Top Tips to Destress

This piece is designed to explore ways to destress which can make life a little more bearable during times which could be otherwise stressful.

1. Rationalise

2. Talk about it

3. Write about it

4. Become an observer

5. Be master of your destiny

1. Rationalise

Put things into perspective so you don’t blow things out of proportion. Take the emotion out of your reaction, i.e. to a ‘hurtful’ comment somebody made in speaking or an ‘insensitive’ message sent as part of a social media message, for instance. Look at the facts. Don’t get carried away. Be aware of how others feel and try to be sensitive to their needs but never impose your own will on them. Accept that people are different. They have different priorities; one person can see things differently and may be sensitive to certain things, which others are not. Communication is crucial as the other party will never guess what you are thinking. So, be the better man or woman and speak about the matter at hand when it first comes the surface. This is not only highly recommended but is the healthiest way to work through any issues that have come to the fore. Otherwise, feelings such as anger, bitterness, frustration, jealousy and resentment will fester and could lead to a ruined relationship, for example.

2. Talk about it

Find someone you can confide in to get things off your chest. As they say: ‘a problem shared is a problem halved’. It certainly helps to speak to a rational individual who can help you to (further) rationalise and take away any excess emotional baggage. Sometimes, it takes the views of another person to help you to fully understand the problem, to analyse the issue and to critique ways of behaviour that have previously got in the way of a reasonable catharsis. Never keep important matters which trouble you to yourself or you will pay the price. This is a disastrous way to mismanage your mind and the way your fate will play out. Ask for help and admit when you can’t cope. These are positive, necessary steps which will pay off, especially in the long run. For those whose emotions are blocked, or there is an inability to follow the advice thus far, then do yourself a favour, speak to a professional sooner rather than later.

3. Write about it?

The next step which is an effective way to continue the healing process, is most certainly therapeutic, and helps to find peace for those who are overcome with stressful thoughts. It works best in combination with steps 1 and 2. Writing about one’s feelings requires an ability to express how one feels and can develop the path to destress through a deeper analysis of the key points that have occurred to the stressed individual. If your experiences and experience dealing with them can potentially help others, then please share. In the case of the blog, one could say it’s a case of ‘practice what you preach’.

4. Become an observer

An interesting and powerful technique, which can alleviate stress goes as follows. A wise person once once told me of this method whereby the person who experiences stress should meditate and see which parts of the body are affected when feelings of stress about a particular matter come to mind. In this day and age, we constantly think that the brain is where all our feelings manifest themselves. Well, this is not true; our body is a complex receptor of our feelings; one’s head, shoulders are parts of the body which can feel stress. Think of this and how each of them is affected by using colours that come to mind for those body parts. Then, you can rationalise both literally and figuratively by becoming an observer through and through.

5. Be master of your own destiny

It is empowering to be able to steer your way through the potential minefields that can exist in one’s busy lives. Stress is a killer and will get you eventually, especially if you don’t nip it in the bud when you can. Be strong, be open and honest about what’s happening. Follow these tips if you can, and, if not, seek assistance. There’s no harm in asking for a helping hand. Hopefully, this will be useful to at least one person. Then it will be a success. Good luck with the journey ahead!