Stress Relief Tips to Help You Live Your Best Life

When I think of living a happy life, how to relieve stress is one of the first things that comes to my mind. Do you find yourself stressed often and easily? How do you respond to daily stressors as well as the bigger ones? Do you regret how you’ve reacted to stressful situations? Stress can cause high blood pressure, anxiety, depression, weight gain, hair loss, headaches, etc. Learning how to respond and manage stress is one of the key ingredients to living a happy, healthy life and fully enjoying the beauty of this world!

Your thoughts, not your world, cause your stress   -Wayne Dyer

I don’t view stress as a real, tangible thing, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist. Just because I can’t hold it in my hand, doesn’t make it any less real. If we can train our minds to process stressful information differently though, it’s a total game changer. Let’s take a look at a few ways we can change our minds, thereby changing our worlds.

Identifying What Triggers Your Stress

There are so many different stressors for different people- kids, health problems, finances, work, etc, the list could go on forever! The first step is identifying your top stressors, the things that you deal with the most on a daily basis. I recommend keeping a daily journal, or calendar, whatever you prefer to call it, if “journal” scares you into thinking you’re now keeping a diary! I have a calendar notebook that I write various things in daily, so it’s the perfect place for me to jot down notes. Start writing down when and what stresses you out, the things that cause you to react unpleasantly and negatively. This makes you more aware of what might trigger you, and then you can plan ahead and envision how you can respond differently next time. I’ve learned that my top stressor is when my 5-year-old misbehaves and gets aggressive/mean! Identifying my triggers and finding ways to improve the situation, as well as my response, has been key.

What is your current state of mind? Are you a ticking time bomb?!

It’s not only about what stresses you out though. The state of your mind, your inner being at the moment when something “stressful” happens makes a huge difference. If you haven’t slept well, haven’t eaten, haven’t had any time to connect in stillness. Being in that quiet time that you connect to the energy/source/higher power (whichever you prefer to identify it as) that flows through us all, a time to recharge and reboot makes a world of difference. You’ll already be “on edge” and more likely to react negatively to small stressors if you haven’t taken the time to care for yourself.

• Self-Care Helps You To Respond Rather Than React

It’s so important to take a small amount of time each day to recharge your mind so that you’ll have a calm place within to center yourself. Take care of yourself first, so that you can be your best self for those around you, as well as for your own mental and physical health. Otherwise, you never know what will be your next trigger- a tantrum from your child, the spilled milk, an angry driver, a look from your significant other! If you’re functioning at your best, then you’ll be ready and able to face your problems head-on, ready to respond, rather than react.

Perspective, Please

Will it matter in a month? You’ve probably heard the expression, if this problem won’t matter to you in 5 years, then don’t spend more than 5 minutes worrying about it. Try and remember this when something upsets you. Will this flat tire matter in a month? Likely, it will be fixed and be causing you no additional stress after the initial inconvenience. There’s really no need to get all upset and flustered over it, instead, think of what action needs to be done to fix the problem. Rather than focusing on how bad your luck seems, find out how to make the current problem better. Focus on a positive change and outcome, rather than how awful things are for you. Choose to see the opportunity instead of the obstacle. Remember, attitude and perspective are everything.

Train your mind to see the good in everything. Positivity is a choice. The happiness of your life depends on the quality of your thoughts -Marcandangel

Action can offset stressful situations. Finding a solution always helps resolve stress. Receive a bad grade? Make a plan to study an extra 30 minutes a day. Are the kids behaving badly? Find a new parenting technique and resolve to try it for a week. Receive a life-changing diagnosis? Make a plan with a doctor for your options, maybe even connect with someone else to help each other in your journey. Action and problem solving always help. If you just sit around complaining about how bad the situation is, nothing changes, so get up and get planning!

With just a few simple changes in the way you view, address and resolve stressful situations, you can be on your way to living a happier, healthier, less stressed life.

Remember These 4 Easy Tips:

1.) Identify Your Top Daily Stressors– Write down what and when you get stressed and what your reaction was. Use this as a tool to help identify what triggers you the most and make a plan to respond differently next time, and write down when you do respond the way you have envisioned. Practice makes perfect, imagining and writing down how you’d like to respond to something stressful is a powerful tool! Envision your change first.

2.) Take Care Of You– Make sure that you’re taking at least 5 minutes every morning, and ideally every late afternoon also, to quiet your mind and connect in that inner quiet space. Make time for healthy meals, snacks and adequate water intake daily. Prioritize whatever amount of sleep you can accomplish to help you feel your best. Taking these small steps daily helps keep your mind and body in a better state to handle stressful situations. You want to always be as primed as possible for positive responses to whatever life throws at you!

3.) Perspective– Remember to think if this will cause you stress in a month, a year or 5 years from now. There’s no need to lose your cool and cause yourself and those around you excessive worry, stress and negativity. Is it really life altering? And if it is, you can still access your calm, and process the situation in a way which brings you comfort rather than stress. Making a plan is the next step, remember that to keep your calm!

4.) Action– Rather than focusing on all that is stressful and going wrong, find a solution to help get back on track and make things better. Write down a list of things you need to do to fix/help whatever problem you’re facing, and then follow through. Action can dissolve stress in a very tangible way. Finding solutions and thinking of how to produce positive outcomes is a key step in whatever stress you’re facing.

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