Ways to Naturally Reduce Stress and Increase Energy

The novel coronavirus season may be dwindling for some states over but the joys of stores reopening may also bring about the stress of returning to work and fatigue as a lengthy return to normalcy begins. 

Maintaining high energy levels with the demands of work, children, and family can cause something like a caffeine addiction and leave you jumping from coffee to sugary snacks all day. It’s no wonder companies make more than 3.4 million dollars a year on energy drinks. What they don’t market to you is the long term effects of these drinks including high blood pressure, heart palpitations, and type 2 diabetes. These quick fix alternatives to low energy can leave a person trapped in a perpetuating cycle of jumping from one fix to the next in order to sustain a lifestyle of high energy. Managing how we receive energy and where we focus that energy can seem to be a complicated thing, but with a few simple back-to-basics tricks, you can find energy again naturally without suffering the side effects of sugar and caffeine.

            Having a proper sleep schedule will be imperative. If at all possible with your lifestyle, set a specific time period to begin winding down each night. Start this process with enough room to give you 8 hours of sleep each night. Keep the bed a place of rest and sex alone. Limiting this space for a certain purpose will subconsciously help your body know that to lie down in the bed is to begin to shut down the wildly active thoughts keeping you awake.  

Other recommendations for beneficial sleep patterns that can give you energy is to remove electronics or anything lighted such as alarm clocks from view, keeping your neck in a neutral position, and using pillows to help prop back or legs into comfortable positions. Keep in mind that as you set a sleep schedule, your body will need time to adjust, so don't give up right away!

            Fueling your body with proper nutrition and keeping fabricated stimulants like sugar out of the body will guarantee improved energy levels. Nutrient-dense foods like quinoa, lentils, fish, and seeds or nuts can boost energy levels slowly releasing glucose into the bloodstream, and providing energy.  Protein in particular increases production of a brain chemical that regulates concentration.

Filling your day with protein-packed snacks between main meals will help to sustain that ongoing energy you need to accomplish all the day has in store. Green tea also a fabulous alternative to coffee and energy drinks if you still need a pick me up. It is loaded with antioxidants, improving brain function, lowering the risk of cancer, and increases ability to put off fat.

           Lastly, try to evaluate how you mentally balance your responsibilities and free time. Sometimes we can give place in our thoughts to the worries that are out of our control. We find ourselves obsessively thinking and worrying about the things we have to do throughout the day, instead of focusing on one thing at a time.

Physically write down a “to do” list. Downloading the unspoken needs of the day can help your brain release the stress. Set healthy goals for what you want to accomplish. This frees up your energy to focus on the main goals you have set for yourself and not to be distracted. This process can aid in creating healthy expectations of what you can do and how much energy you exert doing it.

           There’s nothing wrong with meeting some friends at the local coffee shop for a seasonal favorite once your fave small bsiness opens their doors again, but becoming dependent on a routine of caffeine and sugary baked goods will trap you into unhealthy energy sources.

With many areas of life, balance and intentionality in finding energy will be necessary. Have healthy sleep patterns, consume nutritious foods, and keep healthy expectations of your day to find the energy you need.