We all know what it feels like to stress out and have tons of anxiety in our lives. Whether it’s because of a family matter or a big project you have coming up at work, stress isn’t good for anybody’s mental or physical health. There are tons of negative things that happen to our bodies and minds whenever we are filled with that stress. For example, you have an increased risk for a heart attack when you experience stress on a daily basis. For this reason and more, you should make sure that you’re figuring out how to cope with your stress and everything else that comes along with that anxiety.
But how do you do that? Sure, there are so many self-help articles on the Internet that you can read. But this can get pretty overwhelming! That’s why we’re here to give you some of the top ways (backed by science) that will help you cope with your stress and its vices. Keep reading down below to learn more and start the destressing process.
1. Get Up Earlier Than Everyone
This first point might seem like one that would stress you out even more, but getting up earlier in the day has been shown to lead to a huge increase in productivity and decrease in your stress levels. You see, when you get up earlier in the day, this means that you’re going to be able to get your work done earlier. When you finish up your work before noon because you woke up so early, you’re going to have the rest of the day to pursue activities that you are interested in. For example, you’re going to have more time to hit the gym and work off that stress. Or you can have more time to spend with your friends and family.
So many CEOs and leaders have said that waking up early is one of their keys to being successful and part of that success has come from the reduced stress they gained. So, what are you waiting for? Set that alarm for super early in the morning and see how it can help you.
2. Have A Regular Exercise Routine
So many studies have shown the health benefits that come with working out and exercising on a regular basis. No matter what kind of exercise you do – whether that be swimming or hitting the gym – you’re going to be releasing tons of stress whenever you do this. And there’s plenty of science to back this up as well. The chemicals that are released into your body in the form of endorphins from exercise are going to give you a huge boost of positivity throughout the day.
Combining this with the above point, why not try to get your work out in when you wake up early? This is going to give your day a huge boost when you already have that workout in.
3. Don’t Check Your Email as Much
One of the first things that someone will tell you whenever you ask how to reduce stress in your life is to stop checking your email as much. Your email is widely known to be a huge cause for stress in our lives because of the continuous stream of mail that we receive throughout the day. And this happens at any time of the day! If you are in the habit of waking up in the morning and checking your email on your phone before you even get out of bed, this is definitely contributing to your stress levels. The same goes if you stay awake well past your bed-time, checking those late night emails. This can be seriously bad for your health and even causes migraines in some cases.
Try to get into the habit of only checking your emails whenever you are at work and only during a specific period of time.
4. Forget About Wishful Thinking
Many people think that the best way of thinking throughout the day is to continuously keep a positive mindset. We’re always told to envision what we dream to be and aim for that big goal, no matter what. However, many people are now saying that this might be contributing to your stress and anxiety levels. When you hold this high vision of yourself, you are continuously comparing your current status to that dream. And of course, because it’s a dream, you’re never actually going to achieve exactly that.
A better way of going about things is to take a look at what you would like to improve in your life, one by one, and work at those points individually. Then, before you know it, you might have achieved that dream status.
5. Get More Omega-3 Fatty Acids in Your Diet
It’s been shown in numerous studies that daily stress in your life has a huge link to inflammation in your body, which is no good for your health and wellness. Try to add foods like flax seeds, salmon, and chia seeds into your diet to give your body a boost of omega-3 fatty acids. These nutrients have been shown to help reduce that inflammation and help you cope with stress in that way. This will help to make your stress system a whole lot more flexible and ensure that you’re not worrying about your inflammation, while you’re handling your chronic stress.
6. Practice Mindfulness On a Daily Basis
One of the biggest factors that has led to a decrease in stress levels for many people is practicing mindfulness on a daily basis. Whether this is through meditation or just keeping your mind in the present for 10 minutes every day, this is an important part of keeping that stress away. When you’re not being mindful of where you are the present moment, you’re more likely to think too much about negative things that happened in the past and what you want to achieve in the future. Being in the present is much more effective than those other two options.
7. Hug Someone!
That’s right! Besides just being nice, a hug between two people has been shown to make you feel more positive and relieve stress. That’s because there are chemicals that go off in the brain whenever you are in close contact with another human. Those chemicals help to make you feel better and more positive about life. So, get hugging!
8. Unplug from Your Devices Every Once in A While
One of the biggest stressors in our lives are the electronics and social media networks that we are constantly plugged into. This has many contributions to our stress levels. For example, when we are constantly looking at our phones at work, we won’t get enough work done. Therefore, we stay longer at work and cause more stress at home. Add to that the comparison you are consistently doing between your life and the lives of the people in your social networks and it’s the perfect storm for increased anxiety levels. Try to unplug from your devices once every week to keep this from happening.
All of these points are great ways to cope with your stress levels and bring them down to a healthy level. Sure, you’re going to stress every now and then, but if you practice these methods, that stress is going to have a much lower effect on your physical and mental health levels.
