7 Ways to Leave Work Stress Behind

When your workday is done, do you still carry much of the stress of your work with you into your off-work hours? 

Whether you work at home or go to an office, it’s important for there to be a separation between your work and personal life. Without a clear gap, you will not be able to de-stress, and being able to leave that stress behind is crucially important to your quality of life. Holding onto work concerns can also result in chronic stress, which contributes to many serious health issues. 

If you’re finding that you continue to think about work events after working hours or are having difficulty with letting go of your stress, consider these activities to melt away your workday stress: 

1. Pause your work email and social media notifications. Turn your tech notifications off for a couple hours while you have dinner and enjoy the company of your family and friends. You’ll feel less stressed and your relationships and social life will benefit. Eating your dinner in peace also helps digestion.
2. Exercise. Hands down, the best way to decrease stress in your life is to exercise. Not only can exercise help to lower cortisol (a stress hormone), but you’ll also be focused on the exercise and not what’s going on at work.
3. Get a plant. Having something very simple to take care of and nurture can be an easy way to lower your stress. Plus, if you grow a food plant, you’ll get to eat what it produces! Growing your own food can makes you feel good in many ways!
4. Vent when necessary. If you tend to keep things bottled up inside, consider making a healthy change in your life and discuss the stressful issues with a close friend, family member, support group, or counselor when you feel it’s necessary. They can help you work through and maybe even resolve the issue.
5. Avoid stimulants. Coffee, tea, energy drinks – they all contain stimulants like caffeine and taurine which can make you feel wired, and in some cases, more prone to feeling stressed out. Avoiding or limiting your consumption of stimulant-rich foods and drinks can help your body feel more balanced and lower your cortisol levels.
6. Engage in an activity that you love. Whether it’s a hobby, dancing, or playing with your kids, doing something that you enjoy takes your mind off work and melts away your stress. Taking time to do these things is never selfish, but a vitally important part of healthy self-care! 
7. Meditate. Meditating can reduce stress, strengthen your mental and physical health, and bring you the serenity of greater inner peace. All it takes is practice. Meditating for a few minutes when your workday is done will give you that much-needed gap between work and free time, so you can leave your work stress behind and fully enjoy your off-work hours. 

Don’t feel continuously tied to your work any longer! Try these tips and give yourself relief from stress so that you can return to work more renewed.