How to Reduce Stress with Problem Solving

Managing stress is about being proactive.

Problem solving is one of the stress reduction techniques, which involves finding practical ways of changing a behavior, such that the stress/problem is actually reduced or perhaps overcomed completely.

Problem solving for stress reduction is not as complicated as it sounds. It is much easier indeed. The key to your success is to do following steps.

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Stress and Self Sabotage - Recognizing and Overcoming It

"When you change, the world around you changes." —Niurka

Though virtually everyone experiences stress, sometimes the way we react to stress and add to the amounts is with self sabotage! Most of the ways that we self sabotage are unconscious. The characteristics that come into play are those that Carl Jung referred to when he spoke of our 'shadow' - the enemy inside your head in the form negative self talk.

Take Action:

Start by paying attention to the styles of self sabotage you favour. Once you become aware of these otherwise unconscious thoughts, you have the opportunity to challenge them.

Blaming
This method of self sabotage is pretty self explanatory. You believe that your circumstances are not your fault. Whilst it's possible that there is some degree of truth in this, blaming leaves you feeling powerless. Blaming often goes hand in hand with a 'victim' mentality which is equally disempowering. Ultimately, you are the only person who has the ability to change your situation. When you begin to take responsibility, you feel better about yourself and more in control of your life.

Likely self talk: 'I can't help it'; 'It's their fault'; 'Things are just really hard for me'.

Procrastination
How many times do you repeatedly put off an unpleasant task? The most common are doing your tax, tidying your desk/wardrobe/garage, getting your finances in order, starting an exercise program or a healthy eating regime. Procrastination is a very popular method of self sabotage.

Likely self talk: 'I don't have the time'; 'I'm too tired'; 'The time isn't right'.

Over Committing/Overwhelm

Many people over commit themselves. They say yes to everything and then find themselves feeling completely overwhelmed (and quite often resentful). This method of self sabotage often helps you to avoid your 'real' goals (the ones that would bring you the most fulfilment if you were brave enough to pursue them) by distracting you with a range of incidental activities.

Likely self talk: 'They need me - I can't say no'; 'I'm the only one who will do the job well'; 'I just like to stay busy'.

Lack of Self Belief

This is quite possibly the most popular method of all. Like all others, it is also a self fulfilling prophecy. The less you believe in yourself, the less likely you are to take on new challenges and the more likely you are to believe you are unworthy of great things.
Likely self talk: 'I'm not good enough'; 'No one will want me'; 'I'm too tall; too short; too heavy; too unattractive; not interesting or not smart enough'.

Unclear Goals/Lack of Direction

This is a difficult area to tackle as it generally presents as an overall sense of confusion. Not being clear about what you want in life is often connected to not wanting to make the wrong choices.

Likely self talk: 'I don't know what I want'; 'Nothing interests me'; 'What if I get it wrong?'.

With all of the above methods of self sabotage, the first step is to notice your dominant style. Most of us use more than one so begin by just becoming aware of your self talk.

With all of the above methods of self sabotage, the first step is to notice your dominant style. Most of us use more than one so begin by just becoming aware of your self talk.

When you feel ready to challenge your thinking, find a way to reframe your original thought, for example 'I'm not good enough' could become 'I'm as good as I need to be to give this a go'.

Deep Breathing For Stress Relief

Breathing is a necessity of life and we tend to take it for granted.

When a person is under stress the body becomes tense and our breathing shallow.

As a result:

1. We breathe in less oxygen and breathe out less toxic waste product carbon dioxide.
2. Our muscles ache and we feel pain especially in the neck and shoulder area.

Improper breathing contributes to anxiety, panic attacks, depression, muscle tension, tension headaches, and fatigue.

However we can do it the other way round as well - when we relax our bodies we can effectively reduce stress.

Deep breathing is a very simple but an essential stress reducer – energy builder for women.

Deep breathing for just one minute tones your entire body, increases body oxygen and relieves fatigue. It also reduces hot flashes in menopause women.

It works well in conjunction with other relaxation techniques such as progressive muscular relaxation, visualization and meditation for stress relief.

Take Action:

• Inhale through the nose slowly and deeply to count of five (Make sure that the stomach and abdomen expand but the chest does not raise up)
• Exhale through the mouth, slowly and completely, making a quite, relaxing, whooshing sound like a wind as you blow gently out. Relax your mouth, tongue and jaw; also to the count of five.
• To help quiet the mind, concentrate fully on breathing and counting through each cycle.
• Repeat five to ten times and make a habit of doing the exercise several times a day, even when not feeling stressed.

While a deep breathing exercise can be learned in some minutes and you will experience immediate stress relief, the profound effects of this exercise may be fully appreciated only after month of persistent practice.

TIP: Start practicing the deep breathing for stress reduction when NOT stressed. When in stressful situation you will be able to do it automatically in order to obtain the stress relief. When under pressure and stress you could find useful to use herbal remedies for stress relief to obtain feeling of balance and wellbeing.