Stress Awareness Month

When Stress Stops Being Helpful

April is Stress Awareness Month, and it feels like the perfect time to have a proper, honest chat about something that affects so many of us - often quietly, gradually, and sometimes without us even realising.

Let’s start with this: stress isn’t all bad. It’s part of being human. It can sharpen our focus, give us a burst of energy, and help us rise to a challenge. Think of that little jolt you get before a big meeting or when your child needs you in a crisis - it’s your body doing what it’s meant to do.

But what happens when stress sticks around? When it stops being a short-term response and becomes the background noise of daily life?

That’s when we start to notice the toll. Long-term stress can show up in all sorts of ways - trouble sleeping, tension in the body, frequent colds, anxiety, feeling snappy or low, even digestive issues. And because it creeps in slowly, it’s easy to miss the signs until we’re already overwhelmed or burnt out.

I see this so often in my work. Lovely, kind, capable people who’ve been carrying far too much for far too long - without a break, without support, without permission to rest. And let’s be honest, the world doesn’t always make it easy to slow down, does it?

But here’s what I want you to know: your body isn’t designed to live in a constant state of alert. You’re not ‘failing’ if you’re tired. You’re not ‘lazy’ if you need to stop. You’re human.

This month, on Instagram and Facebook I’ll be sharing simple tools and gentle reminders to help bring stress levels down and restore a bit more calm and balance. Not by pretending life is always easy - but by offering small ways to support yourself through the harder bits.

Because stress may be part of life - but it doesn’t have to run the show.

Constant stress can lead to feeling of helplessness and exhaustion