April is Stress
Awareness Month
Stress may seem ever more common in our daily lives, however when it spirals out of control it can seriously affect our health and wellbeing and cause a range of problems. Stress is what happens when we are unable to control something and whatever we do to be in control, causes stress.
According to a study conducted in 2018 by The Mental Health Foundation, 74% of people felt levels of stress to be unmanageable and completely overwhelming. In a more recent 2020 survey conducted by the Stress Management Society; stress levels had increased by 65% since the Covid-19 pandemic. The most common types of stress in the UK are work related and financial stress.
Signs of stress
When a person is constantly experiencing high levels of stress this can lead to negative behaviour and psychological issues such as increased harmful or addictive behaviour, anxiety and other physical and mental health issues. Stress is different to anxiety but the two often feed each other as cyclical stressors. For example, if a person is anxious, they may become stressed because they don’t know why they are anxious. Stress is a mental state and anxiety is a feeling. How we react and respond to stress is different for everyone and there are a number of symptoms that could indicate stress. The following link is a helpful resource
Things that can help de-stress
Focus on the things that you can control and NOT on the things that are out of your control. Replace thinking and worrying about things that are six months ahead and that you can’t do anything about with something more present and short term that is in your control.
Writing things down can be really helpful as putting pen to paper gets it out of your head. The action of writing it down allows you to park the thought(s) and gives you some mental and physical breathing space.
Block out some time in your calendar to deal with a specific problem or issue. By allocating ‘time specific’ you allow yourself a break.
Exercise and the great outdoors is a great way to de-stress and wake up the senses, especially now that we’re in Spring. Being outside and connecting with nature, breathing in the spring floral bouquet and listening to the birdsong can help to put your body and mind at peace.
Daily affirmations can help us believe in ourselves, conviction and repetition will help you to make them happen. There are many books and internet listings of affirmations but here’s a few as an example: ‘believe you can and you’re halfway there’ (Theodore Roosevelt), ‘success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts’ (Winston Churchill), ‘my mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive’ (Maya Angelou).
Hypnotherapy can be effective in reducing stress and anxiety because it activates a deep relaxation, decreases blood pressure, slows the heart rate and promotes healing.
Counselling and other talking therapies can help as they provide a time and space to talk through problems and concerns in an environment that is non-judgemental. There are many different types of therapy that can be accessed both privately and through the NHS.
I hope you have found this blog on stress helpful, please drop me a comment and let me know your thoughts.
I have listed a few resources where you can find further information and also a link to my website.
For information, I am seeing clients face-to-face for hypnotherapy sessions and either face-to-face or on zoom for counselling sessions. If you would like to book a consultation or find out more about me, please visit my website www.attandw.co.uk
Helpful resources and further information:
