Six Tips to Relieve Stress

If you find that you are crying easily, or yelling at people and “flying off the handle”, hiding from friends and other people, you are not crazy, you are not a bad person…You are suffering from stress! Stress has been defined as a response to events that causes physical and mental tension. How do we relieve this physical and mental tension?

1. Get moving. Walk, dance, vacuum, garden, anything that gets you up and moving around will provide some relief to the physical tension.
2. Play music that you like, watch comedy shows that get you laughing.
3. If you have moved around enough and want to relax, try using warm water either in a bath, shower, or a moist heat pack to your neck and shoulders. Drink chamomile or other relaxing tea, light candles. A ritual like this can be something to look forward to at the end of a busy day.
4. Take time to notice what thoughts or activities have triggered the stress. Then write down what is bothering you. Try to get clear about which particular issues are causing you the most stress. If it is a friend, family member or another person plan to communicate with that person later. When your stress is high, it is better to write the feelings down, or express them in a support group. You can even use your home phone to call your cell phone and leave yourself a message. Say what you are really thinking and feeling. When you listen to your own message, you can get a clearer idea of what is really upsetting you. Knowledge is power.
5. Our own thoughts, the things we tell ourselves over and over can be causing us more harm than good. For instance, if you repeat to yourself, “I can’t stand this, this sucks, I’m doing a lousy job, I’ll never get this done“, and on and on, make a conscious decision to change those thoughts. The new things you might tell yourself are, “I can handle this, I’m doing a good job, My contributions are important, I’m doing enough” After a while you will start to believe yourself.
6. Give out what you want to get back. If you are thinking, “I need help” then give help in whatever way you can to someone else. Try donating your used clothing to charity or participating in a walk to raise awareness if that is your thing. It will raise your self esteem and get you out of the victim mode.