Breathe in and count to 10
- You wake up after a restless sleep
- It’s dark, rainy and miserable outside
- You get stuck in traffic and are late for work
- Your workload is piling up
- You have to work late to meet a deadline
- You arrive home to find a pile of bills and your dreaded bank statement
- The kids are running riot and the dog is ill
- A discussion about work and money with your partner leads to an argument
- The washing machine breaks down and TV goes on the blink
- You finally get to bed but can’t sleep as your mind replays all the stressful events of the day.
Does any of this sound familiar? According to a recent survey, almost half of Britons consider themselves stressed and over 10% are ‘close to breaking point’!
So what is stressing us out so much? In a Stress Awareness Poll, which we featured online on our stress pages earlier this month, we asked our visitors ‘What gets you stressed?’
With job, lack of sleep, family/personal relationships and finances all coming out on top, it seems that stress is very much part of everyday life.
Over half of the respondents chose their job as the main factor in stressing them out and in a society where we are working longer hours than ever before, it’s little wonder this topped the poll.
With the majority of us experiencing varying levels of stress every day, what can we do to calm ourselves? Breathe and count to 10 is a popular relaxation technique that has been used to calm stress or thwart anger for generations, but what other natural techniques, tips or remedies are traditionally used to de-stress?
There are many treatments for stress – from exercise, diet and lifestyle changes and counseling to the use of herbal remedies and other medicines.
Licensed herbal products containing valerian have been used traditionally to treat stress and anxiety. Other herbs used include Avena sativa (to help reduce mild anxiety) and St. John’s wort (for low mood).
We are giving away 10 stress-relieving massage balls
All you have to do is tell us what you do to de-stress? Do you do yoga, drink some green tea or go for a long hot relaxing bath? Share your relaxation / de-stressing tips in the comments section below to be in with a chance of winning. We will choose the best top 10 tips, so make them good ones…
UPDATE: This giveaway is now CLOSED. Thank you all for contributing and sharing your experiences. Winners has been picked and notified.
[1] Innes, E. 2013. ‘10% of Britons are ‘close to breaking point’ because of stress, with people in their 40’s and 50’s suffering the most’ The Daily Mail [online] 4 November. Available at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2487141/10-Britons-close-breaking-point-stress-people-40s-50s-suffering-most.html
