5 Ways to Reduce Your Sleep Naturally
Stress is the enemy to living a healthy, productive, peaceful and happy life. We let it in, and it becomes part of our daily life. But it doesn’t need to be like that.
Before it has turned into anxiety, before it prevents you from doing any work or falling asleep at night, before it ruins your relationships with loved ones and turns you into a ticking time bomb that’s full of pressure, and before it stops you from living today because of worrying about tomorrow, you should deal with it.
We can all do that naturally, and the right way. Here are some great ways to reduce the stress inside your mind and body, and to let go of it:
Meditate
Meditating every morning right after you wake up might be exactly what you need to be calm, do things later in the day with ease, and be more present.
Meditation means emptying your mind and staying still for as long as you can. But start with just a few minutes when you wake up, and get better over time.
Other than reducing stress, you’ll notice other positive effects, such as mindfulness, better focus when working, not getting overwhelmed, breathing more freely, improving your sleep and enjoying life more.
Journal
Sharing your thoughts on a piece of paper, when no one is there to distract you and you have nothing else to do, is a wonderful exercise to be stress-free and clear your head.
It’s like a therapy. Do it in the morning as there’s inspiration and peace in the early hours of the day and you’re more likely to do a good job on this.
Writing in a journal can be about anything, from your dreams and aspirations, to analyzing how your day went and how you can do better tomorrow. You can also share things you’re grateful for, create your vision for the future, or get to know yourself better by digging deeper into your subconscious mind.
Daily Walk
To get rid of the stress, add a walk to your daily routine. Make sure you’re in nature and stay consistent with this.
It’s great practice that helps you relax mentally and spiritually. Being outside, on your own, and staying active by walking at the same time, is a sure way to clear your mind, take some decisions that are usually stressful, increase your productivity and creativity.
Have Rituals
Morning and evening routines are some of the best practices of successful people and leaders from history. How you start and end the day is crucial, and if you have that planned in advance and fill these periods of the day with healthy, productive and positive habits, your whole day will be ideal too.
So why not have a quick workout in the morning and add a healthy breakfast and creating your to-do list to that?
As for the time before bed, you can do some more relaxing activities, like reviewing the day, reading a book, taking a soothing bath, decluttering your home, or else.
Come back to the Present Moment
It’s worth having a backup plan for when stress hits unexpectedly. That can happen at any moment of the day, be it when something comes up, you forgot about a deadline, you’re overwhelmed with work, you hear bad news, you get anxious about the future, or else.
Whatever it is, it’s important to control your reaction and not less stress take over your mind and body.
To do that, start taking deep breaths, be in the present moment and let go of anything that doesn’t really matter right now. Simplify things. It’s just you, and the person you’re talking to, or the task you’re working on, or the decision you need to take. Everything else is unnecessary so leave it for later.
Mindfulness is stronger than stress, so just give it a chance.
That’s how you enter a state of peace and clarity, and stress has nothing to do there. Do one of these 5 things daily, and you’ll enjoy a calm and pleasant lifestyle.