We have previously posted about the effects of stress on the body, gut and skin. It’s all well and good to talk about how we shouldn’t be stressed and to know the detrimental effects it has, but what are practical interventions for combating stress?

1. Work out what your triggers are. What is it that causes you moderate, underlying stress on a daily basis? Becoming attuned to what it is that causes you stress is the first step to de-stressing, as awareness allows you to implement preventative measures and checks unconscious reaction, allowing you time to analyse the feeling of stress and decide whether it is warranted

2. To help discover the root of stress, consider keeping a ‘stress diary’ to record time when stress onsets, it’s severity, provocating and alleviating factors

3. Seek help through your GP, a counsellor and/or psychologist to give you tips and/or recommend medical interventions for managing stress

4. Exercise is a great intervention for countering the physiological effects of stress and for preoccupying the mind. That said excessive exercise, over prolonged periods with insufficient rest can be a physiological stressor itself and may compound the physical impacts of stress.

5. Listen to or play music to help engage other parts of the brain and again, refocus thought

6. Prioritise sleep to encourage parasympathetic nervous system dominance and quietening of brain activity. Sleep is important for restoration, whereas lack of sleep will precipitate feelings of stress and anxiety.

7. Conscious, deep breaths are thought to activate the vagal nerve and the parasympathetic nervous system, helping to lower heart rate and maximise ventilation

8. Swimming combines the parasympathetic-activating effects of rhythmic deep breathing and deep touch stimulation, with the meditative sound of water rushing over you.

If stress is a big problem for you, speak to your GP or book a consult below with an Aescend artisan today