Whether or not you accept it, stress is an unavoidable part of our life. The modern-day lifestyle and work-and-personal-life imbalance often give us stress. In fact, 67% of Americans are worried about the increasing stress in their lives. Stress factors related to money, work and family are almost always present in our daily lives. While some people deal with stress consciously through therapies, most people try and fight stress through various stress-busting techniques.
Some find solace in writing journals, others try yoga or meditation, and many people even resort to sketching and painting to fight stress. In Hong Kong, the most famous stress management strategy for adults is going for a drink. So, numerous people simply come back home to hug and sleep with an anime dakimakura pillow to fight stress and relax. These pillows help you get relaxed sleep and offer a feeling of comfort. A lot many people eat their way to fight stress.
Here are a few simple, yet exceptionally great ideas for relaxation. Read on.
1. Listen to Music
It is a proven fact that music is a great stress reliever. The power of music has a unique link with human emotions and, therefore, proves to be an extremely effective stress management tool. To help music play an integral part in fighting stress in your daily life, listen to songs wherever you can. Set your favorite tune as an alarm tone and rise with music every morning. Make your stressful commute easy with music. Further, creating personal playlists of your favorite songs for your different moods also helps a great deal.
2. Exercise
According to Matthew Stults-Kolehmainen, at the Yale Stress Centre, exercise increases the heart rate, which actually helps in reversing the damage caused to the brain due to stress. Exercise helps in the production of norepinephrine neuro-hormones that not only help in elevating mood, but also aide improved cognitive function and learning. A number of people, when stressed, go for an immediate jog or run. Practicing Yoga reduces stress instantly, even though the effect is temporary.
3. Eat Right
During stressful times, it is quite natural to turn towards comforting high-fat foods such as cheese, pizza, ice-creams, and more. Ironically, these are the worst possible choices for stress management. They make us more lethargic and less able to deal with stress. Research proves that eating the right food when stressed can instantly relieve stress and leave you feeling refreshed and energized.
4. Go Shopping
According to a study conducted by Michigan University, shopping is a great way of relieving stress and is 40% more effective in offering people a sense of control with respect to the situation than even rewards and assurances. Shopping uplifts your mood and allows you to feel upbeat about the situation. Popularly known as ‘retail therapy,’ shopping is often perceived negatively as people tend to overdo this it and splurge. Experts recommend carrying a list to ensure you don’t overshop. It is also suggested to leave credit cards at home and carry cash instead to limit your spending. The entire idea of retail therapy is to feel good about oneself and reduce stress, and not blow up money.
5. Sleep
New research has proven that REM stage of sleep helps our bodies in dealing with stress. This is the time when dreams occur and the level of stress in the body decreases considerably. Sleeping is an act that brings our body to a resting stage, regulates the pressure level of our system, and assists in reducing stress considerably.
6. Indulge in a Hobby
Hobbies are often considered to be a pastime of people with relaxed lives. However, research proves that creative hobbies must be a part of life for people with a hectic lifestyle. Busy schedule and work-life pressure often leads to higher stress levels, and indulging in creative hobbies helps relieve this stress substantially. Hobbies offer the much-needed pressure-free time that assists in making you feel good, thus, reducing stress. Irrespective of the duration, taking some time off to pursue a creative hobby relieves your mind of stress.
7. Go on a Break
Going by the latest vacation statistics in America, on an average, people take less than 16 days of vacation in the entire year. In fact, as per the survey, there are citizens who never take a vacation. The importance of taking a break and travelling is highly underrated in today’s competitive scenario. The truth is that travelling reduces stress considerably as it allows you to escape your problems for a while. This, in turn, relaxes your mind and body and gives you a fresh take towards finding solutions. Despite the innumerable benefits of taking a break, most people succumb to work pressure and end up sacrificing even their paid leaves. A short break from the routine is also known to increase work productivity.
Conclusion
Every individual has a different way of dealing with stress. Because stress factors also vary, it manifests itself differently with individuals. However, the important thing is to identify the ways to deal with it. It is true that stress isn’t avoidable, but it surely is manageable. Identifying stress-related problems early on is the best way to start dealing with them. Adopting fruitful stress-management measures is imperative to leading a healthy lifestyle.
Korie Cantor has been working as a freelance writer for a long time. She has a diverse background in health, mobility and fitness. She loves sharing her opinions on the latest issues affecting women.