Three Best Ways To Manage Stress
Stress Management Skills
Before going forward and leaving 2020 behind like a bad dream, let’s pause for a moment and learn the lessons of this year. You may not have lost your job, and people close to you are safe and healthy. But still, you felt anxious and stressed about the overall state of uncertainty and everything happening in the world. And it’s completely normal. This year highlighted the importance of stress management and the ability to cope with emotions. Here are some useful tips on how to manage stress effectively and regain control of your life. Next time you face hardships and feel anxious, you will know what to do about it.
Why Stress Management Is Important?
Binging on food or Netflix isn’t stress management. Such measures may help for a moment, but then you will go even further down the rabbit hole. You may end up feeling even more empty and even suffer from health conditions. With time, stress and unwillingness to do anything about it start affecting your productivity, work, relations, and overall life satisfaction.
Stress is a chemical process happening in our body and brain, the organs undergo chemical and physical changes, and that affects overall human functioning. If you neglect the situation for too long, you will end up with chronic stress. And what started as a manageable problem will lead to headaches, high blood pressure, heart problems, severe chronic conditions like diabetes, or more serious psychological problems.
Another reason for timely measures is their negative effect on relationships. If one of the partners experiences stress, couple communication may break down. People also can become less affectionate and more irritable. You may also destroy relationships with colleagues. Overall, stress leads to reduced productivity.
By implementing effective strategies to manage stress, you will intervene at the right moment and prevent all the bad things from unfolding.
Know What Triggers You
First and foremost, stress management is a journey of self-discovery. To effectively apply tips to manage stress, you need to know your stressors and develop strategies accordingly. One of the ways to do so is to start journaling. It can be a pen and paper, an app on the phone, desktop, or anything that works for you. Take up a challenge and journal for one week straight. Write down all the situations and how they made you feel.
After one week, dedicate some time to revise your notes, and you will see some patterns. You can divide all the sources of stress into two groups: internal and external. You can go further and segment external triggers into work-related, relationships, and so on. Examples of internal stressors are lack of control over a situation, failed expectations, or fear of failing.
This is the first step, you identify and recognize your sources of stress. It leads to a more mindful perception of the situation. Now, let’s move to the second tip.
Manage Time and Identify Priorities
So often, we are the ones who worsen the situation: stress over the situations we have zero control over, prioritize parties over sleep, agree to activities we don’t like. So much as the first step, an effective way to mitigate the situation and prevent it from evolving into full-on crises is to set and stick to priorities.
Take a moment and write down your goals in life, prioritize all the things you hop on. For example, you get an invitation to a colleague’s wedding, and you don’t even talk too much. You may feel pressured to go, as the whole team is going. But at the same time, you feel stressed due to the financial hardships you may have. Instead of agreeing straight away, pause for a second, and ask yourself a question. What do you truly want?
Another example is a dilemma known to all students. What’s better to study for an extra hour or get enough sleep? Getting an adequate amount of sleep is imperative to reducing stress. That’s why sometimes there is nothing terrible in reaching out for help. For example, if you’re stuck on an assignment, search for dedicated services like writemyessays.me.
Get The Blood Flowing
One piece of advice every stress management article mentions is to get moving since physical activity has a positive effect on mental state. Research shows that exercise effectively reduces fatigue, improves alertness and concentration, and enhances overall cognitive function. All of those conditions are often by-products of stress.
Exercise pumps your hormones of happiness. There is even a term runner’s high that describes a state of complete relaxation and calmness that occurs after intense or lengthy exercise. But to be honest, it doesn’t necessarily need to be a high-intensity workout. You can start small with just a 20-minute yoga session or go for a walk. The key is to stay true to yourself and find what works for you.
People also refer to the sport as a meditation in motion. Sometimes it’s hard to keep your mind still and meditate the traditional way, even for 5 minutes. In contrast, physical activity helps to zone out and forget the day’s irritations as you fully concentrate on the movement.
These are three key steps to manage stress. Start with it and then continue exploring. It’s also essential to mention a disclaimer. In some cases, when you feel like you’re losing control, it’s better to seek professional medical help. Chronic stress isn’t the right time to hold on to your prejudices about therapy or care about what other people think. Do what is best for you, and you will find peace and your best ways to manage stress.
