I have a mental list of things I do when I am stressed out or anxious and I frequently write them down in my Self-Love Planner. The first thing I try might not work. Or the second. Or the third, but without fail – one thing on that list will make me feel better. I usually start with the things that take the least amount of time and then move upward.
My wife on the other hand, when I met her, her immediate reaction to stress was to get cranky, snap, or just turn inward and it really put into perspective how important our coping skills are. With 11ish years of this under my belt, managing my stress comes pretty naturally at this point but I also remember the days when it didn’t and the days where it was a struggle.
I think most of us handle stress without a plan. We just react to it as it comes along and for me, that turned into chaos, anger, and burn-out. So I’m a huge fan of having a stress-plan and knowing what your stress relievers are.
Here’s my list of stress relievers.
But really there’s a ton more, I didn’t realize how many there were until I tried to write them all down. When I’m feeling stressed out about being behind on work, I make a quick to-do list and then I wrap my weighted blanket around myself. When I’m at work I go to the bathroom and listen to one of my favorite calm-me-down sounds.
Those things are small but they make all the difference!
I made a worksheet for you to fill out with your own ideas! You can print it out or fill it out digitally.
The next time you’re feeling stressed out, pull out your list and pick something to do from it.
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