Effective Ways to Chill Out in Increasingly Stressful Times
It can’t be denied that we’re living in stressful times. In addition to rampant overwork, professional burnout, and family obligations, the world has also been trapped in the grip of a global pandemic for over a year now. It seems like everywhere you look these days, new stressors are just waiting to pounce. Since stress is an inescapable part of life even in the best of times, self-care and relaxation should be among your foremost priorities. So, if chilling out and taking some time for yourself seems like a difficult prospect put the following pointers into practice.
Engaging in Calming Pastimes
In the war against rampant stress, calming pastimes can be an invaluable weapon. Meditation, deep breathing exercises and even getting more sleep are all conducive to enhanced relaxation. Furthermore, if you live in a state in which recreational cannabis use is legal, you may want to consider experimenting with strains from somewhere like purplepenthouse that are linked to stress reduction. If you don’t know where to start with this, you can find plenty of information online, or even ask someone who works in a dispensary near you. Dodger City residents on the hunt for high-quality cannabis can find what they seek at a good Los Angeles dispensary.
Journaling
Even if you don’t have much interest in the written word, journaling can be a truly cathartic and relaxing undertaking. Although discussing certain subjects with a trusted friend, family member or therapist can help relieve stress, journaling is a great way to process various emotions and experiences that are hard to convey through conversation. As such, there’s little wonder as to why many counselors and therapists recommend that patients engage in journaling on a regular basis. Journaling can be particularly helpful to people who don’t have anyone with whom to discuss the more stressful elements of their lives.
To help prevent journaling from seeming like a chore, avoid setting strict quotas for yourself. While there’s nothing wrong with journaling every day, you shouldn’t beat yourself up if you miss a day or go long periods without producing an entry because that can be stressful as well. As is the case with many things in life, the longer you keep a journal, the easier writing new entries will become.
Making Time for Hobbies
Hobbies can prove beneficial on a number of fronts. In addition to helping keep your mind active and relaxed, many hobbies can prove conducive to meeting new people and developing new skills. Unfortunately, finding time to engage in your favorite hobbies can prove difficult, especially if you’re working against a packed schedule.
Instead of relegating your hobbies to “whenever I can find the time” status, make a point of carving out time for your favorite hobbies on a regular basis. For example, if you’re a morning person, getting up an hour earlier than usual can be a great way to free up some time. Similarly, if you’re a bit of a night owl, staying up an hour later than usual can provide you with some premium hobby time.
Maintaining a Good Work/Life Balance
In a society consumed by overwork, maintaining a good work/life balance is essential to inner calm. Granted, for many of us, this may be easier said than done. For starters, make sure to set clear boundaries with your bosses and coworkers. This means making the amount of work you’re able to finish in a given day well-known and refusing to go above that quota outside of unprecedented circumstances.
This also entails adhering to set work hours. Though they may leave the office, many members of the workforce never truly clock out. If this describes your approach to working, there’s no time like the present to reexamine it. Taking work home with you and plugging away into wee hours constitutes unpaid overtime – and no employer is owed that level of commitment.
Although we all feel stress at one point or another, it should never come to dominate our lives. Unfortunately, given how incessantly stressful daily life has become for many of us, this is often easier said than done. Of course, this isn’t to say that you should simply resign yourself to a life of perpetual stress. Even if chilling out has become an alien concept to you, it’s by no means impossible. By putting the previously discussed tips to good use, you can set the stage for a relaxed mind and manageable stress levels.
