How to Manage Stress

Stress is an outside of factor of our lives that tend t take over who we are, even if we do not want it to. We tend to not achieve the goals that we have set for ourselves due to being stressed out at work or in our own personal lives. Understanding how stress impacts you is important and being able to cope and manage it is very important. In this blog, I will identify ways for you to manage your stress and not feel overwhelming stressed out daily.

• Avoid caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol
  None of these things are going to make you feel better. In reality they might make you feel good in the moment, but they will not add benefit to your life after. Being able to stay away from these items when you are stressed can help decrease a lot of your emotions and help you manage how you are feeling.
• Physical activity
  A great ways to relax is to get some physical activity. Going for a walk or quick run can be helpful. A yoga class. A spin class. Anything that can get you going and get your adrenaline pumping. Even if it is just for 20 minutes. That 20 minutes is better than zero.
• Sleep, sleep, sleep
  Getting the rest you and need and sometimes even getting more of the rest you need is important. Making sure you are getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep a night is very important. If you can get more sleep a night, then that is ok too. Having less sleep for consecutive nights is not healthy and can add more stress to your daily life.
• Relaxation techniques
  Engaging in deep breathing exercises or mindfulness. This can help you focus and identify what are the bigger core issues that are causing your stress and can help you nip them in the bud
• Talk to someone
  Utilize your support network. Using people around you to help bounce off ideas. Using people to help distract you from things that are going on in your mind. Your friends and family are there and are looking for the best in you. Use them when you need them.
• Journal
  Take a few minutes a day to process what happened in your day. Journal about the good that happened in your day, as there are so many negatives happening in our daily lives. Focus on the positives and the good stuff.
• Take control
  You are in control of your emotions and life — so take over the drivers wheel. You get to decide how you are going to feel (most of the time) and thinking in a positive way, when possible, can lead to less stress and manageable stress too.
• Manage time
  We always say “I wish there were more hours in the day”. We have 24 hours in a day, which in reality is a lot of time. learning how to manage your time is important and how to prioritize what is important too.
• Say “no”
  People are always available to do things, but you have to be able to say “no” to things at times of high stress. Not everyone is on the same page, and so being able to focus on you and identifying what is best for you is very important.
• Rest when sick
  If you are not feeling well, listen to your body! If your body says rest, then you rest. Your body knows best, and you might be over stimulating yourself and you need to slow down. Rest if you need to-IT IS OK!

If you feel like you are struggling with managing stress, feel free to contact any of our talented therapists. We are all here to better support you and help you go through life in a better way.