April is Stress Awareness Month, a month dedicated to the causes and cures of stress. This year’s theme is #LeadWithLove, encouraging an approach to treat ourselves and others with kindness, compassion, and acceptance.

Stress affects everyone, regardless of age, background, or profession. It can show up in many forms—whether physical, emotional, or mental—and can impact our daily lives in significant ways. It also affects our ability to concentrate, manage relationships, and make decisions.

During Stress Awareness Month, it's important to recognise the signs of stress and take steps toward managing it, whether through relaxation techniques, reaching out for support, or making time for self-care. Everyone's experience with stress is unique, but understanding its impact can help foster a healthier, more resilient approach to life's challenges.

There are different ways you can combat your stress, from staying active to getting enough sleep. Take a look at these tips below:

• Be active: Being active won’t make stress disappear, but any form of physical activity can be a stress reliever. Physical activity will help you to release feel-good endorphins that will also boost your wellbeing. Exercise will also allow you to clear your mind. You could do anything from cleaning the house and gardening to going on a run or cycling to relieve stress.
• Eating healthily: Having a healthy diet is an important part of taking care of yourself. Eating fruits and vegetables will keep your body and mind healthy. 
• Connect with others: When you’re stressed, often you may want to isolate yourself, but this can sometimes only make things worse. Instead, reach out to friends or family and make connections with others. Social interaction can be a good stress reliever because it offers distraction while you also receive support from those around you. 
• Sleep well: Stress can cause you have to poor sleep quality, but sleep is the time your brain and body recharge after a tough day. Most adults need around 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night to live a healthy life. How long you sleep can affect your mood and energy levels, thus having an impact on your stress levels. Before going to bed each night, try to relax -  you could do this by reading a book or listening to soothing music, and be sure to put your phone away.
• Keep a journal: Writing your thoughts and feelings down can be a good way to get everything out of your mind. Don’t think about what to write, just let it flow without worrying about the words or the grammar.
• Have some “me time”: Many of us work long hours which can be stressful when it feels like you’re never truly away from work. Take some time out for yourself either after work or on your days off to do something you enjoy and recharge.

Other Resources to Help Stress

Stress can manifest in different symptoms such as constant worry, headaches, dizziness, aches and pains, and much more. If you need help and advice, there are many resources out there:

• Breathing exercises are great for stress relief and are easy to do. Doing these regularly will help to keep your stress at bay. Find out more about breathing exercises here.
• Support groups are also a fantastic way to get your thoughts and feelings out there with like-minded people, whether this is face-to-face or online. Check out this information from Mind on support groups.
• A mind plan could help you with tips on how to deal with your anxiety and stress. The NHS has a tool where you can answer a few questions and based on this, they will send a mind plan to your emails. To access this, visit here.
• CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) is a talking therapy that could also help to combat your stress. You can find NHS talking therapy services on their website.

Thornfields self-care and wellbeing course 

Want to learn how to tackle the "worry habit"? Curious about the difference between pressure and stress? Never heard of the Kamin Curve? Then our course is for you: Sign up by clicking here.