Stresses in our lives cannot only weigh on our minds, it can also wear heavily on our bodies. When stress pops up in your life, it’s imperative that you have good, healthy ways to deal with that stress to avoid illness and promote general well-being.
Positive Self-Talk – You’ve heard it a hundred times before: be nice to yourself. When issues arise in your life that you just don’t feel you can deal with, try taking a step back and re-think your thinking. Instead of saying, “I can’t deal with this.” change that negative thought into “I can do the best I can.” May seem easier said than done in the beginning, but just keep up the positive mantra and you’ll soon find yourself actually believing it.
Emergency Stress Stoppers – Often in our daily lives it can feel as if everything is just piling up on us and we can get overwhelmed. When this happens, it’s important to take a second and slow yourself down even when everything seems to be rushing around you. Two of the quickest ways to calm yourself down in the moment are to count to 10 before speaking with someone who causes you stress and to take a few deep, slow breaths. The slow breathing actually forces your heart rate down, therefore also lowering your blood pressure. Counting to 10 allows you to slow down and give yourself a chance to think and avoid saying anything you may regret or don’t really mean.
Finding Pleasure – When stress has you down, do something that lifts you up. Take up a hobby. Even if you only have a few minutes to work on it a day, make sure to take that time to do something for you that makes you happy and takes your mind off all the bad stuff.
Last but not least, do some Daily Relaxation – Learn to meditate. It may sound corny, and maybe even hard, but taking some time at the end of your day when you get home–before starting in on the laundry, making dinner, paying bills, etc–lie down, or sit in a chair with your feet firmly planted on the floor; close your eyes; breathe deeply; and focus on a peaceful image. Let yourself get lost in this space for a little while.
Remember, all those little things in your life that don’t seem important add up. You could be carrying more stress than you realize. Sweeney & Sweeney wishes you good health and well-being.