Home Posts tagged 'stress management'

stress management

  • personal growth, women and burnout, work life harmony

    Fear of Confrontation: The Silent Drain on Women

    Fear of confrontation is draining women in the sandwich generation. Learn how silence fuels burnout and discover practical steps to set boundaries, stop people-pleasing, and protect your well-being.

    So many women in the sandwich generation — balancing careers, raising kids, and caring for aging parents — have learned the same survival strategy: just suck it up.

    When your boss piles on another project, you say yes. When your family needs more of you, you stretch yourself thinner. You stay silent because speaking up feels risky. That silence gives a temporary sense of peace, but in reality? It creates what I call the pressure cooker effect.

    Like steam building with no release valve, unspoken frustration, resentment, and stress pile up inside of you. At first, you manage. But over time, the pressure starts to leak out — through exhaustion, disengagement at work, or snapping at the people you love most.

    This is what fear of confrontation costs us:

    • Energy — you’re drained from carrying unspoken tension.
    • Relationships — silence builds walls instead of connection.
    • Health — stress that simmers eventually takes a physical toll.

    The good news? You don’t have to overhaul your whole life to start changing this.

    Here’s a simple reset you can try this week:

    1. Write one boundary you’ve been afraid to set — at work or at home.
    2. Draft a kind but clear script. For example: “I’d love to help, but I’m fully booked this week. Can we revisit this next month?”
    3. Practice it, even if you don’t deliver it yet. Speaking the words out loud starts to release the pressure and rewires your confidence.

    Silence may feel safe, but it’s not sustainable. Real strength comes when you stop “sucking it up” and start showing up honestly — for yourself and those you love.

    Want help putting this into practice? Download my free PRONE to Power Worksheet.

  • personal growth, Self image

    Why Suffering in Silence is Holding You Back

    So many women in the sandwich generation — balancing careers, caregiving for aging parents, and raising kids — have been conditioned to “suck it up.” We tell ourselves it’s just what strong women do: hold it all together, sacrifice our own needs, and push forward without complaint. But here’s the hard truth: that mindset is not strength; it’s survival mode. And over time, it erodes our health, our relationships, and our sense of self.

    In his book Triage Your School, Dr. Christopher Jenson highlights three main areas where stress silently takes its toll: physical health, emotional well-being, and relational health. Those areas don’t just apply to schools — they apply to every woman trying to hold too much together. Ignoring them leads to resentment, disconnection, and full-blown burnout.

    Let’s break that down:

    Physical health – Stress shows up as fatigue, headaches, or even chronic conditions. When you keep pushing through, your body eventually forces you to pay attention.

    Emotional well-being – “Sucking it up” often means stuffing down feelings. That emotional silence turns into irritability, anxiety, or numbness.

    Relational health – When you never speak your needs, the people around you can’t support you. Distance grows, and loneliness sets in.

    These costs are hidden at first, but they’re very real. And they’re the reason why silence and self-sacrifice can’t be the badge of honor we wear anymore.

    A Practical Reset

    Here are two small but powerful steps you can take this week to break the silence:

    1. Journal one area where you’ve been “sucking it up.” Maybe it’s taking on extra work at the office, caring for a parent without asking siblings for help, or agreeing to commitments you don’t have the bandwidth for. Write it down — naming it is the first step to changing it.
    2. Say it out loud to someone you trust. Share your journal entry with a friend, spouse, or mentor. Speaking the words creates connection and signals to your brain that you don’t have to carry it all alone.

    It’s not about dumping every burden at once. It’s about creating tiny cracks in the silence so your truth — and your needs — have room to breathe.

    The Bottom Line

    Dr. Jenson’s framework reminds us that no system—schools, families, or our own lives—can thrive without good staffing, communication, and resources. The more you suffer in silence, the weaker those areas become. Real strength isn’t in silence or self-sacrifice; it’s in asking for help, setting boundaries, and making sure your resources are protected so you can thrive.