20 Ways to Ease Stress Part 2.

Still stressed?…
Consider these other ways to deal with your stress…

1. keep a stress journal… identifying the major causes of stress helps to avoid or handle them more effectively. Track the occasions that were stressful or triggered anger or anxiety, and  see if you could have altered or avoided the circumstances.
2. Get a massage… have a friend or a spouse do it if you can’t afford a professional. Massage appears to slow down heart rate and relax the body.  You may find yourself feeling more relaxed  prior to your massage-just the anticipation can be relaxing.
3. Adopt healthy habits… unhealthy habits arise from being stressed out.  Add some healthy habits like walking, eating fruit, drinking lots of water, and getting seven to eight hours of sleep per night.
4. Curb caffeine… stimulants such as tobacco and caffeine rev the nervous system which increases stress.  They are also addictive, which can leave you feeling anxious until your next fix.
5. Meditate… take time to pray and meditate.  Meditation can reduce your heart rate and blood pressure, adrenaline levels, and skin temperature.
6. Practice acceptance… learn to accept others and yourself.  Do not get stressed out about things that are way beyond your control.  You’re much better off accepting these things and figuring out ways to work with them.
7. Talk to yourself… ask yourself what you’re really stressed out about in the coming day or week.  Then ask what you can do to reduce the stress before that event.
8. Have a plan… using good time management, plot out realistic timings of daily activities including work, sleep, relationships, and recreation.  You may be planning too many things each day.  This tool will help you decide which daily activities are priority.
9. Clean your house/desk/work area… removing physical clutter can be a prelude to purging emotional clutter.  Use your time and energy as efficiently as possible to organize your home life and office.
10. Don’t procrastinate… loose ends, whether in family, friends or work, cause stress.  Make a list of things you have to do.  Then prioritize the list to things that are most important and can be accomplished in a reasonably specified amount of time.  Ask yourself if anything on the list can be dropped or delegated.