30 Must-Try Stress Relief Activities To Relax & Destress Quickly

Not taking care of your mental health is just as harmful to your overall well being as smoking, eating nothing but fast food every day, and skipping sleep. Not finding helpful activities to help deal with your stress can result in heart disease, high blood pressure, weight gain, balding, and acne. It has also been linked to depression and anxiety. 

Being "stressed" does not seem like such a big deal when you are younger, but as you grow up, being able to manage stress becomes critical for functioning in everyday life. If you do not know how to relax and destress, you will struggle in almost every aspect of your life.

We have all been there. You go through the day; you are angry at nothing. You change quickly from happy to hate the color of the sun, but you have no idea why. You know it is not linked to hormones, you got plenty of sleep, you have had your coffee for the day, then it hits you. You might be stressed about something and not even realize it. A lot of times in our exceptionally overly busy lives we lose track of what is even causing the problem.

So the only thing to do is stepping back, and think about your day. What do you have to do? Is there something that is jumping out at you that you DREAD doing?

Once you figure out what has you stressed it makes it much easier to find a way to simplify the whole ordeal, you might even just make that thing fun!

Yes, opposite of what we just said.
 

If your relationship stress is ultimately linked to a specific issue that has come up before, talk about it. Be careful to avoid accusations, and absolute or "YOU" statements. Instead of saying " You are always on your phone!

What are you doing!" try, "I feel that the phone is more important than me, and it makes me think my time is not of value, and therefore I am not wanted."

Dopamine is the greatest stress relief out there, what is the easiest most natural way to introduce dopamine into your body?

The horizontal tango.

This method can be applied to a lot of situations but is critical to point out that getting jiggy with it isn't the resolution to the ISSUE causing the stress, it just helps get rid of the stress long enough to focus on the cause of the problem with a clear head and focus.

DISCLAIMER: This method if for adults only. Going ten toes down before you are "ready" just adds to stress in the long-term.

This is fairly easy and falls under the "get organized" category. List out all of your recurring monthly bills, and your income. If you are stressed about not having enough money you can either cut your spending on non-essentials or supplement your income.

This can be difficult for most adults and college students, as your time is already pretty much used up.

If you haven't tried it, knitting is incredibly relaxing. Painting is also always a way to not only decompress but also express what is bugging you! If you are not artistically inclined, and you have a tablet or computer, you could use any number of software programs to break into graphic design!

Websites like Upwork, Freelancer, and Fiver are all great sources for finding simple jobs to make a quick buck! When all else fails, you can always browse the Craigslist Gigs Section too!

Adults everywhere will tell you how hard it is to stretch your money. Doing simple things like bringing your lunch instead of buying out every day, buying items in bulk, and eliminate unnecessary purchases.

Scheduling your day and sticking to it can help eliminate stress by limiting the "chaos factor" in your daily life.
 

To compliment your mantra, use the "Sweet 16" Breath. Breathe in for four seconds then out for four seconds, expanding your belly. Focus on how your body feels with each breath in and out,  instead of what has you angry or stressed. Do this for a total of four inhale/exhale cycles.

Also a challenge for college students and most adults. When you are not getting on the recommended amount of sleep for your age, it wears on your body. And if you are stressing your body you are going to stress your mind as well! The best news is, all of the recommended activities here will help you complete this activity!

Put your devices away 1 hour before bed, and avoid napping and caffeine after 3 pm. If you are having difficulty falling asleep, don't focus on the number of hours you will be left getting, get up and read a book. Wash the dishes you had left for the morning or do some light stretching and try again. Sleeping should not be stressful, so just set the 8-hour mark as a goal!

What are you most stressed/worried about?

Set aside 15-30 minutes and focus on what has you stressed. Now take some time and write about it. Your writing should include a sensation from each of your five senses. This method is frequently used to treat actual anxiety, and in that treatment, it is recommended to repeat writing until the concern is gone.

This may be obvious, but the best method of relieving stress caused medical problems - correct the problem!

As any college student or professional hate most projects that have to be completed in groups. Most last for several weeks, so save on stress upfront and delegate tasks out of the project at the beginning. Check in each week to ensure everyone is pulling their weight!

Practicing mindfulness is about being at the right moment and helps you become more in tune with what is going on with you - both physically and mentally. It also focuses on acceptance. Stress is caused by the things we either can't control, or judge ourselves for and cannot fix either way.

This is a little different than just plan meditation. Where meditations goal is to focus on nothing, Progressive muscle relaxation you are supposed to focus only on how you feel.

First, you need a quiet area to get comfortable. It is recommended to practice when you are fully awake and the most stressed so that you do not fall asleep. Make sure you remove your shoes and wear comfy clothes.

Apply tension to a specific muscle group, inhale and squeeze as hard as you can. ONLY squeeze the muscles you are focused on and count to five. Then exhale and relax those muscles. Focus on the difference between the two sensations. 

This does not necessarily deal with the stressor, but if your body is relaxed it will be much easier to relax mentally.

Stress is a normal fact of life - good and bad stress.

No matter what stress you have in your life, do your best to find an outlet and left that stress go, or in the end, it will consume you and can create lifelong effects.