THUNAI3 steps to take when feeling stressed:
Realise when it is causing you a problem:
Look out for physical warnings such as tense muscles, over-tiredness, headaches or migraines.Try to make the connection between feeling tired or ill and the pressures you are faced with.
Identify the causes:
Sort the possible reasons for your stress into three categories.
Those with a practical solution
Those that will get better given time and
Those you can’t do anything about. Recognize that at the present moment, those under (2) and (3) are not in your control.
Tell yourself this, and let them go.
Review your lifestyle:
Could you be taking on too much?
Are there things you are doing which could be handed over to someone else?
To act on the answer to these questions, you may need to prioritise things you are trying to achieve and re-organise your life. This will help to release pressure that can come from trying to do everything at once
7 steps to help protect yourself from stress:
Eat healthily:
There is a growing amount of evidence showing how food affects our mood, and how eating healthily can improve this. You can protect your feelings of wellbeing by ensuring that your diet provides adequate amounts of brain nutrients such as essential vitamins and minerals, as well as water.Try not to, or reduce the amount of your smoking or drinking (alcohol): while it only temporarily reduces tension, it can often make problems worse.
Exercise: Even just going out and getting some fresh air, and taking some light physical exercise, like going for a walk to the shops can really help.
Take time to relax: Tell yourself that it is okay to prioritise self-care. This can take many forms. For example you can choose to treat yourself to a massage if it is within your means, or practice meditation and grounding exercises.
Be mindful: This involves paying attention to our thoughts and feelings in a way that increases our ability to manage difficult situations and make wise choices. Try to practice mindfulness regularly.
Get some restful sleep: While sleep can be a struggle when you experience stress, you can try to improve your sleep hygiene by avoiding caffeine before bedtime, removing all devices from your room, and going to bed and waking up at the same time everyday.
Don’t be too hard on yourself: Act as if you were your own best friend: be kind and supportive to yourself and recognize when you are engaging in negative self-talk. Challenge these thoughts because they might not be true.
Seek help and support:
Stress is a natural reaction to many situations in life, such as work, family, relationships and money problems. While a moderate amount of stress can help us perform better in challenging situations, too much or prolonged stress can lead to physical problems.
This can include lower immunity levels,digestive and intestinal difficulties, e.g. irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), or mental health problems such as depression. It is therefore important that we manage our stress and keep it at a healthy level to prevent long-term damage to our bodies and minds.
Remember, that it is okay to ask for professional help. If you feel that you are struggling to manage on your own, then you can reach out. You deserve to get better.
Often, there is no magic bullet for stress. A number of the things mentioned above can aid in helping you to manage it better.