Navigating Stress
Fortunately, stress is not necessarily the winner. There are strategies that can empower us to tackle stress head‑on and lead a more balanced, harmonious life. From mastering the art of assertiveness to reshaping our perspectives, each step contributes to gaining a resilient mindset that can thrive even in the face of adversity.
“No” Is a Full Sentence
Assertiveness is a great personal trait, but it’s also a skill that one ought to practice to use effectively. The key to being assertive is working on your confidence first. Identify and establish personal boundaries and go from there. After all, it’s perfectly normal and healthy to believe you’re in the right when it comes to personal decisions and this knowledge can aid you in saying “no” should the need arise. Furthermore, it’s crucial to master letting go of needless guilt. You know best when something is not good for you and doing something despite personal objections just because you feel guilty is a sure way to stress yourself out. Remember that “no” is a full sentence.
Control Your Environment
We live in the information era which means that it’s easier than ever to be flooded with stressful, if not downright terrifying, news. This can have a great impact on our health, but it’s also easily avoidable. If the evening news stresses you out, don’t watch it. If you feel overwhelmed by what you see on social media, uninstall them. What about other day‑to‑day situations? If you get stressed in a crowd, avoid shopping for groceries at the nearby mall and instead visit a small, local shop. Remember, you have control over all kinds of small things and you can choose to avoid them for your peace of mind.
Express Yourself
Many people bottle their feelings up instead of communicating with others because they deem it easier. The lack of communication can lead to resentment and thus, stress. That’s why it’s crucial to talk things out when the situation makes us anxious, uncomfortable, or generally stressed. Perhaps you cannot avoid a social event you feel nervous about attending, but you can let your feelings out, seek comfort, and perhaps even leave earlier with a friend. Should you ever be worried about how to proceed in a situation like this, remember to express what you feel!
Create a Balanced Schedule
One cannot function properly if all one does is work. Whether that’s an actual job, school, or university, burnout is easy to “achieve” and then, it’s too late to change things. That’s why creating a schedule that allows for both work and relaxation is crucial. Try to find a balance between professional (or educational) obligations, daily chores, family life, and downtime. Without the latter, you’ll find yourself quickly overwhelmed and, in effect, stressed that you can’t keep up and that’s terrible for your health.
Reframe How You Think
Imagine you have an important exam coming up. You cannot skip it nor can you change anything about how it’ll look. Since the exam is important for your future, you might be feeling extremely stressed about it. However, in certain situations, we can adapt and use stress to our advantage. Instead of framing it as something that will ruin your composure, frame it as an aid. After all, stress is a natural reaction to challenging situations. That’s why we get an adrenaline boost which makes our senses sharper and ready for just about anything. Use it to the best of your ability, but don’t forget to do something relaxing afterward!
Adjust Your Standards
You might think perfectionism is a desirable trait, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Creating impossible goals which one cannot meet never ends in a positive situation. Instead, your confidence suffers and you get stressed about other future endeavors. That’s why the best course of action is to be realistic about the standards you have for yourself and for others. Remember, you don’t need to be the best. It’s fine to be merely the best version of yourself.
Relinquish Control
Even if successfully avoiding some situations, altering others, and adapting to specific things, some events are uncontrollable. The death of a loved one, political turmoil, or a serious illness will never go the way we may expect them to. For that reason, we must learn to accept them and let go of stress. While it might seem difficult, remember that even if you can’t control the uncontrollable, you can always control how you react to difficult situations.
Embrace Forgiveness
Forgiveness might be difficult to master, but it’s one of the most important things to learn. Things happen without our control and people aren’t perfect. That’s the source of some stressful situations. However, holding onto your anger or resentment won’t relieve stress, quite the opposite. Because of that, you should always try to let go of the negative emotions and forgive someone (in some cases yourself) for creating an anxiety‑inducing situation. This way, you’ll be sure to feel better with time.
Empowering Your Journey to Conquer Stress
By controlling our environment, expressing our feelings, balancing our schedules, and adjusting our standards, we take charge of our well‑being. And as we reframe our perceptions, relinquish control over the uncontrollable, and embrace forgiveness, we free ourselves from the chains of unnecessary stress. So, let's embark on this journey armed with the knowledge that we possess the capacity to shape our responses. This will ultimately lead to inner strength, peace, and fulfillment. Good luck!