There are things you can do to avoid a meltdown in stressful situations. We’ve rounded up some helpful life hacks, so you can stay calm and remain stress-free!
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11 Tips to Stay Calm in a Stressful Situation
1. Slow Down
What makes a tough situation worse is your negative reaction toward it. As much as possible, delay your reaction and take time to breathe first.
There’s a tendency for people to act in haste when confronted by a stressful situation. But it’s important to stop for a minute and slow down.
Instead of making yourself an active participant, take a step back and view the situation in a bigger picture. This helps you become less emotional and make more sound decisions.
Take five deep breaths and imagine all the stress leaving your body as you breathe out. Smile, even if you have to fake it because it’s difficult to stay grumpy when you have a grin on your face.
2. Loosen Up
Loosening up a bit will also help you to stay calm. After taking deep breaths, assess parts of your body that feel tight or tense.
Is your jaw clenched? Do your shoulders feel rounded? Are there any other areas that don’t feel comfortable?
Gently massage these tense areas until they become more relaxed. It also helps to picture yourself in a calming place like a beach or a nature trail.
3. Call a Friend
Having a “vent buddy” not only helps in difficult situations, but it’s good for your overall well-being, too. If you have a family or a friend who you can vent out your frustrations to, keep that person.
It’s never wrong to ask for help, especially during tough times. Use your support system, and never hesitate to seek advice.
Someone who isn’t involved in the situation you’re in may see the dilemma from a different viewpoint. This can give you a chance to hear potential solutions from others.
Reaching out to people you trust will help ground you, giving you more control over your anxiety and stress. You may even discover a different way to handle the situation as you open up yourself and share your thoughts out loud.
4. Unplug and Disconnect
Remove yourself from the stressful situation. It’s difficult to stay calm when you are so focused and engaged with the situation.
Disconnect for an hour or two. Turn your phone on silent mode or switch off your notifications.
Shutting down any noise or distraction will help you clear your head. It will give you time to process the challenge and the emotions surrounding it, allowing you to approach the situation with a fresh perspective.
5. Decompress and Relax
Stress, fatigue, anxiety, and sleep deprivation are woven into people’s lives that it’s become crucial to decompress. If you remain stressed or anxious for a long period, it will hurt not only your physical health but mental health as well.
To cope with a stressful situation, do something you enjoy. Is there a sport you love or do you find meditation relaxing?
Play your favorite sports, meditate, read a book, or watch a movie. You can also take a short walk or hit the gym to increase your stamina.
In a nutshell, do something that will take your mind off the stressful situation. It will help you make more sound decisions when you’re able to rejuvenate your mind.
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6. Change Your Perspective
Once you’re done decompressing, you may have a completely different viewpoint on things. Embrace this fresh perspective or the new way you think about the situation.
Remember that the thoughts you choose to focus on have the power to either intensify or diminish the stress and anxiety you’re feeling. Choose to focus on positive coping statements and stress-reducing thoughts to stay calm in a difficult situation.
7. Develop a Tactic
Now that you understand what you’re up against, it will be much easier for you to create a plan to reach your goals. Start developing a step-by-step tactic and identify each step you need to achieve your objectives.
This will also help you stay on track. Staying calm under pressure won’t be a difficult feat when you know you have a clear attack plan.
8. Limit Your Caffeine
It’s easy to turn to coffee when you’re in the middle of a stressful situation. However, caffeine may do you more harm than good.
It’s a fast-acting stimulant that boosts your energy but is followed by a crash that often causes a feeling of fatigue as well as confusion and irritability in some cases. So, instead of grabbing a cup of coffee or soda, keep yourself hydrated with water.
9. Get Some Sleep
People tend to overwork themselves, especially when they have deadlines to meet. But just because you have a pile of work to do doesn’t mean you should sacrifice sleep to finish it.
Not getting enough rest will not only put your health at risk but it will also make you less effective. Your mind won’t be able to organize thoughts effectively when it is tired.
It’s also hard to stay calm when your mind is fogged. Staying calm will only be possible when you are rested.
10. Let Go
Some people may find it hard to believe but there’s beauty in letting go. Some situations make you feel like it’s the end of the world, but it’s not.
Stressing over the things you have no control of only makes the situation worse. And sometimes, the next best thing to do is to let go.
While it seems like a hard feat, you can start letting go by doing a few things. Self-talk helps in reminding yourself to move on.
Acceptance is also crucial, and so is crying out loud. Letting go will also be much simpler if you view the bigger world, see yourself as a more empowered person, and enjoy the moment rather than live in the past or worry about your future.
11. Stay Positive
Staying positive in a stressful situation isn’t easy. But the next time your stress levels skyrocket, ask yourself if it will matter in the weeks, months, or years to come.
Most of the time, it won’t. So, stop agonizing over things you can’t change because it will only worsen the situation.
The more your mind overthinks, the harder it will be for you to stay calm. Avoid imagining things getting worse and instead refocus your mind into positive thoughts.
Take every setback as a step up for your success. Remember that things happen for a reason, and you’ll learn a thing or two from a challenging situation.
Staying calm in a stressful situation is easier said than done. But with a few life hacks, you’ll be able to survive just about any daunting life event.
Keep in mind that your behavior towards it plays a crucial role in how things turn out. Choose to breathe, relax, and keep a positive mindset because all trials will pass, and you’ll carry on.
For a quick stress reliever, you can try the Chill Pill.
Have you tried doing any of these tips when you were confronted by a stressful situation? How did it help you to stay calm? Share with us your experience in the comments section below!
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