5 Simple Ways To Reduce Stress

High levels of stress can take the wind right out of your sails. Niomi Smart shares 5 simple tips that help her de-stress, and hopefully they’ll help you too!

Focus on Your Breathing: Take deep breaths all the way into your stomach. If it helps, rest your hand on your belly and continue to breathe deeply until your shallow breathing subsides. Before long you should notice you’re less tense from being stressed and you should feel more relaxed.

Listen to Music: Try to find music that is calming, but mostly any music that you like should help ease your stress. There are certain apps like Spotify that allow you to select music based on different moods. This is a great way to find new music specifically designed to help calm you down when feeling overwhelmed.

Engage in Your Hobby: If you’re still feeling stressed after the first two tips, try taking a short break from whatever you’re doing and engage in your hobby. If you don’t have a hobby, that’s okay! Try different things until something resonates with you that you’re particularly interested in.

Exercise: You don't need to go spend an hour at the gym doing a rigorous workout. Exercise can simply mean going for a walk or run outside, yoga, lifting weights, or anything that gets your body moving.

The Little Things: If you’ve come this far and you’re still feeling stressed out, try some of “the little things” that may ease your mind. You don’t have to go out and buy the products Niomi is endorsing, but reading a book, taking a warm shower or bath, and making a cup of tea are all viable options to refreshing your busy brain.

Give some of these tips a try and you should start to feel some relief from whatever is causing your stress.