What do you do to un-stress?

novella1186

I've been trapped in my own head all day. Or actually for a while now. I tend to dwell on stuff and worry, and over-think everything. And with all that's been going on lately, I just feel like my brain is going to explode. I'm totally on edge to the point that every time FI says anything to me, I snap at him, even though he hasn't done anything wrong and he's been my #1 source of support through everything that has been going on. I don't want to snap at him-- or anyone for that matter-- but it's like every tiny thing is too much for me to handle right now.

Aside from having another cocktail, I don't know what to do to just get out of my head and relax a little. It's eating away at me. I've only been to two therapy sessions so far (have another one this Wednesday) and something she suggested sounded good to me at the time, but when I did it I think it made things much worse. And we haven't gotten far enough in our sessions yet for me to learn how to deal with this stuff in a better way. So I'm stuck like this.

What do you do to get rid of tension/stress? Or to stop thinking about shit that just makes you feel bad?

lovedryn

I like to go for a walk or run with my dog. I get to exercise and it helps keep me out of my head when I get into one of those moods.

ashley8918

I personally take a Xanax, get some terrible-for-me snacks, curl up in bed (alone - H knows to leave me b when he sees this chain of events), and do some serious Netflixing.

If that's not a possibility, I throw myself into my work. I love what I do, and god damn it, I am good at it, So I find that hitting my work really hard is a great way to distract myself from bullshit worries. The self-esteem boost from knowing i'm doing well, and sometimes getting recognized by my superiors reall works wonders.

mikenberger

I'm a spender. Its an expensive habit. And a drinker.

I also like to talk to someone that has no clue whats going on or someone that's far removed from the situation. I talk to my favorite bartender about my bridal party issues because she doesn't know any of the people. I find that by me having to explain the whole thing to someone, I relieve stress by talking through it and finding solutions. Or it gives me an outlet to talk a little louder and use my hands more when I talk

Stress is just no good and I know you've been under a lot of it lately good luck to you!

princessleia22

When my brain is too full, I tend to enjoy things that let out a bit of aggression.  I like shooting guns, so on my high frustration days, I find a lot of relief from going to the shooting range.  It really is awesome at letting out that frustration to rip up a few targets.  Or doing some higher impact exercising is good too. Or going off on a punching bag (or pillow) or something like that.

Or some days I prefer more relaxing activities that allow me to shut off my brain, like getting a mani-pedi or just lounging in front of the tv in front of some stupid tv show or movie I've seen 20 times.

I find that walking tends to make me think too much and usually makes the situation worse.  But, there have been a few times that DH and I both had bad days and we went to walk at the local park with our dogs and bitch it out together.  That actually is really helpful because we are both able to get our feelings out and get the needed support from each other. 

CMGragain

Needlework.  I used to hand quilt, but , until recently, I couldn't with my eye problem.  Now I can read and do needlework again!  Yay!

buttercup1958

For me I do several things. I like reading, it could be a magazine, the internet, a book, ect. I also like to watch shows via the internet ha. I also love yoga, I'm not the best at it but it feels awesome. I love walking and making lists. For instance, I was feeling blah so I just mapped out the next semester and next year for classes. I realize I can get a minor so I'm going to do that. I feel like accomplishing something big or small always helps me too.

porkchops926

I used to smoke copious amounts of pot and eat Doritos.

Now I just try and find something dumb on tv to take my mind of things.

novella1186

mikenberger said:

I'm a spender. Its an expensive habit. And a drinker. I also like to talk to someone that has no clue whats going on or someone that's far removed from the situation. I talk to my favorite bartender about my bridal party issues because she doesn't know any of the people. I find that by me having to explain the whole thing to someone, I relieve stress by talking through it and finding solutions. Or it gives me an outlet to talk a little louder and use my hands more when I talk Stress is just no good and I know you've been under a lot of it lately good luck to you!

I'm typically a spender too. I especially like online shopping cuz it's exciting to me when the package shows up. It's like opening a present. But I've spent a bit too much lately, especially with Christmas shopping, and I didn't get the Christmas bonus I was expecting, so that was another huge source of stress, and now my finances are making me mad. (They're not that bad, but they're bad enough that I've cut myself off from shopping for a while).

larrygaga

I exercise. It takes so much focus to do so that I can't think of anything else. The same with painting. 

I also sit and make lists of things I need to do or things bothering me or whatever. That and writing my problems down always help.

mrscaty

I usually watch the 10 minute montage of soldiers coming home and surprising their loved ones and cry, it gets me every time <clicky>. Then I go to sleep for like 10 hours. 

Aray82

Running. Also baking/trying new recipes. Most of my stress comes from school and teaching, which is very sedentary so getting on my feet helps get me out of my head. And they're both pretty cheap pastimes, especially if you keep a stock of the basics for baking (flour, baking soda, sugar...) Today I made two giant loaves of Stromboli stuffed with broccoli, and two batches of chocolate toffee to get rid of the end of semester stress and Dh's job search stress. Toffee helps especially because you really have to watch it the whole time and not think about the crap in your head. Oh and after? You get to eat it with wine and a Christmas movie, to let the un-stressing continue

chibiyui

Drink.

Buy shit.

Play video games.

Drink soda.

[Deleted User]

Feel your pain- Saturday was awful and I was up at 4am bawling. Thank god for fiancé. Sometimes going to the gym helps me de-stress; and movies so I have something else to think about. Or a good book.

novella1186

FeeleyToBe said:

Feel your pain- Saturday was awful and I was up at 4am bawling. Thank god for fiancé. Sometimes going to the gym helps me de-stress; and movies so I have something else to think about. Or a good book.

I'm sorry to hear that I hope you're feeling better today

ahyatt87

I play with my beagles. I especially find it de-stressing to go to the dog park and play with them.

sophhabobopha

Netflix and Sims and candy. Feel better!

climbingsingle

Exercise
Shop
Yoga
Hang with my girls
Watch mindless tv
Read a book

jenna8984

I know a lot of people like the do things alone during that time like go for a run or watch movies. Mine is the opposite. DH & I will turn off our phones and tv, get in bed naked, give each other massages, take an hour nap snuggling. I always wake up totally stress free and feeling great. Serotonin and dopamine for the win. 

novella1186

ahyatt87 said:

I play with my beagles. I especially find it de-stressing to go to the dog park and play with them.

For some reason I read this as "play with my bagels" and pictures you playing with bagels and I was like "hm, I hope she's joking"

jenna8984

novella1186 said:

ahyatt87 said:

I play with my beagles. I especially find it de-stressing to go to the dog park and play with them.

For some reason I read this as "play with my bagels" and pictures you playing with bagels and I was like "hm, I hope she's joking"

hahahaha "And how are you today Mr. Cream Cheese?" "I'm great, how are you, Mr. Sesame Seed?" 

beethery

I read and play video games. The more in-depth the game, the better. I try to find games with tons of detail and very involved story and crafting options. Sometimes to the point where I buy the game guide to go with it.

I also look at Tumblr a lot. It's a good brain palate cleanser if you know what you're looking for. Cute animals, fashion, historical stuff, funny TV shit and gifs are CONSTANTLY going across my dash and it is really nice.

morewineplease

I find that things that require complete concentration help. Very hard or form intensive workouts work best. I took up boxing for a while and it was great. Not to sound to much like Robin from "How I Met Your Mother" but going to the range and learning to shoot was amazing. It takes complete concentration and can be very empowering. 

blabla89

Progressive muscle relaxation. I swear by it, especially for when I want to get to sleep but my thoughts are racing. I also find cooking, cleaning and organizing relaxing because I can throw myself into it and just not think about anything else for a while.

luckya23

If I'm stressed, it's usually about the state of my house, so I will clean something and get that out of the way.

Otherwise, I probably go shopping.

ahyatt87

jenna8984 said:

novella1186 said:

ahyatt87 said:

I play with my beagles. I especially find it de-stressing to go to the dog park and play with them.

For some reason I read this as "play with my bagels" and pictures you playing with bagels and I was like "hm, I hope she's joking"

hahahaha "And how are you today Mr. Cream Cheese?" "I'm great, how are you, Mr. Sesame Seed?" 

Lol, I wish I was cool enough to play with bagels. I would totally own that! Meh, I think I'll just stick to cute and somewhat noisy pups

theartistformerlyknownas

Something that takes all my attention - immerse myself into a book, or an art/craft project that requires a lot of attention to detail, hell a Harry Potter marathon. Something where I can just zone out into a different world.

raissyrais

Exercise, I throw in some more crunches than usual. I also have an extra cookie or extra cheese and of course, nothing better than a nice glass of red in the evening. Try to take your mind off things by doing something that will take up all your concentration! That way you won't be able to think of anything else.

redheadbride15

You sound like me... My FI is also amazingly patient with me when I flip out. Here's what I do: a vigorous work-out followed by personal pampering: a hot bath, shave, and pedicure. Meditation and massage. Talk therapy is good too - gotta give it time though.

vikinganna87

Like PP, getting OUTSIDE and exercising helps a lot.  I also have some "happy places" like specific cafes and the beach that I go to if I'm not feeling right.

I also find that if I'm stressed out, anxious or angry it's usually on my way home from work, which means my body is craving dinner.  Eating tends to help a lot.  Have you seen that movie A lot like love where every time Ashton Kutcher sees Amanda Peet she's totally flipping out and he calmly asks her if she's hungry?  Then he takes her out to eat.  I love it. 

amelisha

I need to feel productive to de-stress, I find. If I spend the day watching Netflix in bed I feel way worse than I did before and even more stressed out. So I clean closets or the tile grout or reorganize the spice cupboard or whatever, dumb stuff like that. I invent an unnecessary project like alphabetizing my thousand books or washing/folding/storing all our blankets, towels, and linen. That stuff gets me feeling meditative and soothed in some weird way.