5 Ways To Reduce Stress Right Now
You don't even have to be great at meditating in order to reduce your stress right now.
You don't have to be a great meditator to live stress free. Put these five practices into place regularly to beat burnout and feel like your best self again.
Physiological sigh
This is as close to a hack as you will find for immediately reducing stress through activation of the parasympathetic nervous system.
Think about if you’ve ever caught yourself sobbing and felt like you couldn’t catch your breath. Or if you’re a steely-eyed stoic who’s never made a face, you’ve probably seen someone in a state of hyperventilation. Breathing is very rapid but shallow. And when we’re helping someone through this situation, we get them to breathe into a paper bag or breathe through pursed lips, helping to slow down their breathing.
The physiological sigh immediately activates a state of calmness in our body. You breathe in fully and then try to sip some extra air into your lungs with a second inhale before fully exhaling. Your exhale will naturally be longer but you can also consciously think to exhale slowly. Repeating this for about a minute is all it takes to start to shift your body out of a reactionary stress response and into a more calm state.
This is so powerful because it can be done anytime, anyplace to help you to slow down and regain traction. You don’t have to plop yourself onto a cushion and get situated in a lotus position with eyes closed to reduce stress.
Get outside for a walk
87.4% of excuses for getting outside for a walk are made up. And while that statistic is also made up, we really can in most circumstances organize our day and plan our time to spend even a few minutes outdoors moving at a relaxed pace. The movement alone can be great for promoting a calmer state of mind and reducing stress, but so can being in nature and getting some sun when possible.
Getting outside in nature for a walk checks off all these boxes at once but any one of them can suffice to help you to reduce stress, assuming you’re not allergic to the sun.
Research suggests that positive health benefits from nature exposure can come from just 15 minutes a week, but I’d challenge you to make the time to hit that goal most days if you’re tying to build a stress-busting routine.
Pet a dog (or a cat)
Our bond with our animals is so powerful that it can even reduce stress.
Therapy dogs and seeing them in the hospital wards serve a purpose in delivering joy.
Petting a dog or a cat creates a calm connection that helps us to detach a bit from whatever is overwhelming us to fill us with their unconditional love (so long as you’ve kept up with your belly rub quota).
This action might be a little less practical for some of us due to fears, or allergies, or just not having pets around, but it’s still a really quick way to reduce stress and feel better, so make use of it if and when you can.
Go to sleep or take a nap
Sleep is our recovery superstar and if you’re reaching your limits, the best thing you can do might just be to close your eyes and get to sleep.
Do some restorative exercise
Movement can be medicine, especially if your work is not very active or you spend much of your day seated. You might not always be up for a hard workout, but stretching, yoga, or any type of activity that gets the body in motion is great and can be meditative for those who aren’t very good at the whole sitting still thing.
Now, are you ready for the real secret? Pick just one of these things and try it out. If you’re already feeling stressed out, trying to check off more boxes isn’t going to help. Whatever sounds like something you’d like to do and can make work, do it consistently and see if it is helping you.
Have fun, get curious, and Find Your Flow