoy family and reflect on a year well lived often can be brimming with emotional and physical stress. As women, we’re in a particularly precarious position because many of us take on the roles of super mom, super wife and super businesswoman.

What’s the price we pay? The holidays can pass us by without having had time to really experience or enjoy them. The other price we pay can be premature aging. I'm going to list some items that will help you check how you’re doing and then provide some tips to help you manage your stress and take control of your well-being. 

How rapidly do you age? Stress and toxins = aging.

• Aggressions, both environmental and biological, speed up aging.
• Stress and toxins upset hormones and metabolism.
• Stress and toxins produce the negative hormone cortisol.
• Cortisol causes inflammation, and inflammation = premature aging and pain.

 How are you doing in the following areas? These are some of the causes of increased stress and toxins:

• Environmental toxins
• Metabolic toxins
• Lack of sleep
• Physical and mental fatigue
• Eating the wrong foods

 Here are some ways to pamper yourself, which will lead to managing your stress and taking control of your well-being:

• Breathe. Oxygen does more than keep you alive. It calms you down.
• Put things in perspective. If you’re worrying about an issue that isn't a big deal, or one that’s out of your control, let it go.
• Just say no. This is a powerful word and one of the most under-used words by women.
• Pamper yourself. Order pizza, turn the kids over to your husband or a friend, and give yourself a night off. Light an aromatherapy candle, pour yourself a cup of detox tea, take a hot sea salt bath, and prepare to release endorphins. Have a massage or a spa treatment. Get a facial. Endorphins fight stress and toxins.
• Have a girls’ night out.  Sometimes the best way to pamper yourself and relieve stress is to have fun with your girlfriends.
• Associate with supportive, positive people.

Sandra Tillinghast is an Executive National Vice President with Arbonne International. She teaches people how to look and feel their best and take control of their time and finances and create balance by having a home-based business. To learn more, visit www.sandratillinghast.com