Reduce Stress Naturally: 8 Excellent Psychological Techniques

What the latest psychology studies tell us about effective techniques for reducing stress.

What the latest psychology studies tell us about effective techniques for reducing stress.

The best way to deal with anxiety and stress is, of course, to identify the source and get rid of it.

If only this were possible.

You can try to avoid people who stress you out, say ‘no’ to things you know will cause you anxiety and stress, and generally do less stuff.

Unfortunately, this is often out of the question or you would have already done it.

Stress is with us and has to be coped with (although, stress is good for mental health — up to a point).

So, below are 8 psychology studies from the members-only section of PsyBlog that explain how research has found that stress can be reduced.

(If you are not already, find out how to become a PsyBlog member here.)

  1. This Simple Dietary Change Reduces Stress
  2. The Wonderful Mental State That Reduces Stress
  3. How Nature Heals The Brain Of Stress
  4. A Loving Way To Reduce Stress In A Crisis
  5. The Easiest Way To Reduce Stress
  6. Stress Can Be Reduced By Combining These 2 Therapies
  7. The Beautiful Sound That Reduces Anxiety, Paranoia And Depression
  8. Petting Cats Or Dogs Reduces Stress Hormone

→ Related: This Is The Most Stressful Personality Trait

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The Surprising Effects Of Stress On Your Brain

“When we are afraid, when we are threatened in any way, our cortisol levels go up.”

“When we are afraid, when we are threatened in any way, our cortisol levels go up.”

Stress can literally shrink your brain, research suggests.

Middle-aged people with high levels of the ‘stress hormone’ cortisol also perform worse on memory tests than those with average levels of the hormone.

Common approaches such as mindfulness, moderate exercise and better sleep can all help reduce stress.

Professor Sudha Seshadri, who led the study, said:

“In our quest to understand cognitive aging, one of the factors attracting significant interest and concern is the increasing stress of modern life.

One of the things we know in animals is that stress can lead to cognitive decline.

In this study, higher morning cortisol levels in a large sample of people were associated with worse brain structure and cognition.”

The study involved brain scans of 2,231 people who also had their cortisol levels tested.

Cortisol is a hormone that rises in the body with stress levels.

The tests revealed that those with higher levels of cortisol had smaller brain volumes and worse memory.

However, no one in the study had signs of dementia.

Dr Justin B. Echouffo-Tcheugui, the study’s lead author, said:

“Cortisol affects many different functions, so it is important to fully investigate how high levels of the hormone may affect the brain.

While other studies have examined cortisol and memory, we believe our large, community-based study is the first to explore, in middle-aged people, fasting blood cortisol levels and brain volume, as well as memory and thinking skills.”

Professor Seshadri said:

“The faster pace of life today probably means more stress, and when we are stressed, cortisol levels increase because that is our fight-or-flight response.

When we are afraid, when we are threatened in any way, our cortisol levels go up.

This study adds to the prevailing wisdom that it’s never too early to be mindful of reducing stress.”

The study was published in the journal Neurology (Echouffo-Tcheugui et al., 2018).

Weight Loss: Awareness Of This Emotion Helps People Eat Less

Head and neck pain and problems sleeping are common signs of this emotion.

Head and neck pain and problems sleeping are common signs of this emotion.

Reducing stress can help people control their weight, a study finds.

Overweight mothers ate less fast-food and fewer high-fat snacks after taking a stress reduction course.

The course focused on how the stressed mothers could lead a more healthy lifestyle and not on lecturing them.

For example, they were shown how to recognise when they were stressed and to take a deep breath to cope with it.

Mothers watched videos that helped them with prioritising and time management.

Dr Mei-Wei Chang, the study’s first author, said:

“We used the women’s testimonies in the videos and showed their interactions with their families to raise awareness about stressors.

After watching the videos, a lot of intervention participants said, ‘This is the first time I’ve realized I am so stressed out’ — because they’ve lived a stressful life.

Many of these women are aware of feeling impatient, and having head and neck pain and trouble sleeping — but they don’t know those are signs of stress.”

The study included 338 overweight mothers on low incomes who all had children under 5-years-old.

Many were facing a number of difficulties, including poor living conditions, unstable relationships and financial problems.

Of the total, 212 participants were shown videos in which other women like them gave testimonials about food preparation, healthy eating, exercise and managing stress.

They also had access to an online support group.

The results showed that mothers who reduced their stress also decreased their consumption of high-fat foods.

Dr Chang said:

“It’s not that these women didn’t want to eat healthier.

If you don’t know how to manage stress, then when you are so stressed out, why would you care about what you eat?”

The tips mothers were given were very practical, such as using a chart to assign jobs to their children and rewarding kids for being well-behaved.

For stress management, mothers were encouraged not to blame themselves, but instead to think about how they could solve the problem.

Dr Chang said:

“I learned a lot from those women.

Everything needs to be practical and applicable to daily life — anytime, anywhere.”

Self-awareness of stress is important, said Dr Chang:

“We raised their awareness about stressors in their lives, and unfortunately a lot of these problems are not within their control.

So we teach them ways to control their negative emotions — remember that this is temporary, and you can get through it.

And give them confidence to look to the future.”

→ Read on: self-compassion is vital for stress reduction.

The study was published in the journal Nutrients (Chang et al., 2021).

The Amount Of Stress That Improves Your Memory (M)

The level of stress linked to greater activity in parts of the brain involved in working memory.

The level of stress linked to greater activity in parts of the brain involved in working memory.


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The Mental Health Benefits Of Gardening (M)

Humans probably have a natural, in-built tendency to seek connections with nature and other forms of life.

Humans probably have a natural, in-built tendency to seek connections with nature and other forms of life.


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