Basic techniques to get rid of stress

Life is often like a roller coaster ride. Full of twists and turns, ups and downs. And often, some situations can throw us off balance and stress us out. Stress is unfortunately a part of our lives. That is why we need to look for ways to successfully manage the battle against stress, because if there is too much of it in our lives and for a long time, it can have a very bad impact on our physical and mental health. Therefore, it is important to know the basic techniques to manage it. Let’s take a look at how to get rid of stress, anxiety, nervousness, for example, even from work.

What is stress anyway?

Stress can be defined quite simply as some automatic reaction of our body to various factors in our environment. These factors may not only be negative, but also positive. When we are under stress, we are often triggered by complex mental and physical processes that affect us on multiple levels – from our behaviour to our health.

Stress can be called the body’s natural defence, which helps us respond to unexpected situations, whether positive or negative, by putting our body on high alert. But if there is a lot of it, you need to look for the right techniques to get rid of it and how to reduce stress.

However, in this context, we can say that behind the word stress we do not necessarily have to look only for the negative. Did you know that in some cases it can have a positive effect? Yes, indeed it does, but only if it lasts for a short period of time. In this form, it can help us cope with challenging life situations and mobilise our resources to overcome obstacles.

What causes stress?

Stress arises in response to various factors in our lives. It can have external causes, including work, financial problems, health conditions, unforeseen life events. But internal factors such as perfectionism, lack of self-confidence, or negative thoughts can also create stressful situations.

The most common causes of stress

There are many reasons why you may expose yourself and struggle with stress. But most often stress has the following causes:

• Work – there are many things at work that can have a significant impact on our stress, too much work, meeting deadlines, starting a new job, losing a job, poor workplace relationships and much more.
• Finances – in this case it may be stress due to lack of salary, worrying about whether we will pay our debts, bills and so on. This factor is very close to the work sphere.
• Personal problems – here we can encounter stress, for example, with lack of self-confidence, depression, tension in the family, i.e. some conflict, quarrel with a close person, death of a close person…
• Health problems – stress in this case can cause serious illnesses, accidents, chronic illnesses that lead, for example, to worrying about one’s health, all of which affect us very negatively.

Symptoms of stress

If a person is struggling with stress, this can also manifest itself in, for example, labored and shallow breathing, excessive sweating or intestinal problems. However, these are all symptoms of shorter-term stress. For example, you may encounter such short-term stress if you are performing (and you are not used to it), before some unpleasant examination and so on.

However, the big problem is long-term stress, the symptoms of which are different from those encountered in short-term stress management. If you are exposed to long-term stress, it can show:

• Nervousness – you are constantly nervous, you feel anxious, for example, and you react badly and irritably to your surroundings.
• Physical manifestations – you may suffer from headaches, muscle aches, stomach problems, high blood pressure, and you may develop and break out in various illnesses, such as heart problems and so on.
• Poor concentration – being under prolonged stress can affect your concentration. For example, you won’t be able to concentrate on the tasks you have to do.
• Mood swings – this is very close to nervousness as well. But often you can be fine one minute and a few minutes later be irritable, sad, desperate. And that will also have the effect of making you not want to socialise.
• Sleep problems – a very bad symptom of stress is insomnia. Why is this so? When stressed, the production of serotonin, which you may also know by its name – the happiness hormone – is impaired. And serotonin also greatly affects the production of melatonin, which is responsible for quality sleep. Well, when you don’t sleep, your body is weakened and you’re more susceptible to illness. And that’s how a vicious cycle of illness and problems is created.

Types of stress

Different life situations and factors can cause stress and there are several types of stress that can be distinguished. The most common types of stress include:

• Eustress – represents positive stress, which has its place in life when it occurs to a reasonable degree. Eustress serves as a driver that makes us feel more powerful, motivates us and helps us overcome obstacles, while becoming a productive stimulus.
• Stress – it is excessive stress that has the potential to damage our health. Excessive stress is even considered one of the most serious health risks.
• Acute – is a quick reaction to a situation, for example in a traffic accident or during adrenaline experiences such as roller coasters and steep slopes when skiing. This type of stress can help us learn to respond better to stressful situations. If we overcome it, our body will return to its original state. However, should we be exposed to severe acute stress that threatens our lives, it can have serious consequences. These may manifest as post-traumatic stress disorder or other mental health problems.
• Chronic – in other words, long-term, brings with it risks such as anxiety, cardiovascular disease, depression, high blood pressure and a weakened immune system. It can also cause headaches, stomach upset and sleep problems, which is what we mentioned above.

Fight with stress

If you are wondering how to get rid of stress, how to reduce stress, you probably know it. And you know that sometimes it’s a long run. Dealing with stress is a process that involves identifying, managing and coping with stressors in our lives to help us successfully beat stress. The goal, then, is to minimize the negative effects of stress on our physical and mental health. Thus, if you want to know how to get rid of internal stress, work stress, tension, anxiety, it is necessary that you know about the causes that cause you stress and avoid these as much as possible in your life. You can use various techniques and strategies to combat stress, including relaxation, exercise, meditation, and lifestyle changes to achieve balance and calmness in your daily life.

Stress management techniques

What helps against stress, you ask? The best ways to get rid of internal stress, nervousness, anxiety, work stress, just simply how to fight stress is to try some techniques:

• Get moving – the best way to get rid of stress is to incorporate movement, running, sports, just about anything into your daily routine. This method in fighting stress is very effective because you will come up with different thoughts while doing these activities.
• Make time for yourself – While spending time with family and friends is great, sometimes you need to have some space to yourself, especially if you’re struggling with stress. Be with yourself, indulge in relaxation, go for a massage, a spa, a facial, a walk, read a book. You can do anything where you just be with yourself.
• Yoga – yoga is very great in techniques that help us in getting rid of stress. Its role is to connect the body and the mind.
• Breathing exercises – they are great in how to fight stress or anxiety. You can try the belly breathing technique. These are deep breaths into the abdomen that will lower the heart rate and pressure. They are most helpful in acute stressful situations. The second type is conscious breathing. When stressed, a person often breathes shallowly. If you are struggling with acute stress, start guarding your breathing. The idea is to take a long, deep breath and repeat this several times.
• Meditate – meditation can also be a way to combat stress. It’s a bit like yoga, where you want to connect your mind and body. Meditation is great for long-term stress.
• Put on some music – sometimes it is said that music heals. If you put on some positive music, it can help you a lot to fight stress.
• Live healthily – methods to manage stress include eating a healthy diet, getting enough sleep and limiting the consumption of stimulants such as caffeine and alcohol. This keeps us mentally and physically balanced.

Preparations to combat stress

Stress relief products are a very useful complement to the stress management techniques mentioned above. These products are often designed to help relax the body and mind, relieve anxiety and promote mental well-being. The most common products include herbal teas, dietary supplements containing vitamins and minerals, CBD oils. You can also read about CBD oils here to learn more about the effects of CBD. However, keep in mind that any new product should be consulted with your doctor or a nutritionist to get the best results when fighting stress.

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