Top 5 Tips to Bust Stress

Stress is a major issue for people living in this fast paced modern world. The right sort of stress can be really useful to motivate and keep you focussed eg nerves before a performance. But prolonged stress can be very detrimental to our physical and mental health. Here are my top tips to help you keep on top of it:

1/ Prioritise - if you feel swamped you are probably trying to do too much. Start by focusing on the most important things and do those first. You may find you actually forget about the less significant things!

2/ Perspective - if it's getting too much step back and get some perspective. Is the situation as bad as you think it is? Focussing on what's actually in front of you will help rather than worrying about what you have to get done later or next week.

3/ Expectation - realise you cannot do everything. Be careful you aren't expecting too much of yourself. Is the pressure you feel actually coming from real sources or are you putting it on yourself. E.g. expecting yourself to have worked a full day, sorted your kids, cooked a healthy meal from scratch, exercised, cleaned the whole house?? How can any one person possibly do it all? Again, try and prioritise. Do you really 'need' to have all the house work done today or can it wait?

4/ Stop Procrastinating - don't put off things you don't want to do! We all do it at times but it really does add to your stress as it will linger in the back of your mind until you get it done. Force yourself to get it out of the way and you will feel great.

5/ Time out - do something every day even if it's only for a few minutes just to relax. It could be mediation, a hot bath or just chatting and laughing with your partner or friend. You are not too busy! You are never so busy you cannot take 5 minutes to chill.