Usually, when someone comes to me for support with stress relief, it’s because they’re at breaking point. They’ve reached a stage where chronic stress has become so unbearable that they can’t stand it any longer and they need help. Learning to manage stress is a process, and recovering from chronic stress takes time. In that very first session, my focus is on one simple question: What is one small thing we could do today so that they leave feeling at least 1% better than when they arrived?

Often, it’s the small things that have a big impact. You might be hoping for huge, elaborate interventions that completely alter your life. The truth is that real change happens in tiny, incremental steps. And even though stress management often involves deep work to address internalized beliefs and old patterns, we need to get you feeling calm and safe before that deep work can begin.

Today I want to touch on 5 very simple things that you can do to quickly take the pressure off and give you some relief from stress. They might seem tiny, but when worked into your daily routine they can have a really big impact on your mood.

Exhale….really slowly

When you start to feel stressed, you’ll notice that your breathing changes. Your breaths become shorter and sharper, and you tend to breathe into your chest rather than all the way down to your belly. You might even find that your breath feels “stuck” or makes a shuddering or gasping sound, as muscle tension restricts your airways. This is a normal stress response, and we can use the breath to calm us down.

You might have been told to “take a deep breath” when you feel anxious. But it can be more effective to focus on your exhales, letting all of the air out of your lungs slowly so that a deep breath can follow. This allows built-up carbon dioxide to be released, which signals to your nervous system that it can begin to calm you down. Taking 2 minutes a day to breathe mindfully, with a focus on your exhales, can go a long way to releasing pent-up stress in the body.

Laughter

Laughter really is one of the best medicines. Not only does laughing trigger the release of endorphins, but it relaxes tension in the body so that you don’t feel as wound up. Laughter also increases the amount of oxygen that we’re taking in, and helps to regulate that short-sharp breathing pattern that comes with chronic stress.

Finding a moment to giggle at a funny video, listen to a comedy podcast or chatting with your most hilarious friend can go a long way to releasing tension and helping you to feel more balanced.

Exercise

Exercise is one of the best tools we have against chronic stress. The act of moving your body burns up adrenaline and cortisol, two hormones that are released when we are stressed. Exercise also relaxes muscle tension, regulates our breathing, improves heart rate and blood pressure and stimulates digestion (which is inhibited when we feel stressed).

The good news is that you don’t have to do intense or lengthy workouts to get those benefits. Even 15 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise will make a big difference. I suggest that you find something that you enjoy to make exercise something you look forward to, rather than a chore to be ticked off. Anything from dancing to your favourite album, chasing your kids around the park, walking with a friend or doing a quick yoga workout in the living room will do wonders for your mental health.

Talk it out

Stress doesn’t only come from things that are happening in the world around us. Sometimes we feel stressed out by our own thoughts, especially if you’re trying to solve a problem or feel caught in a tornado of anxious thoughts. The more you try to sort out these swirling thoughts, the more intense and erratic they become. Getting out of your head can really help you to gain perspective so that you can look more objectively at what’s bothering you.

A great way to do this is to talk it over with someone you trust. That might be a counsellor, a colleague, a friend or your partner. You might even find that journaling about your thoughts or recording yourself saying them aloud may also be helpful. Getting the swirling thoughts out in the open gives them less power and allows you to begin sorting through them. Having someone else to reflect back to you and point out patterns or alternatives can be really helpful as well.

Enjoy a hug

Connecting with someone you love and trust can be a great way to relax and relieve stress. Research has shown that sharing a 20 second hug with someone special is enough to begin counteracting the impacts of chronic stress. When we share a hug, it creates feelings of safety and security. Our muscles relax, our breathing slows down and our bodies begin to calm down. A hug is a simple and wonderful way to regulate your nervous system and begin slowing down when the world seems to be going at a breakneck pace.

These are 5 simple ways that you can begin to introduce little pockets of calm into your day. This gives your nervous system a chance to regulate and relax, and improves your mood. Over time, this can begin building your resilience so that you are able to meet challenges without getting overwhelmed. Finding ways to regulate and calm is also super important when you begin doing the deeper work to really address the causes of stress and begin breaking patterns and cycles that are holding you in a state of chronic stress. These tiny steps are the first part of a longer healing journey, but they’re incredibly important in their own right.