#bellainspire is the hashtag for the day and our topic is tips to de-stress your life. Stress is one of the worst enemies of the body. It doesn’t look like a disease, but it creates them in our bodies. Stress creates distress on the body that causes inflammation and diseases. Stress also causes feelings of anxiety and fear – more commonly referred to as mental tension. What stress does to the body is even worse. The body is an amazing machine that performs miraculously under stress. You don’t see it, but your body starts to breakdown when the stress is too high. Learning to de-stress is extremely important for your health.

Tips to De-Stress Your Life

#1 Breathe – When the chips seem like they are taking a U-turn, take a deep breathe. Take another breathe and count to three and then let out slowly. Do this three or four times. In the spa, when there are aromatherapy massages, the client’s take three deep breaths before the massage. Breathe in the aromatherapy and then expel the air. This not only pulls the aromatherapy into your system, but it scientifically works to release the tension in your body. Using aromatherapy with breathing is a great combination. Some client favorites are the Essential Oil Blend for Stress Relief or the Blend for Happiness.

#2 Stretch – The old saying that it does a body good to stretch is very true. Look at how your cat stretches or your dog. We hold all of our tension in our muscles. Just look at your shoulders. Your shoulders don’t go up by your ear without some muscles helping them. Stretching the muscles or yoga (even better) allow our bodies to pull the muscles that cringe in the opposite direction. This pulling of the muscles allows the body to relax the tension, thus helping with stress.

#3 Imagine – Lay down for 5 seconds (5 minutes would be better). Close your eyes. Place an eye pillow over your eyes. It sounds silly, but the eye pillow helps to push your “sight” sense into silence, so you have to rely on other senses. This gives you the ability to start to imagine. Pick a place where you always find happiness like the beach, the mountains, or a waterfall. Imagine being in your happy place and use breathing to put your body into a more relaxed state.

Stress can literally create havoc in your life, so anything you can do to release or decrease stress will help your body be healthier and happier.