Racing to finish your taxes? Stressed by the tax-dollar bottom line? Besides zapping energy and perhaps making you irritable, stress can contribute to health costs: headaches, hypertension, lower immunity, muscle tension, sleeplessness.
How do you manage stress so it doesn’t manage you? Abusing food—either obsessive eating or meal skipping—to deal with stress makes no sense. A moderate approach, with a variety of foods, works better. You get needed nourishment to deal with this frenzied world, and you up your chances to stay healthy and keep your weight normal.
Make time today to downsize personal stress.
- Set goals; prioritize. Jot down what’s really important to you (skip “shoulds”). Prioritize your goals: top, middle, low. Can “low” ones go?
- Give yourself some space. Take a 10-minute break, then reassess.
- Let go. Find at least one thing today that you don’t need to do; repeat that tomorrow, and the next day. Get the idea?
- Binge no more. If you’re tempted to eat when you’re stressed, list five other things you could do instead: take a bubble bath, read a good book, garden. Do one as your stress antidote!
- Put your body in gear. Physical activity is often a great stress reliever.
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