Managing stress is a necessary part of health and wellness. Stress can creep up quickly or build over time. While it is wonderful to have times when we can go for a long walk or sit and read a good book to destress, certain situations don’t allow extended breaks. Sometimes, we reach a breaking point with stress, and we need to address it now in the short moments we have available. Quick stress relievers can help provide relief by decreasing your heart rate, slowing your breathing, releasing tension, and allowing your thoughts to be more present.

Try a Deep Breathing Exercise

Deep breathing is a simple practice that only takes a few seconds or minutes, depending on how many cycles you choose to complete. It can help to lower your heart rate and blood pressure while giving your mind a break so you can think more clearly. Examples of breathing exercises include box breathing and 4-7-8 breathing. These can be self-guided or use a visual or audio prompt to guide you through the exercise.

Practice a Grounding Technique

As we start to feel overwhelmed by stress, often our thoughts dwell on the past or spiral into future what-ifs. Grounding techniques help you and your thoughts be more present and aware of your surroundings. Being intentionally present can encourage thoughtful responses rather than quick, emotional reactions. Try sensory grounding by using your five senses to think about what you currently see, hear, touch, smell, and taste. Counting or focusing on a phrase can be considered cognitively grounding. Spending a few moments in nature can also be grounding by paying close attention to your environment.

Listen to Music

We can listen to a whole song in less than five minutes, but music can quickly change our mood or relax our tensions. You could select an upbeat song to sing along to or a soothing instrumental tune to close your eyes and relax. Either way, music is an impactful stress management tool that we can typically access at our fingertips in moments.

Take a Stretch Break

Stress builds, and we can feel our muscles tense. We hunch closer to our screens, and our shoulders creep toward our ears. As the muscle tension continues, we might feel a headache begin or other soreness arise. Pausing to stretch gives you a quick break from the situation and relieves muscle tension. Stand up and stretch out by reaching your hands to the sky. Or stay seated and do several neck and shoulder rolls. Breathe regularly during your stretching and notice the tension release. Consider more full-body stretches later in your day when you have more time, but for now, a quick stretch break can go a long way to managing your stress.

Express Your Gratitude

Stress builds as we focus on our challenges or unexpected detours. However, it is difficult to maintain that frustration when we avert our attention to blessings and things to be thankful for. If stress feels overwhelming, pause and write down five things that bring you gratitude. No matter how big or small, acknowledging your blessings brings your awareness to the positive things in life. It doesn’t take away our challenges. But practicing gratitude helps us find joy in the journey and reminds us that our stressors don’t need to define our focus.

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