Soothe stress in seven steps, naturally

Stress is a big factor in everyone’s life. Stress is also the major factor in triggering illness, heart problems and physical pain. How do you cope? What if you don’t want to take medication for it? Can you learn to relax and let go?

From personal experience, I can tell you, yes, you can and you probably don’t need to medicate yourself. While there’s nothing wrong with getting help from a doctor or psychologist if you need it, there are a few things you can try on your own that might make you feel much better.


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A lot of people don’t know that there are many kinds of stress. It’s not possible to be alive without experiencing some from time to time. Even GOOD things can cause stress - getting married, having a baby, graduating from college are all examples of good stresses that can still make you feel tired or anxious. Whatever the source, stress depresses the immune system, causes a rise in blood pressure and can give the opportunity for colds and flu to “getcha”. Here are some tips that can help you feel better and stay well:

1. Bump up your nutrients. Take a good multi-vitamin regularly and bump up your vitamin C to a minimum of 500-100 mg per day. A B-vitamin complex helps too. B’s and C are the first things your body uses up when you’re under stress.

2. Find comfort without the calories. Most people stress-eat when they’re upset. The wrong foods make it worse. Sugar depresses immunity for up to 6 hours after eating and bounces your blood sugar all over the map, which makes you moodier. Simple starches like bread, rice and pasta have a similar effect, since they’re broken down into sugars very quickly in the body. Go for the whole grain versions or have a cup of tea or a bowl of soup instead. Take some time to cook for yourself and enjoy the color and texture of the vegetables and fruits in season as you prepare your meal.

3. Slow down. As in the example above, paying attention to the simple, little, good things can make you feel a lot better. Engage your senses to calm rushing thoughts. Smell an orange as you peel it, or the crisp air of the first snowfall. Even at work, you can usually make an excuse to step outside for even a minute and see, smell or touch something in the “real” world.

4. Get out in nature and exercise. Stress can convince you you’re “too tired” even though you’ve been sitting in a chair all day. In order to calm your brain, you’ve got to let that pent up energy out. If hitting the gym feels too intimidating, a walk is just fine. Going with a friend can do you both a favor - you’ll get a nice stretch and improve your social network too - a key ingredient in reducing stress.

5. Spend time with people you like and who like you. Reinforcing the positive traits in yourself can really help you feel better, especially if you’re working in a hostile environment.

6. Ask yourself What can I do to improve about my situation? and then go do it. Get help if you need to, but nothing makes you feel better than making progress out of a bad situation. If the answer seems overwhelming, break it down into small steps.

7. Practice progressive relaxation, meditation and/or yoga. All of these activities release chemicals in the brain that calm you down.

  • Progressive relaxation can be very simple: Lying down or sitting in a chair, close your eyes and take a few deep slow breaths. Imagine a gentle wave lapping over your toes and feet, soothing your tension away and say to yourself “Toes and feet, relax.”. Repeat this throughout your whole body from toes to head.
  • A basic meditation technique is to find a comfortable position you can sit in for at least 15 minutes. Then, just follow your breath as it moves in and out of your nose. Let go of thoughts as soon as you notice you’re thinking them and just go back to breathing. Start with 5 minutes if 15 seems too hard and work your way up. Practice every day and you’ll soon be feeling a lot calmer and more in control.
  • Yoga is best learned in a class, but these days there are great classes on the internet. A lot of cable channels have exercise classes on demand as well. You can also buy tapes for a relaxation practice called Yoga Nidra, which is a lot like progressive relaxation, that can really help calm your mind and body. It really worked for me.

Breathe, laugh a little every day and make a point of treating yourself well and you can soon be on your way to feeling better. One of the things I learned is that I have a choice about how I respond to stress. I used the techniques above to get myself through some rough times and now they’re the first things I turn to. You don’t have to stay feeling overwhelmed and upset. You do have a choice. Try some of these and start soothing your stress.



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