How To Destress Your Mind and Body

Over the last few years, stress has become the most talked about topic in social circles around the world. Everyone you talk to claims to be undergoing some kind of stress on a daily basis. The pressure to perform at the workplace, do well in academics, issues with raising a family, struggling with some sickness, or simply not being able to cope with the challenges of day to day life are just some of the innumerable causes that are causing stress to people all over the world.

That is exactly why we are looking at the sudden surge in the number of distressing centres who claim to take away all your worries helping you lead a peaceful life. However, we can’t just destress ourselves unless we know what is causing it in the first place.

Do you know stress is of two kinds; good and bad? Good stress is healthy and helps us focus when there’s a challenge before us. It motivates us and engages all our energy towards meeting the challenge. And then there is a bad stress that kills us slowly. It causes mental, physical, and emotional pain that can lead to devastating results. Depression, issues with appetite, poor digestion, weight-loss are just some of the aftereffects of stress.

It is extremely important to handle stress as soon as possible and you can do it yourself by taking charge of your own self. Try the following ways to manage your stress and you will experience instant relief and happiness.

Identify situations that trigger stress

1. Identify situations that trigger stress: The first step to finding a solution to a problem is to identify the problem itself. Identify the situations that stress you. How do you react to them? Where does this stress lead you to? What effect does it have on your body? Analyse all these questions and try to answer them. If there is/are some situations that you can’t control, accept them. Tell yourself that you will not stress over things or situations that are out of your control.

Go outdoors and exercise

2. Go outdoors and exercise: Any kind of physical activity like walking, running, swimming, biking has an amazing effect on our body and mind. The positivity increases manifold when we venture outdoors in the midst of nature. Even if you’ve never exercised before, just decide on moving your body every day in one form or other and do it outdoors.

Meditate

3. Meditate: Meditation has long been considered an invaluable tool for tackling stress. To practice meditation, simply find a quiet place inside or outside your home, close your eyes, and focus on your breathing. Focusing on the cycle of inhaling and exhaling will slowly take you into the inner realms of your being. It will be difficult to meditate and focus initially. Don’t lose heart. When your mind distracts you, and it will- simply return to the exercise. Slowly, and with practice, you will be able to increase the duration of meditating without distraction.

Eat well

4. Eat well: This is a no-brainer and yet most of us either neglect our food habits completely or do not pay enough attention to them. In other words, we do not eat mindfully. Mindful eating is being conscious about what we put in our mouth and then focusing on chewing it properly so that it digests well and nourishes our body instead of just filling it up. Eat only those foods that are light on our body, fill us up quickly, and have nutritional value in them. Certain foods like onion, garlic, meats, and even select pulses are known to aggravate stress in the human body. Avoid them and see if it makes any difference.

Sleep Properly

5. Sleep Properly: An obvious factor again but most of us in this age do not sleep well and for the recommended 8 hours. Our busy lifestyle, eating late at night, addiction to gadgets, lack of exercise leads us to not experience deep sleep. Lack of adequate sleep on a daily basis supplements bad stress. To sleep properly, have a fixed time to go to bed every day and follow it religiously. Before going to bed, take a hot shower or simply wash your feet in warm water. It has a calming effect. Drink warm milk and read something positive from a book (not kindle). All these aids allow for better sleeping patterns and you will soon see your stress weaning out.

Most of our bad stress can be from the unhealthy and wrong choices we’ve made for ourselves. Luckily, by taking charge of the situation, focusing on the problematic areas, and cultivating healthy habits, we can ward off our stress permanently and lead a happy and healthy life.

At Transcend Health we tailor our exercise programs to suit your needs, and health objectives, which can focus on stress reduction and improving mental health. Contact us today to book your session in.

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