Stress tips for slowing down everyday life

No chance for stress: how everyday life can be slowed down

31.12.2012

New Year New luck. For many, the New Year does not just mean boisterous celebrations, but also a retrospective and plans for the coming year: less stress, more time for family and friends, quit smoking or more exercise. In particular, those who look back on a year of great job stress and pressure usually have the intention of wanting to get a little shorter in the New Year - precisely because they keep talking about how quickly stress can have a negative impact on their health.

To be realistic about future plans
But just the good intentions can also put you under pressure quickly: So future plans are indeed a good thing, according to the psychologist and fitness economist Korinna Ruthemann of the German University for Prevention and Health Management - important is only not to do too much, because Excessive stress can have numerous negative effects on the body: Back pain, tension, digestive and sleep problems, but also irritated or extremely thoughtful moods could be the result of too much pressure and hectic everyday life, according to the expert.

Too many or unrealistic New Year resolutions would also create another problem, because too many appointments and too little time for togetherness would often lead to trouble with the partner. Therefore, the psychologist advises to forward-looking and careful planning: "So that you can not get into the hamster wheel because of good intentions in the new year."

Do not do things in parallel
In order not to end up with less stress in the new year, Korinna recommends Ruthemann to do things in principle not at the same time, but in succession, because it is now known "that multitasking is not really possible. It makes no difference whether this is done in thought or in fact - it is generally not possible to focus on several, different things at the same time, instead, this would only jump back and forth between tasks. The result: Energy and power would be "powdered" and could not be used effectively.

Conscious action promotes inner peace and brings the "flow"
The principle "one after the other" brings with it another advantage, according to the psychologist. For those who only do one thing, they can consciously turn to it - and conscious action in turn promotes inner peace and the achievement of the so-called "flow", which means a "creative or activity intoxication" meant, so a sense of complete immersion and absorption in an activity.

In order to achieve more inner peace, the expert would be satisfied with often quite small things or changes in the (work) everyday life. For example, everyday ways, such as the copier, could be used to become aware of one's own movement, one's own steps, and then automatically take some speed out of it. But even the daily housework offers many opportunities to incorporate small "brakes" in the routine and often rushed daily routine - for example, by the rinse the water on the skin aware or focuses on the scent of the detergent.

Relieve tension by simple breathing exercises
Conscious action pays off in many ways, says Ruthemann, because "if you do things more consciously, you will also notice faster when you are tense." Especially in hectic everyday life a clear gain - because under stress and pressure to perform, many people do not realize that they already have long since no energy and continue to challenge themselves. Often far beyond the personal limits. The result: complete fatigue, burn-out, depression, but also far-reaching physical risks, e.g. for heart attack, allergies, infections or intestinal and stomach problems.

In order to counteract this at an early stage, the expert recommends deliberately reducing mental and physical tension with short relaxation exercises. "Just direct your concentration into your body for a moment, tense up every muscle with every inhalation and consciously release this tension with the exhale," says Korinna Ruthemann. Through this exercise, sufferers could feel how both muscular tension and mental tension would resolve. Alternatively, conscious breathing would also be effective in relieving tension: breathing in and exhaling several times a day for one minute at a time could help slow down one's own daily routine and lead to greater inner peace.

Restrict accessibility
Another tip for a 2013 with a little more peace of mind sounds simple, but is probably hard to imagine for many in practice: limit accessibility. Technological progress makes it possible for us to be reachable anytime, anywhere and often to feel flooded with information. Even if today's possibilities certainly have many advantages - according to Ruthemann, the constant accessibility and flood of information are a burden for many people "and contribute to the feeling of being trapped in the hamster wheel."

Therefore, it is important, according to the expert, to set accessibility times and, conversely, in the other moments deliberately turn off the mobile phone or the PC. Here she advises to pause again and again and deliberately to do without Internet, TV and mobile phone - to feel "free" again and again and not even get into the famous hamster wheel. (Sb)

Also read:
Fears and stress triggers teeth grinding
Stress at work increases heart attack risk
When stress in everyday life helps Chinese medicine
Stress: separation of work and after-work important
Talking to yourself to avoid stress
Stress in the job leads to a heart attack