Stress is something everyone lives with everyday, whether you get the bulk of your stress from work, from family problems, from school or whatever it may be, stress is just something we need to deal with. That might be true however it does not mean that we can’t think of creative ways to reduce stress or at the very least make it work for you. After all if you keep letting stress build up, it can lead to a lot of health problems and just like everyone else, I’m sure you want to be on the road towards a healthy lifestyle, so let me share with you some of my favorite ways to reduce stress.

1.Listen to music or an e-book – Take the time to catch up on your e-books or your music when you are stressed. Say there is an e-book you’ve been meaning to sit down and listen to, make stress work for you and allow yourself the time to listen to it. On the other hand listening to music really calms people down and is one of the best ways to reduce stress.

2.Meditate – Take the time to meditate and allow yourself to refocus on what is important. Meditating really gets me through a lot of moments where stress seems like it will swallow me up, I take a moment and sit quietly, maybe do a little yoga, this is what really works for me among the many ways to reduce stress. Additionally if you pair this up with doing yoga, you’ll get some exercise in and that way you can make stress work for you leading you to a healthy lifestyle.

Watch funny movies even just at home. A good laugh is always good for your mind and body.

3.Watch a funny movie – Laughing seriously reduces stress like crazy and when you seem like you are at boiling point, you’ll want to get to watch a movie and laugh it all off. In ways to reduce stress, I really like this one as it gives me time to watch some movies I missed out on and if you do this too, you can make stress work for you too. Or if there isn’t anything new out, just watch one of your favorite funny flicks, come on, I know you have a copy of it or at the very least saved the movie somewhere, switch it on, relax and let the laughter remove as much stress as it can from your body.

4.Drink some tea – Tea has an amazing calming effect and when you feel as though you’ve reached your most stressful state, boil a cup of tea. A cup of tea is one of the great ways to reduce stress, especially considering there are so many different teas to drink you’ll have a grand time of choosing your favorite.

5.Exercise – Yes exercise, when all seems too stressful, get your running shoes on and go out the door. It will give you time to reflect and recollect yourself, bringing down the stress levels to a more manageable level. Still stuck in the office? No problem, get off your desk and do some stretches, it will really do a lot of help and will calm you down, plus in ways to reduce stress, this one gets your adrenaline going a little which will also help you to make the stress work for you.

6.Take a nap – Nothing refreshes quite like a nap and when you have the opportunity to do so, go for it in my opinion. In the ways to reduce stress, nothing is as satisfying as a nap to really calm the nerves. When you wake up you’ll be in a better position to face the thing that was stressing you out and you can move forward and make the stress work for you.

7.Pick up a hobby – When you are up against a wall and you need some ways to reduces stress, picking up a hobby may work the best for you. Pretty much anyone with a healthy lifestyle has a hobby or two. You can start off with building models, maybe sewing, writing is a great outlet for a ton of people, all that matters is you find something you enjoy and you do it when you are stressed out. You’d be surprised at how much this will alleviate your stress levels.

8.Plan a vacation – This is one my favorite ways to reduce stress because well – vacation! Just simply saying the word already brings a smile to my face and planning where to go, who to go with and what to do, just makes me swoon. When you are getting really stressed out, look towards the calendar and remember that your vacation is just around the corner where you can relax whether it be on the mountains, on the beach, maybe some exotic destination, the sky is the limit and enjoying the possibilities is a great way to make stress work for you, plus you can’t have a healthy lifestyle if you can’t enjoy a vacation or two.

9.Get a massage – Come on you know you deserve it. This is one of the most defining ways to reduce stress. There’s something about a nice hour-long massage that just really washes away the stress and fatigue. And if you are in the spa already, take the time to get a lovely soak in the Jacuzzi or steam room, this will remove even more stress (not to mention toxins!) from your body as you get along through your day. It is definitely something you can look forward to as a mini vacation or such.

Plan a trip and get in touch with nature. Find that spot where you can breathe in fresh air and calm your senses.

10.Enjoy your time with some friends and family – There is just something magical in surrounding yourself with friends and family, even just one friend is more than enough sometimes.  All that matters is you sit down together, enjoy a great talk and maybe do something that makes you both or all happy. I personally love having a meal with family, the relaxation you get from preparing a meal for everyone and the laughs that come with it are pretty special, plus if you really want to make stress work for you, use it as a motivation to try new recipes that your friends and family will love. Just remember to try to keep it within the healthy lifestyle recipe, as you don’t want to binge eat on something bad for you, even if you are enjoying the time with family.

As you can see these are 10 ways to reduce stress and they are some great stress relievers let me tell you. We do have to live with stress, that’s pretty much a given thing. However, it doesn’t mean we give up, heck no! We make the stress work for ourselves and continue towards our path of healthy living, grab that stress by the toes and show it who is boss. After all no one can better reduce your stress than you, so take the time and find the best ways to reduce stress for you, it will be life saving, I guarantee it. Stay healthy!