We all live in a fast moving world that never seems to sleep.
Stress is so common that most of the time, we just treat it as ‘background noise’ and hardly take notice.
But many people are under more stress than they realize.
And a continuous high stress level takes its toll on your body as well as your brain.
But there is some good news in all of this. There are 3 simple stress busing techniques that really can make a difference to your life:
Stress Busting Technique 1
Table of Contents
– Breathing Exercises
Breathing exercises are great and very popular for a number of reasons:
- they work for everyone
- they are free
- they can be done anywhere
- they take very little time
Breathing exercises can be used on their own, or together with other relaxation techniques, such as yoga
There are several different types of breathing exercise. One of the most popular and effective is diaphragmatic breathing which as it’s name suggests, requires you to breath with your diaphragm, not just your lungs.
Start by breathing in deeply, through your nose, for 4 seconds.
You start by inhaling deeply, through your nose. As you do so, pull your diaphragm down with your stomach muscles..
Hold your breath for at least 7 seconds.
Breath out again for at least 8 seconds, this time using your stomach muscles to push your diaphagm down
Do this several times a day or whenever you are feeling stressed.
Stress Busting Technique 2
– Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Also known as PMR, this is a simple body relaxation technique that reduces the physical tension caused by stress.
The theory is that tension caused by stress can best be relieved from musles that have been deliberately tensed.
The technique involves tensing up specific groups of muscles, holding them, and then slowly relaxing them. As with most things, the more you practice, the better you will get!
Find somewhere comfortable to sit or lie down.
Tense all the muscles in your face;
- Close your eyes and hold them tightly closed.
- Hold your mouth tightly closed, biting hard with your teeth.
- Hold for 4 or 5 seconds
- Slowly breath out, as you did in the breathing exercise above, but this time, also slowly release the tension in your eyes and mouth.
- You’ll feel the stress drain away.
- Work your way down your body tensing and releasing the muscles in your neck, your shoulders, each of your arms and legs, your buttocks and your abdominal core.
- Repeat this a couple of times each day.
- Each session should only take around 15 minutes.
Stress Busting Technique 3
– Physical Exercise
Stress causes our bodies to release a hormone called cortisol.
In a low stress world, cortisol is only released occassionally, but in our modern high stressed world, our busy lives result in a constant release of cortisol.
Over a prolonged period, cortisol can cause a number of health related issues including weight gain.
However, the effects of too much cortisol are countered by endorphins.
And the best way to release endorphins (aka the feel good hormone), and the best way to release endorphins into your body is through physical exercise
In fact, research has shown that if you exercise regularly, you can build up an immunity to stress.
So when you feel stressed, try one or more of these three stress busting techniques.
#Kickstressintotouch.
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