6. Thump Your Thymus
When therapist Neca C. Smith trains corporate clients to reduce workplace stress, she suggests a technique known as thymus tapping. “When stress is present, the immune system shuts down,” she says. “Thymus tapping is an energy-medicine technique used to give the immune system a jolt of energy and relieve stress.” To practice this, locate your thymus, which is at the top of your chest just below your collarbone, and use your fingers to tap for 20 seconds while slowly breathing in and out. Take it up a notch by tapping a waltz-style beat, a method recommended by holistic physician John Diamond.

7. Try Aromatherapy
Stop and smell the rose oil. “Using essential oils in your environment can actually affect the entire body, [improving] mood and reducing stress,” says natural health expert Kathy Gruver. The reason? Aromatherapy interacts with the brain’s limbic system and hypothalamus, encouraging the release of stress-fighting serotonin – though some experts think it may simply be an emotional placebo. 

Along with rose oil, lavender and chamomile are also effective agents for releasing stress. Depending on the type of oil, you’ll find many options for incorporating your preferred scent into daily life – from drinking teas to using diffusers to wearing them as perfume or in jewelry.

8. Find Something That Makes You Laugh
Turns out, laughter really can be the best medicine. A number of studies, including a 2003 study published in the journal Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, have shown that laughter can help ease feelings of stress. And a 2008 study from the American Physiological Society found that even anticipating a laugh can reduce stress hormones. While a lot of these studies are small (and isolating variables in an experiment like this can be tricky), a good belly laugh certainly won’t make your stress worse. 

So consider this science’s way of telling you it’s OK to watch that stupid cat video at work or take a quick break to catch up on some clips from the previous night’s late-night TV shows.

Related: 5 Reasons Why You Need Meditation AND Exercise

9. Keep a Journal
Ever heard of the HALT (Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired) model? It’s used to illustrate the poor reaction to stress that can result when your basic needs aren’t being met – and that’s exactly where therapist and counseling educator Diane Lang’s Journal of Truth exercise comes in. 

For one week, her clients keep a record of how much water they drank, what they ate and when and how much sleep and exercise they got. “At the end of the week, it shows why you’re stressed and unbalanced – whether it’s having large gaps between meals and causing your blood sugar to drop or too much caffeine or sugar,” she says. “Keeping this journal shows which basic needs are being met and what changes you need to make.” 

Additionally, writing in a journal, even for just a few minutes, can be very therapeutic and allow you some time to step back from a stressful situation and reflect on why you’re feeling so stressed. It’s not always possible in the moment, so if you can’t break away from a tense conversation, write about it afterwards and reflect on how you can handle similar situations in the future.

10. Put Down Your Smartphone
Between social media, texts, apps and games like Words With Friends and Candy Crush, it’s no wonder that smartphones have the potential to stress us out – after all, wielding a smartphone can feel like a full-time job by itself. 

A 2012 study of more than 100 people by British psychologist Richard Balding showed that the number of times you check your phone daily directly relates to the amount of stress that you feel. Balding also concluded that the stress was more closely associated with personal than professional use of smartphones, stemming from compulsive checking for texts and social media notifications.

The original article “21 Stress-Reducing Techniques“ appeared on LIVESTRONG.COM.

By Jen Jones Donatelli

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