We all experience stress 😵 every single day. While some amount of stress is healthy, too much can be detrimental to our health.
So, what can we do?
Well, as it turns out…a lot of things! For now, let's keep it simple and focus on just a few of these.
Next time you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed, turn to these three simple techniques to reduce stress!
~Breathing Exercises 🌬️
~Take a Walk 👣
~Use Lavender 💜
While there are many more techniques for stress reduction, let’s just focus on these three for the moment. Here we’ll explore each one in a bit more detail.
1. Do Breathing Exercises
You knew it was coming, didn’t you? We’ve all heard the advice, ‘take a deep breath’, and there’s a reason for that. Not only does it force you to slow down ✋, but it also sends a message to your body that you’re calm and relaxed which in turn makes your body begin to calm down and relax 😌.
You can make this as simple as sitting in a comfortable position 🧘♂️, closing your eyes and focusing on your natural breathing. Or, if you prefer, you can also try a specific breathing exercise like one of these options:
Ujjayi Breathing
Ujjayi breathing, also called Ocean’s 🌊 Breath, is a slow, deep rhythmic breathing that is done with the mouth closed. To begin using the ujjayi breathing technique, lie down in a comfortable position and place one hand over your belly and the other over your heart ❤️. Take one deep cleansing breath in through the nose 👃 and out through the mouth 👄. Make it loud and worth your while. Now, with the lips together begin to breathe in through the nose allowing the air to enter all the way down to your belly and let it balloon 🎈 up towards your lungs. Once you’ve reached maximum capacity, hold the inhalation for a moment before exhaling all the air back out from the belly up, allowing the air 💨 to hit the back of your throat on its way out. You should hear an audible sound like a sigh as you exhale. Repeat this cycle 🔁 at least ten times.
Alternate Nostril Breathing
This relaxing breathwork is done breathing in and out of one nostril 👃 at a time. It is said to be very calming to the nervous system. To start, sit in a comfortable position 🧎♂️ and take a deep, cleansing breath however feels intuitive to you. Then lift up your dominant hand 🤚, palm facing forward and relax your index and middle fingers onto your palm. Use your thumb 👍to block your right or left nostril (depending on hand dominance) and breathe in fully through the open nostril. Hold the inhalation for a moment as you release the thumb and close off the opposite nostril with your ring finger 🤟. Exhale through the opposite nostril. Pause at the bottom of the exhalation before inhaling through the same side you just exhaled out of. Then cover that nostril and exhale out of the opposite one. Take long, slow breaths, making sure to pause briefly in between each inhalation and exhalation. Repeat for at least 10 rounds.
If that sounds too confusing, try following along to this guided practice here:
2. Take A Walk
When you feel overwhelmed 😩, take a few minutes to go outside and take a walk. It doesn’t have to be a 30-minute exercise ordeal. It can be as simple as a 5-minute stroll 🚶♀️ down the road, around the block, through a park or out into the woods 🏕️. Wherever is accessible to you.
Pay attention to the sights 🌲 and sounds 🐦around you. Make it a mindful stroll, moving intuitively. With each step, think of intentionally walking further away from the source of your stress. Imagine leaving it behind.
Sometimes removing yourself from a stressful situation, even for just a few moments, is all you need to clear your head 😎 and return to the issue with a new perspective.
If circumstances permit, you could even turn this into an earthing, or grounding, exercise for additional benefits! Check this ⬇️ out for more:
3. Use Lavender
Nothing shouts immediate relaxation like lavender. So, whether you choose to use lavender flowers or a few drops of lavender essential oil 💧 you should be able to drop the stress factor down a few notches almost immediately!
You can add a few drops of lavender essential oil to a lotion 🧴 and massage your temples 💆🏼♀️ for a few minutes.
Or add some lavender oil to a diffuser and breathe in 🧘🏽♂️ the relaxing aroma.
Perhaps you even want to keep a sachet ☮️ of lavender at your workstation and breathe a whiff whenever the need arises.
However you choose to incorporate it, lavender 💜 is a surefire (and pleasant!) way to immediately induce the body’s relaxation response!
Final Thoughts
You may gravitate to a particular method listed here or you may enjoy them all. Sometimes it’s personal preference that guides us towards one method or another; other times it depends on the circumstances in which we find ourselves. But, no matter which stress-reducing technique you choose, I sincerely hope that you find benefit from these exercises to keep stress (and all its negative side effects) at bay! Thank you for joining me on this wellness journey and, as always, until next time…🤗!
Find more content at: https://www.healthisharmony.com/post/5-ways-to-self-soothe-nervous-system-regulation
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