Stress Solutions for Every Situation
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BONUS FREEBIE: Want even more ways to stay organized, productive and less stressed? Click here to get access to my List-Making Starter Kit. It will boost your efficiency and get you back to doing more of the things you love.
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As much as we want it to, stress will never disappear permanently.
Whether it’s a presentation you’re giving for work or going out to lunch with somebody for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, stress is there whether it’s chronic or just in the moment. According to a study done by the American Psychological Association, Americans are more stressed than ever.
So it’s important to know how to prevent stress and how to deal with stress when it’s unavoidable.
I spoke with expert energy trainer, Lara Riggio, on my live-streaming show Inside Scoop, who taught us some Stress Solutions.
Here are four ways to help you address your stress.
1) Learn the Physical Symptoms of Stress.
There’s a reason for phrases like “my stomach is in knots.” Stress manifests physically. Learning the physical symptoms of stress can help you recognize that you are stressed out so you can address it.
“One symptom is muscular tension, especially in the jaw and the neck. Is your stomach tense? Is your low back tight a lot of the time? Your breath is shallow. Heart racing. Feeling flush,” Lara said those are all physical signs you are stressed out.
Learning these signs can help you regulate your own system, but also recognize when others are stressed out.
“If you’re in a meeting for example, and you see someone’s eyes are dilated, they’re stressed,” Lara said.
Practicing awareness of what’s going on in your body can help you keep calm under stress and better understand your surroundings.
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2) Start Working with Energy.
Working with energy might sound a little woo-woo, but it’s more like a specific kind of meditation rather than something out of a sci-fi movie. And it treats you physically and mentally.
“When you’re treating the body physically, you’re automatically treating it emotionally as well” Lara said, “And that’s why tapping specific Meridian points can affect you emotionally.”
I’ll admit. I was skeptical of energy work too. But Lara and I have been friends for many years since my days as a senior health producer at Fox News Channel. And as many of you know, my appendix burst, which was a traumatic event in my life. That’s when I went to Lara to begin energy work. And her exercises really helped to get me back on track.
And Lara practices what she preaches. “Doing five minutes of energy work every day, I went from not being able to walk up without four flights of stairs to bounding up all four flights with ease. And it was over a period of a few weeks,” Lara said.
Just like meditation, committing to a little energy work every day can yield big changes over time.
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3) Use Lists to Preserve Your Energy.
And just like I use Lara’s techniques to help me, she uses my list-making techniques to help her and her clients.
“Making lists and getting all this information out somewhere else so that you’re not holding it really helps calm the central nervous system in a big way,” Lara said. And I completely agree.
If you’re new to making lists or interested in learning more about how lists can help reduce your stress and improve your life, join the over 50,000 learners who have taken my LinkedIn Learning Courses “The Power of Lists to Get Stuff Done” and “How to Set Boundaries and Protect Your Time”.
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4) Learn Stress-Relieving Exercises to Use Later.
There are many energy exercises you can use to help us relieve stress. Lara walked us through a few.
Anywhere Stress Reliever
The “Anywhere Stress Reliever” you can do alone somewhere or run into a bathroom stall and do.
“By doing this exercise, you’re physically overriding a stress response. And as you’re just sitting in this posture breathing, you’re calming yourself down so that you can be more grounded and connected to your own power.” Lara explained.
Calming Bedtime Pose
This “Calming Bedtime Pose” is great for chronic stress and can be done to help you relax before going to sleep.
Relieving stress before going to bed can help you immensely. “It’s better for your skin. It’s better for your immune system. It’s better for everything” Lara said.
For more exercises, download Lara’s free Stress Detox Guide and watch our entire conversation about stress solutions here.
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BONUS FREEBIE: Want even more ways to stay organized, productive and less stressed? Click here to get access to my List-Making Starter Kit. It will boost your efficiency and get you back to doing more of the things you love.
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