No matter how relaxed a person you might imagine yourself, no one is totally free of stress. In fact, almost all aspects of life tend to bring about some level of frustration. According to reports from the American Institute of Stress, people tend to feel stressed from a lack of job security, a growing workload, balancing personal life with work, interpersonal relationships, and a lot more. While it can be overwhelming to think about all of this, it is important to remember there are steps for relieving stress you feel.
The answer to living a calmer, more relaxed life might be easier than you imagine. Getting in touch with your spiritual side could offer you some solutions. Consider these ideas using spirituality for relieving stress and learn the right path for you.
Control Your Breathing
Meditation is often viewed as a fantastic way to center your mind and allow anxiety to melt away. Though full-on mediation can do wonders for how stressed you feel, there are aspects of the process that are more helpful than others. Breathing, for example, is a fantastic way for relieving stress when feeling overly frazzled. While you definitely know how to breathe already, learning how to control and regulate your breathing during moments of stress can make a huge difference in how you handle calming down.
To breathe in a way that calms your nerves, you need to follow the right steps. First, take a long, slow breath through your nose. Allow the breath to fill your lower lungs and your upper lungs, then hold it in while you count to three. Next, slowly exhale the breath through your mouth. While doing this, relax all the muscles in and around your neck. Following these steps can help you feel less stressed in no time, as your body will begin to adjust to taking in ample amounts of oxygen in a slow, deliberate manner.
Engage Your Senses
Spirituality can be funny. At times, it might feel like everything spiritual about you is contained within your mind. In truth, engaging with the world helps to illuminate your spiritual side. Human beings interact with the world by using their five senses. This means you can benefit greatly by learning how to use your senses in a spiritual way to calm down your nerves. There are a number of different ways to use sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell to your advantage when you are feeling more stressed than you would like.
Listening to soothing music can be a wonderful way to start. Try not to listen to anything too cacophonic, unless that’s what helps you feel calm. If you have a cat at home, try slowly petting the cat. Studies have shown that stroking a cat gently can release oxytocin, a hormone known to make a person feel happier and more content. Lighting candles or diffusing essential oils can also help to engage your senses and help you feel less stressed (although be very careful with the use of essential oils if you also have a cat). Try to use scents like lavender, jasmine, and peppermint, as these scents are known to soothe anxiety.
Shout It Out
Releasing energy in the right way can have a profound impact on stress levels. When you are feeling overwhelmed, try shouting. This might seem like an extreme thing to do, but there’s nothing quite like allowing all of your pent-up frustration to get out in the form of a long, powerful shout. Though shouting or screaming can be cathartic, be careful not to alarm anyone in the vicinity. Shouting in a controlled environment like your home might be exactly what you need to let out bad energy.
Stress is part of life. Luckily, learning how to handle it through spiritual tactics can be a fantastic way to center yourself and feel calm and collected.