The economic climate has changed over the last decade, and the change was not in a good direction. Working 8 hours a day has never been harder than it is today. As the tasks pile up on your plate every day, so does the stress. The question remains: “Is there something that you can do to battle stress in the office?”
Of course, there is. Stress is labeled as the number one enemy by many health organizations. And experts have come up with several options to deal with it. If you don’t want all that stress slowing you down, here are several ways to battle it with ease.
Get a Hobby
If you are stuck in your daily routine and you find your job too stressful as it is, you should consider getting a hobby. Why is a hobby such a good idea? Well, first of all, a hobby will help you disconnect and get some rest from your daily obligations. If you find a perfect match, a hobby can turn out into such an immersive and healing experience.
On the other hand, you can turn it into a money-making activity which further helps you relieve the stress coming from financial issues. What are your options? Hobbies can range from gardening and fishing to crafting and video gaming.
Don’t be so hard on yourself, try several things, it’s so much easier to pick the right one when you are basing the choice on your personal experience.
Start Cooking
Cooking is a form of art. Looking for the perfect recipe or creating your own, shopping for ingredients and preparing a meal will encaptivate you. All those wonderful scents, tastes, and food textures will help you forget about your office and put you in the moment.
If you decide to pursue this path, you should know that there are specific supplements that you can incorporate in your diet to promote stress reduction. For instance, drinking green tea will help you lower stress by increasing serotonin levels, spinach will help you stock back up on magnesium to combat fatigue and headaches, and so on.
There are many foods that can help you tame the office stress.
Commit to Regular Exercise
There is no better cure for stress than regular exercise. Some of you may argue that exercising is a form of stress itself. And you are right, at least partially. Exercise is a stress if you jump straight into it as if you were a professional athlete or if you constantly overdo it. If you want to leverage exercise to combat stress, you have to dose it right.
First of all, if you are not physically active, don’t commit to it like it’s your lifeline. Start slowly. For instance, you can go out for an hour-long walk 3 times a week. When you start feeling comfortable you can go for regular brisk walks and hit the gym a couple of times a week.
Find the ratio that works best for you. Experts have proven that physical activity helps in stress management, you just need to find the right dose.
Start Practicing Yoga
Yoga is the same as exercise, some might argue. Well, no, it isn’t. It’s a self-improvement practice, and possibly the oldest one known to man. Why it is on our list? Because it provides the best time spent/stress relieved ratio.
How come? Because Yoga incorporates the best things from the stress relief world. Which are those? Deep and proper breathing, meditation, imagery, physical activity, and many others.
If you’ve never done Yoga before, we strongly recommend that you find a local Yoga group with a licensed instructor. The combination of stretching and physical activity you encounter when starting out in Yoga may appear overwhelming.
Don’t be hard on yourself, give your body and mind some time to accommodate. After a couple of sessions, you’ll be able to go through the entire practice.
Visit Local Concerts
Have you ever noticed how some tunes can get you in a better mood? This is because music has such a powerful effect on us. In fact, it has been actively used in music therapy, developed to help people cope with stress and pain management. The question is – how do you use it on your own?
For instance, you can start visiting local concerts. Seeing and listening to your favorite band and tunes that have been around for your entire life is a stress reliever on its own. Not to mention the socialization aspect, and all that dancing and jumping that takes place.
Learn Breathing Exercises
Have you ever heard about cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy? It doesn’t matter if you haven’t. They use breathing exercises as one of the most powerful techniques that benefit people under a lot of stress. How can something as simple as breathing in and out help you?
Breathing exercises are designed to induce muscle relaxation and quite your mind. They come with simple instructions that you have to follow. During the exercise, you have to be focused on breathing and counting seconds.
This aspect of the exercise transfers your consciousness into the moment and disconnects you from your everyday life. On top of that, these exercises don’t last long and you can do them even while you are in the office.
Start Spending More Time With Dear People
If you maintain contact with other people solely over messenger apps and social networks, it’s no wonder you feel under so much stress. You have to reach out, meet people and spend some time together, face to face.
The relationships we build with people have so much healing potential and that shouldn’t be neglected. Ask your friends how they are doing, actively listen, share your life and your feelings with them. Talking about stress will help you alleviate at least some of it.
There you have it – 7 activities that will help you battle stress in the office. You need to acknowledge stress before you can combat it. And since it occurs on a daily basis, however you choose to battle it, it has to be an ongoing activity if you want to see any meaningful results.
