VII. Stress and Diet

One of the best ways of dealing with stress symptoms is to ensure that you’re eating a healthy diet and getting regular exercise. This is doubly beneficial as not only does in help in reducing stress, but it helps to keep you healthy.

Though nutrition studies are often hard to interpret properly, research shows that eating fruit, vegetables and some proteins daily is beneficial in reducing stress levels.

If you are aware that your diet doesn’t include enough chemicals that are known to help to reduce stress (such as serotonin, which has a calming effect), then supplements may be beneficial. Any diet that contains serotonin, or the compounds the brain needs to produce it, helps you to fight stress with very little effort required. Eating well is not only good for reducing stress, it’s great for your overall health, which can further combat stress.

The effects of serotonin are delayed slightly, so timing is vital. It takes an average of 30 minutes for serotonin to take effect.

Most people will naturally have higher serotonin levels in the morning. Over the day, the levels begin to decrease, leaving only a small reserve by late afternoon. A snack targeted at raising serotonin levels in the afternoon will help to combat this. A good option is baked potato chips (not fried) or pretzels, as they will help to produce stimulation of serotonin.

Your diet and stress are also connected in other ways. Eating badly often leads to other counter-productive behaviors. It’s not unusual for people to turn to food, and especially high fat foods, as a buffer against stress. However, high fat foods have been shown to have an adverse affect on serotonin levels, making the underlying problem more difficult to deal with.

However, it is not only your serotonin levels that will suffer if you continue to consume excessive amounts of high fat foods. People find that as they put on weight, they begin to stress about this as well, which can create a vicious cycle. Depression and increased stress is often a result, and your initial problem is now amplified by these new factors.

You need to stop, think, and break the cycle. Beginning a healthy diet and some gentle exercise will immediately have a positive effect. As you begin to see results, you start to feel better about yourself, which can help give you clarity.

Try to eat regularly. Skipping meals because of stress can lead to overeating later, renewing the bad cycle. Even if you’re not hungry, stop at your allocated eating time. When you push your work (and often stress) aside, you might find that you are hungry after all.

Don’t eat at your desk, as this is more likely to prompt you to think of the work that is causing you to stress. Take time away from your desk and think of something positive as you eat. This not only gives you time to clear your head, you are more likely to feel like eating.

VIII. Managing Stress around the Holidays

It’s not unusual for stress levels to rise around the holiday periods. Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving and others can all seem like stressful times to some. But these periods don’t have to be more stressful.

Some pressures and situations are unique to holiday periods.

The weather can be an issue, with people having difficulty getting to other places, and it can also make people uncomfortable. Though they are relatively minor issues, if the situation continues for a long period of time, stress can result.

Buying presents, sometimes for people you don’t really care that much for, can be a burden for many people. If you’re restricted to a tight budget, this can become even more of a hassle. The ‘Christmas Crush’ is a big contributor, with large amounts of traffic and crowds everywhere.

Individually, one of these problems probably won’t cause stress, but when several issues combine, people can become tense. There are also other factors that can occur at any time, but add to the pressure around holiday times. Deadlines at your workplace can be hard to meet, especially if co-workers have already begun their holiday. Health problems are a large cause for many people’s stresses, and conditions are often aggravated around holiday periods. Many people also stress about money all year round, and this becomes more pronounced during the holidays with additional costs to bear.

The core basis of stress is a struggle between “I must” and “I can’t”. To combat stress, look at your situation, and decide if it really is a ‘must’. An example is buying presents for family members. While it might be traditional to do so, it is not something you have or ‘must’ do. You might even consider suggesting a Kris Kinglet, so that you’re only then obligated to buy for one family member.

Once you’ve dealt with “I must”, look at "I can't".

Getting organized before the holiday period can make things much easier. If this isn’t a possibility, consider shopping online, or visiting stores that are not part of large shopping centeres. It may take slightly longer if you need to visit a couple of stores, but people tend to flock to shopping centres, leaving single retailers alone.

Planning ahead can also be helpful. If you know what you need to buy, even if you don’t choose to purchase it until closer to the holiday period, can take a lot of stress out of the equation. Setting up a savings account at the beginning of the year is also a great way to reduce stress. And don’t overspend when it comes to buying presents. Set a limit, and stick to it.

For most people, there are many extra things they have to do around a holiday season, and it can be challenging to get everything done. But no challenge has to cause stress. Simply look at the situation and work out what you can do. Let worry go about things you have no control over, and you’ll find that your stress levels recede immediately.