In our modern life, stress has become unavoidable. One of the biggest causes of stress is trying to focus on too many things at once. So don’t try to juggle too many balls at once, as you will end up dropping some of them.
When you learn to manage stress, you will find peace of mind and have a longer, healthier life. To beat stress effectively, pick a bag of anti-stressing tools and use them often and before your body’s stress response fully kicks in.
- Relax: Take a walk or do gardening. Massage and other therapies like yoga and aromatherapy also help in reducing stress by reducing fatigue and lethargy. Massage helps to relax the tense muscles, reduce pain and improve circulation, which can do all the wonders to the mind.
- Practice deep breathing and meditate: Deep breathing is a simple and quick way to relax and get fresh oxygen for your heart and brain. Meditation helps you to concentrate on the calmness of mind to reduce stress, which takes only 15-20 minutes a day. Just give yourself a silent time to let your thoughts run free or just focus on your breathing.
- Eat well: Maintaining blood sugar levels is key to stabilize your mood. Have small meals every 2-3 hours. You can have stress-busting foods like blueberries, salmon and almonds. Have diet rich in carbohydrates like potatoes, rice and pasta to maintain normal levels of serotonin in the brain, a chemical that reduces stress. Also, put down that extra cup of coffee. Too much coffee will make you nervous and anxious and this may lead to a crash.
- Music: Listen or play music which you love. Research has shown that music helps in reducing stress.
- Sleep well: Sleep is the most important natural way to reduce stress as it fuels your body and mind as well. Lack of sleep at night leaves us cranky, irritable, and depressed. Too much sleep makes us sluggish. And people who do not have proper sleep are more likely to have accidents and addictions to cigarettes and alcohol. Napping during the day is an effective and refreshing alternative to caffeine. It makes you smarter.
- Learn to say ‘NO’: Simple but effective. Where a no is correct response, say it without guilt. Saying no does not mean that you are self centered or uncaring. It is always okay to decline a request for a favor and to avoid a burden. Taking on more than you can handle is a sure fire recipe for stress.
- Talk to someone: Often, a talk with your friend, partner, parents or someone you trust can help you a lot. Even if they can’t physically help you, your stress levels get reduced by sharing. Sometimes we just need to ‘vent’ or get something ‘off our chest.’
- Practice positive self-talk: Think of a self-motivating mantra and repeat it time to time. Try to say: ‘I can definitely deal with this.’ ‘All will be well.’
- Get a hobby, do something different: You can make your life enjoyable and inspiring by leisure activities and hobbies. They can offer an added sense of achievement to our lives.
- Laughter is the best medicine: This is a proven way to help you live a healthy life and it feels good too! Laughter is good for your soul and your body. Laughter reduces the levels of stress hormones like cortisol, adrenaline and dopamine. It helps to release health enhancing hormones called endorphins. Laughter provides you a physical and emotional release.
