Deadlines loom, the phone won’t stop ringing, your inbox is a disaster zone, and your boss has just reminded you about that big meeting you totally forgot was on.
ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
That feels better.
But yelling isn’t generally an appropriate response to stress, nor does it provide long-lasting relief.
Long-term, there’s plenty people can do to manage stress – addressing work-life balance, trying meditation and yoga, and working with a professional to manage triggers and the response to them.
But in the moment when stress is at boiling point – what can you do for some immediate relief?
Here’s what three experts recommend …
Lillian Nejad, Psychologist
- Mindfulness – “Try noticing your feelings of stress mindfully; without judging it as a ‘bad’ or ‘negative' experience. Observing your responses non-judgmentally is likely to take the edge off feeling stressed in the moment.”
- Keep a calm kit close by – Having a picture of your dog, a quote or affirmation, or a stress ball nearby can provide an instant sense of calm.
- Shift focus externally – “Increased stress is often caused by placing too much focus on how you are feeling or thinking. If you’re in a meeting or other business interaction, focus fully on what the other person is saying/doing.”
- Be honest – “If it is reasonable for you to feel stressed in a situation, then own it. Sometimes being genuine and honest about how you are feeling about a situation can help build rapport with others (who may be feeling the same way!).”
Jessica Ritchie, Brand Expert and Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) Practitioner
- Stop and breathe – Close your eyes or gently focus on an object and take some deep breaths – inhaling for five seconds and exhaling for five seconds. Repeat until you can feel yourself start to calm.
- Head outdoors – Being in nature helps with physical relaxation by lowering blood pressure and amounts of the stress hormone cortisol. If getting outside isn’t possible in the moment, try visualising being outside and doing an enjoyable activity.
- Listen to stress-reducing music – Don a pair of headphones and play ‘Weightless’ by Marconi Union. The song’s harmonies, rhythms and bass lines were designed in conjunction with sound therapists to help slow the listener’s heart rate, reduce blood pressure and lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Research shows listening to the song can reduce anxiety by up to 65 per cent.
- Try anchoring calmness – Establish an ‘anchor’ which you can use in moments of stress to bring about a state of calm. How?
- Choose an anchor that you wish to activate the calm state – pressing the top of your thumb and middle finger together, for example.
- Recall or imagine a time when you experienced feeling calm.
- When the experience is vivid and you feel calm, activate the anchor (e.g. press middle finger and thumb together).
- Release the anchor when the experience begins to fade.
- Break the experience by opening your eyes and counting to 10.
- Repeat steps 2-5 several times, each time making the calmness more vivid.
- Apply the anchor the next day to check that the required state occurs. If not, repeat the process.
Eugenie Pepper, Mindset Coach and Counsellor
- Take some deep breaths – “Breathing is my number one quick fix for stress. When you start to feel stressed, breathe deeply and exhale fully – take several deep breaths to slow down your heart rate and reduce your stress and anxiety.”
- Relax your muscles and your mind – “Visualise relaxing your muscles from the top of your head to the tip of your toes – stretch your neck, stand or sit up straight to get some of the tension out of your body.”
- Switch your mindset – “Take a step back from what's stressing you to get some perspective. Try to look at the situation from a different perspective.”
- Laugh! – “Hit up YouTube and watch some comedy; nothing relieves stress more than humour.”
No ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution
My own personal go-to-fix? A perspective check. Is what I’m stressing about really that big a deal? Can I even remember what stressed me this day last week? Likely, the answer’s no.
The recommendations listed here are just a sample of the countless methods available to tackle stress, as it strikes.
Give a few a go to find the solution that works best for you and if none seem to shift the stress you’re feeling, consult an appropriate health professional for individual advice.