How to control Stress

 

Nobody with any emotions or conscientiousness can totally avoid stress in their lives. Nowadays we have more things to do, in less time, with many more choices and decisions to make.  There are so many different kinds of pressure enforced by modern society and in many ways they are made more complicated by the standards and time limits we set ourselves.

What you have to do is find ways of controlling stress and tension before it gets out of hand and causes complications – mental or physical. It means living more sensibly, thinking logically about the causes of your stress and then trying to find ways of controlling them.

Here are a few tips which may help you in your day to day life.

  1. Work out the ways you put yourself under pressure e.g. perfectionism, leaving everything to the last minute. Write them down. Think of the effects they must be having on you.
  2. Plan your day realistically. Don’t set yourself too many tasks in one day or in too short a time.
  3. Do everything at a reasonable pace and avoid hurrying. This will probably be difficult. You are probably in the habit of hurrying.
  4. Stop trying to do more than one thing at once. Try and concentrate completely on the job in hand. When it is finished, move on to the next.
  5. If you do find yourself rushing around, stop, think about what you are doing to yourself, rest a minute or two and then carry on slowly.
  6. If you find yourself becoming frustrated or angry with the task in hand, stop, move on to something else and go back to it later.
  7. Take regular exercise. This is one of the best ways to relax as it uses up some of that excess nervous energy and aids restful sleep.
  8. Find ways to ‘escape’ in your spare time from everyday pressures. Develop a hobby or interest e.g. reading, knitting, gardening, fishing. Do not kid yourself you have not got time – find time!
  9. Try and take a regular holiday if finances allow. Don’t save your holiday entitlement to the end of the year and then be forced to take it. Plan your holiday year more carefully.
  10. Make sure you get enough sleep and rest. Try to wind down before going to bed. Reading may help or sit and rest for a short while.
  11. Recognise if your body position is telling you that you are stressed.
  12. Try to avoid tea or coffee before going to bed. They are stimulants to the nervous system. You can be asleep and still not be relaxed. Dreaming can be very tiring.
  13. Take time over meals. Stop to eat and try and put work out of your mind. Learn to savour your food.
  14. Don’t miss meals or indulge in sudden bursts of overeating if you are feeling down.
  15. Make a determined effort not to smoke. It is self-defeating in the long run.
  16. Try to avoid drinking more than usual when you are anxious.
  17. Try to avoid getting over impatient. Very few things are that urgent.
  18. If you feel things are ‘getting on top’ of you ask for help. You can only do so much.
  19. Do not ‘bottle up’ all your worries inside. Talk it over with a member of the family or a close friend. Develop a support system.
  20. If you get angry or upset over something, try and get it out of your system. Express your anger quietly and honestly and remember crying is not a sin.
  21. Make sure what you are working so hard towards is what you really want. Do you need to be so competitive? Isn’t your health more important?
  22. Make a positive move/ effort to change things if they are a constant source of anxiety.
  23. Avoid situations that put you on edge until you feel better able to cope with them. Always put off till tomorrow something that is going to overtire you or stress you today.
  24. If you are really worried about your health see your GP.
  25. Think positive. Bad things happen to everybody. Don’t dwell on them or you will only become worse. Be optimistic. Look for the silver lining in every cloud.
  26. If you are working, establish two sets of goals for a) your private life b) work. Alter your goals. Aim only for those things that are within your reach or you will become easily frustrated. Assess the priorities.
  27. Be more tolerant of yourself. Develop faith in your personal self-worth. List your strengths.
  28. Learn to accept that which you cannot change. If you are in a losing situation, has the world ended because things did not work out.
  29. Delegate your responsibilities. Learning to say ‘no’ and meaning it is one of the most valuable ways of controlling and reducing the number of demands made on us.
  30. Approach each situation calmly – it adds to efficiency and helps with organisation.
  31. Avoid taking work home.
  32. Balance work and relaxation.

 

A hand-out from the Occupational Therapy Department given to me in October 2000