Stress Management Tips

Stress management refers to the way(s) an individual chooses to handle a stressful or difficult situation that they are going through. This means that positive and negative stress management habits exist. One example of a positive stress management habit is to exercise as it offers benefits to the body while one example of a negative stress management habit is to smoke or drink alcohol excessively as it causes harm to the body over time. The purpose of this article however is to highlight five ways in which we can all manage stress in a positive way.

Talk to someone- I do not know about you but I do not like how it feels when my heart is about to explode in my chest or my mind has a million tabs open all at once. Talking to someone I trust almost always makes everything a little less stressful. When you do this you are able to share how you feel and they are able to look from the outside and share ways to deal with the situation.

Practice deep breathing – take time to do deep breathing as it somewhat gives you peace of mind. There is no doubt that stressful situations will make your heart rate increase. So deep breathing will help to slow down your heart rate and lower your blood pressure. Deep breathing or diaphragmatic breathing will definitely give you a sense of calmness.

Take time to relax- This means that you must slow down and take a break from all your responsibilities. I did not say to abolish your responsibilities but to take a break. Take time to relax probably on the beach or any other place where you can think in peace. Additionally, you can hang out with friends as you tend to be more relaxed around them.

Be mindful- Even if there are external things that cause you to feel stressed. The mind tends to overthink when you are stressed and this causes one to have negative thoughts and feelings. Being able to control what you think when you are stressed is very important and mindfulness helps with thought processing.

Get rest – When you rest your body and mind are at ease. It is important to not only get eight complete hours of sleep but is also important to get adequate rest. In this way, you are able to thoroughly think about your stressors and effective ways to overcome them.

Stress is inevitable but it can be manageable. We all perceive stress in a negative light but we do have good stresses namely feeling stressed because you want to complete school, feeling stressed because you got a new promotion at work, and feeling stressed because you want better for yourself. Meditate on the five tips suggested above and feel free to share with us what you do to manage stress.