Do you feel exhausted at the end of the day and feeling anxious for tomorrow? Do you feel irritable lately or become short temper easily? Do you have more headaches or migraines recently? Are you experiencing chest pains or breathing problem? Do you have sudden onset of gastrointestinal problems? Are you eating more or less than usual? Do you have trouble sleeping? If your answer is ‘Yes’ to any of the questions, you are experiencing anxiety and stress.
Some stress is normal and even useful. It helps us to react quickly or complete an important task fast. For example, it can help you escape danger or win a running race. This is called the fight-or-flight stress response. But long term or frequent stress can have further impact on one’s health. It can weaken your immune system, making you more susceptible to infections and diseases. If you already have a health problem, it can worsen the condition. Stress can also make people moody, tense, or depressed, affect your normal relationships with others, and may even impaired your normal daily activities. For this situation, you will need to seek for professional help from your doctor.
Here are some suggestions from my doctor. I tried to follow her suggestions closely and found them very helpful.
Exercise – Studies have shown that exercise has the benefit of increase one’s sense of well-being, mood state, decreased depression, and anxiety. So move around. Take a quick 10 minutes walk in the parking lot at work or use part of your lunch break to exercise. However, to get the maximum benefit of exercise, try to have 30 minutes of aerobic exercise three to four times a week.
Balanced Diet – Don’t smoke and limit how much alcohol you drink. Stay away from simple carbohydrates like sweets and soda. Eat a balance diet. Some of the foods are known for fighting stress. Include your diet with complex carbohydrates like whole-grain breads, Omega-3 rich food like nuts, salmon, and tuna to prevent surges in stress hormones and protect against heart disease, vitamin E rich food like almond, vitamin C rich fruits like orange and kiwi, and range of B vitamins to strengthen the immune system, and magnesium rich vegetable like spinach to combat headaches and fatigue.
A Good Night of Sleep – Don’t compromise your regular sleep schedule or quality of your sleep. Sleep is essential for one’s health and wellbeing, according to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF). Lake of sleep will increase irritability, moodiness in a person. If a sleep-deprived person doesn’t get sleep soon, the person may develop slurred speech, impaired memory, and an inability to function normally. Limit caffeine drinks to ensure good quality of sleep at night.
Avoid Perfectionism – Perfectionism will add more stress to you. It is OK to be imperfect. So what if your gift wrapping is not as beautiful as the one from the department store, it will be ripped open on Christmas morning and thrown in the recycle bin. Do you remember what color of the gift wrap on your gifts? See my point. Don’t sweat for the little things.
Ask For Help And Learn to Say No – If you have too much on your plate, it is all right to ask for help. It does not translate as being incompetent when you ask for help. Actually, it gives other a chance to get involve. Learn to say ‘No’ will help you free up time for you to focus on the really important tasks.
Other Ways To Fight Anxiety And Stress – Take a break. Do something you enjoy. A hobby can help people relax. Spend a coffee break with a friend. Learn different ways to relax your body like yoga, meditation, breathing exercises, massage, or aromatherapy.
Now you are empowered with ways to decrease your anxiety and stress. You can do it! Stop stressing and start living!