There are many reasons for our bodies to get stressed and anxious, whether it is work, home life or you’re just sweating the small stuff, there is always something to raise our anxiety levels. However, there are ways to help reduce and manage these unwelcome feelings. Here are some of our best tips:
Try to include physical activity in your weekly routine.
Whilst you may not feel like it in the moment, moving your body on a consistent basis can help to improve both your mood and mental health. Studies have shown that regular exercise, even something as gentle as going for a short walk a couple of times a week can reduce stress levels and common mental health problems, like anxiety and depression. If you start out with an easy mode of exercise, you are also more likely to be able to stick it in your routine and improve your mood more frequently.
Try breathing techniques.
A lot of the time when our bodies get stressed, we encounter a fight-or-flight response, which triggers certain physical symptoms, for example faster heartbeat, quicker breathing and constricted blood vessels. Deep breathing exercises have been proven to activate your parasympathetic nervous system which helps to trigger a relaxation response.
The goal of deep breathing is to focus your awareness on your breath, making it slower and deeper. When you breathe in deeply through your nose, your lungs fully expand, and your belly rises. This helps slow your heart rate, allowing you to feel at peace.
Take a yoga class
Yoga is a common stress relief for many and coming to a class that will help you focus on your own movement and mindfulness for an hour or so a week can really help to take your mind off your worries. On top of that, joining a community of people who are all about improving their mindsets and focusing on the feelings of their body and breath work, can only be a good thing to helping you on your journey to destress and take time to work on you.
Spend time in the outdoors.
Going out into nature and open spaces has been proven to be a great way to manage stress and anxiety. A study found that if you spend as little as 10 minutes in a green setting it can help to improve psychological and physiological markers of mental well-being, including perceived stress and happiness.
Make time for your family and friends.
When we are at our lowest, sometimes the last thing we want to do is to socialise and see people, however a lot of the time our social support system can improve our mood and reduce our stress and anxiety. Keeping things bottled inside is never good for mental health.
A study also showed that people without this kind of support system were more likely to suffer depressive episodes than those who did have it. So, when you’re feeling down make sure to try and give people a call, even if you don’t feel like it, it will probably end up making you feel a lot better.
Hopefully these tips will come in handy the next time you are under some mental stress and aid in making you feel a bit lighter and more in control.