Strategies to Reduce Stress and Anxiety

Stress is a usual part of life, from minor incidents to major crises. You cannot always control your circumstances, but you can control your response to them. If serious or chronic, it can thus begin to affect your health. This is why it's important to have powerful stress relievers that calm your mind and body.

SHAMIMA BEGUMMENTAL HEALTH

Shamima Begum

7/18/20243 min read

Strategies to Reduce Stress and Anxiety
Strategies to Reduce Stress and Anxiety

Strategies to Reduce Stress and Anxiety

Anxiety and stress eventually affect everyone. They present differently in various people, and the level of anxiety experienced varies. Still, one thing is certain: there are strategies to manage anxiety, even when it feels out of control.

Information about causes and treatments can help you understand anxiety and stress. Still, there are certain physical and mental things you can do when you are nervous or stressed. ADAA (Anxiety and Depression Association of America) experts recommend the following coping strategies:

  • Get More Physical Activity: Regular physical activity helps balance stress and increases happiness. In a 6-week study with 185 university students, reported a significant reduction in general reported stress and perceived stress pertaining to uncertainty among participants when aerobic exercise was performed consistently twice per week. Moreover, regular exercise tends to reduce common symptoms of mental illness, such as anxiety and sadness.

  • Eat A Balanced Diet: Your nutrition affects your health, including your mental health. According to a 2022 review of studies, those who consume a diet consisting in ultra-processed foods and added sugar are more likely to report higher levels of subjective stress. Consuming insufficient amounts of nutrient-dense whole foods may raise your risk of deficiency in nutrients necessary for stress and mood regulation, such as magnesium and B vitamins.

  • Reduce Phone Use And Screen Time: While smart phones, computers, and tablets are frequently required, using them excessively may raise stress levels. A 2021 review of the literature, According to multiple studies have connected excessive smart phone use to higher levels of stress and mental health concerns. Moreover, overexposure to screens has been linked to lower psychological well-being and increased stress levels in both adults and children.

  • Practice Self-Care: Individuals who are engaged in self-care have less stress and higher quality of life than those with minimal to zero self-care. Meanwhile, a lack of self-care is closely linked with a rise in the incidence of stress and burnout. Living a healthy life, especially with persons who are under pressure most of the time such as nurses, doctors, teachers, and caregivers, self-care is vital. Self-care isn't that complicated or so precise, it's just about taking care of one's health and happiness.

  • Try Journaling: Journaling can free you from anxiety and stress, at the same time being a constructive way of releasing not only thoughts but also emotions. Based on a research in 2018, expressive or therapeutic writing helps patients manage chronic health illnesses; such a treatment could involve mental illnesses such as depression. They found out that regular journaling could be linked to individuals with better quality life, more active self-care, and other health-promoting behaviors like medication adherence.

  • Spend Time With Your Friends And Family: Difficult situation may be passed through with the help of friends and family, who can support one another during hard moments in life. According to a study conducted in 2019 by Ahrens, Simons, and Unger among 163 college-aged young adults of Latinx origin, lower levels of support from friends, family members and romantic partners were found to be associated with increased loneliness, depressive symptoms and stress. When you are alone without any relatives or friends near you there are social groups available for support.

  • Set Boundaries And Learn To Say No: Stress increases if an individual overburdens oneself while your time for taking care of yourself diminishes. Refusing more could be helpful in reducing stress as well as maintaining your mental health especially when you take on more than enough which may make juggling multiple duties leave you feeling overwhelmed. Being careful about what responsibilities one takes on- refusing obligations that unnecessarily add on one’s workload – could be useful in preventing stress.

  • Avoid Procrastinating: Another method to manage stress is to remain on top of your priorities and avoid procrastination when you aren't anxious. Procrastination can lower your productivity and make you rushing to catch up. This can generate stress, which is bad for your health and sleep quality. It's also possible that you're more likely to procrastinate as a coping tactic during stressful times.

  • Spend Time In Nature: Spending time outdoors can assist with reducing your stress. According to studies, spending time in open spaces like parks and forests, as well as soaking oneself in nature, are good ways to reduce stress. Hiking and camping are excellent choices, but not everyone enjoys or has access to them.

  • Spend Time With Your Pet: Having a pet helps you reduce stress and uplifts your mood. When you hug or touch your pet, your body releases Oxytocin, which is a hormone connected to good mood.

Conclusion:

While stress is a part of life, ongoing stress takes its toll on your physical and emotional health. Thankfully, there are a number of evidence based treatments to help one decrease stress and improve overall psychological health. Exercise, mindfulness, having a dog, screen time limitations, and getting outside more frequently are just a few ways

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