What do people do to de stress?

[StormsDontLastForever]

I am a stressed, I stress about things before there is even anything to be stressing about. I suffer from anxiety and depression, take daily medication, been unwell recently and I think a part of it is due to stress. What do people do to de stress? I've tried reading but feel it doesn't help and next morning when I wake I am stressing again. Thanks

exercise - preferably outdoors

exercise, reading, jigsaws.

Exercise
Hot baths
Read

Embroidery.
Naps.
Play with cats.

But I'm not a worrier anyway. The things I enjoy doing just happen to be low-adrenalin.

Diamond painting, exercise, tv, walk outdoors

Exercise for me too. It forces you to be 'in the moment' and forget what you are worrying about for a bit. Doesn't need to be a full on cardio session, even a brisk walk outdoors really helps.

Another vote for embroidery. It really helps my anxiety.

Is there something in your life causing the stress? Do you feel supported and valued? Are you at risk of burnout?

Exercise - low impact that doesn’t get adrenaline going. So a hike at the weekend, a wander round my suburb after work.

Baths with nice bath stuff, ideally lavender smelling, if at night.

Camomile tea at night.

Are your vitamin levels ok? I think it’s b and d for good mental health (but I could be wrong, I just take a woman’s multi vitamin).

Deep breathing - in through your nose, out through your mouth (not sure why but it works).

Distract yourself if you’ve got an over active mind - book, film, tv series, crafting if you have the patience.

Exercise, meditation, crafts and activities, Animal Crossing

An hours yoga at 7am every morning
Meditation
Good self care
Good diet
Good sleep
Conscious breathing
Walks

Walking the dog
Reading
Knitting
Try EMDR tutorials on YouTube.

Outdoor - gardening or a walk
Up early with a plan...a drive to the coast arriving for the cafes opening for breakfast
Yoga from an app
Jigsaws or a board game
Puzzles - sudoku or Codeword.

Being quite strict about controlling what I worry about - I try to 'delete' in my mind the things I can't change - so if something has already happened, there is nothing that can be changed, so no point at all in worrying.

• Having a consistent morning routine, and going to bed at a similar time.

• a walk outside, preferably with a dog, either in silence or with a good audio book. Even 10 minutes makes me feel better.

• Going for a run or going on my exercise bike, when my thoughts are racing it really calms me down to get my heart rate up. Think the endorphins help too.

• limiting caffeine, and not having any after 4pm.

• writing down my worries and rationalizing what the actual worst case scenario is. Or talking it through with someone.

Wine

Exercise
Meditate
Garden
Bathe
Open water swimming
Good long walk with the dogs
Just hang out with my dogs
Cook or bake with music on

Crochet
Jewellery making (which involves shopping for components, which is great fun)
Countryside
Beer

Really strenuous exercise, sweating and out of breath, ideally in a group class. Gentle walks just don’t cut it for me. Ideally 3-5 times per week keeps me reasonably steady.

Baths, happy tv, good radio that distracts from the worry.

Gardening, turning compost heap is brilliant, having a bonfire.

Standing in a storm or heavy rain, the best is standing close (but safe!!) to the sea in a storm, just wonderful for releasing tension.

But the best thing I ever did was leave a job that created a kind of stress I couldn’t cope with. I’ve since had other stressful jobs but always worked to put boundaries in place to keep control and stress to a manageable level. Can you identify some of your stress triggers and put in place a long term plan to reduce them?

Running (plodding) outside
Swimming in the sea/river
Supermarket shop
Puzzle
But running is the best- started C25k in lockdown and now run 6-10k a few times a week- I am the least sporty person

What's diamond painting?

Oh, I see. Mosaics with tiny resin "jewels"

Running
Yoga
A nice hot bath
Baking
A walk with an audio book or good company, preferably out in the countryside

Any hints on where to start with embroidery for a beginner? Thanks!

Clean

Diamond Painting
Chatting to DP
Going shopping
Just generally being out and about

Basically what I shouldn't do is sit downstairs on my own, because then the worry starts.