Stress creeps into our lives once in a while and is commonplace as studies show that seven out of ten adults experience it daily. This could be as a result of a bad thing happening in our life or it could also emanate from having a chronic disease. Whichever the case prolonged stress is harmful to the body and you should come up with ways to combat it. There are plenty of normal everyday things you can do to completely eliminate stress or control it. Come with me below as I discuss some of the ways you can get rid of stress.

1: Exercise

Stress affects the whole body and exercising is a great way to reduce stress because exercise helps the whole body feel better. Exercise produces chemicals that reduce tension and also help you sleep better thus reducing stress.

2: Sleep enough

Sleep may seem like a luxury but the body actually needs enough sleep to operate at its optimum. Lack of sleep induces anxiety which in turn makes your stress worse. It also makes the body produce excess cortisol which has negative impacts on your body. On the other hand, enough sleep keeps you alert mentally and balances your emotions.

3: Share your problems

Because “a problem shared is a problem half solved”. When you share your stressful situations with people who care you already feel relieved just by getting it out of your chest. Studies have shown that sharing helps you keep calm and relieve stress. Make a point of talking to people who care to manage your stress levels.

5: Get a laugh

Rest is not only necessary when prescribed by the doctor when you are unwell but it will also help you manage your stress. Rest has the same benefits as exercise as it enables your body to relax. Take a break away from your problems by taking a rest either by going for a holiday or just having alone time.

6: Keep a gratitude journal

Learn to appreciate the good things in your life by writing them down. Writing them down helps you meditate on them and etch them in your memory for future reference. When you think about them they bring you good feelings and help alleviate your stress.

7: Eat right

Eating junk foods that have empty calories will aggravate your stress levels. You should, therefore, strive to eat foods that add useful nutrients to your body. When you are stressed up you tend to eat the tasty junk food to act as comfort. Junk foods only act to increases your stress because sugar levels keep shifting when you eat junk.

8: Get a hug every day

When a person comes into contact with another human being stress levels naturally go down. This is because oxytocin is released and it influences your conduct, temper and physiology. You should, therefore, strive to get a hug every day. It doesn’t matter if you get it from a friendly stranger or your loved ones all that matters is you get that cuddly love.

9: Bring out your creative side with artwork

Research has shown that creativity can help reduce stress and depression. Creative activities like singing, painting, writing and crafting have a positive impact on your mental wellbeing. Writing specifically has been proven to help deal with negative feelings productively. It’s, therefore, a great idea for you to flex your creative muscle as a way of dealing with stress. You could even make money by writing messages for special occasions such as new boy baby congratulations messages, graduation congratulation messages among others. You can then design cards and sell them in stores and earn for your creativity.

10: Get rid of the triggers

If you truly want to get over your stress you should eliminate the triggers. Remove the things that remind you of the stressful things. You can move house if the trigger is a family member. Similarly, you can change jobs if the workplace or colleagues are the triggers. By doing this you start on a new slate by creating a distance between you and the source of your stress.

To wrap it up

Stress is a normal thing in our lives once in a while because things will fail to go as we planned or expected. What is abnormal is living a stressed-out life every day of your life. Your life will turn into a nightmare and you will have no drive and fun in your life. If you choose to implement the tips we have discussed above your life will take a turn around for the better.

Why don’t you choose just one tip above and bring it to action in your life right away? You can decide to share your stressors with someone who cares for you. The kind of relieve that will bring you will push you to use another tip and before you know it stress will be a thing of the past in your life. Good luck as you implement the tips.