Hey Calm Club Crew,

Remember those Snickers commercials that call out hangry behavior? “You’re not yourself when you’re hungry,” they’d say with Betty White doing tackles in a muddy football game.

This couldn’t be a more accurate reenactment of me (and I’m guessing you too) on cortisol.
As much as I like to believe I’m handling everything just fine, my thoughts are usually too foggy to see things clearly.

Last week, a friend asked me, “Are you a stressed person?”
I said no — without even thinking.
But the question stuck with me all weekend.

What I should’ve said was:
“I think I handle it well… but my nervous system would probably disagree. I’ll break out in hives and my hair will fall out in clumps before I admit I’m stressed — not because I’m in denial, but because my threshold has expanded so much, I’ve convinced myself stress is just...normal.”

Whether it’s physical or emotional, our bodies can only take so much before they hit a wall.

After getting diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder that flares under stress, I realized I needed a different strategy.
Suppressing it wasn’t the answer.
I had to start paying attention—especially to the subtle signs.

So I got really good at listening to my body.
At spotting stress early.
At doing something before it turned into a full-blown spiral.

Some tools are super tangible. Others took years of mindset shifts and lifestyle changes. And honestly? Some are just… weirdly specific to me. 

Case in point:
Ever since stress became my latest hyperfixation, I haven’t been able to get this Salt-N-Pepa remix that I made up out of my head:

🎶 Let’s talk about stress, baby
Let’s talk about you and me
Let’s talk about all the good things and the bad things that may be… 🎶

I know—it’s ridiculous. But the second I start humming it, it snaps me out of the chaos. It interrupts the spiral. 

Sometimes, that’s all it takes.

Other times, the stress is too big for even a Salt-N-Pepa lip sync to fix.

Some problems aren’t just spirals in your head — they’re real, tangible, gut-punch problems.
Like a $560,000 bill from the CRA.
Or tariffs that wipe out your margins overnight… only to spike again 60 days later.

(2025 has been a trip) 

These moments require more than mindset shifts. They require action.
And, just as importantly, rest.

Because when the stakes are high, it’s tempting to go into full panic-mode productivity or to do the opposite and be paralyzed. But that’s exactly when grounding practices — like breathwork, journaling, and nervous system regulation — matter most. They don’t replace action. They help you stay anchored in it.

You can’t think clearly when your body thinks it’s under attack.
Those tools are what help me move forward without losing myself in the process.

And not all stress comes from things you can see on a balance sheet.

Sometimes it builds from the things left undone. The avoidance. The quiet knowing that you're pushing something down, hoping it’ll resolve itself.
Sometimes it’s the invisible weight we carry — the self-doubt, the fear, the comparison.
The pressure to be further ahead.
The shame of needing rest.
The guilt that creeps in when you slow down, even for a second.

These kinds of stressors are quieter, but just as powerful.

That’s why I’m writing Less Stress On Mondays: tools, reflections, and small grounding practices to help us manage the external stress, unlearn the internal stuff, and step into the week feeling clearer.

And to help us all escape the Sunday-night dread,  I, Brandi Leifso, hereby promise to spill my stress stories, no matter how cringy or embarrassing. And, I’ll find ways, and experts to lighten the load and share it with you every Sunday at 7:00pm. I like to think of it as a GRWM for Monday series called, ‘Less Stress on Mondays.’


Brandi - xx
Founder