![\"Stress](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/RELAX-APRIL-IS-STRESS-AWARENESS-MONTH.jpg\")
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Some days are great, while others\u2026 make you want to crawl into your bed and never come out. We get it. Being an intern, student, employee, friend, sister, brother, or lover\u2014sometimes all at the same time\u2014is a lot. There are literally thousands of reasons to get stressed out. And while on a limited budget, you may not have the capacity to spend top dollar on therapists, yoga studios or a gym.<\/p>\n
Worry not\u2014there are quick and easy ways to help you if you\u2019re feeling the pressure. In honor of Stress Awareness Month, here are 7 magical ways to relax, de-stress and breathe so you can get all your tasks done and without freaking out or losing sleep.<\/p>\n
Got 10 minutes? Great. You don\u2019t need to have to be in a yoga studio with a teacher to guide you to do this simple practice. Go to a quiet space (this could be in an empty conference room or in a park bench outside), and sit in silence, taking deep, slow, steady breaths. Putting your attention on your breathing will calm your nervous system and help you focus on the present moment, rather than thinking about the 50 things you have to do later. Of course, there’s an app for that! Some great (and free!) apps to help:<\/p>\n
If movement is more your thing\u2014take a walk. Perhaps this means getting up from your desk to walk around the office for 10 minutes, socializing with coworkers, or maybe this means stepping outside for a quick 15-minute break. A study<\/a> published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports<\/em> found that participants felt considerably more enthusiastic, less tense, and generally more relaxed and able to cope at the office when they took a 30-minute walk break.<\/p>\n Email, Facebook and texting \u2013 oh my! With the rise of technology, our brains are addled. This can cause unconscious anxiety. Be more mindful of how often you use your devices, and limit the time you spend on them. For example: turn off your computer an hour before bed to wind down, read and relax. Don\u2019t answer your phone every time it dings\u2014the world won’t come to an end. Keep only one or two tabs open online, so you\u2019re not multitasking and doing 20 different things. Technology has a greater effect on us than we think \u2013 and turning it off can let you focus more on the present moment without having all the distractions stress you out.<\/p>\n Sometimes we\u2019re just in situations we can\u2019t change. We\u2019re in a fight with our significant other, we\u2019re in the middle of a big project with an impending deadline, or we have too much on our plates. Get your feelings out! Studies have shown that writing about stressful events improves both your physical and psychological health.<\/p>\n Some people start their day writing in their journal, and write every random thought down no matter what it is, positive or negative. It clears your head and leaves room for the days thoughts. Some tips: journal at the end of your day to recap it, or if you\u2019re having trouble sleeping because you\u2019re feeling overwhelmed, write a list of all of the things you want to accomplish. When they\u2019re out of your mind and on paper, you won’t have to worry you’ll forget. And lastly, write some goals for yourself and timelines for those goals. Track your progress. This will make your everyday efforts more meaningful.<\/p>\n This may seem obvious for a healthy body, but it also holds true for a healthy mind. Our bodies and minds are connected, and it\u2019s good to fuel it with healthy, nourishing foods that boost the immune system, rather than depleting it. As a young professional, it may seem hard to eat healthy, and foods such as pizza, candy and alcohol can seem cheaper and easier to get (and of course, delicious and enjoyable). However, when you replace that candy bar with dark chocolate and nuts, and that extra beer at the bar with a soda water, you\u2019ll sleep better and feel better in the short and long term. Here are 10 Yummy, Healthy Meals You Can Make in a Jiffy\u2014For Peanuts!<\/a><\/p>\n If you\u2019re able to adopt a pet from a shelter, studies show animals greatly reduce our stress levels and increase our happiness. Research shows that just petting a dog for a few minutes decreases cortisol, the stress hormone, in both the human and the dog. If you can\u2019t adopt right now, volunteer at a shelter, become a dog walker, dog sit for a friend, or go to a local dog park. What\u2019s not to love about cuddling and playing with our best furry friends?<\/p>\n They say laugher is the best medicine, so incorporate more joy and humor into your life! Socialize with coworkers, start listening to a comedy podcast or Netflix show, or just aim to see the humor in this year’s elections. Life is only taken too seriously if we make it that way. Just a simple smile from a stranger or a funny situation can transform your entire day. Look out for those moments in your day, every day. Every stressful situation is temporary, and we can always find some lightness even in the heaviest of times.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Relax! April is Stress Awareness Month Some days are great, while others\u2026 make you want to crawl into your bed and never come out. We get it. Being an intern, student, employee, friend, sister, brother, or lover\u2014sometimes all at the same time\u2014is a lot. There are literally thousands of reasons to get stressed out. And […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8927,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[42,41],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-life-hacks","category-im-positive"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Internsdc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}3. Turn it Off!<\/h2>\n
![\"Turn-off-computers\"](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/Turn-off-computers.jpg\")
<\/p>\n4. Get Out of Your Mind<\/h2>\n
5. Eat Healthier<\/h2>\n
6. Get a Pet (or hang out with one)<\/h2>\n
![\"DESTRESS-PLAY-WITH-A-PETDESTRESS-PLAY-WITH-A-PET\"](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/DESTRESS-PLAY-WITH-A-PET.jpg\")
<\/p>\n7. Laugh!<\/h2>\n
![\"Laugh-to-reduce-stress\"](\"http:\/\/atdevserver.com\/Projects\/Internsdc\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/Laugh-to-reduce-stress.jpg\")
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