Feeling Stressed? Tips On Coping With Stress

Have you ever had one of those days where you just felt awful, stressed, and overwhelmed? Everything was not going right: a customer yells at you, bills are piling up, sounds of argument from your family fills your halls, somebody tells you that you're worthless, and nobody is listening to you. I think we can all agree that we have all been there!

First of all, I am not a psychologist or a doctor. By all means, if there is a serious problem please consult with one. This post is not to replace the advice of medical expertise. I am simply writing about how to deal with stressful situations through my own experience. Moving on, the biggest mistake that I see people make is that instead of finding ways to cope they try to cover it up (which is a big no no!) such as:

• Shopping
• Drinking
• Taking pills
• Eating
• Smoking or chewing tobacco

While these may seem like a plausible solution, it's only temporary and it's unhealthy. I guess a little bit of shopping wouldn't hurt lol. Just remember anything in excess is bad even if it's good for you.

There are other ways to deal with stressful situations. You may ask well, Shon what are they? I will gladly tell you. There are all kinds of therapeutic ways to deal with stress without having to go to such measures of harming oneself such as:

• Exercise (biking, hiking, running, swimming, dancing..)
• Playing an instrument
• Aromatherapy
• Meditation
• Stretching or yoga
• Enjoy time with friends and family
• Talking to someone or just vent!
• Drinking hot tea
• Having some quiet time
• Get some fresh air
• Do something you enjoy
• Reading a book
• Learning a new hobby or skill
• Visualization
• Listening to relaxing music
• Write in a journal/diary
• Singing
• Gardening
• Drawing/painting
• Preparing meals/cooking
• Join support groups
• And more...which I can't think of at the moment.

reference: hisacne.com

Sometimes what I like to do is a do a combination of these things. It really depends on the level of stress. Believe it or not I do get stressed but I'm learning to quickly cope with my stressful situations better and better everyday. I write in my blog for example or I drink hot tea which helps a lot. Aromatherapy is great if you have essential oils at home or you can buy them at my favorite place called Mountain Rose Herbs. I enjoy a few drops of lavender and peppermint in hot water and breath in the steam. This is very therapeutic and it's so relaxing. I also exercise and play my piano. Great thing about this is that most of the things I mentioned here are inexpensive. You don't have to spend butt loads of money!

A lot of it has to do with diet too. I will probably get into more detail about that in another post. What I recommend to my family and friends is that if everything else fails make sure you eat a healthy diet. Eating raw or steamed vegetables and/or fruits more. You don't have to be a raw vegan to reap the benefits. You can feel great about yourself if you can incorporate more of that in your diet.

Another factor that comes into play is that you need to be confident in yourself. Don't let the demons in your head keeps you down. You have heard this many times but you are your own worst enemy. I know this is easier said than done but don't let those negative thoughts bring you down and affect your being and your entire day or even weeks. I've seen stuff like this happen to people! The best thing to do is not take it personally and move on. The faster, the better. I knew of a co-worker that didn't sleep at all the night before because of a fight that she had with a friend. She was just so flustered the entire working day. It affected her well-being and her work. 

Ultimately, you have the power to keep going and do what you want to do in life. Everybody has the potential to do anything they want to do if they really set their mind to it. Self esteem and confidence is important to incorporate but this is something that each and everyone of us has to work on. It took me years to build myself at a level where I just feel so great that nobody can really bring me down. Nothing happens overnight let me tell ya. It takes time and you have to be patient. It would be great if we had some kind of machine that makes us perfect in seconds or we were all born talented and beautiful, however, that is not the case, unfortunately. So I recommend starting now and make the change. The hardest part is getting over that hump of negativity (I can't do it, it's too hard, I'm not pretty or good looking, I'm a loser, I'll never make it....) because once you get over that then it becomes so much easier after that. It's like a snowball effect and there's only one direction you can go and you can only go up.

Please stay posted as I will do another post about more relaxation techniques and detox regimens which I'm excited to share with you all about. Please support my blog by adding me to your circles and sharing the word to your friends about being "almost" stress-free and healthy!

What are you favorite ways to deal with your own stressful situations? Please share with us! We would love to hear from you~