Many people are dealing with stressful situations on the home-front, work, and in their social circle, and they are turning to food, alcohol and shopping as ways to deal with it. These are unhelpful approaches; this article should help give you some tips to deal with the stress in life in a healthy way.
Try reading a book to relieve some of your pent up stress. Losing yourself in another world, perhaps one of fantasy or sci-fi or a romance, can be a great way for your mind to go on autopilot for a bit. You’ll be able to focus on the world inside the book, rather than whatever is stressing you out.
A great tip that can help you beat stress is to head outside and go for a hike. Going for a hike can be amazing at keeping stress down because it allows you to enjoy the soothing sights, sounds and smells of nature. You’ll also be getting some exercise which will help a lot as well.
Sip on tea to help calm yourself. Chamomile tea is known for its calming effect, but there are also other teas that can calm you as well. Try a cup of passionflower, catnip, kava kava, or skullcap. Steep these herbs for about 10 minutes and you will get the full effects of their calming powers.
When you are feeling overwhelmed and are dealing with a great deal of stress, it is important to learn how to breathe. Stress is most common with fears, sadness and anger. When you feel any of these emotions, breathe and imagine you are breathing the emotions out of you. Awareness of what triggers stress is the first step to tackling it and breathing will ground you in the moment and make you aware of what you are feeling.
Gastrointestinal distress is a common reaction to stress. Acid reflux, a persistent feeling of nausea, and even problems with elimination can be our body’s outward reaction to stress. Reduce the level of stress you are feeling and symptoms such as these will often be greatly minimized or even disappear entirely!
One way to deal with stress in your life is to be sure that you do not take up drinking as a means of dealing with it. This is important because alcohol will only make your life more stressful in one way or another. The only positive effect that it has is possibly dulling your emotions. If you feel that you need a drink, stop and analyze what you are feeling. Try to deal with what stress you identify in a more healthy way. Either tackle the problem itself, engage in some vigorous exercise, or listen to your favorite music – whatever works for you.
In order to handle large amounts of stress make sure you are adequately rested. Dealing with extreme stress on little or no sleep is very difficult and borderline insane. Those who are poorly rested tend to make bad decisions which can cause more stress, and tend to be more easily irritated.
If you are at work and passing through a moment of great stress you should take a second to look at pictures of people and places that you really enjoy. This can help you to refocus on what is important and may even make the stressful situation feel a bit silly or useless.
One great way to reduce stress is to take up arts and crafts. Activities such as writing, painting, carving, sculpting and other creative endeavors allow the mind to roam free of financial concerns, deadlines and problems.
To help yourself relax during a long day at work, be sure to leave the office for lunch. Even if you just step outside to eat your bagged lunch in the park, getting away from your office can do wonders to decrease your stress. A 15 to 20 minute break from your environment makes a long day a whole lot easier to cope with.
Shake your body out on a daily basis! You may think you carry your stress only in your mind, but your body carries it just as much. Take ten minutes every day to let go and shake every part of your body. Stretch your legs, your neck, your arms and your back. Shake your hands for ten to fifteen seconds. Breathe deeply while doing these exercises. You’ll find you feel less stressed afterwards!
Categorize your stress. Put your stress into two categories – things you have control over and things you have no control over. Try to let go of the things that you can’t control. For the things that you can actively change, make a plan of action and try to stick to it.
Very often, stress will not just go away on its own. You will have to get to grips with it. Take action based on the hints provided in this article. It’s not easy, and sometimes you will be tempted to handle stress in a negative way. Try your best to summon some willpower and apply at least a couple of suggestions to begin with.