How to Manage Stress

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Let’s get this off my chest first. I’m definitely nowhere near perfect with managing my stress. I still struggle with stress management sometimes. However, in comparison to when I was younger, there is a vast improvement in how it’s managed and I’ve recognised allowing myself to “burn out” is not the healthiest.  

Stress is inevitable in life, everyone will endure this, and it’s not all bad. It shows that you’ve recognised the situation you are in requires urgent attention and actioning. It’s better than being a bum and letting life run past you. But know that you have the power to change this situation. Sometimes stress can help you get things done, focus better and work harder. It's when it's a long-term thing which hinders your daily life to a significant degree that it becomes truly damaging and may need to seek some professional help.

Based on personal experience, here are some of my tips on stress management:

Have a check list

It showcases what needs to be completed and helps you organise your priorities. As you begin to tick off things, it’ll make you feel better.  Having everything listed in plain sight may also make your tasks seem less daunting, often we can overthink checklists in our head.

Complete the easy tasks

If something is quick and easy to tick off, do it now, don’t procrastinate.  The time it takes to remind yourself to do it later, you probably could have done it already. 

Understand your body

Don’t allow yourself to burn out. Know when your body needs a rest - mentally and physically. Being constantly tired won’t make you productive.  However, be careful not to use this as an excuse not to action what’s on your checklist.

Positive mindset

Being constantly negative will get you nowhere, and will just drain you further which contributes to heightened stress levels. If you know you are a negative thinker make a conscious effort to change your attitude and the way you think when you are presented with different situations.

Complain less and do more

The time and energy you spend complaining will lead to further stress, where those two factors could have been used efficiently elsewhere.  Channel that energy into focusing on getting your work done.

Time management

Our mind always tells us “so much to do, so little time”, it’s not far from the truth but this mentality contributes to the build up of stress. Our mind plays tricks on us making us believe we are constantly out of time and so we stress out. However, we can take control of this, just use your time more efficiently, don’t waste it. Believe it or not, but some drafts of my blog posts have been written on the train because my commute to and from work is two hours. That’s a decent amount of time to get things done, so I make sure I use it wisely. 

Reward yourself

After checking off some tasks, take a break and reward yourself. Whether that be watching an episode of your favourite Netflix show, going out to eat with some friends or having some happy time - just give yourself a time out from your checklist. 

Engage in physical activity

You may think that exerting energy in this way will make you tired and as a result, contribute to more stress. But exercising can actually act as a stress reliever because it’s like meditation in motion, you are focusing more on your body rather than mind, so it helps take away your worries.  Physical activity also increases your endorphins which simply means the chemicals in your brain are increased, making you feel good.  Most of the time after my workouts, I feel energised and have an urge to be productive. 

Vent

There’s no need to hold onto what you’re feeling. It’s okay to voice your thoughts to someone who is an active listener. It could be the start to relieving the stress. If you are overwhelmed with your checklist, talking to someone can help you work through your list and if they are an extra supportive friend or partner, they might even be willing to take some tasks off your hand.  

Ask for help

We are human, you can’t do everything yourself. Put that pride aside and don’t be afraid to ask for help.  As mentioned briefly above, talking to someone might also trigger them to want to help out.  I’m sure your family and friends will put their hand up if they can but if they don’t know what’s on your plate then how can they help?

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