Five ways to naturally lower stress in your life

DISCLAIMER: I am not a medical professional. The information in this post isn’t meant to treat or cure anxiety or depression. I am simply sharing my story and what has worked for me. If you are struggling with your mental health, please go see a professional! Take care of yourself, babe. <3

Recently on Instagram I shared that over the last few months, i’ve intentionally focused on lowering the stress in my life. I got so many questions on what i’ve done to lower the stress in my life so I thought I would write about it here!

Let’s face it, life is unpredictable and can often be stressful. In today’s society the “busy badge” is worn as a badge of honor, but even though we’re all busy, why are we dealing with chronic stress and anxiety? Being “busy” and “stressed” often go hand in hand. But why? That’s what i’ve been trying to figure out.

I think everyone deals with stress/anxiety in different ways but I do think it impacts us all and so it’s important to discuss. Unresolved stress over time can turn into debilitating anxiety and/or depression. I’ve been there. There was once a time in my life where I was having multiple panic attacks a day. If you haven’t read my story of working through anxiety, you can read it here.

Over the last few months i’ve really been studying the specific stress response in my body. When I start to feel tense, nervous, and anxiety begins to cripple in, I stop myself and reflect on WHY i’m feeling this way. I’ve realized that most of the stress I deal with in my daily life is self-inflicted. I’ve learned that there are certain things/events/people that trigger the stress response in my body. By figuring out what these are, i’ve been able to greatly reduce the daily stress in my life. My life isn’t any less “busy” but i’m able to manage it better because i’m self-aware enough to know when i’m pushing myself too far or entering into the “red zone”.

Here are five tangible and practical changed I’ve made in my life to greatly reduce my stress. Through the realization that most of the stress I feel is self-inflicted, i’ve been able to figure out exactly how I let myself get into a stressful situation. From there, I create boundaries in my life so that those situations don’t come up as often and i’m able to experience more peace. My hope is that you will make your OWN mental health a priority and identify ways you can lower stress in your own life! If you would like to hear more on this topic or my personal story to wellness, I would highly recommend my book, Live Well & Love Yourself. You can get it here.

1. Identify your triggers-

   Like I previously mentioned, knowing what triggers the stress response in your body is so crucial when aiming to lower the stress in your life. What makes you stressed to begin with?

   -Is it your job? Get specific. What specifically in your workplace brings you stress? Do you procrastinate or fail to effectively communicate which could contribute to the stress you feel? Do you lack organization or time management which could contribute?

   -Is there a specific person in your life that makes you stressed? Do you LET someone else make you stressed? If so, maybe it’s time to put in some healthy boundaries in place to protect yourself.

   -Are you a people pleaser? Does the stress of what others may think make you stressed? Are you constantly measuring and comparing yourself to others? If so, it’s time to stop consuming content that makes you feel like you aren’t measuring up. It’s time to get laser-focsed on your own life and create boundaries for yourself.

   -There could be SO MANY other triggers. These are just some examples to get you thinking of the personal stress-triggers you have in your own life! Whatever your triggers are, take the necessary steps to eliminate them or limit them from your life!

2. Develop morning and evening rituals-

   Our bodies work on best routines and rhythms. For someone who is NOT naturally organized or routine-driven, i’ve had to really grow in this area. That being said, I think creating morning and evening rituals is so crucial to giving yourself time to rest, recharge, and reset for the next day. I’ve learned to be really intentional about my evenings. I don’t make plans that I know will end late, because I know that sleep needs to be a priority for me. I start winding down around 7pm most evenings and aim to put my phone away around that time too. Evenings are for reading, journaling, drinking tea (chamomile is my favorite), and unwinding in every way. These evening rituals ensure that i’m ready to face the next day! As far as mornings go, I drink a ton of water, do a short stretching/yoga practice, and read or do a devotional every single morning. I also don’t sleep in very often because I know that if I start off my day early, I have time to do my morning ritual and really set the stage for the day. Your morning and evening rituals may look different than mine, but I think that being intentional during these two specific times in your day will help you gain better balance in your life which will greatly contribute in lowering your stress levels!

3. Practice stillness-

   There is so much clarity we can find when we STOP to gain clarity and perspective. I think a lot of us believe the lie that we have to busy ALL THE TIME in order to be productive. Or maybe you have a crazy schedule that doesn't allow for much stillness. Either way, I think its important to make stillness apart of your daily routine. For me, I practice stillness during my morning yoga practice. For you, it may look like evening meditation or simply, taking five minutes of deep breathing in your car before heading into work. When we allow our minds to be still, we are able to better process our emotions. This will lead to less emotional build-up and “clutter” In our brains, which ultimately leads to less stress that we experience.

4. Express how you feel-

   This goes along with practicing stillness. It’s imperative that you find away to express your emotions. Stuffing or ignoring emotions will only add stress to your life in the long run. For me, whenever I feel stress from “emotional build-up” I know its time to take out my journal and let it all out on the paper. Maybe for you, it’s talking your emotions through with a trusted confidant. Maybe it’s going on a long run. However you best express yourself, make sure you make time to do that on the weekly basis. This is one of the best preventative measures i’ve been able to take to keep stress from building up in my life.

5. Prioritize your well-being-

   Your health is sacred. Truly. If you aren’t taking care of your body, mind, and soul, you are letting unnecessary stress build up in your body. If you aren’t eating nourishing health-filled food or moving your body to release endorphins (hello NATURAL stress inhibitor), you aren’t prioritizing your well-being. YOU ARE WORTH IT! You get ONE body and ONE life. Treat yourself with LOVE! You can’t truly succeed in other areas of your life if you aren’t succeeding at taking care of yourself. Prioritize your well-being. Do what it takes to create healthy habits and boundaries in your life. If you need more help in this area, I would HIGHLY recommend picking up a copy of my book as it goes over all of this in-depth.

I really hope that these tips motivate and inspire you to take action on some areas in your life that are causing you stress. I know what it’s like to be spread thin, unable to cope with massive amounts of anxiety, and paralyzed in the expectations you put on yourself. I want to encourage you that whatever stress you are coming across in your life right now, there IS hope! You WILL get through it! You are STRONG!!! Let me know if you have any other questions on this topic because it is something I am super passionate about and I would love to help in any way I can!

xo, Lo

Stress: 5 tips on managing stress and keeping balance

I'm not sure about you, but stress is very much a part of my everyday life.Stress has seemed to follow me since I was a child and it’s something I have dealt with my entire life. I absolutely hate saying this, but I don't know what life looks like without stress. It makes me sad to acknowledge this. It's not that I like being stressed, but it’s all I have ever known. I am used to it. It is a part of my daily routine and it has been a tough character flaw to release of mine. Stress is something I have clung to when I need to get something done. Stress is something I crave when I feel "unproductive". Sometimes, I even get high off the adrenaline rush of stress. It's insane. I hate it. If you are a type B person, you will probably have no idea what the heck I am talking about. If you are a type A person, you probably know EXACTLY what I am saying and this may hit you to your core. 

Let’s talk about what the definition of stress is before we go into more detail. Wikipedia says that, “Stress is a feeling of strain and pressure.” Stress is a normal reaction in our bodies and when we get stressed, our bodies react in a “fight or flight” response which triggers cortisol levels to go up and puts strain on our adrenal glands. Stress, quite literally, puts strain and pressure on the body and nervous system. When we are stressed to finish an assignment, complete a project, run a mile, do the dishes, engage in an argument, or simply keep up with social media, it puts STRAIN AND PRESSURE on us. In small doses, like running a mile for example, stress can be beneficial; but for most of us, we are stressed out way more than we should be. 

Much of my childhood was very stressful. I don’t remember many times as a child that I wasn’t stressed. I did not have a care-free childhood which meant that my body was used to experiencing a high amount of stress on a daily basis. I plan on publishing a whole piece on my health story but in short, all of the stress caught up to me and I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease, leaky gut, and adrenal fatigue at 19 years old. 

I am the first to know how damaging stress is for the body, yet I still engage in the act of being stressed every single day. It’s like a drug that I cannot quit. I choose to over-extend myself, take on too much and put unnecessary pressure on myself in order to feel like an accomplished person. Feeling accomplished and feeling stressed go hand-in-hand for me and it’s taken me a long time to realize that it is not normal or healthy. 

I think of stress like I think of grocery shopping. Little stressors add up just like I add items to my shopping cart. A new weekly commitment? Add it. A new goal to achieve? Add it. Someone else’s opinion? Add it. Something I SHOULDbe doing? Add it. A bed full of clothes to fold? (my current reality) Add it. Little stressors add up and up and I don’t even realize it until I am having a panic attack for no apparent reason. Do you ever find yourself at a grocery store with a cart full of items that weren’t on your list? That’s kind of how stress is, you add unnecessary stressors to your life without even realizing it until you have an overflowing cart. I know that I am not the only one who feels this way. There are people DYING everyday over stress-related illnesses. We need to get better at managing stress before it completely consumes us. 

I am by no means an expert on managing stress but over the years I have developed a tool kit of things I do to manage my stress. I would encourage you to experiment with your own ideas and find things that work for YOU.

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1.   Check in with yourself: This is probably the best way that I am able to manage my stress because oftentimes I am dealing with stress and I don’t even realize it. Every morning check-in with yourself. How are you feeling? What do you have to accomplish that day? Are you anxious or overwhelmed in any way? Asking these questions to myself helps me to pay attention to any stressors in my life that I may need to get rid of. It also helps me gauge if I need to change anything in my daily schedule in order to not take on too much. 

2.   Take breaks: No matter what you have going on during your day, it is vitally important that you take 1-2 breaks to do absolutely nothing. Allow yourself to be “unproductive” for 10 minute increments and see how amazing you feel. My favorite way to take breaks during my day is by stopping everything I am doing to do a 10 minute meditation. Truthfully, I am not good at taking breaks and so this is one that I need to get better at! 

3.   Create Rituals: This has been a game changer for me. Creating rituals in my everyday life has allowed me to think less and be still more. I have a morning ritual to prime myself for the day, a nighttime ritual to prepare to rest, and a self-care ritual (sauna + drybrushing) that I aim to do every day to keep me balanced. 

4.   Tea: This may seem pretty minuscule but never underestimate the power of a cup of herbal tea. Sipping on herbal tea reminds me to slow down, to not take things so seriously, and to enjoy the simple things in life. Below I will list my favorite herbal teas. I try to sip on tea 2-3 times a day! 

5.   Un-freaking-plugging: you guys I cannot stress this one enough. Working entirely online keeps my stress levels high pretty consistently. I release so much stress and gain so much clarity when I put my phone on airplane mode for simply 3 hours. THREE HOURS. That’s it! Unplugging doesn’t mean you are disengaging from your phone for a week, it simply means you are giving yourself a little break. I am also not great at doing this but I aim to do it a couple of times a week and whenever I do, I feel SO GOOD. 

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Here are some other ways I treat stress: 

-Going for an evening walk

-Swimming in the ocean

-Painting or doing a craft

-Journaling

-Reading outside 

-Stretching

-Talking about what I am feeling with my husband or a close friend

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I truly hope this helps you find more balance and manage the stress in your life. My encouragement to you would be to implement stress-balancing activities in your life and make them a non-negotiable part of your routine. Stress is a nasty beast to master, I’m right with you sister! Together, lets pledge to take off the busy badge in order to live lives of more meaning, more space, more inspiration, and less stress. 

live well,

Lo

PS- these are my favorite herbal teas... I always have a stash of all of these and I switch off depending on my mood!