3 Quick Stress Relief Techniques for Mind, Spirit, and Body
We all get stressed at some point, even the most easy-going people in the world have things that will stress them out. Stress isn’t only of the mind but can be of the spirit and body as well. To cope with these three types of stress there are multiple techniques you could use.
Here are some of the most useful:
- Guided meditation
- Aromatherapy
- Mild physical exercise
Meditation has been around for centuries and can help center your mind, aromatherapy will realign your spiritual balance and physical exercise can release the body’s natural stress relief hormones.
Focus and Center
We all have our stress relief methods that we find useful for relaxing and focusing our minds. Some people run, some might visit a sauna, and some drink or smoke tobacco and cannabis. But before you find yourself reaching for a vice, take a few minutes to try meditation.
You may have heard of meditation, probably the kind practiced by Buddhist monks in Tibet, Shaolin warriors, and Japanese Samurai. These are all similar but take years to master. However, there is the technique of guided meditation, a style whereby a teacher will narrate you through your session and help you visualize your goal.
Relaxing music is usually played with a guided meditation session and the use of NLP has become a common theme in modern products. The benefits of meditation are that it can be practiced anywhere at any time and can be over in as little as 5 minutes. A quick focus session before going to work can do wonders for your day.
Relax and Unwind
One of the best ways to completely relax and soothe your soul is through the use of aromas. Our sense of smell is one of the most underrated senses that we have. While the ocular and auditory evolution of man is nothing short of mind-blowing, the olfactory stimulation of the nose is more powerful than we once thought.
Studies have shown that recognizing a particular odor can instantly recall memory and invoke the feelings associated with that memory. That’s why we might feel instantly at home if we walk past a bakery that reminds us of our mother’s bread, for example.
Because the nose is directly linked to neuro-stimulation, what the brain perceives as pleasant smells such as Jasmine, Ylang-Ylang or Frankincense can instantly affect our mood, so the use of aromatherapy has been developed as a viable solution to stress relief.
Encourage Natural Happiness
You’ve probably heard this mentioned hundreds of times by fitness friends or TV talking heads, but physical exercise has been proven to help with stress, even if it's mild. No one is suggesting that you start CrossFit tomorrow or train for a marathon, but even going for a brisk walk can help with stress.
When we exercise our heart rate rises and releases energy throughout our body. At the same time, the brain releases the hormones dopamine and serotonin. These two chemicals are the human body’s natural “feel good” chemical that heightens your mood and makes you feel happy. It is these chemicals that make us feel satisfied after accomplishing something, eating a favorite meal, or making love.
At the same time though, mild exercise also lowers the body’s cortisol levels. Cortisol can be thought of as the opposite of dopamine and serotonin and high levels of cortisol are found to cause stress, depression, and anxiety which contribute to many mental health disorders and issues.