When Stress Speaks, Are You Listening?

August Newsletter 2026

Happy August My Friends…

Stress… we’ve all experienced it and we will all continue to conquer it. 

I believe stress is more relevant today than it was in the past. Stress is stress, and it doesn’t go away. Stress can be looked at as a negative thing, something we have to worry about, lose sleep over, and create bad habits around. Or some of us may look at stress in a positive way and a healthy way that sharpens us, gives us a feeling of accomplishment, and takes us to the next level.

But I think the worst kind of stress is when it’s not even real, when it’s just an illusion, a story that you’ve been playing in your mind so much that you believe it to be a reality, and therefore your body reacts to it like it is.

We end up wondering why we have pain in certain areas that we’ve never injured. We wonder why we get sick as our immune system declines. We wonder why we can’t sleep even though we’re exhausted.

The stress of having a car break down, though it is stressful, is something you can actually stress about because it’s real. But to stress about something that hasn’t occurred and may never occur... that’s a tragedy to the body. Not only will you feel it physically, you’ll begin to take it on emotionally, and from that your character is formed: just a stressed-out person who lives in worry.

You know, I think it’s important for us to turn into our stress and ask questions, to turn into our sorrow and ask questions, to turn into our heartbreak and ask questions. I think asking questions is one of the healthiest things we can do.

Yes, our bodies are stressed, and yes, massage therapy will alleviate that. But if you do not get to the root of the problem, you will continue to live that pain and that stress over and over again. Your body really does keep score, but it is your mind, along with your heart, that tends to compete together.

This month, I ask you to notice when stress rises, whether it’s real or made up. Turn into it and do one of three things: either, one, ask it why it’s there and what it’s teaching you; or two, just feel it, love it, and transcend it to a higher level; or three, take that stress and learn from it quickly. Thank it for showing up to teach you, to mold you, and to help shine the light for others.

We all possess the power to transcend stress, but until we turn into it, it will constantly chip away at our mental, physical, or perhaps at times, our spiritual body.

But don’t let yourself down. Get up and continue moving toward your dreams, with or without the stress. Don’t let it stop you. You got this.

Linda

Bear River Massage & Wellness

Affirmation of the month:

"I release what I cannot control. I choose peace, strength, and purpose. Every day, I grow stronger in mind, body, and spirit."