you might’t always avoid stress, which is why it is important to know how to handle stressful situations.

Getting better at managing stress is a great way to become more resilient and able to confront future challenges.

Click below to listen now.

a woman in an office with post-its stuck on her and the wall behind her

Jessica Peterson / Getty Images

It can negatively impact both physical and mental health.

These techniques can help significantly if you face a life crisis or overwhelming stressor.

But ff your stress feels unmanageable, seek help from a mental health professional.

Identifying the cause isn’t as always as easy as it sounds.

Viewing the same situation as a threat can lead to greater stress and worse performance.

There are a number of problems associated with avoiding the source of your stress.

Research has found, for example, that thought patterns can contribute to increases in the stress hormone cortisol.

To begin to make that choice, it helps to become aware of your habitual thinking patterns.

This exercise can help you tosee these patterns more clearlyand can help you to relieve stress in the process.

It involves more than merely trying to look on the bright side, although that is part of it.

Learning how toshift your focuscan help alter what is possible for you.

For example, you may, for financial reasons, be unable to quit a job you dont enjoy.

All of these can alter how you feel when you are at this job.

Change can bring stress, so its important to choose the changes that matter most.

The thing about tolerations is that they add up to bigger stress.

Cutting out tolerationscan relieve stress so you could tolerate more things you cant change.

Practicing resilience-building activities can help you develop new skills for managing stress.

The more they become an automatic habit, the less your stressors will bother you.

Self Care

Everything feels more stressful when you are tired, hungry, and run down.

It also means that you have fewer coping resources at your disposal.

This means that you are more likely to react to stress rather than respond to it.

Or you might let things snowball until things become even more overwhelming.

Better still,regular exercisecan help you to become less reactive toward stress.

Many meditation techniques work well, so try a few and stick with a favorite technique that feels right.

Unfortunately, that’s only possible to an extent.

2018;5(4):e11290.

2019;24(2):315-333. doi:10.1111/bjhp.12355

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.Meditation: In Depth.