A human regardless of the gender, age, economic class, location and occupation experience some changes or situations that his body naturally reacts to – Stress. But how do we manage stress?
According to Wikipedia, stress is an organism’s response to a stressor such as an environmental condition. To human beings, stress is a feeling of physical or emotional tension. It is your body’s reaction to a challenge or demand which can come from any event or thought which consequentially makes you feel nervous, angry and ultimately, frustrated.
Stress as much as it sounds negative is a normal part of life. It is one of the things that makes us human. Different ways in which you can experience stress include your environment (people and places), your body, thoughts, and circumstances.
Your body is designed to experience stress, making stress unavoidable. However, there is a need to find your way around managing it.
Here are 7 effective tips to help you manage stress.
1. Worry less about things you can’t control
When you are faced with unpleasant situations, either at your workplace or at home, accepting that there are events that you cannot control will help reduce the stress on your mind. in reality, there are many things you don’t have control over.
You can’t control your boss’ attitude, you can’t control your colleague’s behaviour towards you and you also can’t control how other people feel about you.
Sometimes, the only thing you can control is your effort and attitude. The more focus you place on things you can control, the more productive, effective and happy you will be.
2. Regular exercise
Any movement that makes your muscles work, causing you to burn calories is a form of exercise. To mention a few, the forms of physical activities that can be termed as exercise include: jogging, running, walking and dancing.
There is no limit to the benefits of being physically active, it may even help you live longer. Other benefits that come with exercise include:
- It makes you feel happy
- It increases your energy level
- Reduces the risk of chronic diseases
- Improves brain health and memory
- And more importantly, it reduces stress
Your body can fight stress better when it is fit. So, be sure to exercise regularly!
3. Make time for interests and hobbies
Because of our packed schedules, many of us don’t have time for hobbies. Meanwhile, going through our daily activities for a long period of time without finding time to do the things we actually love is bad. So much that we lose track of time while doing these so-called daily activities which may result in a nervous breakdown.
So, the next time you feel stressed out, find time to do the things you’ve perceived to improve your mood and make you feel happy.
4. Set boundaries appropriately
To maintain a balanced life, it is highly important to set boundaries. The idea is to know and understand your own limit, know what triggers your stress, and what workload you can tolerate.
This is not to encourage laziness or mediocrity but to not be too hard on yourself if you are unable to manage everything perfectly all the time.
Also, try as much as possible to set boundaries on things you should say yes or no to. Avoid taking on more responsibilities thank you can actually handle, just so you can please someone.
Making attempts to navigate a lifestyle that is choked up with activities beyond what your limit will increase stress. However, being able to set healthy boundaries will help you maintain the right balance in your schedules and in your life.
5. Leverage on social support
We all have that set of persons in our lives who spending some time with means forgetting all worries and stress-related issues. that kind of person could be a member of your family, your spouse, a close friend or a neighbour.
It could even be a colleague. It is also important to make friends at work, people you can turn to while at work to relieve stress.
Reaching out for social support could mean you making a call to someone after you’ve had a bad day, finding time to pay them a visit or inviting them to come spend some time at your place.
The problem with some people is that they feel insecure about sharing their difficult situation with others. However, as humans, we naturally feel better when we are able to talk about the issues bothering us. Talking about what is causing you stress is one of the effective ways to manage it.
6. Eat right
You must have heard of this popular quote:
“You are what you eat”.
This means that in order to be healthy and fit, you need to eat well. One thing you should understand is that what you eat can have a great impact on your stress levels.
Most times, we get swallowed up in activities that we skip meals. What we eat, as proven by studies can have a significant impact on your overall wellbeing. Another saying goes thus:
“Eat to live, don’t live to eat”.
It is equally important to avoid gluttony. This is because too much weight than what the body can carry will stress the muscles and this can lead to tiredness, laziness, and irritation.
Obviously, malnutrition and gluttony are detrimental to human’s health – which is a determinant of stress level. Do well to watch what you eat.
7. Sleep well
The importance of sleep in human life cannot be overemphasized. Sleep plays a significant role in the mental and physical health of a person. The benefits of a lifestyle with good quality sleep include emotional wellbeing, improved brain functioning, personal safety, and improved daytime performance. When we sleep, our brains get to recharge and our body is able to refresh.
However, when we deprive our bodies of the amount of sleep it requires, we are prone to memory loss, poor judgment, and bad mood. With all the unending benefits of sleep, you can never go wrong relieving stress with timely and quality sleep.
Conclusion
Highlighted above are a few lifestyle choices you can make to manage stress. This can help you to manage situations and maintain a well balanced physical and mental health condition throughout your lifetime.
If by any means, you think you are experiencing overwhelming stress, please seek medical professionals for help.
