What are your stress-coping strategies?

 

 [enjoying a friend's absolutely awesome piano]

There are a lot of things to think about these days.

Your to-do list, for example. Also that looming deadline. And that item you remembered you needed to find yesterday but then forgot and now what was it? Even if you’ve got most of your life under control, you deal with something potentially stressful almost every day.

Which (if you are currently single) isn’t likely to stop after you get married… fast-forward a few years and now you are dealing with the wonderfulness of marriage & parenting, bringing with it new opportunities and challenges and definitely the need to be stress-free.

Insert coping strategies. What do you do when you feel stressed? How do you cope with discouragements, frenzied schedules, sad news, nerve-jangling events?

Here are a few of my coping strategies:

- Playing the piano.... just a few minutes of playing can completely change the whole feeling of a day

- Walking in nature, or even just being outside

- Talking with family members

- Listening to good music

- Making a mental list of everything I'm grateful for (it's a long list!)

Having strategies for those sure-to-occur stressful days can be a lifesaver, and help keep you the cheerful, easygoing person you want to be.

What are your stress-coping strategies?