6 PROVEN WAYS TO REDUCE STRESS IN 2020
By Yasmina Cherquaoui – Yoga Instructor and Founder – Ready Steady Glow
6 Proven Ways to Reduce Stress in 2020
The World Health Organisation has classified stress as the “health epidemic of the 21st century.” If you have you been feeling a little (or a lot!) overwhelmed, had a racing mind, palpitations, digestive problems, been finding it hard to focus or sleep – you could be suffering from stress and if so, you are not alone.
A survey commissioned by the Mental Health Foundation in 2018 found that 81% of UK women have felt so stressed at some point over the last year they felt overwhelmed or unable to cope. That is a staggering figure.
The good news is that there are steps that you can take to help. The first port of call should always be a medical practitioner. They may be able to recommend some therapy such as CBT or assess which is the best course of treatment for you.
Over the last couple of decades, I have picked up lots of tried and tested tools from various courses, teachers and real life experiences. These learnings have helped teach me how to cope with my own stress and anxiety. Here are my 6 proven ways to reduce stress in 2020.
1. Food
‘Let Food Be Thy Medicine’ – Hippocrates
Just changing your diet isn’t the only answer but having a healthy diet will certainly help you feel better about yourself. If you have been relying on coffee or sugar for your energy fix, then you are better off getting off that roller-coaster and finding an alternative. Caffeine is going to increase your heart rate and cause the mind to race which if you are stressed will just accentuate the feeling of overwhelm. Equally with sugar, there are plenty of natural highs out there without the inevitable low that follows from a sugar rush or caffeine dip.
If you notice that you have an energy dip at a certain time each day, instead of reaching for the caffeine or biscuits, try going for a walk or speaking to someone that uplifts you. It might just be that an energy shift is all you need. As an alternative for coffee, try Chicory. The root of the plant is ground roasted and granulated so you can just mix with hot water and add milk to taste. Chicory root has apparently been used as a coffee substitute since 1808 in France, during the coffee shortages as a cheaper alternative. It has a caramelly taste so worth trying it -you might be pleasantly surprised!
For a biscuit replacement reach for a date or some apple dipped in your favourite nut butter or Greek yoghurt, berries, local honey and cocoa nibs. If you live in the UK, then it may be worth getting your Vitamin D levels checked if you feel very low on energy. It’s worth taking a supplement as the body needs approximately 20 mins of time in direct sunlight to absorb the daily amount of vitamin D.
I take a daily dose of a calming magnesium drink before bed, magnesium plays an important role in the nervous system, helping to activate mechanisms that quiet and calm you. It can also help improve sleep. Try and eliminate processed food from your diet as much as possible and try and ensure that the majority of your diet is plant based and varied. Research has shown that eating fruit instead of a snack high in processed sugars like biscuits can help reduce depression and anxiety. You will also feel lighter, more energiesed and less lethargic.
2. Sleep
Get some sleep! Sleep and rest are so important, and we don’t put enough emphasis on the importance of restoring our body. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 8 hours sleep a night for adults. Less than that can have detrimental effects on your health and can intensify the feeling of anxiety and overwhelm. If you want to read more about the benefits of sleep I recommend ‘Why We Sleep’ by Mathew Walker. Try to get into bed at the same time every day to create a habit. Once you do, you will find that you start to drift off to sleep much quicker and easier.
Log off from laptops and phones at least half an hour (yes shut down insta!) before heading to the bedroom and try sleeping with your phone in another room or airplane mode so that you are not tempted to scroll through social media last thing at night and first thing in the morning.
Before you sleep try: Write Down Three Blessings
1. Before you go to bed, write down three good things that happened during the day. They can be really small and seem trivial, even better – we need to appreciate the little things in life as much as the big. Perhaps you received a text that made you smile, perhaps the transport ran on time and you made a meeting without stress, maybe you had some delicious food.
2. Now close your eyes and start to connect with a slow soft breath and a feeling of gratitude. As you inhale, breath in that feeling of gratitude, contentment, happiness (Whatever comes up from thinking of your list for the day). Breath out any negative thought and emotions. Take a couple of minutes and end with a slow deep breath in through the nose and then take a sigh out of the mouth letting go of stress and tension in your body.
3. Get Moving
Find something that you enjoy doing, it might be putting on your favourite tunes and getting the body moving – notice how this really shifts your energy, if you are feeling in a funk – shake it out! If dancing isn’t your thing, try walking to work or amongst nature on the weekend, join a running club or go for a swim. There are so many home workouts available now. It’s possible to squeeze a workout into your day – remember ten minutes is better than no minutes!
We have created a yoga video which comes free with some of our packages. It’s not just about burning calories, you can reap all kinds of benefits, including increased energy, improved mental clarity, optimal digestive health, and enhanced mood. Exercise also produces the feel-good hormone serotonin, which has an uplifting effect on your entire body. Discover what you love and stick with it!
4. Positive thinking
The average person has an estimated 70,000 thoughts per day! Take a moment to think about the thoughts that run through your mind. Are they positive and uplifting? “Today is going to be an amazing day!” Or negative and self-defeating? “I can’t face today.” Positive thoughts boost your mood, and spirit. They tend to generate even more positivity and happiness in your life. Similarly, negative thoughts breed negative thoughts, creating a domino effect of destructive energy. Drowning in negative energy effects how you live your life and how others perceive you. Thankfully, you don’t have to accept the negative internal chatter. Change the way you view life – give yourself another filter.
It may seem strange and awkward at first, it does take practice but just as your mind has shifted to negativity as the norm it can shift in the opposite direction. Start by switching the interval chatter to ‘I get to’ instead of ‘ I have to’ so ‘I get to go to work today.’ Yes that might seem extreme if you hate your job, but for the moment that job provides you with a home and the ability to feed yourself. It gives you a reason to get up in the morning. Furthermore, you are able to go to work today. Many people are unable to work or didn’t get the chance to wake up this morning.
Think of one thing you like about your work – perhaps it’s one particular person, perhaps it’s the paycheck, maybe it’s the location. It takes a little practice, but soon enough, your mind will gravitate to the brighter side of life. Practice cultivating a positive mindset with these feelings of thankfulness, manifesting more positivity and gratitude. Try taking a walk outside on your lunch break, leave your phone in the office and go for a walk in the fresh air for 10-15 minutes. If the weather is nice, eat your food outside. Even better if you have a park or somewhere where there is nature and just clear your head. Look at the sky, the trees, buildings, people and just notice your surroundings. Enjoy taking nice slow breaths.
Research conducted by the University of Exeter Medical School found that of the participants who spent little or no time in nature, a quarter reported poor health and almost half said they were not satisfied with their life – a standard measure of wellbeing. In contrast, just one-seventh of those who spent at least two hours in nature said their health was poor. Forestry England states “walking among trees reduces levels of cortisol, a hormone associated with stress. It claims a forest walk can boost the immune system through breathing in phytoncides, which trees emit to protect themselves from germs and insects.”
Limit your social media use, the last thing you need to be doing is looking at other people’s seemingly perfect lives when you are feeling overwhelmed. It does nothing to help the situation and for the majority of us it just makes us feel worse. Instead call a friend that makes you feel positive and find out what is actually going on in their life behind the Instagram filter.
5. Meditation
For beginners, the simplest and most effective form of mediation is mindful breathing. Mindful breathing can be done each day for only a couple of minutes at a time.
The goal of a breathing meditation is to allow the mind to rest from thoughts, which means allowing thoughts to pass through your mind rather than tending to each one as it enters. Don’t become frustrated when you do drift off with your thoughts – just come back to the breath. Learning to “be” with the present is the goal of meditation. Remember, having thoughts is completely normal.
Sit in a comfortable position, close your eyes or soften your gaze and take a slow soft breath in for the count of 5 or 6 and take a slow soft breath out for the count of 6. With each breath in expand and with each breath out relax, becoming slower and more subtle than the last. Try and take at least ten breaths, and see if you can eventually start to increase it.
6. Visualisation
Try to focus on what you would like to bring into your life, one of the most powerful tools you can use is images. By creating images in your mind and connecting emotionally with these images, you begin to send the message to your brain and the universe that this is what you want. If creating images in your mind is difficult, cut pictures out of magazines that represent your goals and dreams. This is a powerful tool, so really take the time to work on what you DO want.
Find a comfortable position, either sitting of lying down. Close your eyes, take slow soft breaths whilst allowing tension to disperse from the body. Perhaps you count your in-breath for a slow count or 4 or 5 and the same for the out breath. Visualise your image or perhaps it plays more like a video, take yourself to that place and connect with the feelings that it brings. When the mind drifts, come back to your vision. Try and stay with it for ten minutes or build up the time by a few minutes every day,
You can also get a free guided meditation with our Self Care Bath package which comes with some Aromatherapy bath salts and a scented soy candle.
Try incorporating all of these practices into your daily life to help reduce stress and feel more in tune with your mind body and soul!
About the Author:
Yasmina is a qualified Nutrition and Health Coach, having studied at the Institute of Integrated Nutrition. She has run nutrition and yoga retreats in the UK and abroad. Aside from coaching clients to become their happiest and healthiest selves, she works for Jason Vale, The Juice Master, at his Retreat Hotels managing the retreat and teaches yoga and meditation.
She assists on yoga teacher trainings running nutrition modules as well as posture clinics. She is founder of Ready Steady Glow, providing those who are short on time, with knowledge, support and a range of holistic wellbeing packages including superfuelled food – to help clients glow inside and out.
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