1.Take care of your body. Eat some healthy maybe a fruit that is high in antioxidants. Have you ever noticed when you are cranky and you eat something you seem to feel better? Well the same thought applies here. What you take in if it is high in vitamins the vitamins will help your mood, and possibly help you to deal with stress.

2.Give yourself a minute. Take a break, walk away from the situation. By taking your leave, and giving yourself time you can reassess how you actually feel about what is going on. You may be reacting rashly under the pressure. Take a moment to really think about what is the right course of action.

3. Laugh. You have many choices here. You can laugh at how ridiculous or ironic the situation actually is, or how your face looked when you felt stressed. Now many people have phones with Internet on it, down load the joke of the day, some comics you might like, or your favorite comedian. Just find something humorous.

4. Learn some time management techniques. Managing time is one of the biggest instigators of stress in peoples personal lives. Get a planner, do not over-scheduled, learn to say no, do not over commit yourself. Do not procrastinate. Be organized. What do you want to accomplish today? Make your goals and stick to them. Your goal is less stress, let that be the little voice in the back of your mind that motivates you.

5.Think positive. You can do it. Positive thinking is very powerful, and it can change the way you feel about yourself or a situation. Say something positive. Positive self talk is very helpful in this regard. Many cynics bag on positive self talk but really if someone pays you a compliment about what you look like or something you have accomplished do you feel good? Of course! This is really no different. You are just taking charge of your own ability to make yourself feel good, and your stress go away.

6. Listen to your favorite music. And turn it up! Let it move your stressed out mind to another place. Focus on the rhythm, or the peace it is bringing you. It is all about you and the music, NOT the stress you felt.

7. Take a deep breath. As you exhale push all the negative thoughts out of your mind. You can even do a breathing exercise. Breathing exercises are growing in popularity because they are so convenient and effective. These exercises can even be done in two minutes, at your desk, sitting up. Pretty good huh?

8. Say no to being a worry wart. Say no to the negative thought process. Worry fills you with undue anxiety. If you can't change the situation right now it's time to focus on something more productive. Less worry, more living your life.

9. Read a good book, newspaper, favorite website, whatever. Taking 5 to 10 minutes for yourself. It could be the best thing for you in that particular situation. You may feel refresh you so you can return to the situation in a new frame of mind.

10. Shift your view of what is stressful. Refocus your mind. You could look at those stressors as a challenge that you could grow from. Once you overcome one of these challenges (or stressors) you will feel accomplished. Bask in that feeling, you have accomplished something for yourself.

Copyright 2009 Brenda Hoddinott: You may freely republish this article, provided the text, author credit, the active links and this copyright notice remain intact.