In today’s fast-moving world, we are no strangers to anxiety and stress. It is really difficult to escape this constant cycle of misery. Or is it?
The secret to live a stress -free life is laughably simple. Today’s blog is about making healthy lifestyle choices to relax naturally.

Sleep Well

There is merit in the nursery rhyme – early to bed and early to rise. The advent of artificial light and digital media has reversed the day-night cycle for us humans. We are in the habit of going to bed with our laptops and mobile phones, getting drawn into the never-ending world of web series, social media and work mails till the wee hours of the morning. Then we get a few hours of fragmented sleep before it is time to rise and shine. The body and mind are chronically left fatigued and sleep deprived. To keep such a tired mind functioning, the body’s stress hormones come out to play. Day after day. No wonder we often run out of our energy reserve quite often and really feel the stress. The easiest way out of this mess would be to respect the body’s biological rhythm. We are wired to sleep at night and work during the day. Do not reverse the natural cycle. Go to bed at the same time every night and set your alarm to go off after at least six to seven hours of sound sleep. It is preferable that you wake up at the same time every day. Avoid taking long day time naps and switch off all your gadgets at least an hour before going to bed at night.

Eat on time

This is a no-brainer. But this golden piece of advice is often overlooked in favor of hurried snacks gobbled on the way to and from work at all odd hours. Your body has no idea when to anticipate a meal. As a result, the digestive juices go into a frenzy. Till a time comes when they revolt, leaving you with all sorts of problems like indigestion, bloating, irregular bowel movements, nausea and so on. The bottomline is to have three square meals a day at proper time. Your body will be thankful, and you do not need to stress about your indigestion woes on a daily basis.

Exercise Daily

Exercise releases plenty of happy chemicals in the brain. These chemicals counter the stress that we are always under, leaving the mind and body relaxed and rejuvenated. Leave at least half an hour daily for your exercise routine. You need not necessarily join a gym or a yoga class. Even half an hour of brisk walking or climbing up and down the staircase is good enough. Mix and match all kinds of exercises like yoga, dance, jogging to keep the regime from getting boring and you will start to look forward to your exercise break.

Take time to Relax

Despite your busy schedule, keep half an hour just for yourself. Go completely digital detox during this time. Read a book, go for a nature walk, listen to music, indulge in a hobby. In short, do anything that makes you happy. This is your investment for a stress-free life. Ignore it at your own risk!
For more insights into mental health, stay glued to this blog page!
drdebasmitapsychiatrist