Experts reveals tips to lower your stress levels

From singing in the car to eating kimchi, here’s a range of ways you can address your stress levels now.

Experts have shared quick and easy tips for how you can lower your stress levels, whether you’re at work, home, or in the car.

Australian Association of Psychologists president Sahra O’Doherty said factors like the cost of living crisis and the global political landscape were adding to everyday pressures, including work and social concerns, felt by Australians.

Ms O’Doherty said when it came to stress, prevention was better than cure.

“It’s about starting some of these habits and routines that are going to be good for us long-term … so making sure that we’re getting enough sleep, eating healthily, getting enough exercise, getting all of our social needs met,” she said.

“Managing our distress in the moment is different to long-term stress management.”

Use your senses

Ms O’Doherty said people could use mindfulness tools, like breathing and grounding exercises, to help bring them back to the present moment.

“Noticing what’s around us — five things that we can see, four things that we can touch and feel, three things that we can hear,” she explained.

“When we’re engaging our senses, we’re really focusing on the minute detail, and that focusing means that we’re not engaging with all of those repetitive ruminating thoughts that are often about things that we have no control over.”

Turn to music

“One of the things that I think is incredibly helpful is engaging with music,” Ms O’Doherty said.

“For instance, if you are angry and you’re wanting to let that anger out, put on some metal and scream in your car while you’re letting all of that tension and stress out.

“Music can help us to process our emotions.”

Get creative

“One of the things that I absolutely love and advocate for a lot is doing creative tasks that involve using your hands,” Ms O’Doherty said.

“I’m a crocheter, I love working with wool and fibre.

“When we work with our hands we get that dopamine hit, we get that sense of achievement, and we’re also engaging in something really mindfully.

“We’re really focused on this task at hand, and we’re not necessarily going to be focusing on any of our big, scary worries.”

Associate Professor Megan Teychenne. Picture: Deakin University

Pound the pavement

Associate Professor Megan Teychenne, from the Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition at Deakin University, said being active for leisure or transport-related purposes was good for our mental health and wellbeing.

“So, if you can, get out for a walk,” she said.

“This might be as simple as a walk around the block or parking your car 10 minutes away from work and walking the rest (if you are time poor).

“Remember, you don’t need to work up a sweat to gain mental health benefits from physical activity.”

Get outside

“Being in nature can help reduce feelings of stress,” Prof Teychenne said.

She suggested to enhance the stress-reducing benefits of physical activity to try and undertake some outside in pleasant natural environments where possible.

“This might be in green space (so local parks) or blue space (by the water, whether it be a creek, lake or ocean),” she said.

Find an exercise buddy

Prof Teychenne said some studies showed exercising with others had stronger mental health benefits than alone.

“If you enjoy being physically active with others, then find a friend, colleague or family member and invite them along,” she said.

“Of course, for many (including myself), they may prefer to exercise alone – particularly for those with few opportunities for solitude during day (like busy mums!).

“In which case, we suggest you choose a ‘social environment’ that aligns with your personal preference.”

Get active at home

If you do struggle to get out of the house, there were many freely-available exercise videos and workouts including yoga, pilates and higher-intensity options – all of which had been shown to reduce stress and improve mental health and wellbeing, Prof Teychenne said.

Kimchi is a Korean dish containing fermented cabbage, which Dr Wolfgang Marx says may lower your stress levels.

Drink green tea

Dr Wolfgang Marx, senior research fellow at Deakin University’s Food and Mood Centre, said L-theanine, an amino acid naturally found in green tea, may help reduce stress by promoting relaxation.

“Growing research shows that L-theanine can lower both subjective stress and physiological markers of stress like heart rate and cortisol levels,” Dr Marx said.

“It may also support cognitive performance during times of stress and improve sleep quality.

“Regular green tea consumption provides a natural source of L-theanine, offering a possible calming benefit alongside the other health benefits of green tea.”

Have some probiotics

Certain probiotic bacteria found naturally in fermented foods like yoghurt, kefir, and kimchi may help reduce stress by supporting gut health, Dr Marx said.

“More trials are needed but regular consumption of fermented foods may provide an easy and inexpensive way to support stress management and mental wellbeing,” he said.

Originally published as Experts reveals tips to lower your stress levels