Boundaries help us to feel safe and routines help us to experience safety. Setting a routine and having boundaries are key to managing our stress. Here are 9 simple strategies to manage the symptoms of stress;

1. Find a distraction. Stop yourself from being ‘in your head’ too much. Watch a movie, go for a walk, speak to a friend, listen to some music or do a puzzle.

2. Eat a healthy balanced diet combined with exercise. The foods and drinks we consume can either causes stresses on our body or can boost our energy and mood.

3. Break your day up into small segments, write a realistic to do list and only focus on the task at hand.

4. Accept what you cannot change. Focusing on things that make you feel stressed, but you cannot change is not always helpful. Instead, focus on the things you do have control over. This means limited your time watching the news. Try to watch it only once per day.

5. Share with others. As the old saying goes, a problem shared is a problem halved. Talking to others about things that are troubling you can take the weight off your shoulders. And you might just find out that they are feeling the same way, showing you that you are not alone.

6. Get some ‘ME’ time. Take care of yourself. Sit back and relax, have a cup of tea or a relaxing bubble bath, play a video game- whatever makes you feel relaxed. This downtime can be used to make you feel stronger and more able to manage.

7. Recognise your triggers. Some anxieties may be carried through from childhood, whilst others may be brought on through change or stress such as losing your job, moving house, work load, relationship and money issues. Recognising what triggers your anxiety can help you to employ some management techniques.

8. Keep things in perspective. In the heat of the moment, little problems can feel bigger than they are. Take a step back, and think about how important your stressors are in a broader context. Will they matter in a week? In a year?

9. Face your fears Avoidance is a short-term solution to managing your fears, but in the long- term they will not go away and you may end up feeling worse. Facing up to these situations may feel hard at first, but in the long run it will feel like a weight lifted off your shoulders. Talk to someone, maybe a counsellor?

Alone we go faster, but together we go further. Subscribe to our 30 day plan to reset & stress less. A great resource for stress awareness month to reinforce, energise and focus & improve your mental health.