18 Tips + Tools To Manage Stress
Stress is an incredibly powerful force. It’s one which most people grapple with for most of their lives. It’s something we’re always trying to manage, balance, and keep-in-check in order to live our healthiest lives. It’s a the root of many diseases, hormonal imbalances, insomnia and nutritional deficiencies.
We all have different tolerance levels for stress. Mine, apparently, isn’t that high. The slightest stressful situation can throw things off for me. I see this in my sleep patterns (it depletes my magnesium quite quickly) and irregular menstrual cycles. Did you know that if you’re not getting your period every, let’s say 28 days, than it’s irregular? I’ve always had a regular menstrual cycle, but since I’ve gone the entrepreneur route, that all changed. Much of the stress has been psychological which in turns manifests physically – What if I fail? What if I don’t make any money? You know the deal.
But my biggest lesson was the during the two years of following an Ayurvedic protocol to heal my tumor. I ate clean, eliminated gluten, dairy, sugar, took all the herbs but I stressed about whether or not the protocol would work. I stressed about paying for the the herbs. I stressed about that piece of cheese I ate that I wasn’t supposed to. This went on an on. It was mentally exhausting. And guess what. All that stress helped fuel the tumor’s growth. It taught me the importance of our energy and where we direct it.
Now stress isn’t all bad. We need some stress in our lives to kick our butts into gear. Stress can motivate, push, and drive us but it needs to be managed in a healthy manner.
Your body is like a sponge and over the years accumulates stress. It keeps score of every infection, fight, heartbreak, and injury you’ve suffered. I know, you’re stressing out just reading that.
Stress can be physical (injuries, surgery, menstrual cycle, rigorous exercise), psychological (worry, anxiety, emotions), environmental (pollution, work), nutritional (GMO, non organic food), and chemical (drugs, alcohol, smoking).
The goal is to pull the stress out of the body at the end of each day. Otherwise it just accumulates. Stress greatly impacts sleep which is where the body recovers and heals. So if you’re on any kind of healing journey, sleep will be very important for you.
98% of your stress is held in 5 areas:
Neck
Upper neck (just below the skull )
Mid-back
Chest area
Abdomen
Stress depletes important vitamins and minerals quickly. I find my B vitamins, zinc, and magnesium deplete very quickly. Supplementation will be key in times of stress.
Here are some ways to reduce stress. I hope you find one or several methods that resonate with you and help support your health.
18 Tips + Tools
Walking – Low stress and increases oxygen intake. If you can take a walk in nature, aka forest bathing, even better. High cardio activities will increase stress. If you’re dealing with adrenal fatigue, walking is all you need.
Yoga – Enjoying this yoga YouTube channel.
Lavender essential oil – never without this. If you’ve tried than you know. If you haven’t this will be one the best things you’ve ever invested in. Guarantee.
Foot massage with castor oil + lavender essential oil. Without fail, every time I do this before bed, I have the deepest and most relaxing sleep.
Acupressure tool. Best $50 I’ve ever spent. Ever! This has the most transformative thing I’ve done to release stress from my body. It’s an at home acupressure session every day. Can be found in the Shop.
Gua sha – relieves facial tension. I’m a jaw clencher so doing gua sha every night helps to relax my facial muscles and reduces the likelihood of waking up with a clenched jaw.
Meditation. Enough said.
Ashwagandha, Holy basil (tulsi), and Reishi will help you increase your tolerance to stress
Increasing vitamin B1 reduces internal stress
Calcium, magnesium, and potassium are calming minerals. Magnesium has been a real game changer for me.
Apple cider vinegar helps increase mineral absorption. Stress reduces the levels of hydrochloric acid in your stomach which reduces your body’s ability to absorb nutrients which in turn help to combat stress.
Breathing exercises – breath in for 5-7 sec, breath out for 5-7 seconds. Longer exhalations help your adrenals chill out. This Kundalini breathing exercise is transformative.
Massage and acupuncture. You know.
Proper nutrition reduces stress
Herbal support: chamomile, skullcap, valerian, lavender, passionflower, kava, tulsi are all great stress relievers.
Music + Sounds. The sound of birds chirping, water and solfeggio frequencies are scientifically proven to lower stress and promote deep relaxation.
Aromatherapy. You can go the diffuser route, drop a few drops into your palms rub your palms together and inhale, add a few drops to your body oil, or simply breath the essential oil from the bottle. Lavender, bergamot, ylang ylang, clary sage, rose, frankincense are some great go to’s.
Siberian Ginseng is amazing to support and help rebuild the adrenals. It’s been an incredible ally in my healing journey. The brand I love and use regularly can be found in the Shop.