It is National Stress Awareness Day today and I thought I’d write about some tips I use myself to help me to deal with stress and become more relaxed if ever things become a bit overwhelming.
1. Get Out Into Nature
A walk through autumn woods with the smell of damp earth and mushrooms, fallen leaves and the crunch of acorns under foot is for me the perfect anti-stress remedy. Being by the sea or a river is equally evocative.
As you are walking, focus your mind on what you are seeing. Look at the colours, look at the textures, look at the wildlife. What do you see, hear and smell? Say it in your mind. Let your walk be a peaceful, mindful, walking meditation. Feel the connection to the earth, know that you belong here and that everything will be okay and then give thanks for the beauty and wonder of this life.
2. Keep Fit And Healthy
Before I really got into looking after myself I used to reach for the cigarettes and wine to help me to unwind and escape feelings of stress. This rarely worked. The nicotine in the cigarettes made me more hyper and being hungover just makes you feel more stressed.
Exercise increases your overall level of fitness and releases lots of feel good endorphins which will enable you to cope better with stress. By the way, endorphin is a shortened form of ‘endogenous morphine’ and means ‘morphine produced naturally in the body’. However I have found that there is another benefit to exercise.
When you are exercising, especially highly choreographed exercise, like dance, aerobics, yoga or body pump it usually means that you are living in the moment. You are concentrating solely on your body and the move you are doing or just about to do. If you are concentrating, ‘in the moment’ then you are not worrying about the future or the past. It is like giving your mind a complete rest for an hour or so.
3. Ask For Help And Get A Fresh Perspective By Talking Things Over With A Friend.
Have you ever been so worried or stressed about something that you can’t see any solution or way forward. It may be difficult for you to get away from the situation that is causing you stress or the problem or situation just goes round and round in your head like some vicious loop or you keep walking down that path of negativity to the worst possible scenario.
Stop!..don’t suffer in silence. Take some time out and get some balance by talking things over with a good friend – someone you trust, who is good at listening and who can help you to gain new insights into a situation that can help you to see it from a different perspective and help you to either work out what action you can take or help you to relax about it.
Start by making a list of anyone who may be able to help, friends, relatives, colleagues, family, and also professional people and support groups. Then choose someone who is most likely to help – friends often really do want to help but have a think about the best person.
Often just being in the company of a good friend can help you to relax, have a laugh and wind down and get some balance. If they are not the best person to share what’s on your mind then take comfort in being with them anyway and choose someone else to open up to.
4. Focus on the positive
Make two lists: one of everything that is going well for you right now and the other of everything that has gone well for you in the past.
The first list would be things that you are grateful for – could be anything, from the weather to having a good relationship with a sibling or friend or partner. This is to help you to gain some balance in your life.
The second list would be situations that you have dealt with successfully in the past, like moving house, getting married or moving away from home. Things that may have been stressful at the time but you coped and you got through it. How did you do that? and What did you learn from the situation and about yourself that can help you to deal with the situation now?
5. Step Out Of Yourself And Place Your Attention On To Someone Else.
I have found that a good antidote to feeling stress is to help someone else by performing a random act of kindness. It’s a similar thing to when you are exercising and your mind is diverted away from your stressful situation and onto something more positive. It’s not about ignoring your problems it’s about giving yourself some mental space in order to be refreshed and more able to deal with the situation. You also get that feel-good factor of having been kind to someone else.
I hope you have found this article useful and remember you are not alone. Everyone feels stressed from time to time and don’t feel that you have to just put up with feeling this way. Seek help from friends or from a professional if you need it. Cause we need you! 
If you think this article may benefit others then please share it using the button below. If you have a favourite way to relieve stress then I’d love to hear about it.
