Unless you have lived with relentless stress for a long, long time, there are still a multitude of things you can do to offset the advent of stress in your day-to-day life. The beauty of many of these is that you can do them wherever you are—at the office, in your car, at home—they work equally well in just about any setting.
Shoulder Shrugs
Slowly and deliberately raise your shoulders as close to your ears as you can while breathing in deeply; then slowly push them back and down in a rolling motion, breathing out. Repeat five times.
Essential oils can calm your moods
Several essential oils have powerful calming effects. Keep a bottle of lavender, sandalwood, or chamomile oil in your desk drawer and take a whiff when feeling stressed. Or, dab a few drops of the oils on a hanky and carry it with you.
Locate Your Pressure Points
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, applying pressure to particular acupressure points on your body helps release stagnant chi, (or life force or energy); blocked chi can make you feel sluggish and lethargic. Find the small depression on your right leg located four finger-widths down from your kneecap and one finger-width over toward the outside of your leg. Press your middle finger into this point for a count of one minute. Repeat this on your other leg.
Walk away
If you're feeling upset, nothing beats a 15-minute walking meditation. Take a walk around the block, take your dog to the park, or just find a place in your office and walk up and down the corridor. Start by walking at a brisk pace, then after five minutes slow your speed by half, after the next five minutes, slow to a steady, purposeful walk. Be mindful of your feet and your steps the entire time, making sure to bring your attention back to your deliberate movements if you find your thoughts wandering.
Create a tranquil moment
First sit quietly, close your eyes and take several deep breaths. Recall a special moment when you felt absolutely at peace, perhaps you were listening to a favorite piece of music, or floating on a raft bobbing up and down on the water. Use all your senses to visualize that moment and hold it in your mind, lovingly noticing every detail. Keep coming back to the image if your mind wanders. After a minute or two, let it fade until the next time you need it.
Head and Neck
Clench your hands into fists, leaving your thumbs running along the outside against your index fingers. Start by tapping briskly up and down from the base of your neck to the top of your head, and back again. Then, using your knuckles, go up and down the back of your neck from the tops of your shoulders to the bottom of your skull. Finish by tapping vigorously over the top of the head and down to the forehead, then back up and over again.
Kidneys and Adrenals
Using the back of your fists (where your fingers are tucked in) to rhythmically tap the left and right kidneys: do one side, from top to bottom, bottom to top, then the other, then repeat. Your kidneys are just above your waist at the back of your stomach on either side of your spine. Tap each area for 2 minutes.
Thymus
Using the middle row of the knuckles of one hand, rhythmically tap the centre of your chest to the beat of one heavy tap followed by two lighter ones. Keep time in your mind, or softly say out loud: ONE, two, three, ONE, two, three. Tap for approximately two minutes.
