6 Simple Ways to Relieve Stress and Anxiety

One last email to answer before bed. A string of texts that need an urgent response. Job stress is one of the major sources of stress, but school and other people can also create intense demands on our time. The stress and anxiety start piling up. We worry we’re not responding fast enough or working hard enough.

Fortunately, there are straightforward ways to manage and reduce stress. Here are six tools you can apply to make life a little easier amid the chaos.

1. Deep breathing
This one is easy to practice anywhere, even in the middle of an intense meeting. Take a few moments to bring some awareness to your breath and get in tune with your body. Start by breathing in for three counts. Hold your breath at the top. Then exhale for three counts. Deep breathing can bring more oxygen into your lower muscles and slow your heart rate.

Notice how you feel after trying some deep belly breathing. You might be more relaxed or just better able to focus on the task at hand. Those are both great things.

2. Yoga
Yoga doesn’t need to be fancy. You don’t even need a yoga mat. Even just a few simple cat/cow poses or forward folds can get your blood moving. These are great to do first thing in the morning when your muscles might feel tight. Bringing a little flexibility to the body and spine early on can help you feel less stiff overall throughout the day.

3. Deep Muscle Stretching
People often tend to hold a lot of tension in the neck, shoulders, and hips. Deep muscle stretching can be a bit more intense than your regular yoga class, but the benefits are big. Don’t worry if you don’t feel super flexible at first. This just comes with time and consistent stretching.

Here are some good deep stretches for the neck, shoulders, and hips:

• Neck rolls: circle your neck in one direction and then the other.
  
• Spinal twist: bring one leg over the other and twist to the side. Then switch and repeat this motion on the other side. This will feel especially good if you’ve been sitting all day.
  
• Butterfly pose: bring your feet together and open your hips like you would open a book. If you can manage it, bend forward from the hips and look past your feet. You’ll feel a great stretch in both hips.
  
• Wide-leg straddle: Extend your legs out wide and keep your toes pointing up. Depending on how flexible you are, you might not be able to reach super far. This just comes with time. Bend forward from the hips if you can or just enjoy that deep stretch in the hips and along the thighs.
  

4. Nap
Toddlers and adults alike can benefit from napping. A short, twenty-minute power nap can provide the perfect energy boost to get through your afternoon. Napping for an hour and a half is one full sleep cycle. You can wake up feeling fully rested and refreshed.

5. When in Doubt, Write it Out
Writing down your thoughts, feelings, and goals can help you look at the big picture and put it in perspective. It’s a safe place to examine what’s going on without judgment. No one needs to see what you write but you. If you need to, add some pictures to go along with your thoughts.

6. Hug or Touch Someone
We can all benefit from a little physical contact. Hug a friend, your partner, or your pet. Spend some time feeling loved and cared for.