Stress is the response of our body to change or pressure and, who isn’t under pressure nowadays? Stress is a part of the lives of millions of people and its consequences on health are not beneficial. Although it is difficult to eliminate stress completely, there are ways of reducing it and making it less harmful.

Stress: a personal matter

Although stress is a universal response of our body to a situation of pressure or danger, the response to change and pressure is very personal. Some people tense up while driving, especially in heavy traffic, while others find it relaxing. For some people, horseback riding is a pleasure, while for others it can be a reason for tension. Also, the pressures of work and family may not affect certain people too much while others may feel stressed and overwhelmed by them.

Our body reacts to this pressure by tensing up and this can cause headaches, backaches or stomachaches. But besides, some people use substances such as alcohol, cigarettes and even overeating in order to deal with stress-related anxiety. It is also common for stress to cause mood swings, and experience fear or depression.  

Something obvious is that we cannot control the events of daily life: a job change or a different boss, a move or the death of a loved one. However, there are ways of managing our response to stress.  

A sound mind in a sound body

“Mens sana in corpore sano” or a sound mind in a sound body is a well-known Latin quote that shows that thousands of years ago they already knew of the importance of caring for the body in order to have mental stability.

In order to keep stress in check, one of the first things you must do is lead the healthiest possible lifestyle with a balanced diet (link to article VS009) and exercise (link to article VS005). A balanced diet will enable your body to obtain the required minerals (link to article VS010) and vitamins in order to adequately carry out its functions. Regular exercise, besides helping to keep your weight in check, is one of the best remedies for stress, as it relaxes the tension accumulated in the muscles.  

Relaxation exercises

Besides routine exercise, there are other forms of exercise and practices which will help you manage stress naturally.  

• Breathing exercises: deep and relaxed exercise is one of the best ways of telling your body that all is well and that it doesn’t have to go into “stress mode”. A simple and effective exercise is to practice abdominal breathing. Lie down on a bed or sofa, or even on a comfortable seat. Inhale all the air you can and when you feel your lungs are full, picture an imaginary string pulling your belly button outward, and filling that space too. Then, exhale very slowly and repeat that breathing between ten and twelve times.  

• Exercises for the neck and shoulders. The upper part of the back, along with your neck, is one of the spots where tension tends to accumulate most. If you work sitting or at the computer for long periods of time, this accumulation of tension will worsen. Practicing these simple exercises every half an hour or 45 minutes, you will be able to release a considerable amount of tension accumulated during the day. Standing up with your legs apart, let your neck fall back and in that position, circle your head towards one shoulder and then the other.  Practice this exercise around ten times and then add five complete neck rolls. Then, roll your shoulders forwards and backwards, with your hands to your sides.  Do it 2o times in each direction.

• Visualization exercises: sit down comfortably on a chair or couch, relax, close your eyes and picture the ideal place where you would like to be at. Walk around that landscape visualizing all the details and feeling the sensations of being there. Feel how the water splashes your face under a waterfall or the scent of those beautiful flowers that you are imagining.

In general, any method that serves to escape the stressful situation for a few minutes is a good method to offset stress. It could be doing a crossword puzzle, playing a game on the Internet, calling a friend to chat or taking a walk.  

It’s common to avoid facing the stress-producing situation, such as cleaning the house, making work calls, etc. The problem is that this approach increases the level of tension and the effects of stress are even worse.  Making pauses in the middle of these tasks may take longer, but it enables to offset the negative effects of stress.