Stress can happen because a lot of different situations and things we have to deal with every day. At times it may be hard to figure out what it is that is making us stressed and to know what to do about it. The following article contains strategies that can be employed when dealing with stressful situations.
Set aside a little time today to plan and prepare for what you intend to do tomorrow. You’ll be surprised by how much stress this can relieve! If you have your outfit picked out or your lunch made, you’ll find that you’ll have less to worry about and therefore less stress.
Think about the feelings you get when you are calm if you feel stressed. Imagine a calming warm shower flowing over your body that washes away any tension or stress that you are feeling. You can also close your eyes, breathe slowly and imagine a calming scene, like walking in a meadow, sitting on the beach, or whatever it is that calms you.
You can use music to help relieve stress. The sounds of music are very powerful. Just listening to music is often enough to calm us down. This is not only reasonable-sounding; studies have validated the connection. While everyone has various musical tastes, you need to find something that may calm and soothe your stress.
When you take time to keep a journal, the very act of putting your thoughts on paper can help you keep your stress level down. There are times when we are uncomfortable discussing a stressful situation with another person. In these cases, writing down your feelings in a journal can help to alleviate that helpless feeling. Use this journal for recording present day battles with stress, and as a future reference in case you need to remind yourself how you maneuvered your way around stressful situations later.
Take inventory of your current coping skills and see if you can deal with stress more effectively. You should think about keeping track of your stressful situations for a short period of time, and then analyzing this data. Remember and evaluate your response to each stressful event and ask yourself if you handled it in an effective, healthy manner. Find out new ways to deal with stress on a day to day basis.
If something is frustrating you, like a video game, stop doing it right away. You should clear your head and let yourself relax, do not give into stressful feelings or frustration.
Stand next to a solid wall and use your hands to push against it, giving all you have while digging in with your feet. Stretching out your hamstrings is an effective exercise to relieve stress.
To better control a stressful situation, breathe before you act. Put a little distance between yourself and the situation, count to ten while engaging in deep breathing, and then return. This will make the difference between acting professional, calm, and proactive rather than defensive, reactionary, and stressed.
A healthier lifestyle is an easy way to reduce or eliminate stress. If you improve your diet and exercise routine, for example, your body will be better equipped to combat stress. Additionally, by taking better care of yourself you will start to increase your self-esteem, making it easier for you to relax during previously stressful situations.
Listening to music can help to reduce the amount of stress that you are feeling. Take the time to listen to your favorite CD’s or carry an mp3 player with you if you want to listen to music while doing something else. Doing this will provide your mind with a much needed break from your stress.
Visual Imagery
Visual imagery can be a great stress reduction tool. Research has suggested that applying calm, visual imagery is extremely effective for reducing stress. Even if you do not have access to pictures, just imagining a sunny beach where you can lay back and listen to the gentle sounds of waves crashing ashore while you soak up the sunshine or the invigorating and soothing feel of a steamy bath can make a huge difference is successfully envisioning stress leaving your body. This visual imagery meditation method can help keep your from suffering from the effects of a stressful life when you set aside the time to visualize something calm and relaxing for just a few minutes.
Self-hypnosis may be able to help you if you are constantly stressed out by the same unavoidable things and people in your environment. Self-hypnosis, meditation and deep breathing techniques can help you get through your day with less stress.
Purchasing bath and body products with a great fragrance and really boost your mood. The aroma of lavender is believed to have a calming effect, and other scents can make you feel good about yourself when you smell them and can make you feel much better about your day. To help build up your thought process buy some body sprays or lotions.
If you are having to deal with stress, remember to stop and breath deeply occasionally. Breathing deeply is effective in calming yourself down whenever you feel overwhelmed and anxious, and research has shown that if you do this regularly, your stress can be reduced.
The feelings of being stressed and overwhelmed are not good feelings to endure; but worse, they can do real, long-term damage to your mental and physical health. However, by integrating the tips here into your daily schedule, you can win the battle and keep stress under control.