How are you doing lately? Are you stressed right now?

We keep on hearing the word "stressed" more often from our family and friends. We are doing our very best to live with “the new normal” in spite of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. From the school or work from home set-up to doing groceries with extra precautions, we all share the feeling of our lives disrupted, wishing it could go back to the way it was. With all these anxieties and worries piling up, we can easily fall victim to stress.

November 2-6, 2020, is Stress Awareness Week. We aim to identify where we feel stress, and how to reduce it so we can still do our important tasks and find joy in life.

First of all, let us define the meaning of stress. According to MedlinePlus, "Stress is a feeling of emotional or physical tension. It can come from any event or thought that makes you feel frustrated, angry, or nervous." This is how our bodies react to challenges that can affect us mentally, emotionally, and even physically.

But when you experience stress for a long time, it can be bad for our health. This is called chronic stress, which can come from prolonged everyday situations, such as money problems or work stress. Not everyone can easily get out of such situations, but with proper ways of dealing with stress, we can reduce our worries while finding ways to solve our problems.

Here are positive ways to deal with the stress in our lives. Through mindfulness and constant practice, we can survive whatever situations that will come our way.

1. What makes you feel stressed? How does your body react to it?

Whether it be your home life, work deadlines, financial problems, or relationship problems, identify where you feel stress the most. Are you losing sleep lately, eating too much, having an upset stomach, or frequent headaches? These things are possibly connected. But don't use unhealthy behaviors to help you out. See your doctor if you must, and start changing your habits gradually.

If you can, avoid the thing that's causing you stress. If seeing negative posts on your newsfeed makes you feel bad, remind yourself not to scroll on Facebook at night, to help reduce mental fatigue.

2. Find healthy ways to manage stress

Practice deep breathing, devote some 10 minutes to exercise, sleep earlier---some of these suggestions can help you manage your stress. Don't feel guilty for taking a break for an hour or even for one day, and start taking care of yourself.

3. Do something you love

May it be listening to music, watching funny videos, or journaling, these pleasurable activities can pick up your mood and make you feel good.

4. Connect and communicate

Set up a video call with a trusted friend or spend a movie night with your family. Even during this pandemic, we can find ways to bond and communicate without necessarily spending a lot.

5. Change your mindset

There are things you cannot control. While you don't really have much of hold to what happens day by day, you can change your mind about it. As the popular Serenity Prayer goes, "Help me accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference."

Relax, and don't let stress get the best of you! Believe that you can overcome anything, and trust that you will become a better person after all that you've been through.

Sources:

Stress and your health: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 03, 2020, from https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003211.htm

Learn to manage stress: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia. (n.d.). Retrieved November 03, 2020, from https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001942.htm

Serenity Prayer: Wikipedia. Retrieved November 03, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serenity_Prayer