How to relieve stress in ten great ways

This page describes how to relieve stress by sharing ten stress relief techniques and tips for reducing stress. Knowing how to reduce stress will yield big benefits for your physical, mental and emotional health.

Ways to manage stress:

Ten tips for stress management, that are well tried and tested ways to relieve stress, are described below. Use them as a stress management activity, from which to develop your own variations of how to deal with stress, rather than as a formula.

Try out these stress relief tips, individually or in combination, learn what works for you in your circumstances (get some feedback if need be), and make appropriate changes as needed.

10 tips for stress management and suggestions
to help you thrive on it.

The first of the ways to reduce stress is to examine your attitude to stress and how you are thinking about it (click here for a definition of stress).

In particular, you may want to re-frame your views to see how to relieve stress as an opportunity for self improvement and use the i-c-s-i process to help you do so.

In addition, you may wish to programme yourself for success through self hypnosis, and visualisation, and some of the ideas explored on the persistent achiever page.

Click here to see an example self hypnosis script and how to do self hypnosis.

Also, keeping a journal or learning log is a smart idea that helps to keep perspective, act as a stress reducer and turn stress to advantage (e.g. as you learn how to relieve stress and succeed in doing so. Click here for the biggest causes of stress and signs of stress).

2. time management.

Feeling under constant pressure for time, or feeling that you achieve so little in the time you have available, can be very stressful.

Click the time management link above to see 9 key approaches that will help put you in control of your time and priorities and support your how to relieve stress efforts.

3. deal with your anger.

Easier said than done and, in some cases, professional help with anger management may be needed.

If you can, a good approach in how to relieve stress is to raise your self awareness and pay attention to the following:

* when you feel your temper rising, deliberately concentrate on your breathing and slow it down to an in-breath counting to five and an out-breath counting to seven.

* think, at the time if you can but subsequently if you can't, of the action - reaction, behaviour - consequence, of losing your temper. Ask yourself good learning questions, such as:

~ what was achieved by getting angry?

~ what did it cost?

~ what else could I have done? (what other options were available?, what other choices might I have made?)

~ if doing it all over again, what would I do differently?

~ what has been learned?

~ how will I spot the early warning signs that may raise my anger and how will I use them to take avoiding action?

* use visualisation to rehearse future success at controlling your anger, based on past situations or anticipated situations (and, of course, you can visualise yourself being congratulated by others as you share with them your secrets of how to relieve stress).

* seek and use any "therapies" that help with anger management - e.g. exercise, hobbies, meditation, having fun.

4. learn to relax at will.

The ability to relax physically, mentally and emotionally at will is a key strategy that pays big dividends in how to relieve stress and is well worth investing in with some regular practice.

In addition, using some meditation techniques can be very beneficial (e.g. mindful meditation), as can self hypnosis.

5. assertiveness.

Feeling to be in control is one of the strongest stress reducers in how to relieve stress.

Being assertive when you need to be is a great way to be in control (e.g. learn to say, "no", without aggression or guilt).

Frequently this will require you to know what your goals and priorities are and to use the golden triangle of communications.

6. facilitation.

There are some situations and times when the help of a third party (a facilitator) will be essential.

For example, if conflict resolution is needed in a situation.

In terms of self help and self improvement, of course, you sometimes have to be your own coach and facilitator.

7. if appropriate, sort out your money.

Like time, often money management (or lack of it), turns out to be a big source of stress.

If you can, for example:

* develop a budget and use it to keep income and expenditure in control

* get the facts - know, as a matter of fact, how much money you have, where it is, how you are spending it etc.

* shop around for the best deals, especially using info and resources from the internet. Get comfortable asking for discounts

* if you have several debts, consider consolidating them, and be sure to pay them off in order of importance and contact your creditors as early as possible if you will have difficulty meeting your commitments

* look after the pennies (and the pounds)

* increase your net worth (e.g. savings, assets, investments), using independent financial advice if possible.

8. get into, and keep in, great condition.

Whatever works for you is fine but invest time and energy in building your physical, mental and emotional health through, for example:

* yoga

* aerobic exercise or sport

* Tai-chi or QiGong

* massage

* music or art or poetry or....

9. be proactive to be in control.

Proactive means take the initiative to make things happen rather than waiting for things to happen and then reacting.

How to relieve stress?: where ever you can, anticipate and avoid being caught by surprise.

Put the odds in your favour with simple things like preparing for tomorrow tonight and by avoiding procrastination.

This is also supported by having clear SMART goals and a vision of the FUTURE of your choice.

10. use tapping to relieve stress.

Emotional Freedom Therapy is an amazing self help method for dealing with emotional and energy blockages and their resulting effects on well-being and health.

My personal experience of using this tapping technique has taught me that it is simple and effective with no side effects.

Try it for yourself and, if it works for you, add it to your stress relief toolkit.

Click here to visit the EFT site to learn more and download free useful information.

Learning how to relieve stress will prove to be
one of the best investments you will make.
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