For all of us, life lately has been full of stress, anxiety, and uncertainty. I’ve found myself really needing to concentrate on implementing strategies, because it’s very easy for me to take all the anxiety and turn into an emotional, irrational mess.
And ain’t nobody got time for that.
1. Talk it out, then put it to bed
So rather than choosing to wallow in all my angst, here’s what I’ve been doing to try to cope in a healthy and productive way. It certainly doesn’t always work, but it works a lot better and a lot more often than doing nothing would!
If you’re like me, when you feel stressed, you might do one of two things. 1) Not talk about it or 2) talk about it so much everyone around you prays you’ll shut up. So I’m trying to use a healthy balance these days. When something stressful pops up, I do talk about it with a few people I trust. I vent. I get it alllll out there. And then I make the conscious choice to work on moving on. If I keep rehashing whatever event set me off, I won’t be able to recover from it and move past those anxious feelings. So get it out. And then leave it alone.
2. Exercise
Even if you refuse to work out, you should at least consider going for a therapeutic walk. You don’t have to speed walk. Just find some time to step away from all the craziness and clear your head. Whether you slowly walk in nature and enjoy the quiet, or you do an insane workout, you’re going to release so much stress. Whenever I’ve had a hard day, I make sure to get my run in as a way to decompress.
3. Gratitude
One thing I’ve been doing for some time now is writing down 5 things every day that I am thankful for. Small, everyday things. Big things. Anything in between. Focusing on all the good parts of life–even something as simple as Brandon bringing me a perfect iced coffee-helps me look for the best things and stop ruminating on all the stressful stuff.
4. Create
I keep finding myself being calmed by creating. Whether I’m blogging or simply coloring with my daughter, doing something creative reduces my stress level. Sometimes, we just need a way to let those feelings out–and why not make something beautiful in the process?
What strategies do you use to cope with stress and anxiety?
