7 Healthy Coping Skills For Chronic Stress

The National Institutes of Health define stress as how the brain and body respond to any demands. It is most important to learn to manage stress in healthy ways. Is your glass half-full or half empty? As it turns out your proclivity for optimism or pessimism might just be having an impact on your quality of life. Optimists are far more efficient in dealing with life’s stressful situations, which reduces how stress affects them. It’s impossible to eliminate every stressor in your life, but what you can do is develop positive coping strategies. It’s all about managing your response to the stress you experience, rather than trying to micromanage the stress that you experience. A key skill in managing stress is managing time, this means prioritizing your schedule and responsibilities, using your time wisely and making sure there is time for rest and relaxation. 
 It may not be easy to strike a balance between work, home, and relaxation parts of your life, but it’s a necessity if you want to live a stress-free life. Meditation is one of the most effective ways to manage stress. It trains your mind to induce the relaxation response, calms the racing mind, reduces blood pressure, deactivates stress pathways in the brain, and reduces concentrations of stress hormones to ease anxiety and counteract the harmful effects of stress on mind, body, and spirit. Whole food is not only the most nutritious, but it gives you natural energy and fortifies your immune system that is compromised by chronic stress. Your social network provides support through the most stressful times. Something as simple as chat on the telephone or dining with friends bolsters your personal relationships and offers respite when you’re under stress. Thanks for watching and take care!