Overcoming our stressors – Part 4

Travel:
You may have heard that popular saying “get away from it all.” It’s not that you’re not running away from your problems, so much as you’re mindfully withdrawing yourself to seize the opportunity to remember what’s really important. This can be an amazing combatant against stress. Frequent traveling can help one handle stress more easily in life, primarily because it allows for a literal withdrawal of yourself from stressful situations and environments for a little while, giving one the time to decompress, gain some perspective, and re-center. “With a shortlist of activities each day, freed up from the complexities of ongoing projects and relationships, the mind can reset, as does the body, with stress relief the main outcome.”

Happiness is boosted even before you travel. The effects of travel aren’t felt only during and after your trip – in fact, even just the anticipation of going on vacation can boost your mood. People are at their happiest when they have a vacation planned. Accordingly, studies have shown that people are also more positive about their health, economic situation and general quality of life. People also get more happiness from anticipating a travel experience in comparison to anticipating buying a new possession. It turns out that money can buy you happiness, but just not in the way we expected!

Balanced diet:
You’ve probably heard the expression, “you are what you eat,” but what exactly does that mean? Put simply, food is fuel, and the kinds of foods and drinks you consume determine the types of nutrients in your system and impact how well your mind and body are able to function. This also helps reduce your stress level. Eating well (i.e. a well-balanced diet rich in vegetables and nutrients) may be associated with feelings of wellbeing. Factors such as poorer physical health, and living in poverty, or deprived communities, have been found to be associated with poorer mental health and wellbeing.

Avoiding drug use:
Abusing drugs can wreak havoc with your cognition. It is said that when the mind suffers the body cries out, and there’s truth based in medical science. Problems with mental health can affect your physical health in adverse ways, and in some cases a chronic health condition can cause mental problems such as depression. Mental illnesses can manifest themselves in a variety of ways physically, as well as changing behavior (risk-taking and improper diet) that can impact overall health and lead to complications or a shortened lifespan.

Therapy
Psychological treatment is sometimes called ‘psychotherapy’ or ‘talking therapy.’ And, it must be noted that not all people who offer psychological treatments have professional training or experience in that therapy. It is imperative when looking for a therapist to ask about their qualifications before the appointment. A therapist will deliberate about your thought to: better understand your own thinking and behavior; understand and resolve your problems; recognize symptoms of mental illness in yourself; reduce your symptoms; change your behavior and improve your quality of life. The psychological community believes psychological treatments work well for emotional, mental and behavioral issues. Psychological treatments are useful for people of all ages, including children. They can be effective for people from different cultural, social and language backgrounds.