I am always curious to hear how people deal with stress. It is, after all, one of the most important things we need to manage in today’s world.
Excess stress can affect your health in so many ways. Left unchecked, it can cause multiple health problems including high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity.
The mental toll is notable also. Frequent insomnia, headaches, and the inability to focus on simple tasks can be traced back to stress as the cause.
It would be simple to say that we need to eliminate stress in our lives, but realistically that isn’t going to happen. That is why managing it and finding outlets for its release are crucial for staying healthy.
Five Ways to Release and Reduce Stress
- Exercise. Some amount of physical activity is vital to keeping the body working properly. Even a 10-minute walk can have a lasting effect on your well-being.
- Learn to relax. It’s sad that we don’t need to learn to be stressed, but we do have to learn to relax. Meditation, yoga, getting a massage, journaling, or listening to music are simple ways to give your mind and body the breather that it needs.
- Laugh. This might be one of the most important points here, and also the most difficult to do. Stressed people don’t have a sense of humour, at least not one they can rely on in the heat of the moment. Humour is a very personal thing so find something that makes you smile. Cat videos on the internet tend to be a solid go-to for most of us!
- Develop a social network. You don’t need to have 20 friends, but having one or two who you trust is important. We need that interaction, the knowledge that someone out there has our back. Longevity studies show that this is one of the most important factors in living a long and healthy life.
- Nurture a hobby. When the world is demanding all of our attention, the last thing we think of doing is picking up a paintbrush or doodling or building something with our hands. And yet these moments of mindless creativity can be a lifeline in times of stress. The best part is that solutions to issues you are dealing with tend to become more clear after you have given yourself the time to play a little bit.
As the pace of modern life quickens, we are dealing with more stress than ever before. It is crucial to your health and well-being to find what works for you to minimize the damage that stress could be doing to you.
Take the time for yourself now before your body forces you to slow down and recharge.