Today my guest is Certified Yoga Therapist, The Creator of Make Peace with Stress, and overall just a beautiful soul, Stephannie Weikert. This conversation invites you to think differently about stress and will empower you with a method to change your life in the NOW.
Show Notes:
02:15 Stephannie’s Background
Stephannie shares how over the years her journey has involved changing her relationship to the challenges of life. In her 20’s, was feeling lost and struggling. She talks about a nervous habit that she was using to cope with stress and hardship.
05:03 The Turning Point
There was a time where Stephannie saw herself in the mirror, as if for the first time. She saw so clearly what she was doing to herself and it was a turning point in realizing she was in control. She realized that she could take ownership of the experience or keep perpetuating the pattern. From then on, she would catch herself doing this unhealthy habit, and stop herself. She used three steps to learn to stop the habit of pulling her eyelashes, and continued to use this in moments of stress for years to come.
10:44 Based In Yoga
She began to understand that these steps were based in yoga. This is how her yoga journey began. Stephannie talks about the insights, practices and philosophies behind the energetic aspects of yoga and how that is often not the focus in the westernized practice of yoga.
13:34 Life in the Moment to Moment
Stephannie talks about stress responses and how life is lived from moment to moment. She invites us to consider what we would like to welcome into our lives in those moments. By aligning with what you want in the moment, big changes can happen over time. Life is not just something to overcome, it’s about evolving into the best version of yourself. There are so many lessons to be learned from yoga that can be transferred into your life.
19:57 The Make Peace with Stress Method – Step 1: Notice
The first step is to notice. A self-study that pertains to paying attention to your inner experience without judgement. Our brains are wired for negativity and fear-based thoughts, but that doesn’t mean that’s bad. It’s really an opportunity.
25:55 Step 2: Open
The second step is about ownership and openness. It’s about embracing the thought or habit, and using it to make a positive shift.
31:55 A Perspective on Stress
We’re told in society that stress is something to relieve, reduce and manage. When we think of stress as a bad thing, we actually perpetuate the stress response. We talk about how it has become normalized in our society to live in a state of chronic stress.
42:03 Step 3: Welcome
The third step is to welcome what you really want. This relates to how you want to show up in the moment.
45:28 N.O.W.
N.O.W is an acronym for Notice, Open, Welcome. And that’s when we need to do it, now. Stephannie talks about how stress and excitement have the same physiological response. It’s really about how you look at it and react to it. When you think stress is a bad thing, it perpetuates the negative effects of stress and puts strain on your body. When you think that your stress response is there to help you, you can change your body’s response from something harmful to something beneficial. The key is viewing stress as a support system and making peace with it.
50:41 Final Thoughts and How to Connect with Stephannie
Stephannie invites you to check out her blog and her free Start N.O.W Guide to Making Peace with Stress. We are all dealing with stress in some way, but it’s about viewing it as a gift that is guiding us.
Connecting with Stephannie
Here’s Stephannie’s Website: makepeacewithstress.com
Here’s Stephannie’s Instagram: @stephannieweikert
Here’s My Website: micahfolsomfit.com
Follow Me on Instagram: @micahfolsomfit
Access the Team Checklist Freemium Here: micahfolsomfit.com/teamchecklist
