Things To Do When You’re Over-Stressed

#2 Grab some stress-relieving power foods.

Instead of heading to the candy dish when you’re feeling overwhelmed, grab a healthy snack that has stress-relieving benefits. Foods such as avocados or yogurt are healthy options that can help reduce stress. Although you shouldn’t always turn to food as your first option for stress relief, if you need a snack, pick a healthy food with relaxing benefits.

According to a recent survey by the National Association of Mental Health, people suffering from depression felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

#3 Take a long showers

Nothing is better than taking a nice long shower to collect your thoughts. Yes, I do some of my most serious thinking and planning in the shower, but that doesn’t mean it can’t also be relaxing. Bonus tip: make it a bubble bath. I’ve always been wanting to try those bath bombs!

Stress has a way of dropping ones energy. A shower can help you to feel fresh and revitalized. Showers have a way of waking people up, both physically and mentally. If you are feeling sluggish and tired despite getting enough sleep it may be your stress dragging you down. A nice hot shower may be just what you need to feel alive and ready to go once again.

#4 Paint your Nails

Fingers, toes, both?! It’s completely up to you. Take some time to make yourself feel pretty. Something as mindless as painting my nails is such an easy way to take some stress out of your life.

Bonus tip: buy a new polish color just for the occasion!

#5 Get enough sleep.

Your body recovers from the stresses of the day while you are sleeping. If your worries keep you from sleeping, keep a notepad or your cell phone by your bed to record what you are worried about-to help you let it go while you sleep.

For example, if you are worried you might forget to run an errand the next day, make a note so that you can stop worrying about forgetting.

After a good night’s sleep, you can take on anything.

Bonus tip: before falling asleep, how about picking up a good old-fashioned book? Put down those electronics and get your read on!

#6 Find Your Work/Life Balance

If you feel stressed out at work, then a good way to manage the stress is by leaving it at the office. Instead of trying to continue working from home or answering and checking emails at all hours of the day, log out of your email, shut down the computer, and go do something that isn’t remotely related to your job. It might seem like constantly working to get ahead of the problem will reduce your stress, but in reality, it just leaves you feeling more stressed out and even burned out from not taking a break. Breaks are essential for de-stressing.

#7 Remind Yourself of the Positive

When you’re feeling completely swamped with stress and anxiety, one of the best things you can do is write down all of the good things in your life. This helps you put your problems into perspective and reminds you that the stressors aren’t the only thing in your life. Write down the people you’re grateful for, the things you like about yourself, the things that make you smile, things that made you laugh that day, and the things you have to look forward to. Once you’ve written down every positive thing you can think of, you’ll realize work or whatever else is making you feel stressed out isn’t the only thing in your life.

#8 Look at the patterns in Nature

Patterns found in nature, including shells, snowflakes, water currents, etc., can be a natural way to calm the brain. Patterns that repeat in an identical or comparable way are known as “fractals.”

In a study published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, researchers showed participants various fractal objects or images, concluding that fractal patterns stimulate “positive perceptual and physiological responses.”

In other words, the brain “appreciates” the aesthetic presentation of intricate patterns. Get out into nature, blow some bubbles, or search for “fractal images” online – and just relax.

#9 Get a Move On

I’m convinced there’s nothing a healthy, committed exercise regimen can’t fix, and exercise is especially useful at offsetting the symptoms you feel from being stressed out. When you exercise, your body releases endorphins, which ignite all of those happy, feel-good emotions. Even just a quick 10-minute walk around your office or neighborhood can turn your stress into positive energy that will make you much happier for the rest of the day.

That’s why it’s so important to find healthy methods of stress management and stress relief. Without proper ways of coping with stress, you’ll likely be left feeling drained and incapable of handling the various responsibilities in your life. Next time you’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed out, no matter what’s causing the stress, try these ways to relieve stress.