Are you feeling overwhelmed by your to-do list? Going through something really tough? Stress is a part of life — but we can learn to manage it. NPR health correspondent Allison Aubrey shares evidence-based skills from a research psychologist at Northwestern University aimed to bring more ease into your life. This episode is Part 1 of the new series, Stress Less: A Quest to Reclaim Your Calm. Click here to sign up for a month-long newsletter on this topic. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
You're listening to life kit from NPR.
Hey, everybody, it's Marielle.
And with me now is NPR health correspondent Allison Aubrey.
Hey, Allison.
Hey, Marielle.
Good to be here.
So I was wondering, how's your stress level today?
At the moment, not great.
I'm having to practice some of the skills I've been preaching.
Okay.
What's going on?
Well, I have a little bit of a flood situation in my lower level here.
A plumbing issue.
Not to bore you with all the details, but you might hear the clinking of pipes and corroded valves in the background.
I'm thinking to myself, it could have been a lot worse, you know?
Yeah.
Is that something you learned from your reporting?
Yes.
The through line of my reporting in this new series, which is called Stress Less, is that it's really not realistic to think about eliminating our stress, but how we manage it can really make a difference.
So this series may be useful to you if you have ever felt there's more on your to do list than you can actually accomplish, or if you're dealing with a tough personal situation or you just feel the weight of the world's problems.