10 Tips to Reduce Stress
I am not afraid to admit that I have a hard time balancing different aspects of my life. If something becomes overwhelming, I quickly become stressed and agitated. Since I wear my heart on my sleeve, and my emotions dictate 99.9% of my actions and reactions, when I am stressed, it easily becomes the focus of everything that I do.
SO I made a list of 10 things that I try to practice to help me reduce stress in my life! I hope you find them helpful!
If you have any tips, I would love to hear them! Comment below!
Photography: Jenna Lynn Photography
10 Tips to Reduce Stress:
Find Your Creative Outlet
Finding something productive and fun to do outside of my everyday stresses has given me something to focus on besides the stress itself. I can easily turn off things that I used to fixate on because I have something else to focus on!
Read a Self-Help Book
Seriously – it is shocking how great you can feel after reading a self-help book. Self-help books really resonate with me because it reassures me that I am not alone in the way I feel, whether it be doubt, stress, fear, etc. A lot of books I have head shock me because someone eloquently describes exactly how I am feeling and reassures me that life DOES go on. Sometimes it takes a stranger’s words to convince you that everything will work out when you can’t convince yourself.
Bake a Cake
One – it gives you something else to focus on. And Two – you get to eat as much cake batter as you want, and if there is any left, then you can eat the cake too 😉
Make a To-Do List
When I am really overwhelmed, I make a list of everything I have to do. This helps me visualize everything, and sometimes you realize you don’t have as much to do as you thought! My favorite this to do is add things to my list that I already completed just so I can cross them off. 🙂
Start Planning Your Next Vacation
Nothing cuts stress like knowing there’s an end in sight! Start planning your next getaway as your reward for overcoming whatever obstacle you are facing at the time.
Cuddle
Hugs and cuddles seems to make everything melt away, even if its just for a short time!
Pet a Dog (or 2)
Okay – nobody can be mad, sad, stressed, or any emotion other than happy when petting a dog! RIGHT?!
Write It Out
Why are you stressed? Where is this anxiety coming from? Identifying the source can, sometimes, make things seem less stressful. Another thing I like to do is think of all possible scenarios for the thing I am stressing about. I have a tendency to play out a lot of scenarios in my head for things I am stressed about. “what if this happens..?” “what if that happens…?” Writing them down can help me start to distinguish what ones are utterly ridiculous (most of them usually are) and which ones are worth my time (rarely any 😉
SAY NO
Stop saying yes to everyone. As a people pleaser, this is something I struggle with on a daily basis. Start putting your mental health and your time first. You want to do things to the best of your ability. Taking on too many things, knowing you don’t have time to do your best, is worse than being honest up front. Saying no is not a form of disrespect, it is a sign that you respect the other person enough to tell them up front that you can’t complete their tasks with the time you have, AND you are respecting yourself enough to allow you to focus on your current tasks.
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