When you feel stressed it’s always good to talk. Sometimes talking to a stranger who cares can put a different perspective on things.
This is when you can start thinking clearer, get clarity on your situation and light-bulb moments can happen. In a recent survey over 33% of the British population experienced stress for one day a week, with work, health and sleep deprivation being amongst the main causes of their stress.
During April (Stress Awareness Month) and May focusing on mental health awareness there was lots of help and support readily available. But now what can you do to continue maintaining your stress levels? According to the NHS a good place to start when looking to reduce stress is to talk to a friend and they list it as one of their top 10 things to do to address your stress.
Causes of Stress
During initial consultations with many people from different backgrounds including self-employed business owners, managing directors, working parents and people caring for elderly or sick relatives, the conversations were all very different. They had underlined similarities though, in that all these people were experiencing stress due to feeling overwhelmed because of: –
- having so much to do at work and not having enough time
- trying to juggle work and home commitments
- the responsibility of caring for and supporting other family members.
Consequences of Stress
Feeling stressed can affect you mentally, physically and emotionally and as a result you can start to experience: –
- feelings of anxiety
- low self-esteem
- difficulty sleeping
- having little or no time for yourself.
Your first step to identifying the root cause of your challenges and causes of your current stress is to talk it through. Talking about your situation will allow you to get clarity on what the actual causes of your stress are. You will then be better able to identify and implement simple solutions to manage your stress levels.
Simple changes such as monthly time out to relax, refocus and re-charge will have a positive impact on your sleep and energy levels which are both affected when you feel stressed and overwhelmed. There is a lot of research into the health benefits of reiki and reflexology treatments. They are both great methods of inducing mental and physical relaxation which is a must when you are looking to reduce your stress levels. Read more here.
In the UK both these treatments are being used in more and more hospitals, hospices and GP surgeries for their relaxation benefits. Many private health insurance plans now view them in the same way as acupuncture, osteopathy and chiropractor treatments.
Simple Stress Relief Strategies
Whether you’re a busy professional, a working parent, a managing director or a busy mum, taking time out to focus on yourself and changing the way you look at things is one of the best strategies for managing your stress and reducing feelings of being overwhelmed.
You may think you don’t have time to do this but just find 2-3 minutes and see how your energy changes. You can do this: –
- When cooking dinner
- Before going to an important meeting
- When taking the dog (or yourself) for a walk
- During your run
- At breakfast time
- When sitting in the car at the school run.
Build time into your day to appreciate and enjoy what you have.
Is it now time to give yourself permission to take an hour a month out of your busy schedule and use a reflexology or reiki treatment to help you refocus and recharge your batteries? Wouldn’t it be great to have reduced levels of stress so that you can enjoy better sleep, feel good about yourself, be more productive and start being back in control of your life?
If you would like some help getting clarity on what’s causing your stress and to see how your stress and overwhelm can be managed more effectively, book your call here now.
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About Sharon
Sharon lives with her partner Geoff in Warwickshire and they have two adult children. She worked for over 25 years in an office environment, gaining qualifications to degree level in finance, business and management. While there Sharon witnessed and experienced many stressful situations and suffered illnesses which were stress related.
Sharon was advised to make some changes to her lifestyle which included trying complementary therapies. After experiencing the benefits of complementary treatments, Sharon decided to retrain and to share her knowledge and experiences to help others recognise and manage their own physical and emotional stress and anxiety levels.
Sharon has been working as a complementary therapist for over 15 years now, and she loves helping people manage and reduce their stress levels, to feel uplifted, focused, positive and empowered about their lives.
