Stress can manifest in your life in different ways including physically, emotionally, and cognitively. Feeling stressed is the worst, and definitely something I know a thing or two about. As a grad student, I’ve experienced stress in a million ways. Trying to balance work, school, homework, friends, family, hobbies, and more, can feel IMPOSSIBLE.
How in the world are we supposed to keep up with the demands of life without wanting to scream, or curl up in a ball, or just hop on a plane and run away to some exotic land? Ok, maybe that’s a little dramatic but trust me, I get it!
Simple stated, stress feels really awful. Especially when it feels like your life is out of your control and there’s nothing you can do about it. But there IS something you can do about it, and I’m here to tell you what that is. In this article, I’m going to share with you 10 signs your stressed out and what you can do about it!
1. You’re easily irritated and quick to snap.
Ok, guilty! Whenever I’m stressed and not in the mood, I can be pretty quick to give attitude or snap. When you’ve got a lot on your mind, it’s common to feel irritated and in turn, take it out on others.
What to do about it: When your experiencing stress, pause and take a moment to breathe before speaking to someone. This can prevent you from saying something you don’t mean. Also, if you know you’re in a bad mood, there’s no shame in asking whoever you’re with to give you a little space until you relax. And if you do end up snapping, be thoughtful enough to admit it and apologize.
2. You struggle feeling motivated to do daily tasks.
When you’re life is stressful, feeling the motivation to do daily tasks can feel really hard. Clean your house? Go grocery shopping and do cooking? Workout and study? These things that require effort can feel impossible. You might feel too sluggish, too tired, or too busy to find the motivation to take action.
What to do about it: Create time in your schedule for one small step toward your goal. It should be both manageable and realistic. (ex. Spending 30 mins in the gym per day, or studying for 25 mins per day). Another idea is to find an accountability partner to help keep you on track.
3. You’re experiencing headaches or stomach aches.
Headaches and digestive issues are commonly related to stress, and there’s actually a lot of science behind this! When we get really stressed, our bodies can perceive that as danger and activate our fight or flight response. This response produces adrenaline, causes our heart race, and our bodies to shake. It can even slow down our digestion and restrict our blood vessels. As a result, we get headaches, stomach aches, and end up feeling exhausted.
What to do about it: Practicing mindfulness has really helped me relax before I get to the point of headaches and stomach aches. Check out: What is Mindfulness +7 Easy Ways to Practice it Daily
4. You experience tightness and tension in your muscles.
Anyone else have a really tight and stiff back? When we are stressed, we tend to become really rigid and uptight rather than flexible and fluid.
What to do about it: Give your body some TLC! I love a deep tissue massage or acupuncture. If those aren’t possible options for you, try some stretching, yoga, or exercises to loosen things up.
5. You feel exhausted all the time.
Feeling stressed really takes a toll on your mind and body. If your body perceives that it’s in danger, it’s going to have to work twice as hard to stay alert and keep you safe. It can also be really hard to get quality sleep when you’ve got so much on your mind!
What to do about it: Mindfulness and meditation can help you get into that deeper relaxed state. Try listening to a guided meditation before you fall asleep.
6. You feel like you work so hard all the time, but hardly make any progress.
There’s always more laundry to do and dishes to wash and food to cook. There’s always more work to do and plans to make. When your stressed, it can feel like you’re constantly chasing a finish line that keeps getting further and further away.
What to do about it: Decluttering my home and your mind has been really helpful for me to get a handle on everything fighting for my attention. Although I’m not a hardcore minimalist, I really love and appreciate minimalism because it allows you to focus on what truly matters, and remove what doesn’t. Check out: 12 Powerful Books on Minimalism and Simple Living.
7. There’s so much to do, but you have a difficult time deciding how to start.
It can be hard to know where to start when you’re to-do list seems like it’s a mile long. In fact, it can be so overwhelming that you end up doing nothing- because making a decision on what to do first is too overwhelming. This is called analysis paralysis.
What to do about it: One thing that’s really helped me is overcoming the need to be perfect. If you’re a perfectionist, it can be really hard to make decisions and take action because you’re so afraid of getting it wrong or making mistakes. Here are 5 Ways to Overcome Perfectionism and Embrace your Imperfect Life.
8. You have trouble sleeping.
Maybe you have trouble falling asleep, or staying asleep. Or maybe the quality of your sleep doesn’t leave you feeling refreshed and energized. When your stressed, your body isn’t able to get into that deep, relaxed state you need to feel completely rested.
What to do about it: Aside from trying a guided meditation, practice deep breathing exercises before you fall asleep or journaling. When you’ve got a lot of stress, you might not have a constructive way to release it all. Writing it all down can help release it and give you some clarity around your issues.
9. You don’t have enough energy to put effort into physical appearance and taking care of yourself.
Sweatpants, leggings, and messy bun, anyone? Having the energy and motivation to take care of yourself and keep up with your physical appearance can feel really hard when your stressed out! You’ve got bigger things to worry about, and there’s nothing wrong with that.
What to do about it: Create a healthy self care routine! Check out 20 Self Care Ideas for a Perfect Morning Routine or 12 Self Care Ideas for a Night Time Routine
10. You have racing thoughts that cause you to worry.
Stress can cause you to have racing thoughts of worry. You might find yourself having thoughts like, “I’ll never get all of this done on time!” or “I want it to be perfect, but I don’t think it will be.” or “I don’t want to let anyone down!”. These thoughts are normal, but can cause you to feel really anxious.
What to do about it: Try practicing positive affirmations. Affirmations are short sentences you repeat to train your subconscious brain. They can help transform negative beliefs and help you become more confident and happy. Check out 16 Bed Time Affirmations.
Stress can feel really awful and manifest in your life in so many different ways. Stress can take over your life and cause you to feel out of control. I hope identifying these signs of stress were helpful so you can take back your control and manage it. Please let me know below if you have any questions or comments!
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