Stress is part of everyone’s life and can cause problems with your health. Finance and money are frequently among the first of the stresses that most people feel. However, families and work are also a frequent cause of stress and tension. Use the following tips to ensure that you deal with your stress in a healthy way.
Understand where your stress is coming from.
See if you can make changes in the areas of your life where you are feeling stress.
Find ways to relax such as massage, deep breathing, meditation, or yoga.
Exercise or other physical activity will help you deal with stress
Practice time management. Put your tasks into a priority list. When you make your list take into account yourself, your family, and your job. Using a check list will give you satisfaction when you complete a task.
Eat a healthy and balanced diet. Avoid sugar, fats, tobacco, caffeine, and alcohol as all of these items will put a strain on the way your body copes with stress.
It is important to get enough sleep.
Talk with someone if there are things that are bothering you. This can include friends, family, professional counselors, and support groups.
Volunteering can give you a sense of purpose and increase your self esteem and reduce your stress.
Take some personal time. This can include reading a book, watching a movie, listening to music, or any other personal time that you enjoy.
Practice anger management. If you feel that you have problems dealing with you anger find a support group that you can join.
A vacation from your regular life, even if only for a weekend, will help you deal with stress.
Don’t take on too much at one time. Learn to take it easy.
Perfection is impossible – don’t even try for it.
Try not to judge others harshly.
See the funny side of life. Watch funny movies and tv shows.
When your body is under stress the tension will often accumulate in your neck and jaw. Take a few minutes to gently and slowly move your head from one side to the other and then from front to back, moving in a slow circle.
Practice realistic goal setting using the SMART approach, set small and realistic goals to accomplish the tasks you have to do and reduce your stress. Try setting a goal using the SMART method:
SPECIFIC: Pick one small goal and write it down.
MEASURABLE: Can you count it or check it off a list?
ACHIEVABLE: How long will it take to finish it?
REWARDED: Reward yourself when you reach your goal.
TIME-LIMITED: Can you set an achievable deadline?
Laugh at stress. Laughter is your body’s natural stress-release mechanism. Rent your favorite funny movie or record a TV show that you know makes you laugh. You can keep the recording on hand for those stress emergencies. Go to the library and borrow a book that you know will make you laugh. Or read the daily comics in the newspaper.
Cope with stress by going for a walk. If the stress is at work, go for a walk at lunchtime. Walking will give you time to look at the situation that is causing you a problem. Any other exercise will also help with stress relief.