9 Easy Ways to Reduce Stress Without Meditating for Hours

Stress comes on in strange ways.

Some mornings I wake up already on edge, like my jaw was tight before I even looked at my phone (which I shouldn't do first thing, but I do). Stress doesn't always come out and say, "Hey, I'm here!" It merely shows up in your back, stomach, or that weird buzzing thought that won't go away. And everyone keeps telling me to meditate! I know that meditation is supposed to assist, but really? Sometimes, sitting stationary for 40 minutes makes me more anxious.

 So I started gathering little, maybe foolish, methods to relax. Not the best list. It was more like trial and error: some things worked and some I gave up on halfway through.

1. Walk around the block like it's your work.

This one seems apparent, but it works. The American Psychological Association did a survey and found that 62% of persons who walked regularly said they felt less stressed. I don't even set a timer; I simply go. Shoes, door, and stroll. And all of a sudden, the problem doesn't feel like a cage anymore; it feels more like a balloon. You still have it, but it's lighter.

2. Drink water (yeah, I know it's boring)

I felt this was bad advise at first, but then I started getting headaches every afternoon. I started drinking water before coffee, and all of a sudden I had fewer headaches and was less irritable. Harvard Health said that even minor dehydration can make you feel bad and make it hard to focus. I guess it's another way of stating that stress isn't just in your mind; it's also in your cells.

3. Listen to music that doesn't fit your mood

Maybe not what you think. When I'm stressed, I want to listen to quiet piano music or noises from the jungle, but blasting a silly pop tune can really startle my body into relaxing. I read somewhere (I think it was on Statista, but I can't find the link right now) that 70% of people utilize music to relax. That makes sense. It's cheaper than wine and faster than therapy.

4. Write down one silly fear

I mean just one, really. Not writing in a journal, not three pages, and not "dear diary." Just write: what if I never finish this project and my supervisor thinks I'm not useful? Then look at it. It looks smaller when you write it down. I sometimes laugh at how over-the-top it sounds. No, my supervisor is probably not planning to kill me because I was late on Tuesday.

5. Have a snack that crunches

Carrots. Fruits. Pretzels. The crunch makes you feel like your jaw is smashing your worries. That could be stupid, but chewing helps. And just for fun, wouldn't it be funny if a stress-tracking software could keep track of how many pretzels you've eaten? Which is strange but not too far-fetched, because in Austin, where tech ventures crop up on every corner, there is an entire ecosystem of making mobile apps that are related to wellness products. I found out about it by accident when a buddy told me about a startup there that connects stress levels to how much you nibble. It sounds strange, but people will pay for strange.

6. Say "no" once

Not five times, not to everything, but once. Choose something that makes you tired and say no. Psychologist Dr. Susan Newman told Psychology Today, "Every time you say yes to something, you're saying no to something else, usually yourself." That line hurt me a little. But it's liberating. Sometimes stress isn't about what's going on; it's about agreeing to too much.

7. Change the light

I didn't think lighting was that important. Fluorescent light that is too bright gives me a headache. A warm lamp makes your brain feel good. According to Pew Research, 65% of remote workers changed their home setups mostly to feel less stressed and tired. Lighting is an element of that. I placed a $12 light bulb in my room, and now the nights feel less like an interrogation and more like a warm hug.

8. Give someone a hug or hug yourself.

I realize that embracing yourself sounds weird, but there is real science behind it—oxytocin, reducing heart rate, and all that. Dr. Tiffany Field, who runs the contact Research Institute at the University of Miami (yeah, that's true), said in an interview, "Even a brief touch lowers cortisol, which is our main stress hormone."

And what about when no one is around? Wrapping your arms around yourself still makes your nervous system react in some of the same ways. Feels goofy, but goofy is fine. 

9. Make a "ugly dance" for 30 seconds.

Not a routine that would work on TikTok. Just flail. Shake, hop, and throw your arms. Stress looks for things that are severe; it needs them to live. It doesn't know where to go while you're being silly.

I can't quit thinking about

This is a little off-topic, however... When I talked about a mobile app development in Austin to track stress before, it lingered in my head. Isn't that what all these hacks are for? Finding ways to recognize or assess stress, even if they are not very good, and then trying to do something about it before it ruins your day. And apps are now, for better or worse, our reflections. Some track your steps, some track your sleep, and more and more they measure your stress by using your heart rate or writing prompts.

 It's a mess—apps crash and people forget to check in—but it seems kind of human. We want to stop ourselves from going too far down the spiral. So the city-level thing (in this example, Austin) is important because some areas become test kitchens for this kind of activity. Instead of football, you hear individuals in a coffee shop arguing about UX choices for a stress app. I don't sure if that's good or bad, but it's something.

I should admit that this is a paradox.

I just gave you nine ideas, but sometimes none of them work. I moved, drank water, danced, crunched carrots, and yet felt like my chest was full of bees. So, maybe stress doesn't always need to be "fixed." Maybe the objective is to have a few tools and hope that one works on a certain day. Or maybe I'm thinking too much.

Last thing I want to say before I forget

Stress doesn't go away easily. You can't always outsmart it. But you can poke it, laugh at it, and sometimes, yes, meditate if you want to. If you can't sit still for hours, don't feel bad about it. That doesn't imply you're not doing well. It merely means you're a person.