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Effective Strategies That Can Apply To Manage Stress

Updated on September 13, 2014

Managing Stress - Strategies to Lighten the Tension

Stress is a part of life, but it's one that can be manage with the help of simple strategies. Having some adjustments can lead to positive effect on your day to day stress situations.

Find support. Spend more time with friends, family, co-workers, next door buddies, and others who truly understand you and can provide respect, love, and encouragement.

Work at finding the right balance in your life. You can't handle all things around you, however if you can get the right balance on your job and relationships, you'll be more effective to cope with stress. In fact, having a little freedom at work is among the things that have been proven to cause work-related stress. If your work or relationship makes you totally unable to cope even with your efforts, it may be important to make some adjustments.

Let a good purpose drives you every day. Wake up every morning with a good reason and a sense of purpose which is important to manage stress. If you have too much time to spare, volunteering can effectively help.

It’s always good to laugh a little. Laughter helps keep problems in the right context and the act of laughing in fact triggers changes in your body that lift your outlook and well-being. If you need a helping hand in that area, watch a hilarious movie or TV sitcom, visit a comedy bar, newspaper comics can give you some giggles, or share a number of entertaining stories with an old friend.

Try some workout. Aerobic workout can benefit your mind and body. It can produce a feeling of well-being and reduce the pressure. You don't have to sign up for a marathon. A three 20 minute physical activity every week is enough. So take it easy and just go and trek, try swimming, cycling, go jogging, or dancing. Get a helpful suggestion from your doctor before getting into any program if you're not a typical exerciser or if you have any significant health issues.

  • Do exercises that improves your leg muscles.
  • Do steady jogging.
  • Use the stairs.
  • Try to have a walk around the block.
  • Treadmill helps.
  • Burst your muscular energy even in a while.
  • Always keep a punching ready.
  • Push-ups, a number of sit-ups works well too.

Try not to consume some stimulant-loaded foods/drinks. Cut down on caffeine or any food stimulant that can cause you to feel uneasy even if you're not under stressful situation. Who needs the extra fidgets? Smoking can do the same thing, so limit or fight urge to smoke.

Try to add healthy topic in your self-talk. All of us have quiet talks with ourselves every day, and they can greatly influence our stress levels. Depressing, tension-filled thoughts like taxes, hospital bills, salary increase. All of these thoughts are not helping you. They corner us and give us no choices. Positive, healthy self-talks can motivate rather than discourage. Harrassing yourself may be an old habit, so begin to re-define them a little each time. Consult a therapist should you need help.

Understand that you can't have power over all problems. There are matters you can't control like tornadoes, job layoffs, mass rallies, etc, and a reasonable way to handle this is to realize you can't control these kind of situations. Make an attempt to change and recognize what is in your control and work confidently accepting what's not.

  • See problems as new possibilities.
  • Don't take it too personal.
  • No one knows the right answer.
  • We are not living in a perfect world.
  • Put your trust in God.
  • All things will settle down.
  • Deny negative thoughts.
  • Avoid general conclusions.
  • Always have a control of yourself.
  • Be true to yourself.

Sit down and relax. Commit yourself to a 15 minutes activity that make you breathe easy. Make a schedule if needed, simply because it's equally important to your physical health as all other meeting.

Simple breathing exercises helps in easing those strained muscles. Try to do this relaxation exercise, take a deep breath and tighten a group of muscles, then breathe out and rest them. Then ease the next muscle and repeat the process. Start with your feet and gently work your way up to your face.

Release tension through visualization. Begin by finding a calming and restful place where you've been or a pleasant place you visit often. Then visualize yourself at that place, thinking not only how things would look but how peaceful scenery would smell, taste, and feel. Breathe slowly and enjoy the sight imaginatively for at least 5 minutes.

Most people don't realize how effective these relaxation techniques are. Take a moment for yourself and learn what calms you. Other alternatives are growing plants, taking photos, painting, and listening to relaxing tunes.

Get your finances under control. An unstable financial situation can cause huge pressure, so do everything you can to secure your cash flow. Try to bring down your credit-card dues and get some funds in the bank. If you need support, seek advice from a financial adviser. Usually, taking those first steps can definitely reduce your stress level.

Don't attempt to carry everything. Society drives us to obtain riches, power, and all the embellishments of success along with a wonderful personal and family life. In spite of this, it's extremely difficult to conquer every area. Make up your mind, choose what's most meaningful and important to you that include your peace of mind, and then believe in that mind set.

Ask for help in case you have underlying concerns that you can't solve. Seek caring advice from a therapist, marriage counselor, community worker or clergy member who can understand the situation and help you go through and fix at least part of the concerns that are straining you.

Proper breathing can make you calm. Take consistent, slow breaths can help you relax allowing you to think with ease. Try this quick breathing-relaxation method: Slowly breathe for 5 seconds. Hold your breath for five counts, and then gently release the air for five seconds. Do one more time. (Don’t go beyond 5 counts or rush through the counts, however, it will cause you to hyperventilate.) Remain calm. It might take some practice to get this one, cigarette users, definitely, may have some difficulty.

Don't draw your problems on the wrong person. For instance, it is not helpful to discuss work issues with your kids. Instead, easily identify the problem, make a plan to fix or minimize it then put them into action. Otherwise, you'll simply be augmenting your stress levels.

Massage helps reduce muscle strains that can cause stress. Mind and muscle are interconnected - the central and peripheral nervous systems interact with one another - restorative massage does not only relieved your muscles. It can calm your thoughts as well as your mind. Massage activates endorphins that relieve the peripheral nervous system. It improves blood flow and eliminate toxins from the body. Massage can minimized the production of the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline in distressed moms with newborns.

Still absorbed by stress? Below are a number of home remedies that can help you reduce stress in everyday life or perhaps soothe its effects.

Remedying Music to Reduce Stress

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