How I de-stress

I’ve been thinking about life a lot recently. Choices I’ve made in my past and choice I have to make right now. I won’t bore you with the details, but I’ve come to the conclusion that life and everything in it is just really fucking stressful. So I wanted to share with you today my favourite ways to unwind. I hope you enjoy and feel at least a little bit less stressed after this, or after you’ve tried one of these tips.

 

        1. Don’t pick up the phone.

I am aware that this is one of the rules in Dua Lipa’s new song “New Rules”. That’s partly why I put this one on number one. But puns aside, this is a really big one for me. I find that the internet and by that I mainly mean social media, can make you feel stressed or depressed even. This is because, as you may know, people post the best parts of their lives on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, all that kind of shit. Even though consciously you are aware of the fact that they, too, have crappy periods in their lives, you still feel like you’re missing out. Like your problems are worse than they might be, to you personally. So turning your phone off for a couple of hours will make you feel loads better, at least, it makes me feel better.

       

         2. Read

This might not be the one for you if you don’t like reading. Although why not remains an absolute fucking mystery to me. Reading is one of my favourite forms of escapism. You can just so easily transport yourself into someone else’s life. Read about their problems and forget about yours.

         3. Take a bath

Now, I’m not a bath person, I prefer taking brief showers (by brief I mean that they’re usually between 5-10 minutes) and just crawling back into my warm bed. This is because I don’t really like taking a bath for the idea of getting clean as you’re sort of just soaking in your own filth.. But if I’m really stressed I will definitely treat myself to a warm bubble bath, and if I’ve been really stressed I’ll buy myself a nice bath bomb from Lush, but let’s be real, I don’t have the money for it. But yeah, draw yourself a nice bath, get some hot tea or some hot chocolate and then put on some music or a TV show or a film or whatever, and just soak. Let the hot water relax all of your muscles and close your eyes.

        4. Go for a walk

The fresh air, music playing and beautiful nature around you really helps to calm you down. And while just about any type of walk helps to reduce stress, because walking (and any type of exercise) produces endorphins which in turn reduce stress hormones, I do recommend finding a green space to walk in. This can actually put your body in a sort of state of meditation. This is thanks to something called “involuntary attention”. This means that something holds our attention, but it simultaneously allows for reflection.

 

        5. Eat dark chocolate

It’s kind of the same as with the walking, but chocolate has tryptophan in it. Tryptophan is a chemical that causes the brain to release serotonin, which is a neurotransmitter that lifts your mood. Besides, chocolate is amazing and delicious. And dark chocolate has less sugar in it than milk and white, which is also better for you.

         6. Get yourself a plant

Besides plants just being a beautiful edition to your house, which also helps purify the air, they can actually help calm you down. Researchers have apparently found that simply being around plants can induce your relaxation response. One Washington State University study found that a group of stressed-out people who entered a room full of plants had a four-point drop in their blood pressure. You can also buy yourself some plants if you can’t deal with the responsibility of taking care of a plant.

         7. Clean and organise

This might not be for everyone, but the task of cleaning and organising things really seems to calm me down. For example, I have organised both mine and my friend Maxime’s phone apps in little folders. Those maps have the names of colours so that your apps are in a beautiful progression of colours. And then in those individual folders I once more have sorted the apps from darkest to lightest. It’s amazing and so satisfying to look at. I have also organised all the books on my shelf in two categories, “read” and “want to read”. When I have the time I am also planning on sorting those by colour. I regularly re-organise my desk and my closet and I clean my room (and then I mean really clean, throw everything away in it that I don’t need, including pens and all that stuff, and then vaccuum it, etc.). Maybe the fact that you’re putting other things in order helps you put your own mind in order.

        8. Let it hang free

Now this is one that’s just for the ladies. I think. But take off your bra. As soon as you come home and don’t have to go out anymore take off your clothes, change into sweats and your baggiest jumper, put up your hair, and take off that goddamn bra. That’s all I have to say on this subject.

        9. Bake

I have no idea why, but baking is one of the most relaxing things to me. I’m all alone in my kitchen, turn on music very loudly, sing along very badly, and dance around, all while baking a delicious cake. Or cookies. Or macarons, or something else. It’s amazing. Maybe it’s the fact that this, too, just completely takes your mind off of everything else and in the end you get a very delicious treat out of it, something you can make other people happy with as well.

         10. Light some candles

A classic one, but still one of my favourites. When my room is filled with tiny dancing lights it just makes me feel happy. It’s very beautiful and it gives off warmth and creates a beautiful atmosphere. Especially if it reflects off of other things, and the light dances across the walls. Pro tip: if you’re going to light scented candles, make sure you only light one scent. Please. Otherwise it’s going to make you nauseas

 

        11. Write about it

This, once more, is not one that works for everyone, but it certainly works for me. With stress, but with everything else as well. If I’m feeling that one emotion is overpowering me and setting the tone for the rest of my day, or even longer, writing it all down is the best thing to do for me. I put it down on (digital) paper. I pour my heart into words. And it’s mostly gone out of my mind. It’ll still always be there. In the back. Lingering. But it won’t be weighing on my mind as heavy as it did before.

        12. Call a friend

Sometimes talking about it helps. Sometimes a fresh pair of eyes can help you realise that maybe you’re taking too much on and you should rethink your priorities. Maybe they can make you see that you’re stressing out over nothing. And maybe they can just give you a listening ear. Somebody to rant to, because often times, just having someone listen to you goes a long way.