Here are some techniques you can use to reduce your stress levels
when it comes to facing those unavoidable challenges and other
stressful situations in life:

Using stress-breathing techniques to reduce stress

Learning to breathe properly during stressful times is probably the
most powerful stress reduction technique of all. The reason for this is
that breathing is intricately connected with our stress-arousal system,
or fight or flight response. As a person’s stress level elevates, several
physiological changes occur that peak arousal: their heart rate increas-
es, blood pressure spikes, and their breathing becomes shallow and
more rapid. What most people don’t realize is that they can use this
same response in reverse. Since body and mind are interwoven with
each other, learning to consciously control your breathing will inter-
rupt this stress-arousal response, lowering levels of cortisol through-
out your body and helping to calm your mind.

Simply breathe deeply from the diaphragm when stressed, which
activates the body’s natural calming signals. Then take the time to
learn other focused breathing exercises (See out section on focused
breathing techniques), and teach them to your children, too. By learning to interrupt this stress-arousal response so it doesn’t carry on for
some time, and by using breathing to lessen the stress you feel even
when the stress is unavoidable, it will have a profound impact on the
amount of stress you and your kids will endure throughout life.

Arrange your schedule in a way that reduces stress

If you know of stressful activities that have to be done (paying the
bills, etc.) try to group them together. Get them all done at once, then
reward yourself afterwards with something that will bring your stress
level back down.

Avoid procrastination

People who procrastinate endure much more stress in their lives. This
just takes a stressful task and stretches the anxiety out for a much
longer period of time. Tackle procrastination problems and you’ll
reduce stress throughout your life.

Re-evaluating your priorities to reduce stress

“The science of stress can illuminate the damage. It can document
the chemistry that unravels us from the inside. One day, it might even give us options for preventing the damage, silencing the stress response at its source. But these are mere band-aids, fancy fixes for what remains an inherently societal problem.”

– Jonah Lehrer (2010, p. 146)

It’s been said that the height of stupidity is doing the same thing over
and over again and expecting a different result. Yet when it comes to
stress, we often do just that. Here are a few questions to think about
going forward:

·    Are you chasing dreams that aren’t actually your own?

·    Is your life balanced between work and play?

·    Do you spend a lot of time worrying about what others think or do,
allowing yourself to be worked up because of how they think you
should be?

·    Do you focus too much on material possessions or the latest
gadgets, stressing yourself out in an attempt to keep up with others?