7 things to not do when you’re stressed

Stress is poisonous to the human body. It can badly affect yourself as well as others around you. While it is natural to experience stress, there are ways to control it or at least minimise it. As compiled from allwomenstalk.com and the Huffington Post, here are some things that you should stay far from while dealing with stressful situations.

1. Binge eating

No matter how good you feel after gulping down a bowl of ice cream or munching on your favourite chocolates, always remember that is not the solution to your stress. On the other hand, after a few hours of indulging in such fattening food, you will feel even worse and most probably regret piling up the calories. Jan Kiecolt-Glaser, professor of psychiatry and psychology at The Ohio State University says, “We are more likely to eat the wrong foods when we’re stressed, and when we eat the wrong foods, weight gain becomes more likely because we are burning fewer calories.”

2. Breaking up a relationship

It is understandable that when you are stressed out, you show less tolerance towards others and you are more likely to start fights but this can have disastrous long-term consequences. The best way to stop this from happening is to avoid anyone whom you think you are likely to spark an argument with.

Read: Smile away stress for long-term health

3.  Over-indulging in retail therapy

Shopping is no doubt a girl’s best hobby and can boost your mood, however, the trick is not to over-indulge. The way this can be achieved is to avoid carrying your credit card or extra cash with you when you are out for a shopping spree.

4. Talking out the problem with your loved ones

While it is often propagated to share your issues with others in order to gain empathy if not sympathy but this can actually be counter-intuitive at times. This is because each time you discuss the issue, you experience the negative feelings associated with it over and over again. The wise thing to do is to talk about a situation only once and focus on the solutions.

5. Not drinking your morning coffee

Unlike any existing myths surrounding coffee contributing to your stress, moderate amount of coffee can actually make you less stressed out.  According to a study done at University of Bristol, when women collaborated with other women under nerve-racking conditions, they performed better when they drank about three cups of caffeinated coffee compared to decaf. They trusted their colleagues more, had more confidence in their performance and coped with it better overall.

6. Skipping workout

While the temptation to sit idle and whine about the numerous problems you have in life might be great thus adding to your stress, but this will do no good to your body. “Greater stress hormones affect certain inflammatory biomarkers that normally speed along recovery,” says co-author Matthew Stults-Kolehmainen, PhD, of Teachers College at Columbia University in New York City. So the next time you find yourself slouching on the sofa, do yourself a favour by at least going for a stroll if not a hard core workout at the gym.

Read: Depression and chronic stress can cause weight gain

7. Making drastic decisions

While under stress, we are thinking more emotionally than rationally. When volunteers in a study from the University of South California were stressed, an impromptu speech was part of the experiment and when asked to make a decision, they focused only on positive information. Hence, it is best to avoid anything that is based on our impulses as it may later lead to further unimaginable problems.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 31^st,  2015.

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