Unlike when a person suffers a broken arm or leg, whereby your friends would entirely understand if you cancelled a social engagement or declined to answer the phone due to your condition, stress is invisible as a health issue and is often overlooked. It is bad enough when close friends or family members negate the importance of how you are feeling, but when you begin to ignore the warning signs of elevated stress levels yourself, this could lead to even more serious issues. So, with this in mind, continue reading to learn of four key ways to lower your stress levels and protect your health.
1 Stop Relying on Harmful Addictions
It would be entirely understandable if you feel as if you are reliant, or even too reliant, on a glass of wine at the end of a long day at work or tend to cave into your willpower and grab a twenty-pack of cigarettes when things are really tough.
However, alcohol and nicotine are, as you will already know, exceedingly harmful, the former unless in moderation, and the latter, well, you know smoking is bad for you. Not only does this reliance on your pre-existing addictions result in a pattern that is incredibly hard to break, but nicotine alone actually increases your breathing regulation and reduces blood flow.
2 Learn About Biofeedback
Essentially, biofeedback is a behavioural technique that teaches you personalized strategies that aim to reduce your feelings of stress and anxiety.
Muscle Training with Biofeedback is also an excellent way of learning and identifying your personal triggers, and once you are aware of the situations that make you feel you are no longer in control, you can work to avoid them whenever and however, you can.
3 Turn Your Home into an Oasis of Calm
Modern life is hectic and sometimes more than a little stressful, and, as such, it falls on your shoulders to create a safe and relaxing place within your home to enable you to recharge and relax.
Just a selection of the key ways to transform your home into an oasis of calm include:
- Treating yourself to a beautiful and comfortable giant bean bag for adults
- Ditch the ceiling lights and stick to mood-setting table lamps
- Treat yourself to a luxury duvet and pillow set
4 Find the Right Type of Exercise That Works for You
The fourth and final way to help keep your stress levels down, or at least to attempt to understand why certain things make you feel stressed, is to work all this out in a physical and impactful way.
Even if you are currently experiencing a period of low mood and perhaps even being treated for depression, embarking on a form of exercise that works for you, both in the context of your mental and physical health, is an excellent way to start to change.
From yoga and Pilates to boxing or dance classes, exerting yourself physically helps to maintain your health and fitness as well as boost your emotional health.
