Life seems to be becoming more and more stressful. People generally have less time to do what they enjoy.

Usually, my life isn’t like that. I’ve tried my best to create a lifestyle that allows me to do what I need to do and still have time to relax and enjoy myself. I don’t deal well with stress, so I try to avoid it. Moving has changed that a bit though. Now that things are winding down and we are settling in, I’ve been able to reflect on the stress I felt in the previous month. During that month, I took almost no time to relax and enjoy my life. This had a definite affect on my health. I was less energetic, had trouble sleeping, and caught a cold.

Being consistantly stressed-out has a number of negative affects on the body. It lowers immune function and increases blood pressure. Stress can cause difficulty sleeping. It can cause some memory loss and even speed up the aging process. Why would you want something so harmful in your life? The problem is most of us can’t avoid stress, but it only takes a few mintues a day to relieve it.

Taking just ten minutes a day to relax can reduce the affects of stress tremendously. Take a few minutes at the end of the day to do some deep breathing exercises, listen to your favorite music or take a warm bath. Even better try doing all these things at once. If you start doing this you will notice a difference in how well you sleep and how you feel the following day.

Photo by ldcross.