What do you do when you feel stressed? Are you reaching for comfort food, a glass or two of your favourite tipple? Or maybe you are hitting the gym or embracing yoga. What’s your go to?
Sometimes life brings along an array of challenges that frustrate the human mind and can play havoc with the physical body. There is no doubt that 2020 has affected stress levels of potentially every human being on the planet since the start of the pandemic. According to the Office of National Statistics the number of people reporting high levels of anxiety has sharply elevated during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Types of stress
There are three types of stress, healthy, acute and chronic. All kinds of stress trigger the release of the same chemicals, cortisol and adrenaline. What changes with each type of stress, is the intensity, duration and impact.
On a day to day basis, we all experience short bouts of healthy stress like frantic mornings when you’re rushing to get out of the door because you have overslept. You may be preparing for a big presentation at work and the technology’s not working as expected! These are often a result of a deliberate choice, like we could have set the alarm earlier or we could have better prepared the technological equipment. They are rarely toxic for your body these bouts of healthy stress strengthen our resiliency.
We may experience acute stress from activities that raise our adrenaline levels in a positive way, for example sky-diving or watching a horror movie. It can only be good for the brain and body if it’s a result of a purposeful choice you have made. If it is not chosen and has been imposed on you the effects can be harsh. An imposed stress disrupts the body and mind for example a trauma, a loss or violence. The body and mind come under extreme pressure that places an increased demand on the immune system.
Chronic stress builds up over time and the body’s cortisol level (stress hormone) increases and then stays elevated for months and even for years. This kind of stress builds up slowly can be the most intrusive to the body and mind. It can be triggered by financial strains, lack of restorative sleep, relationship problem and loneliness for example.
So when it comes to stress what are you doing for yourself to help manage your anxieties and worries? The following are some wellbeing tips to help you think about four different areas of your physical body that you can pay attention to and take ownership of looking after in a holistic way.
YOUR MIND: CLEAR IT
Practising mindfulness using meta-awareness, (the ability to observe your thoughts, feelings, sensations and impulses as they are happening) to bring out the quality of your daily experiences. We can practice mindfulness by tuning into the senses; sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. One of the easiest ways to start practising mindfulness is through meditation and you can see a previous blog on the benefits of meditation.
Life Coach Sessions: The Benefits of Meditation in Everyday Life
Evidence suggests that mindfulness is a strong tool that can mitigate both stress and unhealthy habits that accompany some people’s stressful experience such as unhealthy eating. Next time you feel stressed notice how your mind reacts and bring your awareness to your habitual behaviour and then make a better choice that soothes your stress levels.
YOUR BRAIN: NOURISH IT
What do your eating habits have to do with your brain? What you eat affects your brain and stress levels. When you are stressed you might be inclined to reach for carbs and sugars more. Fuel your body with the foods that will boost your energy, mood and overall health. The general guideline is to consume more natural foods, fruits, vegetables, wholegrains and less high sugar and processed foods. If it’s in a bag or a box read the ingredients, if there are more than six ingredients in the bag or box, eat them less often. Try your best to eat whole foods that are in their most natural form for better health. Change what you eat and you can change your body and mind. If there’s an eating habit that you want to change and are struggling to do so, then pick one habit right now and start right this moment.
For example if you are drinking more alcohol since lockdown and it’s causing a negative impact on your life then start by limiting yourself to only one drink a day. Pick the same time of day for a whole week, and pick a time of day that suits your lifestyle. After a month limit your drink to once a week and again pick the day and time that fits around your lifestyle… give it a try…you can make the change that will change your life for the better, start today!
YOUR BODY: MOVE IT
The NHS Guidelines for people between 18-64 years of age is to stay active at for at least 150 minutes weekly that equates to about 2.5 hours weekly or half an hour daily. The choice of activity is up to you but do something that elevates your heart rate and improves your cardiovascular health. See the link below for some inspiration and ways in which to get active.
Physical activity is linked to greater levels of happiness and self- worth. Start a morning walk, a jog or a run and to help stay motivated try tracking your steps, below is a link to a free NHS tracking App.
YOUR HEART: FILL IT WITH GRATITUDE
The key to managing stress levels is to fill your emotional reserves with enough positive deposits. Making gratitude a life habit is one of the greatest gifts you can give yourself. Gratitude is an orientation of noticing and appreciating the positive things in the world. Sometimes we rush around in life and we don’t stop to appreciate the things and the people around us because we are too busy to notice. Gratitude is connected with a wide array of benefits – improved relationships, physical health, self-esteem, lower levels of stress and depression.
So how can you start practising gratitude? You can keep a gratitude journal or write in a place of your choice. When you wake up in the morning, don’t reach for your phone! Reach for your journal and take a moment to write or even say out aloud three things you are grateful and the reasons why you are grateful for those things. At night before you go to sleep write or recall one thing you’re grateful for that happened that day. It’s simple yet powerful.
I hope you find some inspiration from this article to support your mental health during times of stress. Life is full of daily stresses and as human beings our natural reaction can either break us or make us. Deal with the stresses in your life and choose to put some simple measures in to ensure you are soothing the mind and body. When a stress has been imposed on us, the challenge is to try to look at the things in that situation that are in your control and work on it at by raising your awareness of the issues surrounding the stress. Make a choice to make one small change to how you care for your mind, your brain, your body and your heart. You are worth it!
Written by Kam Bola, Wellbeing Life-Coach, Yoga and Meditation teacher. Kam is Birmingham based and has been an educator for 19 years, working with adults supporting mental, emotional and physical health. Kam teaches in a number of yoga studios across the city and you will find her working in grass roots communities empowering women to be the best version of themselves. Kam works at ACP The Family Wellbeing Centre in Birmingham. Follow her on Instagram acp.birmingham and @kambola.lifecoach.
