‘There’s so much pressure going into putting new music out. If I don’t beat everything I’ve done prior, it’ll be deemed a colossal failure’ ~ Taylor Swift

There are two types of stress:

1) Distress: The type we generally think of when we moan about being stressed and

2) Eustress: The type that helps us grow and evolve. Think of a baby learning to crawl because s/he has that inherent drive to do so. Or working out and breaking down muscle in order to build more.

Ideal world, we have a good balance. We might feel under pressure but it’s that interesting, exciting, living in a creative flow kind of pressure.

Other times, we might simply want to crawl back under the duvet and never come back out again.

If you haven’t already seen it, you might enjoy the new Taylor Swift documentary on Netflix, Miss Americana.

In it, she talks candidly about having been ‘trained’ to seek applause and please people and being a ‘good girl’.

And how she’s learned to use her voice (winning the court case against the grown man who preyed on her during a photo shoot clearly empowered her and I hope that her taking it on will encourage other women and girls (and men and boys in similar situations) to use their voices, too.

You might not be feeling the pressure to break music records, but it’s likely that in some area of your life, there’s something that might sometimes feel a bit too much.

What can you take off your plate in order to enjoy the process more?

For Taylor, she took a break and focused on finding happiness away from the media and social media glare she’d grown up in. She also did what she’s always done and channelled her learning into her music.

If you’d like some support in figuring out how to reduce the stress and anxiety or sleep better while still feeling that sense of purpose and meaning, get in touch if my approach appeals.

With love,

Eve Menezes Cunningham self care coach therapist supervisor

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