Stress Facts and Information

Experiencing stress is a completely normal reaction to the ups and downs of life. What can be detrimental is not listening to your body and ignoring the signs of stress. Better understanding your body's stress signals can help you get a handle on these uncomfortable symptoms. Learning about ways to utilize healthy coping skills, as well as finding resources for professional help, can offer you some guidance and facts during this process.

Types of Stress

While understanding the core trigger of your stress is important, it's also helpful to understand types of stress and how they impact you in different ways. For example:

• Some people who have perfectionist traits tend to be more prone to stress and find that even seemingly small moments get to them.
• Those who have been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, or who experience symptoms of anxiety may feel higher levels of stress and may even stress about being stressed.
• You may find that keeping track of your time, or managing your workflow feels incredibly stressful and hard to control.
• You may also find that family events, or other social experiences cause a surge of uncomfortable physical and emotional feelings.

Once you've identified the events that tend to trigger the highest levels of stress in you, you can begin to experiment with healthy coping skills to see which ones feel the best.

Information on Coping Skills for Stress

There are tons of helpful, easy to learn, and cost-effective strategies that can help you reduce your levels of stress. Practicing mindfulness, yoga, and getting outdoors are all free activities that you can do every day for just a few minutes if you're short on time. Meditating, downloading adult coloring books or pages, and spending time with animals can also help bring down symptoms of stress. If you're feeling high levels of stress nearly every day and feel like you've tried a few methods at home that aren't working, it may be a good idea to consider joining a therapeutic group, attending a relaxation clinic, or seeking out a counselor who specializes in stress management.

Connecting to Your Body

Feeling stressed is a normal reaction that your body exhibits to let you know that it's time to pay attention. This feeling may signal that you are overloaded, are unhappy with your current situation, or that you are needing to boost your self care routine. Take some time every day, even if it's just for a few moments, and listen to what your body is telling you. If you notice that you are holding stress anywhere in your body, try out a few healthy coping skills until you find one that fully alleviates the stressed part of you.