Stress is the body’s natural response to every day life events. Physical, mental, and emotional reactions happen when we face stressors, like deadlines, relationships, illness, etc.
Stress can motivate us to meet deadlines, or help us tackle difficult situations. It can also make us feel overwhelmed, stuck, or depressed when the stressors outnumber our resources.
The key to managing stress is rebalancing the scales in your favor. You can do this by adding stress-busting tools to your tool belt or your browser’s bookmark bar!
Here are some quick, easy-to-do daily stress busters-
- Add something beautiful to your life on a daily basis, such as photographs, flowers, or music.
- Walk, work, and eat at a relaxed pace.
- Eat regular meals, and eat what you enjoy.
- Get outside at least once per day and notice the simple things such as the weather or scenery. Notice any tension in your body (jaw, neck, shoulders). Breathe deeply and gently stretch and relax any tense areas.
- Focus your mind on something in the moment such as the feel of your breathing, the visual scenery, the sound of birds.
- Take mini-breaks during the day to stretch or close your eyes.
- Take off your shoes when you can- walk on the grass.
- Avoid holding in feelings day after day. Instead, find a safe place to feel, express, and embrace them.
- Talk with a friend you haven’t heard from in awhile.
- Journal, draw, or create something for 10 minutes.
- Play games with friends.
Above all- please be gentle with yourself. Some people find themselves falling back into excessively stressful habits from time to time. This is perfectly normal. Simply notice that change in a non-judgemental way and move back to the stress reduction practices and tips that promote a healthy way of life.
Adopted from: Holistic Med’s Stress Free Strategies