De-stressing

I'm a student nurse, studying a full time degree, whilst working unpaid to gain experience and pass key competences on placement, I admit, I get rather stressed. 

Stressful events for me include; living off the bare minimum, trying to support myself living away from home, having assignments after assignments after assignments to write, and working 12+ hour days on the wards unpaid. Alongside this I also try to maintain a social life, a relationship, and friendships, as well as keeping in touch with family, missing my parents, and home-sickness. And on top of all that I am moving house at the end of June and will be made homeless for a night. So plenty of stressors in my life currently.

I think it is vital to take time out now and again to relax and recover, to revitalise and have that all important "me" time. There are many ways in which I treat myself to some integral relaxation time, and thought I would share with you, my all time favorite ways to release tension and anxiety. 

One way in which I forget all stress and anxiety I am currently having is to get in contact with friends. Those you haven't seen or spoken to in a while can help you unwind and talk out all of your worries and concerns. When feeling particularly stressed I like to catch up with the girls by doing something fun. This usually takes my mind off university work, placement worries, or homesick I'm suffering with. Being around others who are sensitive enough to just sit and listen, and be there for you when you need them, is perfect in times when you just need someone to talk to. 

A second way I like to relax includes taking the biggest bubble bath ever, using my most beautiful smelling bath bombs and creams. I find having me time whilst dipped into a gloriously hot bath surrounded by bubble love can help my tension seriously just float away. 

Breathing relaxation techniques can also enable me to unwind, closing my eyes and focusing on breathing, making it deeper and slowing it right down allows me to clear my mind and focus on nothing else. With every breath out that I take I try to relax a different part of my body, starting from the bottom and working my way up towards my shoulders, then neck then head. 

Lighting lush smelling candles and playing soft music with dimmed lights and my comfy's on can also enable me to wind away that anxiety. At the end of a long day this is probably my favorite thing to do, it requires absolute 0 effort and can be enjoyed alone or with my boyfriend. I find this time perfect for reflecting on what I am worrying about and laying those worries aside. 

Okay, so now you know how I relax but why? I hear you say? why take time to relax when that time can be spent resolving worries or anxieties I have. Well relaxing for me is not only a way to relieve stress but also a way to forget about the world. There's so much going on around us everyday we can often feel like we have been swept into a whirl wind world of unknown, and it can be quite frightening.

Relaxing is beneficial physically, and mentally, it can restore and heal our heath and efficiency. Stress can take a turn on our bodies causing burn out, declining our physical health and playing with our emotions.

Without taking time out to relax and unwind it is likely that you will see an increase in uncontrolled, and unexpected emotions that may prevent the smooth running of social and work life. It is also likely that a loss of productivity will be seen. Having so much to do at one time often makes me feel like doing nothing at all resulting in no work getting done, resulting in me becoming more stressed! Taking that time out to relax can allow you to priorities and work through lists of jobs one step at a time, preventing a build up of worries.

How do you cope with stress in your life?