STESS, STRESS, STRESS, STRESS

s_light
s_light Posts: 58 Member
in Motivation and Support
I'm searching for ways to maintain my stress levels. I unfortunately I have been smoking 2-3 cigarettes a day (I was smoke free for two years) and really don't want to be. I workout but my levels are uncontrollable. Most of the stress in my life come form work, and no I can't leave work at work, if I could I wouldn't be seeking help. I'm just wondering what you all do, is there foods, drinks or other habits that help you maintain your sanity?

Replies

  • CrystalX82
    CrystalX82 Posts: 68 Member
    Rhodiola supplement and some Yogi Kava tea at night =)
  • SunofaBeach14
    SunofaBeach14 Posts: 4,899 Member
    I use a very carefully calibrated combination of lifting weights, running, booze, and sex.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Meditation, yoga, breathing, relaxation exercises, fresh air, being in water, sex, companionship.
  • Meerataila
    Meerataila Posts: 1,885 Member
    Unless you love your job or are so richly rewarded you're going to be able to retire in five years or something like that, start making an escape plan now. Even if you can't act on it right away, having a plan to get out in x amount of time mapped out might save your sanity. Stress is terrible for you.
  • Madame_Goldbricker
    Madame_Goldbricker Posts: 1,625 Member
    Unfortunately most of us end up working to live. Not living for our work - If you can't change your job find something outside of it to give you some balance & sanity. Find a sector you like and maybe try volunteering? It can sometimes open a lot of doors. Look at part time college classes.
  • cicisiam
    cicisiam Posts: 491 Member
    Unplug & get out in nature.
  • CubicalF13
    CubicalF13 Posts: 263 Member
    Have you considered seeking a doctors advice or referral to see someone like a psychologist that can help you to deal with stress? It might not be stress. Could be anxiety, fear, depression etc could be something else entirely. I am no doctor myself but that might be a good place to start rather then seeking advice from random strangers(me included) on the internet who have no idea what your going through mentally.
  • 47Jacqueline
    47Jacqueline Posts: 6,993 Member
    You can't be working 24 hours a day. Even if you can't leave your work at work (I never could). I'm not recommending these things, but they helped me when I was in that situation. I used to run until I started crying. that was the stress coming out. I can't run anymore because I fell a few times and ruined my knees. Something I don't do, but a friend of mine does is meditations. She converted to Buddhism a number of yers ago and this seems to have really helped. Meditation makes me nervous. ;-)

    What works for me is Vinyasa Yoga. It's a cardio yoga that totally unstresses me. Actually any exercise is relaxing. It activates the seretonin in my body that evens out my mood.
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
    I deal with stress by drinking a lot, vaping, and self servicing like a champ.
  • MegE_N
    MegE_N Posts: 245 Member
    I take my 30 minute lunches (when I can get them) and go sit under a tree with a big cup of iced tea or something and read a book. I don't get much reading done since 30 minutes isn't a long time, but it breaks up the day so much and it really helps relieve my work stress.
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    I use a very carefully calibrated combination of lifting weights, running, booze, and sex.

    I'm still working on getting my WRB&S macros at an optimal level.
  • val16villar
    val16villar Posts: 41 Member
    I try to go for a walk outside, feel the breeze, have some tea (Chamomile or something with bergamot), deep breathing, yoga or sometimes some cardio really works out well for me.
  • DebTavares
    DebTavares Posts: 170 Member
    Not sure if this is an option for you, but I left a high paying very stressful job in politics for a job that pays half of what I was making. I love my new job and would not go back to politics for anything.
  • Cadori
    Cadori Posts: 4,810 Member
    Sex, sleep, exercise.
  • KCoolBeanz
    KCoolBeanz Posts: 813 Member
    Exercise, relaxation, and if you need to, get yourself an e-cig with 0% nicotene for the juice. I have one, and I use it when I get stressed out instead of bumming a smoke here and there. For me it's more the action of smoking I crave. They're fairly inexpensive with all of the vape shops popping up these days.
  • metacognition
    metacognition Posts: 626 Member
    Why worry about something that you can't change or make it monumentally important?

    Just take a breath of new air, recognize that you are free once you leave that building and until you walk back in for another shift.
  • saltedcaramel86
    saltedcaramel86 Posts: 238 Member
    Work is a bone of contention for me also and a huge source of stress, plus working long, unsociable hours doesn't help as I was not having that mental down time. Add in some other life stress and bouts of anxiety/depression made things difficult.

    Exercise helps but for me personally, the biggest factors to help me calm is walking and yoga (and meditation when I have time!) Last week, I was in work from 11am one day til 4pm the next, got home, unloaded my things, threw my scruffy clothes and trainers on and headed into the woods by me. It's by a river and when the trail ends, I start climbing into the rocky area. It completely calms me being in nature. I love walking, and can be out for 2+ hours, easily. I recently bought a yoga DVD for general flexibility, balance and body conditioning but that has also helped and something I enjoy.

    Aside from that, things that help take my mind off things....loud rock music and deep clean, reading, paint my nails, play with the dog, etc. I recently landed a new job so only 3 weeks left in current and it's a HUGE weight off my shoulders!
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Work is a bone of contention for me also and a huge source of stress, plus working long, unsociable hours doesn't help as I was not having that mental down time. Add in some other life stress and bouts of anxiety/depression made things difficult.

    Exercise helps but for me personally, the biggest factors to help me calm is walking and yoga (and meditation when I have time!) Last week, I was in work from 11am one day til 4pm the next, got home, unloaded my things, threw my scruffy clothes and trainers on and headed into the woods by me. It's by a river and when the trail ends, I start climbing into the rocky area. It completely calms me being in nature. I love walking, and can be out for 2+ hours, easily. I recently bought a yoga DVD for general flexibility, balance and body conditioning but that has also helped and something I enjoy.

    Aside from that, things that help take my mind off things....loud rock music and deep clean, reading, paint my nails, play with the dog, etc. I recently landed a new job so only 3 weeks left in current and it's a HUGE weight off my shoulders!

    This is great!
  • Hell_Flower
    Hell_Flower Posts: 348 Member
    Unless you love your job or are so richly rewarded you're going to be able to retire in five years or something like that, start making an escape plan now. Even if you can't act on it right away, having a plan to get out in x amount of time mapped out might save your sanity. Stress is terrible for you.

    This.

    I'm fairly sure that when I'm on my deathbed I'm not going to regret the fact that I didn't work harder. You can only stretch yourself so thinly before other areas in life start to suffer. If I was career-driven, there's no way I'd have a decent marriage.

    So maybe, if work is good for you personally, bin other things in your life that aren't as important.
  • bobbyguns
    bobbyguns Posts: 33
    For me, the gym is a mental stress reliever (although it is designed to cause physical stress), the ocean or the beach, being one with nature (hiking), bike riding along a nice woodsy path. Sorry- if you're stuck in the city then you gotta find your own "beach". And grab a Corona....
  • mymfpesk
    mymfpesk Posts: 7 Member
    Meditation, prayer and rest have really helped me cope with stress. I also exercise regularly and have been considering looking into acupuncture as well. In the morning, I listen to soothing, inspirational music and at night I inhale and exhale deeply and think about my small victories, blessings, and/or read and meditate on 1-2 Bible verses. These two verses resonate with me in a big way:

    Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

    Colossians 1:11-14 “May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

    All the best!
  • ils_1231
    ils_1231 Posts: 249 Member
    love this:


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67SeR3LxtdI -- breathing exercise on youtube. helped me through gmat studying.
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    I know this probably is not what you want to hear but for me it was a matter of seeking counseling and also, gradually transforming my entire life to involve less stress. I didn't NEED a bigger newer house, a new car every couple of years, the full satellite package, unlimited data on the newest iPhone, or twenty-two Coach handbags. I needed some peace. I changed jobs and everything else, pretty much. It's made everything much easier in my life.
  • s_light
    s_light Posts: 58 Member
    As I'm reading the thread, I'm noticing that majority of you are pointing to me getting a new job. This is not an option. I love my job, and I literally can't leave work at work, my phone could ring at anytime and I have to pretty much be available to go back into work. I don't stay because of money, my salary is under 30,000 a year, I stay because it is my calling in my life for right now. I am a Funeral Director/Embalmer/County Coroner. I'm just looking for helping in dealing with the stress.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    As I'm reading the thread, I'm noticing that majority of you are pointing to me getting a new job. This is not an option. I love my job, and I literally can't leave work at work, my phone could ring at anytime and I have to pretty much be available to go back into work. I don't stay because of money, my salary is under 30,000 a year, I stay because it is my calling in my life for right now. I am a Funeral Director/Embalmer/County Coroner. I'm just looking for helping in dealing with the stress.

    I understand that! Many jobs can be stressful. It doesn't mean you hate or dislike the job. You can love it. And the more you love it, the more it also becomes a part of your life. But, even good things can be stressful. Managing stress is very important. We all find what works for us. I hope you will find what works for you. Sometimes we think we can handle so much stress, but then it ends up having a physical impact on us that we did not anticipate. Those are wake-up calls to manage it better.
  • kbolton322
    kbolton322 Posts: 358 Member
    I use a very carefully calibrated combination of lifting weights, running, booze, and sex.


    THIS^^^^
  • qmmanager69
    qmmanager69 Posts: 71 Member
    A set of headphones, cheesy 80's music and the treadmill.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Cheesy 80's music does help!
  • SG1103
    SG1103 Posts: 4 Member
    I completely understand where you are coming from. I am in the same boat as you. Work is a part of life, so you have to deal with the stress somehow. For me, it's a work in progress, but I have been focusing on the important things in life and letting go of the not-so-important ones. Although you can be called into work at any hour, it would help you to disconnect anytime you can. Do chores later - they aren't as important. Deep breaths. Do something for yourself on a weekly basis. Take up a hobby (other than exercising) and see if you can complete a task. It'll give your mind something else to focus on. When all else fails, turn to your partner for a shoulder massage at the very least.

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