Each year the American Psychological Association (APA) takes the pulse of stress in America in a survey about physical and mental stressors. In 2019 the two top stressors reported were mass shootings and the cost of healthcare, which were nearly equal in importance. Other sources of stress included climate change and safety. There was more widespread sexual harassment reported in 2019 and 56% of adults said the 2020 presidential election was a significant stressor even though it was more than one year before the election.
However, that all changed in 2020 with COVID-19. Although stress levels had been rising, this survey found many people were profoundly affected by the pandemic, compounding stressors from previous years and was having real consequences on mental and physical health. There are significant and profound potential long-term consequences for this persistent stress such as the risk for peripheral artery disease. Stress during the pandemic is also having a significant impact on children. The APA believes “We are facing a national mental health crisis that could yield serious health and social consequences for years to come.”
Stress is your body’s reaction to change in the environment that requires an adjustment or a response. It can offset your internal balance or equilibrium and lead to physical symptoms, such as headaches, high blood pressure, sexual dysfunction, and sleep problems. Neurologists are reporting there are a rising number of people misusing sleep medications as they struggle to fight anxiety and stress that is impacting their sleep patterns. In fact, it has been named COVID-Somnia by neurologists who specialize in sleep disorders.
These five simple and easy strategies are proven methods of improving your ability to cope with stress and improve your health so you have a lower potential of experiencing long-term health problems.
Sunlight and Exercise
You may be spending more time indoors and inactive, both of which have a significant impact on your ability to cope with everyday stress. Data show that exposure to sunlight improves your quality of sleep, reduces your stress, raises your mood, helps bone growth, and lowers your blood pressure. It’s a simple and free way of boosting your health and strengthening your resilience. Seek to be outside for at least 20 to 30 minutes in the morning hours to get the most benefit from the sun.
It goes without saying that exercise is a stress reliever in virtually every form. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve been a practicing couch potato for over a decade, or an avid fitness buff, exercise helps lower your cortisol levels generated by stress and helps you cope. Exercise also improves your alertness and concentration so you make better decisions and are more productive – both of which also help you cope with stress. And, if that’s not enough, exercise also raises your levels of endorphins, which are natural painkilling hormones and mood elevators.
Mindfulness Meditation
Mindfulness meditation has been practiced for centuries, and scientists are now discovering that it makes positive changes in your brain to help you cope with stress and to improve your mental and physical health. It is a way of training your brain to attend to a calm and relaxed state of mind so you can pay attention to your thoughts and feelings. Then, without judgment, you observe the thoughts and feelings and let them go. A meta-analysis of 209 studies found mindfulness meditation was effective for reducing stress, depression, and anxiety.
Emotional Freedom Techniques
Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) pulls together a body and mind strategy that has been successful across a wide range of populations. It uses a brief action on the body and mind that you can do in private or public, which takes advantage of acupoints over your head and hands. The process is easy to learn using a video tutorial.
Box Breathing
This technique is used by Navy Seals in life-or-death situations to calm their heart rates, focus their mind, and reduce their stress levels. Box breathing can be done anywhere at any time and it helps to slow your breathing and focus your concentration. There are four steps to breathing that form the “box.”
Begin by taking in a breath to the count of four and then holding to the count of four. Don’t clamp down your chest, but rather stay relaxed as if you are still inhaling. Next, release your breath to a count of four and hold again for a count of four. This is one circuit. To get the full effect, work up to repeating the circuit for five minutes once a day and then one-minute drills a couple of times throughout the day. It doesn’t energize you or make you sleepy, but it does help you become alert and grounded.
Know Your Boundaries
You have boundaries that protect your long-term health. Know what they are and respect them so they protect you. For instance, eating a healthy, well-balanced diet, making time for fun activities, practicing positive self-talk, and expressing gratitude are all strategies that respect your boundaries for good nutrition, relaxation, honoring yourself, and recognizing gratitude for others. Each of these practices helps reduce the level of stress you experience and help you to cope positively.
Consider adding one strategy to your daily routine every two weeks until it becomes a habit. Before you know it, you’ll be sailing through your day, and sleeping soundly at night!
