You’ve heard people say that “life happens,” and typically when that phrase is stated, it’s usually a response to something bad that’s happened. But when “life happens,” it shouldn’t come as a surprise to you at all. We’re all human, and that means that we’re all susceptible to stress.
Stress is your body’s natural reaction to certain situations, and depending on how you respond to your stress, it can either cause serious health issues or it can motivate you to change your situation.
Stress can come from many different stimuli but how you manage your stress is what’s so important. Why? Because stress is something most people experience on a daily basis and what you do to manage it on a daily basis is going to play a major role in your overall well-being.
For example, if you’re stressed on a daily basis from work, and you manage it with alcohol, you’re not only developing a toxic habit but you’re also doing damage to your liver and other organs in your body. People also eat more when stressed, and this is another added health risk factor.
Between food and alcohol, those are only masking your stress, not managing it. To truly manage your stress, you need to get to the bottom of what’s stressing you, find solutions to those stressors, and then find ways to manage those stressors in a positive and healthy way. For example, although alcohol can have a toxic effect on your wellbeing, there are other products you can use to minimise your stress. Substances like Kava are good for those struggling to control their stress levels, as it helps to calm the mind. Make sure to look online for tips for making the best decision on what quantity to consume and the benefits of it.
So instead of masking your stress, get to the bottom of what exactly is causing your stress and work to manage it effectively. But in order to do that, let’s first identify some of the biggest life stressors you’re probably experiencing. If any of these are the culprits of your stress, there are solutions to eliminate or at least alleviate your stress and manage it in a healthy way.
Biggest Life Stressors and How to Eliminate or Manage Them in a Healthy Way
Monthly Bills
According to verywellmind.com, finances are the biggest cause of stress among Americans. It’s typically because your bills are too much for what you’re bringing home in salary, and when you get behind on your bills, that’s when the stress really gets thick. Everything from calls from bill collectors to arguments in your relationship about bills is all causes of stress from monthly bills.
So how do you remedy this?
Well, there are certain bills you can’t get rid of like your rent and mortgage payments, but there are also bills you can reduce or completely get rid of… you just have to do an assessment of your monthly expenses.
So if you’re like most people, rent/mortgage isn’t going to change, but the next most expensive bill is your electric bill. The thing about this bill is that it can’t be eliminated but it can be reduced. This will require a little research on your end.
There is a way you can lower your electric bill, but you just have to find out if the option is available in your area. States like Texas have deregulated energy, allowing residents of that state to find the cheapest energy rates in TX. If this option is available in your area, you can reduce your electric bill significantly, and the remaining money you have can either go into savings or towards other bills.
Just engaging in money-saving habits with your bills is going to allow you to save tremendously every month.
Social Media/Technology
You may not realize it but social media is a piece of technology that stresses many people out and they not even realize it. From pictures of celebrities with perfect bodies to videos of entrepreneurs living their best life, this all puts unnecessary pressure on yourself, causing you to question why you don’t have a body like that or why you’re stuck at your 9 to 5 that you hate.
You have to find a balance between tech and your own lifestyle. That’s not saying that there’s anything wrong with social media but when you start putting unnecessary pressure on yourself, it’s time to unplug. Before bed, you need to leave your phone alone. Try to set aside time for social media and other forms of technology. Once that time is up, unplug from it all, whether it’s work emails or social media.
Relationships
Relationships come in many forms but whether the relationship you’re in is friendship or romantic, you have to work and nurture the relationship in order for it to grow. Nonetheless, sometimes no matter how hard you work to maintain a relationship of any type, it can be toxic, and sometimes you just have to let it go.
When relationships go south, it can cause you to lose focus at work, it can cause you to not eat or overeat, and it can cause self-hate. If you find yourself engaging in any of these thoughts or feelings, you need to talk to the person causing you the stress and either make amends and work towards the repairing of the relationship or cut it altogether. Your health is worth more.
Unforeseen Circumstances
According to attorney Adam Smith, accidents causing personal injuries can be one of the most stressful unforeseen circumstances to deal with in life. Most of us are completely unprepared, both emotionally and financially, to deal with them properly and in a low-stress way. The very nature of an accidental injury is stressful — so, how do you avoid it?
While you can’t necessarily avoid the accident, you may be able to eliminate some stress. Personal injuries are devastating and almost always will require some sort of legal remediation. So, let your legal team handle the heavy lifting and do what you need to do to get yourself better.
Additionally, accidents and other unforeseen circumstances often cause financial strain. If it’s not your fault that you’re in the situation you are in, chances are, you may have some compensation coming your way to help with your needs. Consult with your legal team, so you can rest assured these issues won’t burden you for much longer.
The key to managing stress is getting to the bottom of what’s causing you stress. Once you know what it is, you can start engaging in healthy activities like exercising, reading, going to the park, or journaling. You just want to take your stressful energy and put it towards something positive.