Here's 35 ways to Relieve, Avoid And Reduce stress:
Into each life some stress must fall. But when "some" turns into "too much", try a few of these stress building tips.
Stress can be related to unhappy or happy events. It can be triggered by trivial matters as well as major life crises. It also builds up gradually when you have more things to do than time in which to do them. Some doctors believe that 90% of all illnesses are stress related. But stress is not necessarily bad. A life without it would be stagnant and boring.
There are many practical ways to avoid, reduce or relieve stress.
Relieving Stress:
- Touch - hold hands, stroke a pet, hug someone you love. Physical contact is one of the best stress relievers there is.
- Find fun ways that are enjoyable to exercise. Breathe deep, stretch your muscles often, skip rope, go for a bike ride, jog - do something active and fun.
- Get things that are troubling off your chest. Bottling up feelings increase stress. Feel free to rant or complain, express your disappointment, if someone hurts your feelings, tell them.
- Talk to an understanding friend or loving relative. A sympathetic listener can be quite helpful. They become "band-aid friends". A band-aid friend helps prevent you from bleeding to death. You must find one if you don't already have one!
- Schedule more fun. Don't give up seeing friends and doing the things you enjoy because you "have too much to do." Work goes faster and produces less stress when fun is a part of your life.
- Get a Massage. Treat yourself and notice your tension melt away under the touch of experienced fingers. Even a talented amateur such as a friend can do a great job.
- Prepare yourself to be patient and wait. Long lines anywhere or a delay at the dentist's office is almost pleasant with a great book in hand.
- Find the Humor in everything. Every disaster has something funny about it.
- Lower your standards to be more relaxed. Doing everything perfectly is not only unnecessary, it's boring. Ignore some of the dirt.
- Get help with jobs you struggle with. Whether it's paying bills, defrosting the refrigerator, cleaning out the oven...whatever it is, beg, barter or pay someone to help; it's worth it.
- Establish a Serene Island of your own - a comfortable chair in a corner will do, or get propped up in bed with a book or watch some TV.
- Change your perspective. This can be tricky, but instead of worrying about what will happen if, try asking yourself "So what?" So what if a birthday gift is late. Late is better than never. Even if our worst fears are realized, they often turn out to be not as bad as we perceived or thought.
- Count your blessings. No disaster is so bad that it couldn't be worse - it truly helps to remember that in any bad situation.
- Unclutter your life. Get rid of things you never use; activities you don't enjoy. Anything you can do to simplify your life helps reduce stress.
- Pamper Yourself.
- Get plenty of rest and sleep; our body and mind need this to recoup.
- Learn to use relaxation techniques.
- Find a new hobby. Or, if you have one you gave up on, try getting involved with it again.
- Search the Internet for good joke websites that contain a variety of funny jokes, funny pictures and funny videos. You can use the Google search embedded on this blog (near the top right corner) for funny jokes galore or whatever you feel in the mood for that you think will make you laugh. If you haven't seen the most hilarious, funniest Maxine jokes, you must see them. You can see some of them if you click here. I hope you get a huge laugh as I and so many others have and still do.
- Try getting up earlier in the morning. Give yourself an extra 15 minutes to help avoid morning mishaps.
- Prepare for morning the night before. This way you will not be scrambling in the morning and feel rushed to get prepared for your day.
- Never wear ill or tight fitting clothes. Shoes that pinch or a waistband that binds can be bothersome and stressful all day.
- Don't rely on your memory. Practice making notes for yourself on things to do and remember.
- Practice preventative maintenance. Keep automobiles, heaters, air conditioners, washers, dryers, etc., cleaned and serviced. You'll find you'll have fewer breakdowns.
- Make duplicates of all keys. Exchange house and car keys with a trusted neighbor or hide them where you alone can get to them.
- Say 'No" more often. Learn to turn down invitations, requests and activities you have no interest in; without feeling bad or guilty.
- Walk everywhere you can. Exercise has a soothing effect.
- Play games with your kids if you have any, or loved ones such as trusting family members. Make up new games or change up the game rules on an existing game to add some spunk. It's creative and can be very humorous for all.
- Trust your irritation level.
- Be patient.
- Take one step at a time.
- There are unlimited options.
- Coping skills are learned so they can be changed.
- Increase your available skills.
- Self-responsibility is required.
Ways to Avoid Stress:
Points to Remember:
Live your life to its fullest (Carpe diem - a phrase from a Latin poem by Horace that has become an aphorism. It is popularly translated as "seize the day". Carpe literally means "to pick, pluck, pluck off, cull, crop, gather", but Ovid used the word in the sense of, "to enjoy, seize, use, make use of".
(Source of the above last paragraph on Carpe Diem: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carpe_diem)
Please feel free to comment and share your thoughts on this topic. I'm sure you have more Stress reducers you can add to this list. There's plenty of ways to reduce stress, it's just a matter of finding what works for you.
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