Before just beginning with our discussion on tips for stress management let us have a comprehensive understanding of this too common aspect of our modern life. In most of the medical discourses stress is referred as though it is a disease that can be treated with medication. But the real fact is that it is neither a disease to be subject of any ready course of treatment nor it is to be taken lightly as mere fact of minor psychic-physical imbalance to be automatically corrected once the work pressure subsides. So considering stress in its true importance and seeing through its exact nature of psychic and physical challenges is essential before presenting any suggestion or tips for stress management.
What is stress?
To define in its most basic linguistic orientation stress is the pressure or consequent tension from a pressurizing situation on a material object or living being. In regard to defining stress medically this basic definition is not altered and so stress in human being can be defined as the psychic and physical effects of pressurizing situation and consequent tension that can be felt both mentally and physically. So from its definition it is clear that stress in our life is intricately related to the situations that arise around us and how we cope-up with such situations. Thus when you talk of stress the first thing that you are referred to is your lifestyle and lifestyle alone. Our tips for stress management will obviously take the imbalance embedded in our lifestyle as a priority.
10 Tips for stress management
1) Unbiased Self Assessment
Most of the people have a very vague and partial idea about their abilities, patience, tolerance level and other aspects of their mental makeup. That is the reason why many people without having a second thought just undertakes such tasks, aspires for such goals that are though not impossible for them to achieve, but sufficient enough to make their psycho-physical balance slide from the usual rhythm. I know a BPO sector employee who after his weeklong busy professional work pressure enrolled in a weekend intensive foreign language program and I have seen him to kneel under huge stress just within six months with this schedule that took all his time either in job responsibilities or study. This is just an example of lack of self assessment of one's situation at hand and capabilities. So self assessment of your situation and how far you are able to take pressure is the first thing that you should take care of.
2) Self Discipline
All of us in some point of time of our life spent casual time in many things and many of us for a considerable time did not maintain any timeliness or planning in regard to our priority or focus in life or in some extreme cases some people tend to focus on their career goal with such passion and all encompassing zeal that soon they become mentally and physically exhausted. Lack of focus is definitely harmful but becoming too much focused and engaging all your day on a single objective purpose can equally be harmful as it can make you lose your psychic and physical balance and the day you discover yourself reeling under stress you will strive for regaining your natural harmony. Hence maintaining a disciplined life that look after all aspects of a harmonious sociable life is an important thing that we must emphasize in relation to this discussion on tips for stress management.
3) Taking Realistic Work Load
You think taking extra work load in your workplace would provide you relief from your concern regarding job insecurity and professional growth, but down the line in just two years of time you can be a worse victim of stress due to this pressure of extra workload. So when your raging concern over future almost makes you a work alcoholic, simultaneously you can be on your way to become a victim of psychic and physical imbalance early in your career. So taking realistic work load in workplace is a truly important step in managing stress.
4) Giving More Time to Family and Children
One of the most disastrously encompassing syndromes in today's ambitious professionals is that they with their increasing work pressure and raging demand of new and newer business involvement tend to become almost inaccessible to their family, friends and foe. Apart from the derogating social effects of this, especially on children, this in the long run contributes hugely in developing stress in these people and consequently endangering their psychic as well as physical harmony. Spending time with your loved ones in the family is itself a refreshing and relaxing experience that can save you from your work stress.
5) Early Morning Yoga and Exercise
Yoga and regular physical exercises like swimming, running etc. are long proven methods of stress management. Yoga actually helps you to relax your muscles, proper circulation of your blood, regulate your breathing and soothe your nervous function. Swimming, running or light jogging is equally refreshing and energizing exercises to render long term effects on your physical and psychic process. Doing these exercises in the early morning is more beneficial as in that part of the day your organic functions and psychic process is more organized and tuned with natural balance. So, regular yoga practice and light exercise, if possible in the early morning is one of the most important tips for stress management.
6) Making Your Work Creative and Enjoyable
When you enjoy your work it does not felt like a pressure, but when you loathe your work to be something inexpressibly boring that is really getting top of your head, you begin to feel the pressure and in the long run reeling under such pressure of monotonous work load can make you a victim of stress. Though not always possible but whenever possible and whenever there is a chance of altering the condition of your work to an enjoyable dimension that is equally satisfactory to the objective of the work, you can have a try. If as an administrator rather than engaging your subordinates in boring meetings at regular intervals, sometimes you can throw a small informal party, it can work wonder in respect of relieving boredom and equally making it fruitful for official purpose.
7) Meditation and Breathing Techniques
Meditation and breathing exercises are long prescribed as great procedures for balancing your mind and body in organic harmony. Through meditation your nervous function becomes soothing and coherent and similarly you regain your piece of mind that helps you to take your living and handle your tasks at hand with ease, without slightest tension or mental disquiet. You can meditate just by concentrating on your breath or just can concentrate on anything pleasant. There are great many meditation techniques that you have to learn and practice at the initial stage. The simplest of them is to silently counting your breathing in a erectly seated posture and slowly with practice becoming free of this counting process and later on only concentrating on the breathing itself. Meditation is one of the most widely recommended tips for stress management.
8) Relieve Your Concerns, Talk and Laugh Your Heart Out
By their psychic nature and behaving patters most of the human beings are of two types, introvert and extrovert. An introvert natured person normally talks less and is reluctant to express himself freely. An extrovert person in contrast takes pleasure in expressing himself in an unreserved manner to people all around him. Psychological observations have revealed that external signs like talkativeness, flattery, etc. do not always refer to extrovert nature. Even talking incessantly does not mean that you are relieving your concerns and apathies freely. But in regard to stress this natural habits and behavioral patterns matter a lot. Even you are a truly reserved person and dislike talking of your innermost concerns you can well be a victim of the burden of concerns and thoughts that slowly gnawing your heart. So, before falling victim to stress factors just behave yourself freely with others, relieve your concerns and tense feelings, if not possible to anyone at least to your wife, family and close friends.
9) Take Part in Sports at least Once a Week
There is hardly any man upon the earth who does not consider sports and sporting activities immeasurably full of fun and pure enjoyment that relieves all mental complexities and concerns for the time you are in it and also beyond that. Only in sports you are to live absolutely in presence of mind and when you are playing a game of soccer or taking part in tennis you are eyeing the ball only, no concerns can penetrate there. Many professionals on Saturday evening with their heart throbbing in thinking over their weekly sport on Sunday goes home in a happy mood and just to get up early on next morning they go to bed earlier than usual. So, taking part in a sporting activity at least once a week really deserves to be one of the top tips for stress management.
10) Go to Short Vacation at least once in a Month
Just ask yourself why you are earning and why you are raking your brain over concerns regarding a pay hike or next great leap in your career. Everyone tends to think on the time when one reaches the age of retirement and other major priorities for the family sake. But just making your concerns and consequent initiatives to work for future sake can prove dangerous for your psychic and physical health. That is the reason why the rate of taking sleeping pill or for that matter rate of insomnia in young people is steadily increasing over just past few decades. Vacation or holidaying is extremely beneficial to experience a stress free, relaxed life that rejuvenates your senses and make your feelings yearn for more such holidaying. Living with happy memory and happy yearning can sooth your sense and provide great relief from stress. So, going in short vacation with family and friends is a too important tip for stress management.
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