8 Tips to Reduce Stress
Updated: Mar 11, 2020
1) Laugh, even if it’s forced. Laughter is truly the best medicine. Laughter is known to reduce stress hormones like cortisol, and increase mood elevators like dopamine. So, tell a joke, watch a comedy special on Netflix (or Youtube), call your loopy uncle or wild friend, or fake laugh until it turns into uncontrollable laughter. Give it a try!
2) Journal: Don't keep the stress bottled up in you. Write it down. As soon as you experience anxious thoughts, grab a pen and paper and write them down. Write until you've poured everything out. Then crumple up the piece of paper and throw it away. Bye Bye! Then write down all the things that make you happy...the things you are grateful for. Don't throw that one away! ;)
3) Meditate: it doesn't even have to be for a long time. Close your eyes and just breathe. Embrace the stillness as you fill your lungs up with air. Imagine yourself in a place far, far away. Let your mind take you to the beaches in Cuba, or Ghana or Santorini.
4) Treat yourself to some dark chocolate. It taste great but also has health benefits. Dark chocolate has been found to decrease the stress-related hormone, glucocorticoid. Yum!
5) Go to therapy. Nothing wrong with it. Talking to someone can help you sort through your emotions and anxiety. Therapy is well-known for providing people with coping mechanisms, problem-solving techniques and has the reputation as a tool for overcoming anxiety, depression and addiction.
6) Get 8-10 hours of sleep. We know that being stressed out makes it more difficult to get the proper amount of rest but still try your best. Being well rested improves your stress levels as well as your mental and physical health. If you’re having trouble sleeping at night, try taking a warm bath before bed, or meditating or doing some deep breathing exercises.
7) Look through fun photos. Looking at images from happier times is proven to help reduce stress and decrease anxiety. The snapshots serve as a simple reminder that we’re loved and cared for, which in turn makes us feel safe. So pull up Facebook or IG and travel down memory lane.
8) Go for a walk or dance or do anything to get your body moving. Exercise reduces levels of the body's stress hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. It also stimulates the production of endorphins, chemicals in the brain that are the body's natural painkillers and mood elevators.
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