7 tips for Dealing with Stress

Stress - something almost all of us face at some point in our lives. Work, school, exams, friendships, family life - no matter the cause is, it's not a nice thing for anyone to go through.
I've been feeling particularly stressed recently due to a number of things. 'Stuff' seems to pile up and before you know it you're lost under the pile and don't know how to move it.
I've found that I really suffer when I'm stressed - I get ibs and so my stomach gets tense and I lose my appetite which has led to me losing quite a lot of weight...
I've been trying a few different, little things to try to keep myself relaxed and on top of things. This post is going to give a few ideas to help you deal with stress.

1) make time everyday to just relax and not think about anything. It might only be an hour, but it helps. Take a bath, just lay down, go for a walk, sit in the garden with a cup of tea. Make that little bit of space for yourself and you'll soon be feeling more like yourself. (If you do have a bath, use lavender oil or a lavender scented candle and add some Epsom salts to the bath - my friend, who owns the blog Living Stark Naked, wrote about how these help you relax so I tried it and they really do work and are completely natural which is always good!)

2) Sing. No matter how bad (or good) your singing is, just sing. Sing in the car, when your cooking, cleaning, in the shower, in the supermarket (okay so that one might get you some strange looks, but you get the idea...). Singing helps you control your breathing which will help de-stress. I think it downs something else for your body but I can't really remember. All I know is it works a treat!

3) Chew gum. This is something else I was told about by a friend. When you chew gum your body releases some kind of chemical which helps you to relax (you can tell I listened in science...).

4) Get enough sleep. There's nothing worse, when you're feeling stressed, than to be tired. You'll feel so much better after a good night's sleep. It won't solve any problems but it'll help you to look at them with a clearer, more relaxed mind.

5) Write a list. Make a list of all the things that are stressing you out. It'll help to stop things going round and round in your head. There's nothing worse than having 10+ things to think about at once. Being able to look at what's making you feel stressed is good (it works for me anyway). Another thing that might help is to write another list of things that are making you happy or that you're grateful for. It might be that you have close friends to talk with, or something exciting that's happening soon. This should help you to keep looking at the positives as well as the negatives so that they don't seem like they're taking over your whole life.

6) Have a cuddle with a dog (or a friendly cat). Can't quite remember any of the science behind this (or even if there is any) but a cuddle with your bestie will always help.

Who wouldn't want to cuddle up to this cutie?!

7) Talk to someone. Find someone you trust - a friend, teacher, parent, relative, work colleague, someone that you can just talk everything through with. It might be that you just need to talk at them to get your thoughts straight rather than get any advice. If you know someone who's stressed, invite then round for a coffee, let them talk at you if that's what they need. Be a shoulder to cry on. Give them a hug. It helps so much and its so lovely to know that you have support, especially when you need it the most.

I really hope that this post helps you, either now or in the future, and that you won't feel as stressed the next time that it feels like the whole world is against you.