4 Ways To Let Go Of Stress
If I could get rid of one thing in this world, it would be hate. But, the second thing I would get rid of is stress. Whether you have started a new job, changed careers, moved houses or missing someone special ... wow, this is my life in the past 2 years summed up ... you will have your moments of stress.
If you are working and there have been changes at work, you don't see friends as much as you used to, something is happening within the family that demands your attention and you are motivated to reach new goals that challenge you and put you out of your comfort zone ... there will be stress.
Do I handle stress right? Not all the time, but I know what strategies work for me. I can, hand on my heart, tell you once you find the tips and tricks that work for you to relieve stress, stress isn't such the monster we make it out to be.
Stress is a state of emotional or mental tension or strain resulting from demanding circumstances. Stress has a negative impact on our health and wellbeing. These negative impacts can be headaches, weakened immune system, rapid breathing, insomnia, depression, high blood sugar, low sex drive, muscular tension, digestive issues and/ or risk of a heart attack among others. This list alone can make you stressed.
What I found in the last few years is that some things work to relieve my stress and something do not. You have to understand and accept yourself for who you are and trust yourself to know what works to help you relieve stress.
The 3 key things that help me destress are as follows.
1. Accept That You Cannot Control Everything
I am a planner. I love routine, organisation and forward thinking. I can plan for almost anything but I cannot plan for stress. I try to plan for unforeseen stressors during the day by being realistic about my time management and my to-do list.
I prioritise my tasks and allow for fireworks and downtime. My fireworks are when unforeseen fires light during the day and I need to spend some time to put them out. If fireworks don’t happen, I have a bit of time go to my non-priority to-do list and do something creative. The downtime I plan for is to stop to have lunch and take a break through my day.
If you plan for downtime, you will have time for yourself along with some extra time to put out some unforeseen fires which can ignite during the day.
2. You Can Only Control Your Reactions, Not Anyone Else's
When something comes up out of the blue, fireworks, that you haven't planned for you can accept that it will happen and take steps to move forward to mitigate the disturbance.
The key with stress is acceptance and moving forward to mitigate it. IF you do nothing, the stress with linger. We don't want lingering stress because then it can balloon out to be bigger than what it started out as.
There is no point in placing blame. Some people like to figure out where the stress came from and place blame on a person for the stress. What on Earth does this achieve? Don't try and place blame for the fireworks, accept that the firework has gone off and put your energy toward a positive outcome to rid yourself of the stress as soon as possible. Ask yourself how big of a deal the firework is and then act accordingly.
You cannot control how other people deal with stress. If at work, you have someone that makes it more of a drama, the best is to keep quiet and try and remove yourself from the situation. This is no an easy situation to be in but not fueling the fire (even though I've been talking about fireworks) is key. You can't help how other people react to a situation, only your own.
3. Take A Timeout
Lunch breaks, timeouts, downtime and/ or you-time (what I call Me-time or self-care) is all too necessary in life. A lot of women overlook this step because they put themselves after their family.
It seems to be a catch 22. If women give themselves time to do things that relax them, recharge them and give them the energy to take care of those around them they can be seen as selfish. If they don't take care of themselves, we are putting our health in danger.
You do you. Take care of yourself so that when you wake up you are motivated to take on the day and are feeling good about yourself at the end of the day. This is what matters. It is great to pass this down to kids as well as they are growing up. Taking timeouts, deep breathing, getting a massage or your nails done, working out or doing something that gets your good endorphins flowing is being active so you control your stress, de-stress or get rid of your stress.
4. Spend Time With Your Loved Ones
Let's be honest here, I love Mark, he is always around because well, after all we do live together. I am talking about spending time with the people (friends or family) that you choose to spend your free time with. Those that lift you up, make you laugh and you can live in the moment with.
Sure, it is great to let them know if you are stressed, but the best part is enjoying whatever it is you do like enjoying breakfast out or dinner in, playing cards, drinks out after work, a walk, a workout, or even a good chat over the phone.
When I get stressed, I sometimes want to stay home and stew about it because I don't realise going out will snap me out of my slump. I can get over stressed about work but getting out and forgetting about it until I have to go back the next day is the best way to help me realise that it is what it is and it doesn't have to take control over me. Getting out and changing your mindset is a great way to de-stress.
It is not easy to figure out what stress relief will work for you. It is dependent on who you are. For me, because I am such a planner, planning for fireworks and accepting that they will happen is the best thing that I have done. Sometimes the fireworks cause a bit of fire, but if I realise what has happened and take a couple deep breathes or a quick walk/ breath of fresh air, and then I pop myself into solution mode. I don't like blame or shaming anyone because it doesn't help the situation. I also make sure that I communicate with my loved ones and keep my social routine in tack so I keep on laughing and being able to switch off.
What do you do to relieve your stress?
