Stress

Stress is a five letter word full of power. The rat-race competition, technology, busyness have increased the stress of life.  This emotional strain or tension triggered by adverse or demanding circumstances has invaded everyone in our planet and is invading everyone at different levels. Stress is very individual. What may be stressful to one person is nothing compared to another person. A change in your daily schedule may cause you stress but it may mean nothing to your officemate. Stress if not handled properly may devastate a person leading to suicide attempts or loss of sanity in extreme cases. It is thus essential to deal with stress the moment you feel it crouching inside of you.

To relive your body of stress, you need to move your body. One strategy to relieve a person from stress is yoga. Yoga relaxes the mind and also helps to relieve the tension in the body. If you are not into yoga, any form of movement can have the same result. Jogging or walking will clear your mind from nagging thoughts and ease your muscles.  

 

You need to avoid stressors – people or circumstances that give you stress.  We may not admit it but sometimes we unwittingly create our own stress. We surround ourselves in stressful situations or surround ourselves with stressful people. Stress can be easily self-induced; thus, can easily be remedied.  If you are constantly stressed you need to make improvements in your situation. For instance, if deadlines and appointments stress you out, give yourself plenty of time to get to your destination or complete your project.

Notice how you breathe.  By simply minding how you breathe can minimize your stress.  Taking deep, slow breaths can slow you down physically and mentally.

Huge goals can cause stress.  To avoid stress but still achieve your goal, try using the “divide and rule” technique.  The mere thought of the amount of work to be done in a day causes undue stress.  Compartmentalize these tasks and accomplish them one at a time.  For instance, lump home errands together and office work together.  Prioritize and start doing the work accordingly.  When we're able to break things down into smaller pieces, the smaller pieces become more manageable; thus, less stressful.

One of the best remedy to break stress is to seek balance. All work and no play will turn you into a dull person.  You need to relax to gain more energy to accomplish what you need to do. Relaxation gives your brain a break and helps you re-focus. Relaxation may even give you a better perspective, opening new ideas and better solutions.

 

Do not be unnecessarily over burdened.  You only need to raise a hand or ask for help and help will be on its way gladly. Do not try to do everything by yourself.  Ask someone to help you or use technology to your advantage instead of technology causing you stress. Use your smart phone to remind you of appointments. I have a friend whose phone rings every 30 minutes in the morning to remind her of her schedules in the morning. Again, stress is individual; some people may find this annoying but this helps my friend keep her mind on other tasks because she knows her phone will ring to remind her that she needs to move on to another task.

Do not be worried if you catch yourself talking your stress out.  In fact, positive self talk will boost your morale.  Tell yourself, “I can handle this!” When you agree and believe that you can do whatever you need to do, stress is left at bay.

 

Though I love this quote, "Stressed is Desserts spelled backwards", we should not take it too literally and indulge to bulge.  Deal with stress the right way and live a healthy life.