With exams slowly approaching in a month it is important that we do not let ourselves succumb to the stress of life and the stress of exams. There is no way to relieve our stress completely, but even a little bit can help us immensely.
1. Stay organized. When people feel as though they are losing control of their lives it can help to take a minute to write down everything that needs to be done to take some of that control back.
2. The dreaded eight letter word: exercise. I know exercise is not a fun topic for most, but it has been scientifically proven to relieve stress so why not give it a shot? You dont have to run to relieve your stress, you can do yoga, stretch, or go swimming. Exercise does not have to be horrible to be beneficial.
3. Talk to someone that you love even if it is about something completely random. Talking to someone that you care about can make you feel so good inside that you get caught up in the conversation and completely forget about your issues. Or, if you feel like it you can talk with that person about your stress and they may be able to help you out.
4. Eat "mostly" healthy. Even though stress eating feels good in the moment, the majority of us quickly regret our decision and it makes us feel worse and more stressed out. I'm not saying to go and eat a bag of carrots, but look for a somewhat healthier alternative. Instead of eating a pound of chocolate, maybe cover some strawberries and bananas in chocolate.
5. Take a break and do something that you love, and maybe never have time for anymore. Maybe this is taking a nap, catching up on a show you love, or taking a bath, do something that you enjoy and that will make you happy.
6. Laugh as hard as you can either by yourself or with others. Look up some funny jokes, watch a comedy, or listen to comedians on the radio. Laughing is a guaranteed way to lift your spirits.
7. Think about all of the great things that you have done recently, and even though the path to get there was probably rocky like this one, the result was great.
8. Drink some tea, even if you think it tastes gross. Tea has calming elements within it that can help to relax your whole body. Unlike coffee, tea doesn't make you wired and on edge for the rest of the day, so even though it might not taste as good try a couple different flavors and find one relaxing to you.
9. Crank your music all the way up and have a dance party like Meredith and Christina. Dance parties are basically exercise, so why not knock out two of the 10 stress free suggestions at once?
10. Color. Adult coloring books are a beautiful thing. There are coloring books for people of all different interests including animals, abstract doodles, and even swear words. When we color we concentrate fully on the color patterns and coloring inside the lines that we get caught up and forget what we were stressing out about. Unless of course we were stressing out about our coloring skills.
