3 Mindful Ways to Reduce Stress

Photo by Matthew Henry on Unsplash

This is the start of stress awareness month, and I think I am an expert on stress. I don’t get a prize for being an expert, either. I’m happy that I’m self-aware, but if I were such an expert, then maybe I would have a better handle on all my stress all of the time. My mom used to tell me often that I needed to get a handle on my stress, and I was so confused about how she determined I was stressed without me telling her. I would often dismiss her comments and let her know that her sentiments were incorrect.

Until I got older…

…and wiser.

Eventually, I realized that my mother could recognize that I was stressed because physical symptoms would show her that I was stressed about something. Let me list out the ways my body lets me and others know that I am stressed. There are probably more than this:

• Exhaustion or trouble sleeping
• Body aches or pains
• Headaches
• Stomach aches
• Weight gain
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Difficulty concentrating

I am not walking around like a ball of stress all day, but there are times when my body is under an immense amount of stress that I recognize that I need to get under control. So, in the spirit of stress awareness month, I wanted to share with you a few ways that I cope with stress that may be helpful for you

1. I get adequate sleep. On days when I know my body is going to be stressed to the max or if I know I’m going to be in back-to-back meetings the entire day, I try to get more than seven hours of sleep. This sounds highly unattainable, but nothing happens overnight (no pun intended). You have to practice going to sleep earlier, and then the habit of falling asleep earlier will become more natural.
2. I spend time participating in mindless activities. My work consists of budgets, spreadsheets, research, papers, meetings, and many other activities that force my brain into overdrive daily. I am constantly in “ go” mode, and if I do not force myself to slow down, I could become problematic to others around me. So when I get home, sometimes I watch television, tend to my garden, or play a game on my tablet. Anything that doesn’t require too much thinking is how I best reduce my stress load.
3. I exercise. I love going to the gym. I look forward to engaging in some form of exercise daily. I enjoy going to the gym and feeling relief before or after my day has ended. The gym is my happy place. I’m grateful for movement and the ability to run and jump and squat and all of the other beautiful and robust aspects of working out.

Stress will happen.

I don’t subscribe to the notion that it can be prevented entirely. It would be best if you weren’t blindsided by it, and I want you to be well-equipped to reduce the stress that may come your way. So tell a friend to tell a friend that it is stress awareness month. Please encourage them to take inventory of how stress shows up in their bodies and help them develop ways to reduce their stress symptoms in the future.