Stress: everybody has it, nobody wants it. Thankfully, there are simple things that we can do that have powerful influence on our body, hormones, and stress levels. Negative stress can keep you from feeling and performing your best — mentally, physically and emotionally. But no one’s life is completely stress-free. It’s important to know how to manage the stress in your life. Try some of the below ways and notice how they can contribute in reducing your stress levels.
1. Eat Foods That Reduce Stress
Poor diets full of processed foods, grains, sugars, and chemicals put a tremendous stress on the body. For a stress-reducing diet, focus on getting your nutrients from fresh, real foods in as close to their natural source as possible. Drink a lot of water and also avoid caffeine. Caffeine is a stimulant that increases adrenaline in the body, the very hormone you are looking to reduce.
2. Get Enough Sleep
Historically, the body is used to sleeping when it is dark and being awake when it is light. When we stay awake long after the sun has set and don’t get enough cumulative sleep, we interrupt the body’s natural time for restoration and removal of toxins. The optimal time for regeneration during sleep is roughly between 10 P.M. and 2 A.M. Many people don’t sleep during part or all of this time, causing a backup of toxins and hormones in the body. Poor sleep can also (logically) lead to fatigue, brain fog, memory troubles, and additional stress on the body.
3. Exercise, Even If It’s Just a Little
Exercise is really helpful in reducing stress in the body. It releases endorphins, helps the body regulate insulin, and improves hormone levels. Exercise also boosts your immune function and helps the body use up excess stress hormones.
4. Stop checking your electronics and social media regurarly
When you really take a step back and see how much time you spend looking at your phone and computer, it can be pretty eye-opening. And alarming. Surveys have shown that checking electronic devices causes stress. Completely axing social media may not be something you want or even need to do to stay social media stress-free, studies show quitting Facebook for as little as 5 days can lower your stress levels.
5. Breath
Breathing is our basic anti-stress tool, available at all times. Deep breathing is one of the best ways to lower stress in the body. The Vagus nerve is key to sending messages of peace and relaxation swiftly through the body. When you breathe deeply and not just into the top third of our lungs, your diaphragm pulls on the Vagus nerve. This normally only happens when you’re not stressed, so creates the message ‘I’m feeling relaxed’.
When you breathe deeply and not just into the top third of our lungs, your diaphragm pulls on the Vagus nerve. This normally only happens when you’re not stressed, so creates the message ‘I’m feeling relaxed’.
6. Use Lavender
Believe it or not, the smell of lavender can promote quick stress and anxiety relief. Mix about 5 drops of lavender oil in your bath or diffuse a few drops of it into the air when you are feeling stressed out. You can even have a small pouch of lavender next to your night stand.
7. Herbal teas
Herbal teas are a natural way of helping us release stress. Valerian herbs and Chamomile are the most easy to find and have a trememdous effect to calm us.
Valerian herbs have been used throughout the world to help treat anxiety and insomnia. It is one of the most well-known remedies and promotes feelings of tranquility and peace.
Chamomile will help relax muscles, calm nerves, reduce anxiety and help with insomnia. It also improves digestion and decreases headaches.
8. Meditation
Meditation can help to slow racing thoughts, making it easier to manage stress and anxiety.
9. Writing
Some research suggests that journaling and other forms of writing can help people to cope better with anxiety. Keeping a journal, especially a gratitude journal, can have a huge impact on your stress levels.
10. Spending time in nature
Several smaller based studies suggest that spending time outdoors, camping, hiking, anything really, can relieve stress. Spending time outside probably means you’re getting some vitamin D, aka the sunshine vitamin. Vitamin D plays a huge roll in how you feel. Low vitamin D levels are linked to higher instances of depression and fatigue so try to get some sun each day.
