Last updated: Monday, October 8, 2007 | 8 Views
“Stress is an admission of weakness, a cry of defeat to the world.”
- Carrie Latet
No matter how calm or relaxed we are, we’ve all fallen victim to stress at one time or another. It’s very easy to succumb to stress throughout your hectic day. Things like being stuck in traffic on the way to work, discovering that the coffee machine is broken, learning that your boss is gone and has left a pile of things to be done pronto, and not meeting a deadline can set you into a whirlwind of stressful thoughts.
The problem is that stress does not help the situation; it actually prevents you from being productive and getting on with the rest of your day successfully. While there are techniques to make you a more peaceful person overall, it’s still easy to fall into stress traps. So arm yourself with these easy tips and calm the stress that creeps up on you, especially at work.
1. Count to 10.
An effective way to deal with stressful situations is to count to 10. This will help you move away from the situation mentally as well as giving you 10 valuable seconds to re-think the screaming-fit you were about to unleash on your unsuspecting co-workers. Consider it the remote control of your life: You press “pause,” and once you’re done counting to 10, you press “play” again. You’ll be in better shape to focus on the task at hand.
2. Flax bags.
Quite simply a satin bag about the size of a pencil case, filled with flax seeds. You put it over your eyes and lie somewhere quiet for about fifteen minutes. It presses on the acupuncture points around your eyes and — hey presto! — total relaxation.
3. Act happy.
For the next few minutes, act happy. Grin, laugh, waggle your eyebrows, walk with a bounce in your step, whistle. People who are manipulated into smiling and laughing report feeling better instantly. Going through the motions can trigger the emotions.
4. Do the PC stretch.
When we’re under stress, we usually lean forward to focus on what we’re doing, this makes the muscles of the neck and lower back work harder and they’re small to begin with. For quick relief, clasp your hands behind your neck and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Now let your head fall forward so your chin is close to your chest, and bring your elbows together in front of you so they’re touching. Pull down with your hands for several seconds, then release. Repeat six to eight times whenever you’re knotted up.
5. Guatemalan worry doll.
You can make a worry doll out of anything — even the pot of paper clips on your desk. Whenever Guatemalan children have a worry, they open the lid of their miniature basket or pot, inside which are lots of dolls — anything from carved figures to sticks — and whisper their problems to their dolls. Then they go off and relax whilst the dolls do the worrying for them. Pick your moment: no one likes getting caught talking to stationary.
6. Squeeze something.
Carry a stress ball or an object that you can squeeze when times get tough. Wringing something other than your colleague’s neck is an effective way to release your tension and stress. The act of squeezing a stress ball or a hand exerciser tenses the muscles in both your hand and your arm. Holding the ball for a second or two and then releasing it relaxes the muscle, causing the tension to leave your arm and hand, thereby relieving stress.
7. Throw up your hands.
And start juggling, it gets you out of your chair. It’s hard to juggle without laughing at yourself. Plus, it’s nearly impossible to think about work when you’re concentrating on juggling. And that’s the point: regularly schedule five minutes of laughing distraction.
8. Look at the big picture.
Far too often, we are quick as a whip to complain when we feel we did something wrong. Learn to keep things in perspective. When you feel stress coming on, ask yourself if you will really care about the issue you are worrying over a year from now. Chances are that the majority of things you stress about in your day-to-day life are not life-threatening, unless they have to do with health and family.
9. Take a deep breath.
Breathing is more than just a function that keeps you alive; it actually helps clear your mind and calm you down. When you’re stressed you tend to take shallow breaths which doesn’t get enough oxygen to your brain and body. So the next time your heart palpitations are so loud that your entire office hears them, take deep breaths to physically and emotionally calm yourself down. No one can think properly when they feel like they are going into cardiac arrest.
10. Say the “O” word.
What’s the biggest office stress buster? The answer is: organization. It’s what’s most needed and most lacking. Even a very basic organizational habit can cumulatively save you hours in your work week. And, of course, more time means less stress. Most valuable habit? End-of-week review. Go over your inbox and work lists. By far, it will be your best-spent time. Thanks to that one wise Friday hour, you’ll never get frazzled or overwhelmed when the whistle blows on Monday morning.
11. Take a walk.
If you feel like a stressful scenario is getting the best of you, you can physically distance yourself from a stressful situation. Get up, take a quick walk and get some air. Give yourself a few minutes of downtime to clear your mind when things get too hectic. The act of walking will also help release some of those fight-or-flight endorphins that stress has left careering around your body.
These are quick and easy ways to deal with stressful situations that can occur in everyday life. If you practice them, not only will you feel less stressed, but so will the people around you. Live a great stress-free life.
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Ambien overdose.
These are great suggestions!
Really good article– and another teechnique, furthering “acting happy” is to do something that really makes you laugh. Maybe its taking 5 minutes and going on some website thsat cracks you up (like watching a youtube video) or going out of the office and people watching….whatever it is, laughter is a GREAT stress reliever!
Great tips. The first thing I do when stress strikes me is that I take a break and clear my mind from all the problems. It helps me relax and get rid of the tension.
Counting to 10 works well for me. It helps me get rid of those thoughts that burden my mind and focus on something simple and easy which relaxes the mind.
Thank you for your suggestions guys.
I found your site on technorati and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. I just added your RSS feed to my Google News Reader. Looking forward to reading more from you down the road!
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