Four Steps to Fighting Stress
STRESS KILLS.
And absolutely ruins holidays. Here's a little system I've figured out to fight stress & give myself some much needed perspective. I hope it helps you!
DAY DREAM JOURNAL
I've had quite a few people suggest making a worry journal. Which if you're not aware, that's a journal where you write down your worries in an attempt to work through them and get them out of your head.
However, for me, that feels a little wrong. I don't like the idea of sitting down regularly to journal about upsetting things. I feel just like that'd make me 1. hate journaling and 2. focus on the worrying things vs. focusing on what'll make me happier.
What I did do was make a day dream journal. In it, I write down daydreams (obviously) but little vingettes and snippets of scenes I'd love to see. For instance, on November 16th instead of focusing on my senior show being just a few weeks away and all of the stress I was under, I wrote a very detailed idea of what I wanted my future office to look like. You know, the office I have when I'm CEO and Creative Director of my own magazine. And that was oddly really helpful. It's like focused meditating for those of us who struggle with traditional methods.
I would 100% recommend a daydream journal to anyone and everyone.
SILENCE
I know that normally, most of us will play soothing music to destress. However, I've found recently that silence (or as close to it as I can get) actually helps quite a bit. You hear yourself breathing and can focus that, slow and steady. It also gives your brain time to sort through all of the things it's already heard that day, still needing to process. You don't have to do it for long, but it is good to do it regularly.
TEA TIME
The process of putting the kettle on, waiting for it to boil and preparing the tea is subltely soothing and comforting to me. On especially stressful days, I make chamomil and lavender with honey and a splash of milk. Even thinking about it makes me feel warm and relaxed.
UPDATE YOUR PLANNER
Writing down the things you need to do the next day and in the next week is a great way to make sure you're staying on top of things. But even more importantly, if you've written them down, you're not tossing and turning that night wondering what you haven't gotten to and worrying about what you're forgetting.
I use these four methods almost daily now in order to combat stress levels and to focus and calm myself. Taking even 15 minutes a day to do these few things has helped my overall stress levels and my general happiness so much in the last couple months. And now, I'm enjoying my holiday break.
How do you fight stress levels? xx
