Stress can be an absolute killer, or at least it can completely stop you from being productive due to getting completely overwhelmed with a situation. We all have had that feeling. That pressure of not finishing a task, or just pressure from work, family and life. Don’t get it confused though: not all stress is bad. ‘Eustress’ is one term used to describe the good kind of stress and this is the kind of feeling you get when standing on top of a mountain about to head down on skies, or when you’re playing a computer game and you’re completely focused because you only have one life left. This is the kind of mild stress that in-creases dopamine levels and overall brain function.
The key to managing stress successfully is to keep challenging yourself. You need to keep subjecting yourself to new experiences and to make sure you manage the stress this brings in a healthy manner. The worst thing you can do is to sit in the same office, doing the same work, every single day while being under a lot of stress. This can cause a host of different health issues. I know this for a fact having spent the last nearly 10 years in a stressful corporate job.
The reality is that while we can’t control all of our circumstances, we can control the way we react to them. When you’re lonely or bored, there are things you can do to get more meaning in your life again. Learning a new skill like painting, drawing, or learning to play a musical instrument can be a great way to combat stress. And if you’re stressed at work, consider quitting – after all, your health is the most important thing. This was what I had to do. It literally made me sick to clock in everyday knowing that I was going to be dealing with the same issues I did before, just with different people. I was so over it and needed a change. But the change can be stressful in itself, so don’t jump away from your job without having a safety net of savings to get you to the next gig.
<strong>Stress Management Techniques </strong>
You can also try any number of stress management techniques. Of these, the most successful and popular is probably meditation, at least this is what I have found in my life. It’s no coincidence that a lot of Buddhist monks seem to live long, healthy lives. To give meditation a shot, you could try downloading the popular mobile app ‘Head Space’ which will talk you through a few guided meditation sessions. I went so far as to actually studying hypnosis and guided meditation at one point to make my experiences even more powerful. Meditation has basically changed my life in a way that I cannot really even explain. It gave me a mechanism to cope with all the garbage in today’s society.
The key to meditating is to calm the mind and to stop worrying about things. The big mistake we often make is to try and ‘force’ this to happen when in reality, this defies the point entirely! When you try and ‘force’ yourself to calm, you are actually doing everything but calming yourself. Instead, you should simply sit somewhere quietly, close your eyes and then see what happens.
If your mind wanders, then just make a note of it and focus back on your breathing or on keeping your mind still. It takes a little practice but just 10 minutes a few times a week can start to make a major difference. Eventually, meditation will become a tool you can use to stay calm under any circumstances. Another way to get you to that calm meditative place is to try deep breathing exercises in combination of meditation to help get you even further into that head space that you want to be in and allows your body to do things for you that you can’t imaging. Research the Wim Hof method as an example.
The downfall of using meditation as a tool is that for most people, they try a few times then give up because they can’t get focused on their inner self or simply cannot focus on your breath. If you are someone who struggles with a lot of stress and meditation is not working for you, then you might consider seeing a professional therapist who will teach you these tools that you can then use yourself to overcome stressful situations. Sometimes having a guide helps. Or just simply get an app or some guided meditation recordings.
Most important of all though is simply to remember that you need to make the best of your situation and that means putting yourself out there, experiencing new things and crucially connecting with new people. Living that stagnant life with that boring stagnant job is not going to get you anywhere near where you want to be in life. Living your passion can be the best way to combat and take all of the outside stress out of your life! Now, everyone needs income, because not having money can be the biggest stressor of all! So find that passion that you can capitalize on and you can find some sense of freedom and inner peace in this crazy world!
The most important thing is to just find something you enjoy to help you destress! For me, I love meditation in combination of using cannabis as a natural medicine and getting out in nature! Walking in nature can itself be a meditative experience, it’s called active meditation.
That’s just my two satoshis on the subject. Hope everyone has a great day!
Be Cool, Be Real, and always Abide!
