Coping with Stress

Everyone has stress.
Stress is more than frustrating, it can also lead to bigger issues that can affect your health, your personal life and your career. So what does stress feel like? Common symptoms include: fast heartbeat, headache, back pain, fast breathing, a stiff neck and or tight shoulders, sweating/sweating palms and an upset stomach nausea or diarrhea. Over time, stress can affect your immune system, heart muscles, stomach, skin and more.

Everyone deals with stress differently, but the good news is that you can learn ways to avoid it:
Learn better ways to manage your time. Create a schedule and prioritize tasks by importance.
Find better ways to cope. Look at how you’ve been dealing with it and be honest about what works and doesn’t work.
Take good care of yourself. Get plenty of rest, eat well, don’t smoke and limit your alcohol intake.
Try a new way of thinking. If you find yourself starting to worry, work on stopping your thoughts and letting go of things you cannot change.
Speak up and ask for help. Not being able to communicate your needs can make your negative feelings worse.

Let’s face it... life can be chaotic, whether you’re meeting a deadline at work, or juggling appointments and soccer practice. Exercise is one the best ways to relieve stress, and its also important that you take some time to do the things that relax you.