People deal with stress and emotions in different ways—unhealthy examples of stress relief include over-eating, drinking, and smoking.
Don't keep your feelings bottled up. Keeping feelings bottled up inside is also unhealthy. Pent-up emotions not only put pressure on your relationships—they're also horrible for your health. So what can we do? Here are some helpful ways to begin the journey:
Don't take yourself too seriously. Nobody's perfect, and nobody expects you to be perfect, either. Giving yourself room to be yourself, warts and all, is one of the healthiest gifts you can give yourself.
No robots allowed. Don't be ashamed to own up to your feelings. Everyone has them and that's what makes us human—denying you have any at all is begging for increased health risks!
Talk it out. Sharing your anger with someone you trust will help you understand or alleviate it. Doing so may take practice, but the benefit is a happier, longer life.
Write it out. While it's better to connect with another person, writing down how you feel is an excellent way to confront feelings you may be uncomfortable sharing with someone else.
Research resources. There are more helpful resources available today then at any other time in human history—from anger management courses, to yoga classes, to meditative music downloads—thousands of options exist both online and offline, and many are absolutely free.
Even though we may never be able to completely eliminate stress or difficult emotions from life, we can learn how to deal with them for happier and healthier living.
- Topic: ActiveRain Community
