What are Some Ways to Cope
with Stress?
Take a Deep Breath!
Stress often causes us to breathe shallowly and this in turn almost
always causes more stress! Mentally scan your body for physical
tension.
Does you chest feel tight? You may be holding your breath without
even knowing it! Shallow breathing puts less oxygen in the blood
stream, producing an increase in muscle tension. You may experience
headaches; you may feel more uptight.
The next time you feel "uptight," try taking a minute to slow down
and breathe deeply. Breathe in through your nose and out through
your mouth. Try to inhale enough so that your lower abdomen rises
and falls. Exhale slowly.
Learn to plan and manage time.
Plan your projects and tasks by breaking them down into smaller
parts and estimating time needed and time you can afford for each
part and then work on each part or on one task at a time. Determine
which projects are important and urgent and work on these first. Be
aware that you are not taking on too many projects or
responsibilities at a time.
Learn to play and rest.
You need to give yourself permission to escape from the pressures
of life and have fun or to just rest. Find activities or hobbies
which are absorbing and enjoyable to you. Have periods daily, even
if they are for short periods of time, where you can relax and
enjoy an activity, or to just rest.
Deal with the problem
Determine what the problem is and deal with it. If tension comes
from your relationship with a person, talk out your differences at
an appropriate time. If tension comes from an unfinished task,
restructure your priorities so you can get the task completed.
However, if a problem is not within your control, you may need to
learn to accept what you cannot change. If you are not sure what
the problem is or how to deal with it, consider talking this out
with a friend
Be a positive person.
Learn to praise the things you like in others or to compliment on
their successes rather than just focusing on what you do not like
or find wanting in others. Focus upon the good qualities that those
around you possess.
Be also aware of your Inner Critic; the part of you that is very
self-critical. Learn to also be nurturing and encouraging to
yourself.
Avoid competitive situations that are unnecessary for
you.
Our present lifestyle can involve many competitive situations that
we cannot avoid. Being overly concerned with winning in too many
areas of our lives however can create excessive tension and stress,
make us unnecessarily aggressive and can affect our performance
negatively.
Adjust your expectations
Be aware of the expectations that you set for yourself. Do you feel
overstressed because these expectations are usually set too high in
the sense that you never or seldom meet them? Be willing to adjust
your expectations based on your own wants and needs, and on what
you have accomplished in the past. This will enable you to achieve
your goals realistically.
Get regular physical exercise.
Choose an activity that you enjoy. Start slow if you have not been
exercising for a while. Exercise discharges stress and tension from
the body.
Get adequate sleep
Get an adequate amount of rest/sleep and try to have a regular
sleeping schedule. Most problems seem huge in the small hours of
the night but appear very different first thing in the morning, so
do not skip sleep as a way of trying to manage your stress.
Learn a method of relaxing.
Meditation, yoga, and relaxation techniques can be learned and
practiced regularly. The Counselling Centre can teach you brief
relaxation techniques that would take five minutes or less to do.
In our fast-paced lifestyle, stress and tension is built up daily.
Practising brief relaxation techniques as many times as you can
each day is one simple way of breaking or reducing the buildup of
daily stress and tension. You can also refer to our section on
Brief Relaxation Techniques.
Eat healthily
Healthy eating through having a well balanced diet can increase our
performance and well-being, strengthen our immune system and enable
us to cope better with stress. A healthy diet consists of balanced
amount of nutrients, varied food including fruits and vegetables,
and moderate to minimal amounts of sugar, fat and salt. Have
regular meals daily and avoid drastic diets. Allow time to sit down
and enjoy your food when eating.
Focus on the process
We are more likely to be stressed when we become overly concerned
about achieving a certain result (E.g., getting a certain grade).
Focus on the process of doing an activity not just on the end
result. Evaluate your success not only in terms of what you
accomplished but also in terms of how much you enjoyed doing the
task. Become fully involved with each task as you are doing it each
moment.
Talk out your troubles.
Confide to a friend, family member or counsellor you can be open
with. Expressing "bottled up" tension to a listener can be very
helpful. Another person may help you to see your problem in a new
light. Whatever problem you are facing, others may have faced it
before and finding out what others have done in similar
circumstances may be helpful.
