Your Chill Pill for Life's Toughest Curveballs

[The following is an excerpt from my audio + text micro course, Breaking Up With Burnout. If you're interested in listening to the full 7-day experience, get access here]

There are stressors in life that you didn’t ask for, definitely don’t want, and simply can’t do anything about. 

Things like chronic illness, care-giving, the loss of a loved one, end of a relationship, unexpected job loss, even aging. 

When we’ve done what we can to regulate ourselves and shift our beliefs about stress — what’s left to try to handle these difficult situations is a practice called radical acceptance. 

This is when we fully acknowledge that something terrible and life-changing has happened. 

We openly admit - I can’t change this. 

When we embrace radical acceptance - we can lessen the impact of the tough feelings that come along with circumstances we can’t change.

The guilt, shame, sadness, anger. 

And that then allows us to stand down from a losing battle. 

It frees up space and energy — and creates capacity to adjust to your new reality. 

Can you think of a situation where radical acceptance might come in handy right now?

It doesn’t mean you approve of the situation, that you’re forgetting about it altogether, or giving up. 

It just means you’re acknowledging the reality of what is, right now — without trying to predict what might happen in the future. 

It could be something that’s happened recently… or could be related to a past experience that affects you to this day. 

Let me give you a couple of examples: 

Imagine you’re dealing with a chronic illness. It’s natural to feel frustrated, angry, or sad about it. These emotions are valid. But constantly fighting against the reality of your condition can create additional stress and suffering. 

Radical acceptance involves acknowledging your illness and its impact on your life. By doing so, you can conserve your energy for managing your health and finding ways to live a fulfilling life despite the illness.

Or let’s take aging — a natural part of life — but it can bring stress and anxiety as we face changes in our bodies, health, and ability to do what we used to do. 

Radical acceptance helps us embrace aging as a natural process. By accepting the changes that come with aging, we can focus on maintaining our health, finding joy in new experiences, and appreciating the wisdom that comes with age.

Reframe beliefs and embrace radical acceptance. 

Chronic illness

❌ “I hate that I’m sick."

✅ "This illness is a part of my journey, and I’ll find ways to live fully with it."

Caregiver responsibilities

❌"Being a caregiver is too much. I can’t do it anymore."

✅ "Caring for my loved one is challenging, but it also brings moments of connection and love. Support is available to me.”

Loss of a loved one 

❌ "I can’t move on without them."

✅ "Their memory lives on within me, and I can find ways to honor them while moving forward."

End of a relationship

❌ "I’ll never find love again."

✅ "This relationship taught me valuable lessons, and I’m open to new possibilities for love."

Unexpected job loss

❌"I’m a failure because I lost my job."

✅"Losing this job opens up new opportunities and paths I hadn’t considered."

Aging

❌"Getting older sucks. I can’t do what I used to."

✅ "Aging brings wisdom and new experiences that enrich my life."

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When you're ready to increase your stress capacity and handle the hard stuff better, get in touch. At Rested Edge Wellness we work with individuals and teams to improve performance and leadership presence through nervous system health.

For resources to get started visit rebeccavigelius.com or email hello@rebeccavigelius.com and tell us what type of stress management help you're looking for.