Thursday's Thoughts: Stress Management

I had a particularly stressful week at work, so creative ways to manage stress are on my mind. I thought I'd share them with you today!

From The Write Network:

Eat nutrients that increase energy
Stay away from diet colas, iced coffees, and chocolate coffee beans - they'll give you a quick high, but you’ll crash soon! A healthier way to reduce stress is to eat foods that increase energy production, which will help your body to cope with stress. Focusing on B Vitamins, magnesium and ribose (ribose is the key building block for energy) is an important part of stress management.

laugh necklace by Piano Bench Designs

From The American School of Laughter Yoga:

Try Laughter Yoga!
Using laughter as a form of exercise is a sure-fire way to reduce your stress. You can download some laughter "exercises" here.

From Elizabeth Scott, MS on About.com:

Create a vision board.
Vision boards are a type of blueprint for the kind of life you'd like to create for yourself -- a visual representation of what you'd like to include (and exclude) in your future. Creating a vision board helps you hone in on your goals and priorities, stay motivated for positive change, and perhaps even draw positive things into your life. You can find out how to create one here.

From Health.com:

Be assertive.
A lot of stress is caused by us agreeing to take on more than we can handle because we're afraid of saying no. Being assertive is an excellent way to take care of yourself and reduce your stress. Learn some techniques here.

And from me:

Get creative.
Drawing up a new pattern or sewing anything at all really help me to relax. Sometimes, though, I'm stressed due to spending so much time on The Quilted House. At time like that, I like to be creative in other ways: cooking, trying a new recipe, making a batch of ice cream, crocheting, rug hooking, beadwork, pretty much any creative activity at all will work. And if I'm still stressed, my absolute favorite activity: a hot, steamy bath paired with a bowl of ice cream. It works every time!