How To Reduce Stress By Taking It Slow

Stress is your body saying ‘damn, I’m tired, exhausted, give it a break’ or ‘why all this at once, I can’t do this all, take it slow’. Even with all these body signals, we don’t give a damn, we keep pushing it like it’s a machine on a mission.

So whether you’re sitting at the office with tens of flies staring at you and you’re wondering how to get your jobs done. Or you choking up with so many house chores, and you don’t know where to start, just know, your body has had enough, and it’s time to take a break.

Stress is something that can steal you, unawares. And sometimes you create stress unknowingly- creating situations that put you under duress and strain in your daily life.

In whatever ways, that you’re feeling pressured, overwhelmed, or stressed out, you’re depriving yourself of real happiness. And I know you know this.

And sometimes you feel the need to help yourself to relieve this stress, and you turn to something unhealthy to help you cope, such as smoking or taking alcohol. That’s a lie! You not helping yourself.

When you don’t take control of whatever stressful situation you find yourself in and do nothing, you can make your problems worse. Taking control of your concerns means slowly taking whatever life throws at you and doing less.

Just know you’re prioritizing your mental and physical health.

Are you just starting to prioritize your mental health and stress management? Here are a few posts that can help you improve your mood, and relieve stress. You don’t want to miss it;

• How to cope with stress and overwhelm
• How To Reduce Stress By Taking It Slow
• Super Easy Bedtime Drink To Ease Out Stress

How to reduce stress by taking it slow and doing less

Double your time estimates

How often do you give excess time to complete any given task? I rarely do.

Anytime you have a task to complete, you’ll estimate it will take less time to complete it. But it always takes at least twice that long.

By the time you’re done, due to under-estimation, you’re putting yourself under a lot of strain. And You end up using your energy stores for the day because your mind is clocking in, every time.

I’m “trashed” that’s the feeling you get, that’s because stress is setting in.

To avoid stress, when you have a task, always double your time estimate while splitting the task into sections. Not only will you spare yourself burnout, but you’ll truly enjoy whatever task you intend to complete.

Be mindful to take it slow

Are you always in a hurry? Whatever you’re doing at the moment, slow it down by 25 percent whether you’re thinking, typing on a keyboard, surfing the Internet, completing an errand, or cleaning the house. Slow down your pace!

Being in a hurry, or trying to hack the speed will mentally drain you so that you could eventually break down. leaving you to struggle while completing the task.

Remember slow and steady wins the race! Be conscious about taking it slow. And even if you’re unconsciously trying to hack the speed, do this;

• Breathing from your diaphragm- this will slow down your breathing by stimulating your parasympathetic nervous system. Put your hand on your stomach and when it rises up and down slightly as you breathe, then you know you’re diaphragm breathing or breathing through your abdominal.
• Peaceful imagery- take a moment, and imagine yourself in a peaceful place like a mountain, stream, forest, or secluded beach. Anything to reconnect it back to nature, or whatever you always feel at peace with. You can engage all your five senses in this- your sights, sound, the feel of the breeze on your face, and take it slow.
• Touch your lips- Use either your fingers to touch your lips. I read it on blog years back, I was skeptical of this until I tried it. Now it’s my “go-to” practice for calming my mind and body immediately. And once I’m calm, I get back to reality and slow down naturally.

P.S- Do you know that coloring has been proven to guide you through mindfulness? Get started now

Less multi-tasking

The multi-tasking habit is hard to break because it feels like an addiction. Most times, I am typing my content while cooking or even washing. I will rush to the kitchen to check on what I’m cooking, add whatever I needed to add, and rush back to my laptop to continue from where I stopped. I get it.

You can’t just read-only, or eat only without multitasking. You want to do at least 4 or 5 activities together and as fast as you can.

More reason you will be to stay mindful to consciously pay attention to the present moment, or you find yourself engaged in multiple tasks without even realizing it.

Whatever way you tend to engage in “multi-task” without- are surfing the web while talking on the phone or writing while trying to follow a movie on TV, or composing an email while listening to an audiobook and eating a piece of toast. Take one at a time!

Too many sensory inputs can exacerbate stress, so take it slow and work on ‘no or less multi-task. Breaking out of this habit needs a lot of self-discipline so much in fact, that sometimes you’ll have to be content with “less multitasking.” But it’s a start!

Just to let you know

The main focus is to reduce stress by slowing down or doing less. Now you know that most times you complain about stress or get overwhelmed by stress because you intentionally create the stressors yourselves. So only you can agree to slow down and be intentional about whatever task you want to complete.

Do you want to start practicing mindfulness?

You can try our free De-stress floral coloring pages– It is 30 pages that will help you practice mindfulness while relieving stress. Read More [How coloring can help you relieve stress]

If you want to get the best out of the blog; check out our freebie page and get resources for stress relief and kickstart your journey to personal growth!

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