Since Dec 24th I’ve had mostly low mood, interspersed with a spike into a good mood while traveling for business. I mark the following sources of anxiety:

• conflict with my partner, leading to stress about the integrity of our relationship.
• anxiety regarding searching for jobs in the time before my new employment begins.
• anxiety over when the new employment will begin, it could be by the end of this month, or within the next several months.
• stress about household management, and keeping up to date with several activites:
  • dishes
  • laundry
  • cleanliness (kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, living room, basement)
• difficulty waiting for results from a recent psychological evaluation, which will determine some diagnosis outcomes that feel very important to my continued journey.
• stress regarding a family member currently recovering from surgery.
• stress regarding setting up a new social endeavor to play games on a regular basis and enjoy ourselves.
• stress regarding medical issues
  • eye floater in my right eye
  • high blood pressure
  • suspected neurological issues causing varying numbness and tingling (I think the tip of my nose is numb right now, but I’m not sure)
  • weight far in excess (30+) of my goal weight
• stress regarding how my mood is affecting my partner, and how it is taking up time in couples therapy, adding new complications to an already complicated relationship
• stress about not spending enough time on practicing computer science
• stress about the expectations of my upcoming job, and whether or not I will be able to perform well
  

I just got off the phone with my doctor’s office, and based off my blood work they reported medical results indicating significant stress. Based off these results its clear I’m overstressed, but the question is how best should we handle the stress. I can identify the following options:

• meditation practice
• increased mindfulness
• increased exercise
• improved diet
• finding 2 or 3 things to remove from the list of anxieties

Some activities that actively reduce stress (per the internet) include the following:

• Reading
• Walking
• Meditation
• Gratitudes

I have already incorporated gratitudes into my daily routine, but I should start writing them down nightly before bedtime. Reading, walking, and meditation should all be done daily as well, or else as frequently as possible. Instead of scheduling them, I think it would be best to, every time I experience the thought “I’m feeling stressed” to respond with the option to either Read, Walk, or Meditate.

Hopefully all this together reduces stress.