Stress relief?

Sugardonut

marisco wrote: »

Making time for simple pleasures in life can reduce the amount of stress you feel because then your whole day doesn't revolve around negativity.

Delegate or ask for help from your colleagues. Most people like to help someone if they can.

I think you just summarised two of the key things i don't do enough of! I'm going to start making more time for myself, i tend to be in a work, cook, clean and sleep cycle. I think i'm going to try for more 'me' time, lots of ideas here to try a new hobby.

Jackieb - i haven't tried bach's before, strangely never even given it a thought. I'll give it a bash though, worth a try!

jackieb

As I said, our GP recommended it. Also a work colleague told my OH about it as he used it for his offshore survival. OH always panicked when the helicopter flipped upside down in the water, but he says the last time, when he used the rescue remedy he was so calm that the diver had to come in and tell him to hurry up and get out.

All our family got some when my Dad died. It helped us get through the week and the funeral - in fact my OH and my brother were taking it at the church door when they were greeting people coming in (when there wasn't actually anyone there obviously )

Look up some reviews online. If it doesn't work you'll have done no harm. Some people actually give it to their pets.

NAR

OP there is nothing more tranquil or relaxing than fishing. Calm and peaceful, watching the world go by, and with any luck you catch something for dinner! :beer:

ticklepenny_2

NAR wrote: »

OP there is nothing more tranquil or relaxing than fishing. Calm and peaceful, watching the world go by, and with any luck you catch something for dinner! :beer:

Unless it gets away :P

BugglyB

Sugardonut wrote: »

Hi

I'm finding it harder and harder to cope with stress nowadays. I'm find myself teary, overly anxious about things, even if it's something i can't change.

I've got a few personal issues making my poor coping mechanisims for stress more obvious, but i think stress has always been a problem for me. I really want to learn how to deal with stress better, but i just don't know where to start. I've tried going out for walks, going for a bath etc, but i find it really difficult to wind down. Anyone else know some effective things i could try?

One thing is my friend do not beat yourself up for being stressed or upset. If you need to have a little cry or a stress out then do. If you constantly berate yourself for feeling how you feel it will create a negative loop.

For me I tend to try and think about other stressful things that have happened and the conclusion of them and then think 'this too shall pass'. Counterintuitive as it sounds it helps me to imagine the very worst case scenario in any given situation and how that would feel.

scrappie_2

I also found cooking really helpfull when I was going through a very stressful time in life.

My GP suggested excercise - it was the furthest thing from my mind as I couldn't get myself off the sofa most days. But I made the effort, joined the gym and did notice a difference.

As others have mentioned - mindfullness can be really helpfull. I had no hope of 'it working for me' and thought it was a bit 'out there' but I now practice 10 mins each day. I really notice a difference if for some reason I haven't done it for a while.

When I first began with mindfullness I found it impossible to read a book, as my concentration had 'gone', so I found a book with a CD attached and used this for the first few weeks.

Because of my loss of concentration I also found it very useful to make a list - I had a little book that I carried with me. If there was something I needed to do/remember I wrote it down. Once I had 'done' things, I crossed them off my list. It was a sence of satisfaction that I really was 'getting things done' even when feeling so low. Might sound daft, but it really worked for me.

Don't be affraid to ask your GP for help too - sometimes you cannot do everything by yourself. Life can just be too much for us to cope with at times. We all need help at some point.

Whatever you do - don't beat yourself up for feeling the way you do. It will pass and you will come out the other side of this, although I know from experience that can seem a pipe dream.

Hope you're feeling better soon.

Chaos_Monkey

Hi Sugardonut, sorry to hear you are feeling like this. But, it's good you're aware and are trying to do something about it

Have you checked with your local college/adult learning centre for courses? Our local one is offering a ''managing stress'' course - it's only 3hrs for one night, and I'm going to the next one with my DH, who suffers with stress. From memory, they also offer an assertiveness course for women....which is really annoying as my DH would also benefit from that course.

I think if you do a search on some key words and your town, you should come up with some starting points.

A few years ago, my work sent me on a ''Women's Day'' seminar in Leeds as they thought that myself and another girl in the male dominated team/profession might benefit from assertiveness training. No idea why though, as neither of us had a problem saying ''no'' (we agreed to go as it was a trip out of the office )! But the seminar had lots of small presentations on different aspects....sadly I can't remember who the provider was but I'm pretty sure they had the conferences in most major cities. Just remembered it was called ''Conference for Women'', but that was a good 6yrs ago now.

Sorry for all the waffle....bottom line is, do you think your employer might agree to send you on a seminar/course? I'm thinking that might be a MSE way of doing it If not, then definitely see what else is available. You mentioned you had a counsellor - they might also be a good place to ask about available courses. I'm pretty sure my DH was referred to some sort of stress management course along side his round of CBT.

I agree exercise/hobbies etc can help, but if it's more than day to day annoyances, then I think something more structured would be more beneficial in the long run (my DH can do silly amounts of exercise, and yet still be stressed when he gets back. It breaks my heart )

Anyway, apologies again for the long waffly post, but hope it give you some ideas.

Chaos
xx

DKLS

Some great suggestions so far, my wife's job in the nhs causes her a fair bit if stress, she swears by Zumba classes, loud funky music and dancing her arris off for an hour or two.

Also I was given a punchbag by a mate who does martial arts a few months back, she loves it after a stressy day, 5 mins knocking hell out of the bag does wonders, and acts as a great release.

BugglyB

How are things for you op?

heretolearn_2

I can be quite a stressy person too. Usually a good walk, book, or listening to music sorts me out but there are times when I find it very hard to switch off. Yet at the same time your concentration is shot so you can't do much but go round and round in mental loops.

You have to break the loop and get some decent rest.

I go to Zumba or similar classes, in theory twice a week, but in practise not enough. I find it helps a lot though - you really can't think about anything else at the same time, it's fun, and it wears me out so much I go home, eat something and fall into bed and sleep deeply all night. The next day I feel so much better not only for a bit of exercise and the direct benefits, but some good sleep.

So as well as walking, perhaps you could try something a bit more strenous? Swimming used to do the same thing for me and the concentration on the stroke and breathing and counting my laps used to clear my head (same good night's sleep afterwards).

Keeping active helps me more than trying to meditate etc. I just can't control my thoughts well enough for that. I have a big de-stress every summer when I go and spend a week in the country working as a volunteer on an educational project. It's hard work, but different to my usual work, and we have a lot of fun. Something like that takes your mind off your own issues and problems, too, and helps you get things in perspective. When you are volunteering you have to be thinking about other things/someone else. And that gives you a break from worrying.