How to relieve stress

How To Relieve Stress: 15 Ways You’ll Want To Try

Methods so simple, you can do them right now.

Taylyn Washington-Harmon is the associate editor at Health.com. A former social media guru, she’s worked for a number of lifestyle and beauty brands and has previously written for SELF and STAT. She loves skincare, anime, and her pitbull Momo.

Stress is a normal part of the human experience. It’s actually programmed into us: an incredible hold-over from our primal days meant to keep us safe from danger. But now that we’re no longer in direct harm from hunting for our next meal, stress is more likely to be triggered by non-life-threatening experiences, like issues at work or family annoyances.

While triggers of stress can sometimes seem trivial, the effects stress has on our bodies are not. Stress can leave us feeling uncomfortable, sick, or even in pain—and finding ways to manage it are crucial in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Health spoke with several experts on how to relieve stress nearly instantly or over time using a variety of methods. Here are 15 things you can do right now to help you start feeling calmer.

Make a List of Things You’re Grateful For

It can be difficult to show gratitude for anything when it feels like the world is falling down around you. But showing gratitude for the smallest things, like a warm cup of tea or a sunny day can lift your spirits and reduce anxiety, Gail Saltz, MD, associate professor of psychiatry at NY Presbyterian Hospital Weill-Cornell School of Medicine and host of the Personology podcast, told Health. If possible, start a daily gratitude journal where you list what you’re grateful for that day, turning the stress-relieving habit into a routine.

Get Some Rest

Neuroscientist Matthew P. Walker, PhD, author of Why We Sleep, has firmly believed in sleep as your «superpower.» According to one of his sleep studies published in 2017 in the journal Nature Reviews Neuroscience, those who are sleep-deprived were more reactive to emotionally negative stimuli than those with a proper night’s rest. If you’re feeling more stressed than usual, assess your previous night’s rest and try to hit the hay a little earlier or slip in a midday nap to refresh your brain.

Play With a Pet

A 2021 survey of adult pet owners with at least one pet, conducted by the Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI) revealed 87% of them experienced mental health improvements from owning a pet. Alongside providing a form of therapy, owning a pet can add a level of structure, routine, as well as additional exercise to your lifestyle, helping to reduce stress and anxiety. According to Sandra Barker, PhD, director of the Center for Human-Animal Interaction at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, hanging out with a dog after a stressful event greatly reduces your cortisol levels and possibly buffers the impact of the event.

Try To Meditate

Meditation is easily one of the most science-backed and proven methods of relieving stress and anxiety. There are several types focusing on music, breathing, postures, and more: You can easily find a method that works for you to relieve stress. «Specifically the practice of mindful meditation has been shown to reduce stress,» Dr. Saltz told Health. «There are numerous apps that can get you started. It’s not hard to learn, but it takes practice.»

Spend Some Time in Nature

Spending time in nature has a profound effect on our stress levels. According to research psychologist Kelly McGonigal, PhD, author of The Joy of Movement, incorporating a little nature every day is beneficial to managing your stress levels. Getting to a park every day may not be easy, but even a short daily walk outside will suffice and help you clear your head.

Trigger a Pressure Point

There’s a spot between the tendons—about two or three finger-widths above the center of your inner wrist—called the pericardium 6 (PC6) that is essentially like a stress-release button. According to Nada Milosavljevic, MD, medical director of BodyLogicMD, applying pressure to this point has been used to prevent postoperative nausea and vomiting and has a therapeutic effect on those dealing with chronic stress and anxiety.

Tense and Relax Your Muscles

One of Dr. Saltz’s favorite de-stressing techniques actually involves tensing your muscles, holding them in that tense position for 5 to 10 seconds, and then releasing, creating an almost-instant feeling of relaxation. This is known as progressive muscle relaxation, and you can work different groups of muscles all over your body, per MedlinePlus. «This practice reduces stress through the mind-body connection—when we’re feeling very stressed, we tense up our bodies,» Dr. Saltz said. «And when we tense up our bodies, it reinforces the message to your mind to be stressed. It’s a signal of physiological arousal. Doing what you can to relax your body helps relax your mind.»

Clean Up Your Space

Check your desk: If the mess is adding to your stress, give it a quick clean. Cleaning up can help create a feeling of control when your environment feels chaotic, while your newly organized space can bring a new sense of clarity and calm. Chaotic environments create more stress, according to Susan Biali Haas, MD, wellness expert and author of Live a Life You Love. «When you engage your senses, like touch, it takes you out of your stressed-out mind and has a meditative effect,» Dr. Haas said. Set a timer for 10 minutes and organize what you can for an instant space and mind refresh.

Get in Some Light Exercise

Embrace Your Inner Child and Play

When was the last time you colored, played hide and seek, or watched cartoons? Dr. Saltz believed that embracing playtime as an adult—especially if you have your kids around to play with—can be amazing for decreasing stress. However, determining what that is is entirely up to you and your childhood. Don’t be afraid to get silly and embrace whatever uniqueness comes to mind.

Get a Little Help From Your Friends

Social support is a huge component of a healthy life. According to a Journal of Affective Disorders Reports study published in April 2021, loneliness has been associated with a significant level of psychological stress. Therefore, if loneliness is adding to your stress, call a friend or family member to chat, Dr. Saltz recommended. «Social support is definitely a stress-reliever,» Dr. Saltz told Health. «Talking with people that you feel connected to, trust, and can share your feelings with is important.» This includes a therapist as well if your stress is feeling prolonged.

Set Work-Life Boundaries

Setting boundaries for how far you decide to stretch yourself can be great for managing your stress levels in the present, but especially in the future. «Setting boundaries and having discrete relaxation time or playtime is key,» Dr. Saltz said.

Write in a Journal

Journaling is a great cognitive-behavioral method of releasing negative emotions and reducing stress and anxiety. «Journaling is another method of expressing your feelings, reviewing them, reprocessing them,» Dr. Saltz told Health. However, Dr. Saltz understood that journaling isn’t always a substitute for talking about your emotions with a trusted person in your life. The method works best in conjunction with social support.

Try Hatha Yoga

Yoga has been practiced for centuries for its physical and mental benefits, using muscle strengthening and breathing exercises to establish calm and reduce anxiety in those practicing it. A February 2018 study in the International Journal of Preventive Medicine found that women who practiced hatha yoga three times a week for four weeks—or 12 sessions overall—reported lower levels of depression, anxiety, and stress, compared to those levels before starting their yoga practice. Hatha yoga is one of the most beginner-friendly forms of yoga, focusing on deep breathing and gentle movements to relax and calm the body.

Do Some Deep Breathing

Dr. Saltz is a fan of the sweet spot between meditation and full-blown physical exercise, which are deep-breathing exercises, and the psycho-physiological effects deep breathing has on relieving stress. Simply breathing in, holding, and releasing to counts of five can do wonders in slowing your heart rate and hitting a virtual reset button on whatever activity was causing you stress, Dr. Saltz said. The best part about this tactic is that it can be done pretty much anywhere.

If you’re looking for other ways to decrease your level of stress, the American Heart Association and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) both offer stress management strategies you could potentially use as well.

How To Relieve Stress for Bedtime

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While stress is the body’s natural response to protecting itself, chronic stress or anxiety can have many long-term effects, including poor sleep or even sleepless nights.

Stress invokes the “fight or flight” feeling. This elevates the heart rate, quickens breathing, and increases stress hormones in the body. Anxiety is stress that continues after the stressor is gone, and it produces similar physiological effects.

During times of unwanted stress and anxiety, relaxation techniques can produce the body’s natural relaxation response. This includes a slower heart rate and breathing pattern, a lower blood pressure, and an overall feeling of calm.

Best Tips for Relieving Nighttime Stress

There are numerous strategies for relieving nighttime stress and anxiety before bedtime. If you’re feeling too stressed to sleep, these approaches can help you relax. Some sleepers use only one or two of these relaxation strategies while others practice a combination of them. If stress and sleep are a chronic concern, your physician can help you determine what the best approach is for you.

Meditation

Meditation is a mind and body practice with a specific focus of attention and attitude that lets thoughts come and go without judgment. Meditation is a known strategy for treating insomnia. There are several types of meditation.

Meditation can be done any time before bed, and it can also be done during the night if you find yourself unable to relax.

Deep Breathing

Deep breathing can be another component of meditation as well as a relaxation technique you can use any time. The goal is to take slow, even, and deep breaths.

Though there are many structured practices for deep breathing, including the 4-7-8 method and lion’s breath, you can begin very simply. Start by placing your hand on your stomach and inhaling slowly. When you feel your stomach rise, hold your breath for a moment, then exhale slowly. Different practices may incorporate counting breaths and adjusting the time breath is held before exhaling.

Meditative Movement

Meditative movement incorporates the attentiveness of meditation with gentle physical movement and focused breathing. Yoga, tai chi, and qigong are all types of meditative movement. They require no specialized equipment and therefore can be done in any location, making them accessible to the average person.

Research has demonstrated many physical and mental health benefits of yoga. In addition to promoting healthy activity habits, yoga can be beneficial in managing sleep problems. Yoga can help improve stress management; it has also been shown to improve mental well-being and lessen certain physical pains.

Less research has been conducted about the other movement forms. However, preliminary research has shown that both tai chi and qigong can assist with improving emotional well-being. This includes the management of anxiety and depressive symptoms. Along with the improvement of handling anxiety, it is likely practitioners of these forms can also find improved sleep.

These meditative movements can certainly be done as part of your nighttime routine or during the daytime. While the movements themselves may not be ideal during the night, the mindfulness and breathing techniques used in these practices could be used during periods of nighttime stress or anxiety.

Progressive Relaxation

Progressive relaxation is similar to body scan meditation because it requires concentration on certain parts of the body. You contract and release your muscles up and down your body in sequence, beginning with your toes, feet, calves, and so on. This allows you to relieve the physical tensions and stresses you may be experiencing.

Biofeedback

Biofeedback is the use of an electronic device to help patients learn to control functions of the body. These devices provide information about functions such as blood pressure, heart rate, and muscle activity. Users need the assistance of a therapist or biofeedback training to understand how to interpret the readings. They will also learn what affects changes in the body’s functions. For people with stress, anxiety, or even insomnia, biofeedback can be a useful tool for identifying functions of concern and regulating them.

It is important to remember that relaxation techniques are not a replacement for healthcare if there is a medical concern.

Stress Relief During Your Nighttime Routine

While the above relaxation techniques can be incorporated into your nighttime routine, you can also take some other practices into consideration.

Good Daytime Habits for Relieving Nighttime Stress

In addition to relaxation techniques, there are steps you can take during the day to relieve stress at night. A common aid is to exercise during the day. In addition to other health benefits, daytime exercise has been linked to better sleep in patients with generalized anxiety disorders. Exercise can also assist with issues such as insomnia. Another strategy for sleep hygiene overall is to wake up at a regular time. Even on the weekends, research shows that consistent wake times are an important component of sleep hygiene.

Keep in mind there is no exact schedule for how quickly you’ll be able to feel less stressed and anxious before going to sleep. However, consistent practice of relaxing techniques can help long-term. If you have questions or concerns about which strategy or strategies are right for you, consult your physician.

How to relieve stress

How to Relieve Stress

Sometimes life is just plain stressful. Maybe you’re on a tight deadline at work or you or someone in your family is having health problems — or maybe both are happening at the same time and it feels like you’re juggling 100 things at once. No matter the circumstances, you’re likely wondering how to relieve stress so you can lead a more peaceful and healthy life.

While it’s not always possible to control everything that is happening to us or around us, it is possible to change the way we relate to those things that are happening. Softening the way we perceive stress and relating to it in a more accepting way is the first trick for how to deal with stressful feelings.

Below, we’ve listed stress reduction techniques that will put you on a path towards acceptance and help you reframe overwhelming situations. But first, let’s go over what’s happening to your body and mind when you’re stressed out.

What stress does to the body

When you come across something you perceive as threatening — whether that’s an oncoming car or your boss’ tone of voice — your eyes and ears send signals to the amygdala, an area of the brain that’s involved in emotional processing. When the amygdala detects danger, it sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus, which then signals to your nervous system to trigger the fight-or-flight response.

When this response is initiated, stress hormones (including adrenaline) flood your body, causing your heart to beat faster than normal and your pulse and blood pressure to go up. Simultaneously, you start to breathe more rapidly and your body sends extra oxygen to your brain, increasing alertness.

A variety of other hormonal changes and physiological responses occur when your body reacts to stress. When this fight-or-flight response is repeatedly activated, it can cause health problems over time including high blood pressure and brain changes that contribute to anxiety and depression.

How to reduce stress using mindfulness meditation

Now that we understand just how important it is to manage our body’s stress response, what are techniques we can use to reduce stress? One helpful approach for how to reduce stress is practicing mindfulness.

Mindfulness is the ability to be fully present and engaged in the moment. Mindfulness lets us step back from unpleasant thoughts and emotions (aka stress) that arise because of challenging situations. It lets us calm the mind, get in touch with our body, and gain perspective of the world around us.

People who incorporate mindfulness meditation into their lives often report a greater sense of positivity, patience, acceptance, and compassion, as well as lower levels of stress, sadness, and frustration. A study published in mindfulness journal PLOS ONE found that 10 days of practicing mindfulness meditation using the Headspace app reduced stress by 14%.

How to release stress through stretching and exercise

Not only does exercise reduce the body’s stress hormones, it also stimulates the production of endorphins, which elevate mood. Walking and jogging, or any type of exercise where you use large muscle groups in a repetitive fashion, will help you reduce stress. Even a short 10-minute stroll can relax the mind and clear your head of overwhelming thoughts. Try one of Headspace’s guided walks to ease your mind and de-stress.

Stretching, on the other hand, can relieve the muscle tension created by carrying stress in our body. This, in turn, can also help you sleep better. Stretching in addition to regular exercise is a recipe for living a less stressful, more peaceful life.

How music can help you cope with stress

When you’re stressed out, it can feel like everyone is against you and you can’t connect to others easily. Research shows that music facilitates feelings of belonging, positive feelings of warmth towards others, empathy, trust, and social skills.

Music can also change our mood and our heartbeat. When we listen to music, our heart begins to sync with the beat. This means that a gentle melody can slow down a racing heartbeat. The next time your fight-or-flight response is about to kick in, try calming down and relieving some stress with your favorite chill tunes.

Simply talking to someone can help you release stress

Venting about what’s stressing you out can feel really, really good. Research shows that complaining to your coworkers is good for your mental health and helps you process your feelings. It also helps you bond with coworkers and cope with stress.

Friends outside of work can also be a great resource when it comes to reducing your stress. Try calling a friend and talking to them about what’s on your mind and overwhelming you. Chances are you’ll feel like a load was lifted off your shoulders after you’re done.

A third available resource is talking to a therapist. When you process stressors in your life with a therapist, this can help you work through whatever is causing tension in your mind and body. Your therapist can also help you do guided breathing exercises — simply ask them to do one with you the next time you’re in a session. You can also try Headspace’s 1-minute deep breathing exercise meditation.

How to Relieve Stress: 37 Simple Activities and Games

Periodic stress is a fact of modern life.

But we need not see stress as something perpetual, punishing, and unmanageable.

Instead, by learning to apply some simple techniques and cultivating an interest in activities that facilitate stress relief, stress management can become as mundane and manageable as commuting to work or cleaning your house.

Want to know how you can help your clients relieve stress? Read on for an interesting overview of what stress actually is, the good and the bad, as well as simple ways to implement stress relief into a daily routine.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Stress & Burnout Prevention Exercises (PDF) for free. These science-based exercises will equip you and your clients with tools to manage stress better and find a healthier balance in your life.

This Article Contains:

What Is Stress? A Psychological Definition

Despite being something most people encounter almost every day, stress is a deceptively complex phenomenon. It is a psychophysical process, meaning that it comprises both mental and physical features and can be experienced and defined in two separate ways.

Mental stress

Stress as a mental phenomenon is characterized by feelings of negative emotions triggered by the presence of a perceived stressor, which may be an event, another individual, an object, or something more abstract such as a particular thought or a personal trait.

The important detail to note here is that the stressor is perceived, meaning that an individual’s prior set of beliefs and expectations about the world are highly influential in their experience of stress. What one individual perceives to be a stressor, another individual may interpret as unremarkable (Porter & Goolkasian, 2019).

Physical stress

Stress as a physical phenomenon is characterized by a cascade of activity throughout the body. This cascade begins in the brain, as regions responsible for releasing stress hormones, preparing stress-related motor movements, and encoding stress-related emotional and cognitive responses become activated.

The downstream consequences of this activation then spread throughout the body. Heart rate increases, energy reserves are metabolized, digestion is paused, and the body enters a state of threat readiness (Marshall, 2011; Godoy, Rossignoli, Delfino-Pereira, Garcia-Cairasco, & Umeoka, 2018).

As a therapist, you will likely be primarily concerned with stress as a mental phenomenon, with your primary outcome being to reduce stress-related negative emotion or patterns of cognition that enable stress. However, it is important to appreciate how these two different types of stress interact.

For example, while mental stress can drive physical stress, sometimes the opposite is true, as a state of otherwise meaningless physical tension causes an individual to generate meaningful negative thoughts. Likewise, sometimes mental stress might occur independently of any clear signs of physical stress, and vice versa.

Threat stress and challenge stress

Not all stress is negative, and encouraging a sweeping policy of stress avoidance may actually do more harm than good. This can be illustrated by considering the difference between ‘threat stress’ and ‘challenge stress’ (Porter & Goolkasian, 2019).

Threat stress is associated with fear, alarm, and negative emotion, and represents a response to situations in which an individual feels overwhelmed and at risk of (emotional, social, or physical) harm. This stress is harmful and should be considered a legitimate therapeutic target.

In contrast, challenge stress is associated with situations in which an individual may feel a certain amount of apprehension, but simultaneously feels an exciting or otherwise compelling drive to face the situation and overcome its difficulties.

While nevertheless uncomfortable, this stress is constructive and can be a force for self-improvement and growth. Encouraging an individual to avoid challenge stress could lead to stagnation and the inability to confront difficult but ultimately therapeutic experiences.

For more on positive stress, we recommend spending a few minutes reading through our article on eustress.

How to Relieve Stress: 5 Techniques

A variety of evidence-based and effective therapeutic techniques can be used to relieve stress (Varvogli & Darviri, 2011).

These can be practiced independently by your client, or they can take the shape of a more deliberate, guided exercise as part of their therapy. However, it is first worthwhile considering whether your client uses a problem-focused or an emotion-focused coping strategy to manage their stress (Folkman & Moskowitz, 2004).

Problem-focused coping is characterized by directly tackling the source of the stress to remove it. For example, if someone is stressed by too much pressure at work, the problem-focused strategy might be to speak to a manager or colleague to relieve that pressure.

In contrast, emotion-focused coping is characterized by tackling the negative emotions produced by the source of the stress. For example, many sources of stress are more or less intractable, and so the most natural way to cope with them is to relieve their emotional impact.

Progressive muscle relaxation

Progressive muscle relaxation is a straightforward technique that involves sequentially contracting and then relaxing muscle groups throughout the body, typically starting from one extremity (e.g., the feet) and ending at the opposite (e.g., the face/neck).

Muscles are contracted deliberately and slowly, with clients typically maintaining the contraction for around 10 seconds. As well as providing a pleasant physical sensation that may relieve stress-related tension in the body, this technique also provides a period of quiet focus that helps to ground an individual and prevent their mind from spiraling.

Biofeedback

Biofeedback is an interesting technique that exploits the reciprocal link between the mind and body. Biofeedback can take many forms, but the basic procedure is that an individual observes a real-time readout of some aspect of their physiological activity.

For example, this might be heart rate (e.g., using commercially available fitness monitors), skin temperature, or even electrical brain activity (e.g., using wearable EEG or fNIR equipment). The individual then tries to relax and receives immediate feedback on any physiological changes caused by their efforts.

The individual learns what does and doesn’t work, and can precisely measure the success of their practice. Eventually, the individual learns a relaxation strategy to a sufficient extent that they no longer require biofeedback and can implement it in their daily life.

Guided imagery

Guided imagery is akin to a mind-based form of progressive muscle relaxation. The individual imagines a rich and immersive visual scene or image, typically constructing it and navigating through it in a deliberate sequence.

Importantly, whatever is imagined represents something soothing and pleasant, so the individual is not only distracted from their stress but also actively relieved. While this technique is typically guided, an individual can also act as their own guide by developing one or more stereotyped images or scenes they can construct independently.

Breathing

Breathing-based stress-relief techniques involve focusing on a period of deliberate, timed breathing. Most techniques involve around five deep breaths per minute, but there are many varieties of breathing-based techniques with different intervals between breaths and different intended benefits.

All have the primary aim of relaxation, and all likely work via a similar mechanism, wherein the brain notices the body entering a relaxed state akin to rest or sleeping and reduces its perceived state of stress and alertness accordingly.

Meditation and mindfulness

Finally, meditation and mindfulness refer to a broad range of techniques that combine the above techniques in a single discipline.

For example, meditation practices often involve breathing techniques and an emphasis on mental and physical grounding.

Mindfulness practices are often less formal but involve a similar emphasis on an individual deliberately focusing on and understanding the shifting states of their own mind and body.

In both cases, the overall aim is to alter the process that connects perception to stress, both by building a greater resilience to stress and taking apart the harmful and often automatic thought processes that cause a potentially innocuous situation to be perceived as stressful.

2 Stress-Relief Activities for Adults

Stress-relief activities can be sorted into two categories: breathers and restorers (Pressman et al., 2009).

Breathers

Breathers emphasize emotion-focused coping and involve an individual taking a break to distract themselves from the cause of their stress and substitute negative emotion with positive feelings and stimulation.

Breathers can be anything from high-octane activities like sports to leisurely activities such as jetting off on vacation, or even activities as simple as taking a 15-minute coffee break.

Restorers

In contrast, restorers emphasize problem-focused coping by working to repair stress-related emotional or physical damage that is perpetuating feelings of stress.

This might involve taking a mental health break, receiving comfort and care from friends or loved ones, going to a spa or other therapeutic retreats, or simply having a proper meal and eight hours of sleep after weeks of deprivation.

An individual should consider their needs before deciding on a stress-relief activity. Are they looking for escape, or do they need to heal?

Best In-Person and Online Games

Sports and physical exercise

Sports and physical exercise are well-established methods of stress reduction. They provide catharsis, literally working out bottled-up stress-related physical tension and negative emotion, and provide a focus that can distract an individual from nagging sources of stress (Takeda, Noguchi, Monma, & Tamiya, 2015).

There is nowhere to go wrong and a huge range of possible activities to choose from, anything from artistic swimming to endurance running can be an effective method of stress relief.

Nevertheless, an individual should pick an activity that suits their strengths, interests, and preferences. For example, some individuals may prefer a sport that is more or less social than others, and where the risk of physical harm may be stimulating for some, others might find this counter-productive as a means of stress relief.

Video games

Similarly, despite some controversy over the years, video games are also recognized as a legitimate and widely used method of stress relief. However, anyone who has played video games knows that they can be a mixed bag in terms of stress relief, and there is no way to speak about gaming in broad strokes.

Some games are designed to be highly addictive and can be counter-productive in the context of stress relief; indeed, many video games are stress inducing as a deliberate feature of their design.

The most effective games for stress relief are casual games involving low stakes, low commitment, and no particular pressure or incentive to continue to play when the player wants to stop (Russoniello, O’Brien, & Parks, 2009). Solitaire anyone?

Playing together versus playing alone

Ultimately, the goal of taking part in a stress-relieving activity is participation. If an individual finds that a sport or video game is engaging, relaxing, or otherwise distracts them from their stress, then there might not be any benefit in analyzing it further.

However, it is worth considering that research suggests team-based activities may be more effective at enhancing mental wellbeing than activities performed individually, with lower rates of depression and anxiety reported by team sport athletes than individual sport athletes (Pluhar et al., 2019).

It may also be useful to consider whether the sport activity or video game is focused on cooperation or competition. Interestingly, while you might assume that sports and games involving competition only introduce an additional source of stress, research has shown that both cooperation and competition are equally effective, suggesting that healthy competition may have a literal meaning as well as a figurative one (Roy & Ferguson, 2016).

30+ Hobbies and Ideas for Managing Stress

Stress can often take the shape of a negative, looming presence in our lives that we cultivate and grow as an unfortunate and sometimes unavoidable consequence of the choices we make.

Hobbies provide a means of countering this by cultivating an opposing positive force in our lives.

Stress-relieving hobbies

Stress-relieving hobbies should be goal based with measurable progress in order to provide a satisfying and productive focus to distract an individual and relieve their stress.

For example, crafts like knitting, carving, pottery, and painting are engrossing, challenging, but ultimately satisfying and involve cultivating something that persists beyond the individual’s engagement in the activity.

Hobbies that foster patience and resilience may be especially beneficial, as beyond providing stress relief, they may also train an individual to become less sensitive to stressful situations or even reevaluate and move past situations that were previously stressful. Many forms of sports and physical exercise are also effective for this reason.

Natural stress relief

Worthy of special mention is gardening, which has the dual benefit of not only providing relief and building resilience but also tapping into instinctual human preferences that program us to relax when in the presence of foliage.

For our ancestors, forests and undergrowth would have been places of safety and resources. For us, green spaces can become powerful sources of stress relief for the same reason (Lee, Lee, Park, & Miyazaki, 2015).

If accessing the outdoors is difficult or you’re not blessed with a ‘green thumb’ for gardening, then simply experiencing any natural environment will be beneficial for stress relief and mental wellbeing, such as a local park or lawn.

This is true even if the natural environment is simulated; natural environments constructed in immersive virtual reality are effective at enhancing mood and reducing both mental and physical features of stress (Mostajeran, Krzikawski, Steinicke, & Kühn, 2021).

Given the availability of virtual reality hardware and immersive 360-degree videos on video-streaming websites, exploring simulated natural environments like these presents an accessible idea for stress relief that can be tailored to an individual’s preference.

Stress-Relief Resources From PositivePsychology.com

We have many resources, tools, worksheets, and articles that can help with managing stress. Check out some of the following from around our blog:

A Take-Home Message

There’s no need to stress out over relieving stress.

Although sources of stress can often be outside of your control, you have just as much power to manage and relieve that stress. You can opt to manage the situation itself or, if that’s not possible, manage the emotion elicited from the situation.

Use the techniques shared above to exploit the powerful combined toolkit of the human mind and body to foster relaxation, positive emotion, and resilience.

How to Relieve Stress: 10 effective ways

10 relaxation tips to relieve the symptoms of stress. Let’s begin!

Welcome to our useful website – Motivationaltips! 😎

Probably all of us have suffered from fatigue, nervous tension, rapid pace of life, turmoil of weekdays or family problems at least once in a lifetime. These phenomena are the evident sources of stress.

As a result, we lose our temper and yell at our relatives, bursting out all the negative emotions we’ve got. That can obviously lead to the nervous breakdown, with which we can end up in a hospital.

Sounds not very happy-end-like, right?

This article is supposed to introduce several useful and effective ways how to relieve stress.

Trust me – it’s actually very easy to do!

You can try out the following tips right now, and make sure that good mood and the sense of relief will appear right away!

10 Best Ways to Relieve Stress

A comb is a really wonderful antidepressant!

If you spend your working day in front of the computer, a massage comb will become the best remedy for you!

It’s definitely one of the greatest ways how to relieve stress and it will help you feel a bit better right away.

You should comb your hair and massage your head with a comb during at least 10 minutes.

This will help you to speed up the circulation of blood and relax your muscles.

This is really a great way to avoid stress.

You should rub your hands against each other until you feel the warmth spreading over them.

Rubbing your ears can also have a great effect – it will help you to concentrate on a certain task.

Wash away negative emotions.

If you want to get rid of overstress and bad mood, I’d highly recommend you to take a 15-minute shower.

Play a jet of water on your head and shoulders, and let it massage you a bit.

Before you know it, the water will wash away all your negative emotions.

Eat antistress products for relieving stress.

What will definitely encourage you and help you stay in a good mood, is fatty fish.

It contains certain acids which are useful for the nervous system.You can also treat yourself to an ice-cream, banana or some chocolate.

Every woman can allow herself to eat a piece of chocolate (25 g) in the morning.

Don’t worry, you will not gain extra weight, but your spirits will definitely rise! 😉

Swing your hands a bit.

Many people suffer from stresses when their muscles are spasmed (this can happen because of sedentary work) and lose their elasticity.

This can lead to headaches and backaches.

I’d recommend you to spare a few minutes, get up from your work place and make several arm swings.

At first, make circular moves, and then swing your arms every which way.One more thing you can do with your hands is swimming; it will also have a positive effect.

May aromatherapy help you!

It is a well-known fact that a smell is closely connected with the emotional memory.

You should always be able to smell something that has once led you to felicity, feeling of happiness and burst of positive emotions.

Smell it as often as you can and you’ll always be in a good mood!

How to relieve stress: the stairs are your friends!

Try to run up and down the stairs for a minute.

This exercise will deliver oxygen to the certain parts of your brain which are responsible for the control over the emotional stress.

Clean up your house.

It may sound quite funny to you, but when all things belong to their places, your thoughts are more likely to be put to rights as well.

Take a few minutes and give some thought over everything.

Choose a day and spend it home alone.

Turn on the music, take something tasty out of the fridge and flop into the chair.

When you come up with a plan for their fulfillment, you’ll have no spare time for stresses and worries.

This is how you’ll get totally engaged into the realization of your dreams.

And my final advice to you is that you should smile more often!

The smile has a wonderful quality; it will disarm the entire negative aimed at you!

Have a great day and ALWAYS keep your chin up!