Healthy and Easy Ways to Manage Stress

12 Apr, 2023

Stress is inevitable! However, primary care physicians believe controlling how they affect our physical and mental well-being is possible. There are many healthy techniques to control stress and increase resistance to life's obstacles. People can feel more in tune, focused, and serene by employing a variety of research-validated stress-reduction practices. These include mindfulness, meditation, regular physical activity, and strengthening social relationships.

What is Stress?

Stress is a response to events that are changing or feel hazardous. These situations can comprise both sad and happy or some unpleasant incidents. Understanding that stress is largely influenced by how you feel about a situation is critical. The causes and intensity behind stress involve some individual variability.

Today, there are several ways of managing stress, and several doctors believe that with increasing stress, even the ways to relax are improvising.

Some Statistics about Stress

According to The American Institute of Stress:

• 33% of people say they are extremely stressed out.
• 77% of respondents report having stress that negatively impacts their physical health.
• 73% of people experience stress that negatively affects their mental health.
• Stress causes 48% of adults to suffer sleep issues.

How Does Stress Affect Mental Health?:

Stress is a normal physiological reaction to difficult or dangerous circumstances. When the stress you feel is at a moderate level, it can inspire and improve performance. Nonetheless, prolonged or extreme stress might harm one's mental well-being. Physical symptoms like headaches, exhaustion, and insomnia can result from it, as well as worry, despair, and anger.

Continuous stress can affect memory and cognitive function as well, as makes it more difficult to concentrate or make judgments. Many mental health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and substance abuse disorders, can either be brought on by stress or made worse by it. So, managing your stress levels and getting medical help if you exhibit signs of chronic stress is important.

How Does Stress Affect Physical Health?

Stress can have long-term as well as immediate detrimental impacts on physical health. As time passes, these medical conditions might become severe and have a serious impact on your body; these include:

• Cardiovascular health: Prolonged stress can exacerbate Heart disease, high blood pressure, and stroke risk factors.
• Immunity: Regular stress impacts your immunity negatively, which makes it difficult for your body to fight illness, infections, and diseases.
• Digestive System: Stress can cause a few issues, including acid reflux, irritable bowel syndrome, and stomach ulcers.

Identifying the Causes of Stress

Deadlines, hefty workloads, challenging co-workers, and long hours can all cause work stress. Burnout, anxiety, and physical health problems may result from this. Let's check some of the common causes of stress in people:

• Personal stress: This is a result of a variety of variables, some of which include negative self-talk, low self-esteem, and self-doubt. These elements may influence stress, anxiety, and depressive thoughts and sensations.
• Time stress: Time stress can arise from feeling overwhelmed with too many tasks and not having enough time to complete them. Stress, anxiety, and burnout may result from this.
• Uncertainty stress: Uncertainty stress can come from a lack of clarity or predictability in a situation. This may cause stress, worry, and anxiety feelings.

Some Effective Stress Management Techniques

• Avoid: This technique involves identifying and avoiding stressors that are within your control.
• Alter: This technique involves identifying stressors that can be changed and making changes to reduce their impact.
• Adapt: This technique involves changing your response to stressors that can't be changed.
• Accept: This technique involves accepting the stressor and finding ways to cope with it.

Healthy Ways to Manage Stress

Stress doesn't need to control your life. Taking small, actionable steps can dramatically improve your stress levels. You can feel more balanced and in control using one of the numerous healthy stress management techniques available. To manage stress, try the following methods:

• Exercise: Regular physical activity can improve overall health and fitness by reducing stress. You can try several forms of exercise like brisk walking, yoga, running, stretching, cycling, playing outdoor sports, and many more. Several primary care physicians suggest exercising for approx. 30 minutes 3 days a week.
• Meditation: Mindfulness meditation can help you feel better by lowering stress levels and enhancing focus and attentiveness. It involves focusing on the present situation and observing thoughts and sensations without judgment.
• Don't Forget About Sleep: Getting enough sleep is crucial for managing stress. Try to plan a schedule for your sleep and be consistent with it. The ideal sleep for the body's natural well-being is 7-9 hours.
• Engage in a Hobby: Hobbies can help you unwind and reduce stress. Some examples are reading, cooking, and gardening.
• Eat Regularly and Don't Skip Meals: Eating regular, balanced meals throughout the day can help regulate blood sugar levels and reduce stress-related mood swings.
• Prioritize self-care: Taking care of yourself, not only physically but also mentally, is crucial for managing stress. This can involve pursuits like having a massage, taking a soothing bath, or exercising your creativity.
• Connect with others: Joining a support group or spending time with friends and family can offer emotional support and help lower stress.
• Manage your time: Prioritizing tasks, setting realistic goals, and managing time effectively can help reduce stress related to feeling overwhelmed or overworked. This may involve delegating tasks or saying no to additional commitments.

Conclusion

Stress management is the key to a prosperous life and a happy heart. A few good stress-reduction techniques include exercise, mindfulness, getting enough sleep, engaging in hobbies, eating regularly, prioritizing self-care, interacting with others, and time management. Finding the best strategies and approaches for you is important because stress management is an ongoing practice.

You must consult primary care physicians when you find yourself in a tough spot while managing stress. These practitioners can provide counseling, therapy, and other evidence-based therapies to aid with stress management and improve your general well-being.

As part of Central Valley Medical Providers, our physicians can help you prevent and manage stress. Our primary care physicians are dedicated to providing high-quality and easily accessible healthcare and can assist you in managing and dealing with stress. To find out more, contact our team at 866-423-0060 or visit our website at www.cvmedpro.com