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How to reduce stress and anxiety
Stress and anxiety are two things that many people struggle with. Stress can cause anxiety, and anxiety can cause stress, so it can be a horrible cycle. How stressed are you, in general? Give yourself a quick once-over, and be honest with yourself. Recent Gallup polls have found that over 75% of all Americans surveyed reported they experience stress in their lives on a semi-regular basis.
That translates to all sorts of health risks and psychological strains for the general population. Never fear, however; there are plenty of ways to mitigate stress’s effects. Invite relaxation and balance into your hectic life by using these simple tricks:
1. Pick Up Yoga
Yoga can be a great way to get rid of stress and anxiety. Yoga’s relaxing effects have been well-known and practiced for thousands of years. The combination of deep breathing exercises and mindful stretching not only rids your body of unwanted stiffness, but clears your mind and increases the amount of oxygen in your blood.
Are you not the type that enjoys group workout classes? That’s no problem – there’s plenty of resources for self-taught yogis on YouTube and health websites. You don’t even need specialized equipment – as long as you have mobility-friendly clothes and a flat surface beneath you, you’ll be able to practice anywhere.
2. Organize your Day
Not only does having a clean and organized environment reduce stress and also anxiety, but so does organizing your tasks and your day.
Magical things happen when you plan out your future. Somehow, through writing out a daily framework of what you’re doing and when it needs to be done, your perspective transforms from being filled with tension and chaos to enjoying more systematic, organized and grounded flow.
This stress-banishing strategy works particularly well if you employ good ol’ pen and paper as your tool of choice. Organization apps are wonderful, but electronic entry isn’t nearly as methodical or easily-remembered as writing your plans by hand.
3. Go Enjoy the Outdoors
One of the best things to reduce both stress and anxiety is to simply take a walk outdoors. Whether you’re living in a city or have set down roots in the country, you can still benefit from getting in touch with the outside world once in awhile.
Whether it’s a morning jog through your neighborhood or a quiet picnic on your lunch break, a change of scenery boosts your feel-good hormones and gives you a chance to refocus. Find some pleasant clearings close to your home or workplace and plan on visiting, even for just a few minutes, to give yourself some down-time.
Another side benefit from going outside is that you get some sun exposure, which allows your body to create the very important vitamin D. As studies have shown, low vitamin d levels is associated with higher anxiety.
4. Give Your Workflow a Little White Noise
Your mind is addicted to sensory input. When you’re neck-deep in a project or in any sort of high-tension environment, make yourself a soundtrack.
Generally, the less spoken-word is present in the tracks you choose, the easier you can maintain your focus and clear your mind of outside stress. If you’re not an audiophile, try implementing tracks of TV static, cafe chatter, or rainfall to tune out the world around you.
5. Try adult coloring
Anti-stress coloring books are a great way to reduce stress and anxiety. Many adults around the world have adopted the age old practice of coloring. Though this can sound strange at first, once you begin to color, you notice that your mind drifts away and allows you to relax.
Eminent psychologist Carl Jung found that his patients who had the highest amount of neurotic behavior and anxiety in their day-to-day routine could find a highly-effective escape through coloring-in geometric, mandala and other intricate designs. After almost a century of supporting evidence, it’s clear to see that adult coloring books are some of the most effective tools to combat stress.
After you’re done, you even have new decorations for your home or apartment! Here at Art Therapy Coloring we have a smorgasbord of coloring books for seniors, teens, men and adults of all ages. We also have free printable coloring pages with interesting designs for you to help melt your stress away.
Though Carl Jung recommended these to his patients, they can be beneficial to anyone and everyone. They are just fun to color and many adults find this to be a naturally relaxing activity. We carry adult geometric coloring books and mandala coloring books, so you can try it out and see if coloring is right for you.
Find out what works best for your stress and anxiety
While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to banishing stress, the basic tips outlined in this article are a great first step for anyone wishing that their stress and anxiety would just disappear. There are hundreds of other methods you could try to shed your weary load, and potentially millions of combinations of tactics that could help you even more than either strategy on its own. Share your most effective stress-relief tips with us so we can grow together!
