Stress is a part of life dealing with minor to major challenges. Whether it comes from deadlines by teachers for submitting assignments, commuting from home to school or studying late night for exams, it’s almost impossible to escape this thing called ‘stress‘ .Besides affecting your mood, excessive stress can affect your health from irregular sleeping patterns and binge-eating to other health issues like weight gain and heart disease.

 “My key to dealing with stress is simple: just stay cool and stay focused.”
―Ashton Eaton

Fortunately, you can take some steps to help de-stress your mind and to reverse your body’s stress response. Here are some effective stress relieving strategies that will help you relax and refresh your mind.

1. Breathe with focus

Focused breathing is one of the easiest ways to calm down quickly. Put all your concentration on taking long and deep breaths. Observe your gut expand as you inhale and contract as you exhale.

2. Exercise helps

Exercise is an excellent stress relieving strategy because it is beneficial for the overall physical wellbeing of your body. It can provide distraction to the endorphins that act as an outlet for frustration. Even a 20-minute walk or run during a stressful time can have an immediate and lasting effect.

3. Meditate regularly

Meditation helps the mind and body relax. Build on focused breathing by silently repeating a mantra, which can be just a sound or one word; this makes a huge difference in handling stress in daily life. Meditation also enables you to release the emotions that may have been causing you stress.

4. Unplug and relax

Switch off all your electronic devices and let your mind wander and observe the view from your window. Even if it is only 15 minutes each day, take the time to disconnect from the world and relax. 

 5. Guided imagery

With closed eyes, visualize yourself visiting your favourite place or doing some activity of your choice. See yourself in the scene, having a good time. This stress management technique uses your imagination to make you feel relaxed, peaceful and happy. Guided Imagery is slightly different from other strategies as it relies on the use of all your senses. Try it out and experience its positive effects on your life.