Stress-Be-Gone

All dads love to tell those “Back when I was a kid…” stories to their children. When I was little, my dad told me many of these stories. One of the most memorable back-in-the-day stories my dad told me was about working. It went something like this…

“Back when I was a kid I started working at twelve years old, and I’ve been working since!”
Cue my eye roll and automated response, “Yeah, yeah dad, sure.”
“No I’m serious! I used to walk ten miles…”
And that’s where my teenage brain would tune out until I heard him say…
“If you like spending money so much why don’t you go get a job?”

So now I’ve been working various jobs since I could drive at age sixteen. Currently, the summer of 2012, I have two internships, a job, and an online college course. I would say my summer schedule is quite busy. During the regular school term I will have an internship, a job, and a full load of classes. Society often undervalues how hard it really is to be a student and have part-time jobs. Technically my full-time job is being a student, and if I want to succeed, it takes a lot of work. Then on top of that, I have my other part-time commitments. Usually I have classes and my internship during the week, and then I have my job and homework spread throughout the week and the entire weekend. All this juggling can be a strain on my mental health.

These strains show up in the form of stress and anxiety. Usually I just power through the work load, set the stressors aside, and promise to deal with them later. With my busy schedule, later keeps getting pushed farther and farther into the future. Eventually the stressors don’t want to wait any more and they can overwhelm me. I think many college students and adults feel this way. Their lives are too busy to get slowed down dealing with stress management. They push it away until an immense pile of stress and anxiety builds up, so big it can no longer be ignored.

Don’t worry there is help! Studies show that relaxation techniques and exercise can greatly ease feelings of stress and anxiety. Another advantage of these self-help tools is that there are so many out there. If you find one that doesn’t work or you need to change up your routine, there is always another solution around the corner. Some of these tools that I find useful are relaxation CD’s, massage tools, and exercise.

Relaxation CD’s are a great tool because you barely need to set any time aside in order to fit them into your schedule. Just pop one in your car on your way to work, or listen to them while you are cooking dinner. Even if you only have ten minutes to devote to them, it will still be beneficial to your mental health. Before bed, turn down the lights, put in a CD, and kick back in your favorite chair. As the music or speaker begins to sound, close your eyes and clear your mind. After the experience is over, you will be in a state of complete serenity.

Massage tools are also amazing for eliminating stress and anxiety. Have you ever thought about where your stress goes when you push it away? I don’t know about you, but all of mine ends up in my neck and shoulders. Trips to a professional masseuse can be expensive and time consuming. Luckily there are hundreds of thousands of personal massage products out there. If I’m watching some TV before bed, I just take my personal back massager and run it over my neck and shoulders. By the end of the show my tight muscles are completely relaxed, and I sleep better too. If your stress builds up in a different area, there are plenty of massage tools to target other parts of the body, from feet to full body massage chairs.

Exercise is one of those things that everyone knows is good for them, but they often neglect. I admit. I should exercise more than I do. However, I say some exercise is better than no exercise. I used to think exercise = running. Let’s just say, running isn’t exactly my forte. I have found that even taking a twenty minute walk a few times a week really keeps my morale up. If you still are having a hard time fitting a walk in during the week, I have a solution as well. Instead of driving to the neighbor’s house for a visit, walk there and back. If I need to go to the library to do homework, I walk there instead of driving. You’ll help yourself and the environment!

This is my recipe for relaxation, but yours may be different. Maybe yours is exercise, massage tools, and relaxing by your garden fountain on the weekends. Spending time outdoors with the trickling water sounds of a fountain can give you some fresh air, and give your mind an escape from life’s stressors. Don’t just take my word for it, try it yourself! Do some research online and find your perfect stress erasing combo today.