Stress Awareness: From Coping to Thriving

Did you know that almost three quarters of adults have felt so stressed in the past year that they felt they weren’t able to cope?

The global pandemic certainly didn’t help, but stress is a problem that’s been affecting people much longer than that. That’s why Stress Awareness Month has been held each April for the past 29 years.

The Stress Management Society calls stress one of the great public health challenges of our time. However, despite being a serious factor in anxiety and depression, stress still isn’t taken as seriously as physical health issues.

At Bluebird Care we’re no strangers to the effects of stress, on both carers, and those being cared for. But before we go into how to handle it, first we have to ask…

What are the signs of stress?

There are mental, emotional and physical symptoms of stress. They can include:

• Numbness or a sense of disbelief
• Feeling frustrated, sadness or helpless
• Finding it difficult to make decisions
• Aches, pains and digestive disturbances
• Heavily over-using vices like smoking or alcohol

At their worst, the effects of stress can be debilitating and make it difficult to cope with daily life.

However, not all stress is negative. In small amounts, it can give you the incentive to complete tasks and achieve goals. So, a little stress goes a long way, but a lot of stress can stop you going anywhere!

How to deal with stress

These are some of the steps we recommend taking to try and lower stress levels when you find yourself in a particularly difficult situation.

Take some time out

In terms of how to reduce stress fast, taking a few minutes to get away from the situation is one of the quickest fixes.

If you find yourself surprised by a stressful situation, it can be difficult to think clearly, and almost impossible to solve the problem you’re facing. However, taking yourself outside for fresh air and a light stroll can help you change your state and get back into a positive frame of mind.

If you’re feeling the longer-term effects of stress the same applies on a larger scale. Take some ‘me-time’ to enjoy hobbies; unwind with a movie; cook and eat some good (healthy) food; or get back on an exercise routine. Whatever your preference, you’ll be practicing good self-care , which can help you deal with whatever’s bothering you when you go back to it.

Think proactively

How to cope with stress once you’ve taken time out? Do something about it immediately.

When you stay passive and live in the problem, you can feel like a victim, which will often see your stress increase. When you live in the solution and think about how you can adapt – or at the very least, how you can better look after yourself until you feel better – you’re empowering yourself to move towards a better state of mind.

Connect with people

Though dealing with stressful situations can make you want to retreat from everyone and everything, making connections and positive relationships makes us happier and more able to deal with what’s happening in our lives. After all, a problem shared is a problem halved.

Don’t feel comfortable being around friends and family while you’re feeling that way? The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy can connect you to someone who can help in your area.

Help someone else

One prominent entry on the NHS’s list of five steps to wellbeing is giving to others. We couldn’t agree more!

Acts of giving and kindness can help you deal with stress symptoms by taking you away from focusing on the problem and giving you a feeling of being important to someone who needs assistance.

Done in a healthy way, helping and caring for others can improve your self-worth, give you even more of the connection we mentioned earlier, and also lower your stress levels by giving you a chance to solve problems for others. In doing so, you can give yourself the boost you need to return to your problems feeling refreshed and refocused.

Could our caring services help you?

Whether you’re dealing with the day to day stresses of caring for someone you love, or you’re feeling the need for some connection and support yourself, our home care or companionship care services might be just what you need.

To find out more, call us on 02393 233 922.