10 Tips to Help You Manage Stress and Feel Better

Stress is a state of emotional, mental, or physical tension caused by the demanding environment. Stress impacts our lives in more ways than we might think. It can lead to anxiety, depression, heart disease, obesity and many other serious health conditions.

According to WHO (World Health Organization), the new realities caused by the covid 19 pandemic including the fear of contracting the virus, working from home, temporary unemployment and home schooling can all be challenging and cause stress.

How Does Stress Work?

Learning to deal with stress will be rewarding in the long run because it will make you more resilient, but first you need to know how stress works. There are two major theories:

1) The General Adaptation Syndrome Theory (GAS):

GAS is the theory that states the body responds to stress by going through several stages. These stages are:

Alarm Reaction (AR)
Resistance
Exhaustion
Recovery
Restoration/Relapse (Restoration can be positive or negative depending on the circumstances, for example if you’re recovering from surgery due to an accident, then you would have a restoration).

If you don’t resolve the issues that have triggered GAS, it can lead to physical and mental health problems.

2) The Central Governor Theory (CGT):

CGT is the theory that states that the body has a central governor that controls its functions to maintain homeostasis. The central governor receives input from your body’s sensors, such as temperature, blood pressure, and heart rate.

When certain thresholds are reached in these parameters, the central governor sends signals to different tissues to fire neurons (in order to regulate themselves) or stop them from firing (in order to stop).

This theory suggests that your brain may override your physical ability to move and “shut you down” before you’re able to do permanent damage to yourself.

10 Tips to Manage Stress:

Stress is a natural part of life that cannot be avoided. But it doesn’t have to be. You can learn how to beat stress and stay relaxed by following these simple tips that help you reduce your stress levels.

1) Take care of your mental health:

Have a positive attitude towards life
Make time for yourself
Don’t compare yourself with others

2) Take care of your physical health:

Eat healthy food
Drink plenty of water
Exercise regularly
Get enough sleep

3) Embrace your personal style:

Wear clothes that make you feel good
Wear your hair in any style you like
Give some time to yourself
Let your style reflect who you are not what others want you to be

4) Do things that make you happy:

Spend time with friends and family
Get outside
Travel
Eat out

5) Work in moderation:

Work hard, but don’t burn out
Take breaks from work
Plan a vacation

6) Keep your finances in check:

Budget your money
Don’t go into debt as much as you can
Avoid unecessary expenses

7) Make time for self-care:

Take care of you appearance
Relax and meditate
Wear comfortable clothes
Exercise
Practice gratitude by being grateful for what you have

9) Be organized:

Organize your time and make sure that tasks don’t take too much from the rest of your life
Avoid getting constantly distracted from what really matters in your life
Keep track of what is going on in your life so that things don’t end up getting out of hand
Have a consistent routine
Work on what you’re good at first and take care of your mental health

10) Make time for yourself every single day:

Find time to do something you enjoy
Make time for your hobbies
focus your thinking on what is important

We live in a world where stress is unavoidable. It’s a part of life, and it affects us all differently.

The truth is that we are all different and our bodies react to stress differently. Some people can handle more stress than others, but the majority of us will eventually get overwhelmed by it.

Learning how to relax your mind and body is one of the most important things you can do for your health and well-being.