Stress is an unavoidable part of life, and although it’s not always possible to reduce there are things you can do to help deal with it. Trying natural coping strategies can see you through rough patches and make the day-to-day bearable. Even if it’s to lessen the effects of low-level stress, you’ll be left with more headspace for tackling the significant issues that are bothering you.
Exercise
Sometimes when you’re feeling completely frazzled, the last thing you want to do is think about is finding the time to exercise. Yet exercise is one of the best things you can do for yourself to bust stress. Even just getting out for a fifteen-minute walk each day releases serotonin in the brain, which is essential for regulating mood and sleep. By getting regular exercise, you’ll benefit from being better able to deal with stress and improved health.
Epsom Salt Soak
When you look after your body, it’s easier for your mind to relax and unwind, allowing you to cope with stresses better. Stress can cause you to hold tension in your muscles, creating aches and pains that stop you from relaxing. And if you’re deficient in magnesium, these symptoms are magnified, making you physically uncomfortable and less able to deal with other stresses. A simple way to relieve your deficiency and thus symptoms, an Epsom salt foot soak can help soothe inflammation, aches, and pains.
Find Time For Yourself
Outside of meditation and exercise, it’s vital to find time for yourself. Try picking up a hobby and participate in it regularly. It can be as simple as spending an hour reading a book or participating in a team sport. The main point is to take regular time for yourself and concentrate on something outside of your everyday concerns.
Meditation
Meditation is a wonderful way of putting your troubles aside for a short time and re-centering your mind. Only taking a few minutes each day, you can meditate just about anywhere and at any time. What this means is that if you’re feeling overwhelmed at any point in the day, it’s easy to stop and take five minutes to reset. There are several ways to meditate, focus on one spot on the wall, focus on your breathing, or clear your mind entirely. Whichever method you choose, the result is the same – to put all worries aside for a short period and rest your mind.
CBT
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a way of learning to look at how behavior and thinking patterns lead to increased stress levels. You’ll learn new ways of thinking and behaving when you feel your triggers setting in. Often, looking at everyday stress from a different perspective can make it look like a more minor issue than previously. And small problems are far easier to deal with than great big ones, which is the aim of CBT.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness is a little bit of meditation, and CBT rolled in with learning to be aware of the present and can be continuously practiced. Unlike meditation, where you are clearing your mind, mindfulness teaches you to connect with yourself as a whole and the world around you. For those with depression, it’s a way to disengage from thought processes that perpetuate and worsen their depression. But it’s not just for those with depression; people struggling with a rough, stressful period benefit, as do those with addiction issues.
Avoid Isolation
Multiple studies have shown the benefits of socialization on lifting mood and depression. In periods of high stress, it becomes all too easy to isolate yourself away as events overtake you and fill up headspace. But even the most introverted person needs some form of regular social contact to keep a healthy headspace. So be sure to make time in a busy schedule to catch up with friends and family or get involved with groups that put you with people. Whether you talk through problems during these times or concentrate on other things for a while, either way, you’ll come away feeling better.
Conclusion
If you’re experiencing a rocky patch in life and feeling like you’re struggling, be sure to take care of yourself. Get out in the fresh air, meet friends, go for a walk and do things you enjoy. Even if it’s only for an hour each week, the benefits are enormous. And if you’re really not coping, do seek help from your PCP as there are times when stress is too much for home remedies alone.
