Stress is a natural part of life. It doesn’t matter where you live, whom you share your life with, what type of family you have, or what you do for a living. No matter how hard you try to avoid it stress is going to find a way into your life.
The idea isn’t to live without any stress, there are certain levels that are actually pretty good for us. While you can avoid stress for some time, you can’t avoid it all together. Sooner or later, the stress of life will come knocking on our door and it is up to us to find a way to deal with it.
There are standard ways to deal with stress and then there are some methods that might not be the first thing that comes to mind but work well, and for the most part, are easy to access. Here are three alternate ways to de-stress.
IMAGE: PEXELS
1. Write It Down
Journaling has been known to do wonders for mental health. Stress reduction is one of the primary benefits when writing your feelings down. The best part about this method is- it’s inexpensive and easy to do. All you need is a writing device and ten free minutes.
We realize that days get busy and ten free minutes might not be easy to come by, but if you can’t take ten minutes to write down some feelings, then it shouldn’t be a surprise that stress is wreaking havoc on your life.
You don’t have to follow any rules. Just try to make a habit of writing it down. If you aren’t a writer that’s okay. No one has to see or read this. You can write it on loose leaf paper and shred it when you are done.
And, as for what you write, that’s up to you too. Some people like to write a gratitude journal and I can honestly say they work wonders. You can write down any problems you might be having. Don’t be surprised if you find a way to solve them while journaling.
2. Try Aromatherapy
This is a practice in which essential oils are used to solve a myriad of problems including stress. Essential oils can be used in several ways including inhaling and topical application. There are many essential oils that relieve stress including some reviewed here at Better Mind Body Soul.
One of the best ways to use aromatherapy to relieve stress is to inhale their unique scents, which is why it’s called aromatherapy. You can use an ultrasonic or nebulizing diffuser in your home, but there are cautions that come with this practice so educate yourself.
Some scents that are great for relieving stress include bergamot, chamomile, rose, vetiver, ylang-ylang, and lavender. You can also apply them topically to an area of your body that holds a lot of stress like your shoulders. Be sure to dilute them well with a carrier substance before putting any essential oils on your skin.
3. Take A Break
This is a pretty general term, but it applies to so many areas of life. Let’s take a closer look at one area of life that can be all-consuming, social media. Whether you spend hours on Facebook or look at Instagram only on your lunch break, these sites which are intended to keep us well connected cause us a lot of stress.
We see our friend living happy lives, and from that viewpoint, it can start to feel like we are the only ones with any problems, which couldn’t be further from the truth. Social media users might compare their lives to others, feel like they’re missing out on something, take on the stress they read from other’s posts, or get sucked up into pointless political debates that don’t go anywhere.
Take a break from social media. Turn it off. Disappear from the World Wide Web. Not only will you lessen your stress, but you’ll also be missed, and people will wonder what is so interesting in your life that kept you from posting a picture of your breakfast.
This term, “take a break” can apply to anything. If your stress is job-related, take a day off. If your family is dysfunctional and they drain you of energy, get out of the house for the day. Maybe you are studying a lot for the finals. Take ten minutes to read something not school related.
You’ll be amazed at how easy taking a break is and the wonders it can do. While you take this break, you can listen to music, read a book, tend to your garden, do yoga, or meditate, which are also wonderful stress relieving activities.
Conclusion
Relieving stress is important for our overall health and well-being. As we said earlier, it doesn’t matter if you are a stay at home mom or a top-tier executive. You can live in the city or in the suburbs and stress will still find a way into your life.
How you handle that stress is completely up to you. Luckily, the techniques we’ve mentioned are easy to obtain and don’t take very long to apply to your daily routine.
If you are interested in even more lifestyle-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels then we have a lot to choose from.
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