As we enter the hectic season of holiday parties, gift giving and checking our list twice, savor the magic of the season with DTX’s 5 Self-Care Techniques for Stress Management.  These simple, self-care techniques and stress management exercises can be implemented right away to support you whether it’s during the holidays or throughout the year.

 

1. Eating Clean: A Self-Care Technique at its most basic!

When we feel overwhelmed mentally or emotionally, we often underestimate the simple self-care technique of eating pure clean foods.  Normal holiday fare is tough on the digestive system and leaves us feeling heavy, lethargic, and irritable, so check out our blog on tips on eating clean during the holidays. Also, holidays are one of the most common times for “stress eating”. Know that stress eating does *not* mean there’s anything wrong with you, or that you lack self-control; it just means that your ability to cope with stress has gotten maxed out. Here’s some tips for dealing with emotional eating.

 

2. Redefine Stress Management – Exercise!

Exercise and other physical activity produce endorphins—chemicals in the brain that act as natural painkillers—and also improve the ability to sleep, which in turn reduces stress. But, you don’t have to pound it out at the gym to benefit from moving your body. Redefine stress management exercise by making your goal to move within the context of your life. Enjoy a 5-10 minute dance-fest, walk while you meditate, bike and breathe the stress away.

3. Sleeping More = Better Health!

If you don’t sleep enough at night, your body boosts its levels of stress hormones. The brain chemicals connected with deep sleep are the same ones that tell the body to stop the production of stress hormones. As a result, when you don’t sleep well, your body keeps pumping out those hormones. The next day, you feel more stressed, the following night you find it harder to fall asleep, and so on. Yet, though Science puts out consistent reports about the importance of sleep, a self-care technique you can do with your eyes-closed, culturally we still have a hard time making it a priority. During sleep, our cells repair, renew and replenish.  Sleepytime tea and a hot bath welcome the Zzzz’s.

4.Manage Stress with Simple Meditation

The self-care technique of meditation as a stress management exercise can quiet your monkey mind.  Keep it simple. Listening to a guided meditation is a great way to keep the mind focused. Check out one of the many popular meditation apps if you’re a newbie. Mantra meditation can give your mind a job while your nervous system relaxes. Stress, no more!

5. DTX Infrared Sauna 

At DTX, our goal is to support you and to remind you, especially during this time of the year, how important self-care techniques are.  A DTX infrared sauna session can be a great way to relieve stress. According to the book “Sauna Therapy for Detoxification and Healing,” written by Dr. Lawrence Wilson, several studies have shown that regular sauna use lowers levels of cortisol, which is the body’s main stress hormone. Dr. Wilson writes that research has shown that sweating increases relaxation, which reduces anxiety and the feeling of frustration. Hope you employ some of these techniques and get to enjoy a stressless holiday season!