You Can't control the Economy but You Can Learn How to Control Your Stress

Stress is a natural part of life; and right now it can seem overwhelming with so many things out of your control; the economy, your savings, the job market all have been hit hard. But stress is not unbeatable, it's how you deal with it that makes the difference between health and illness, success and failure.

Stress can often cause the breakdown of our normal routines. We don't eat properly, we aren't sleeping well and there is just too much to do in any one day. Establishing a regular routine will help you feel more in control and therefore less stressed. Try to establish a good diet with not too many stimulants or overuse of tobacco or alcohol and if you are not sleeping well, don't stay up late at night until you hope you will be tired, instead try to maintain a regular time that you go to bed and get up each day, and this will help your internal body clock

Look at what you have to fit into a day and realistically try to establish priorities. What is essential, what would be good to do and what could be postponed? Prioritise so that you tackle the important things first and get a sense of achievement from finishing something rather than trying to do too many things at once. Does your stress come from too many people making demands on you so that you often find yourself saying "yes" when in fact you mean "no"? Are you always late for things? Do you get frustrated knowing you could have done a better job if you had organised your time better? If these apply to you, then it might be helpful to look at what changes you could make to simplify your daily routine. If saying no is a problem then that is something that won't change overnight, and you might want to get some expert help from an assertiveness management course or book.

A good tip here is to start saying no to small and relatively unimportant things that have no real emotional impact for you. You get to practice in safety and it is much easier on things like saying no to an extra cup of coffee or not taking a free leaflet from someone in the street. A polite but clear 'no thank you' might take a bit of practice but definitely gets easier the more you do it. If the problem is saying no to someone else's demands, and you don't want to do what they request or can't manage anything extra, then try saying 'thank you for asking me but it just isn't possible at the moment.' Stress often comes when we try to justify our actions, and a simple change we can make is to stop doing that as much as possible. It may be a hard habit to break, but you don't have to give reasons for your refusal to do anything, it's your right just to say no without having to justify it. It might take a bit of practice, but it is definitely a stress reducer.

Rome wasn't built in a day and reducing or eliminating stress that may have been accumulating for years can take some time. Long term change is best achieved slowly, one step at a time. You don't want the added stress of thinking you are not doing enough to change your situation, so be patient and you will see real changes. Be kind to yourself and start each day with the intention of doing the best you can, and being realistic about what you can achieve. Think about whatever you would most like to change, and then try to take one small action every day that will move you towards that. For instance, if you have a specific goal like 'reducing my blood pressure' then think of all the things you can do that will help that. You might decide to walk for an extra 5 minutes every day, or reduce the amount of salt you put on your food. It doesn't have to be a huge action, it just needs for you to consistently take it, one day at a time.