When it comes to stress, you’re far from powerless—there are a number of positive habits and behaviors you can use to effectively manage your mental state and bring your stress under control.
The first thing to remember is that your mental state is your responsibility.

The simple truth is you can’t control how your boss acts. You can’t control what your partner says. You can’t control the driver who cuts you off in traffic. But you can control yourself.

Others will do what they do, but how you respond to them—whether you take it in stride or freak out—is your decision alone.

Take a moment to consider how you have been responding to the stressors in your life. Almost everyone has some habit they turn to when life gets rough—what’s yours?

Do you reach for a cigarette or alcoholic beverage? Do you take your stress out on others? Do you overeat? Though they might provide short term relief, these behaviors are ultimately self-destructive. They hold you back from what you really want—a peaceful, balanced and abundantly healthy mind and body.

Learning to Relax

So what can you do? Next time you notice yourself feeling like the sky is about to fall, quickly and effectively bring your thoughts into positive alignment with one of the following simple techniques:

* Deep breathing. When you become stressed, take a moment and pay close attention to your breathing. Shallow breathing leads to greater stress and more negative physical responses. So breathe deeply instead. Let your stomach expand and contract as you breathe in and out.

This is called diaphragmatic breathing. Count the seconds as you breathe in—one, two, three, four. Hold for another four seconds. Then exhale slowly, for eight whole seconds. Keep doing this until you relax.

* Mental imagery. If you observe your thoughts during stressful situations, you may be surprised by how negative they are. These thoughts create a kind of feedback loop that only reinforces your negative emotions and causes you to feel even more stressed. One way to break this pattern of negative thinking is with positive mental imagery.

Visualize the calmest, happiest and most comfortable setting you can imagine, and mentally place yourself right into the middle of it. It might be a warm sunny beach with a calm breeze, or a peaceful afternoon in your coziest chair. Whatever it is, picture it as vividly as you can.

Make it real. Involve all your senses—what do you see, smell, taste, hear, feel? Smile inside, and become involved in the scene as it unfolds.

* Muscle relaxation. It might sound counterintuitive, but to relax, sometimes you have to tense up! But only for a moment—tense and relax different parts of your body beginning and the top of your head and continuing down. Include your eyes, neck, jaw, shoulders, legs, feet and any other part of your body that feels tight. Tense up, then let go, and feel the tension flow out of you as you relax.

* Biofeedback. With biofeedback, you learn to control your mood through careful attention to your mental and physical state. The training is simple and inexpensive and can even be done at home using easy-to-use feedback equipment. If you want to, you can also schedule an appointment with a trained biofeedback practitioner who will walk you through techniques used to reduce and eliminate the negative effects of stress on the body.

The great thing about these techniques is that with practice they become almost effortless and so easy that you can use them in anywhere. When things get crazy and your life is most stressful, you might not be able to find a comfortable, quiet place to unwind, but you can still use these relaxation techniques to manage your emotions and reclaim control of your mental state.

Making this kind of real positive change is never easy, but it can save your life. Your health depends directly on how you manage your stress. So take a deep breath, and start helping yourself let it go.

Related posts:

1. What is Anxiety?
2. How to Understand Anxiety and Depression

1) Only talk and think about the things you like. Devote most of your head space and mental real estate to what you love and desire in your life. Positive Thoughts = Positive Stuff. Underrated good things like joy, peace, contentment will be yours.

2) Never talk and think about the things you dislike about your life. You may have to take action to deal with them but resist giving them any head space. If your spending a lot of time thinking about bad things you will end up with more bad stuff. Negative Thoughts = Negative Stuff.

3) Stop complaining because this means you are violating rule number #2 which will lead to more of what you are trying to limit in your life: the stuff you want less of – the bad things.

4) Start living like a successful person. Dress nicely, smile often, stand up straight and look other people in the eye when you talk.

5) Stop trying to be perfect. We all have cracks “to let the light in”. People that seem perfect are obnoxious. The important thing is this: Are you doing YOUR best?

6) Motivate yourself daily with inspiring video, music, books, articles, and uplifting people. The internet makes this really easy. Make a habit to start everyday with inspiration.

7) Enjoy your life today. Most of what we want we can already have with very little money. The simple things are what give us true pleasure. Determine what makes you feel joy and start including these into your daily life.

8) Spend time in nature. Studies have proven that people feel much better when they are looking at nature. Get outside everyday for a short walk or to sit on a park bench and just absorb the good feelings.

9) Stop comparing yourself to others. The only thing that you need to concern yourself with is doing your very best in life. Be honest about this. Are there areas in your life that you are purposely holding back your best?

10) Do more of what works and less of what isn’t working. Everyday take a few minutes to ask yourself two questions: What did I do today that worked really well to get me closer to the kind of life I want? What did I do today that weakened my attempts to change my life for the better. Each day try to have more of what works and less of what does not work for you. This personal insight will change your life for the better.

Related articles about getting the life you want:

• Want to Save Money in the New Year? (abcnews.go.com)
• The power of gratitude, a year-round gift (cnn.com)
• Personal Meaning Is An Inside Job (boomercafe.com)

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If you’re like me you’ve had more than enough. It’s time to make a positive change. You need a detox. This can be accomplished through any of a number of easy practices. Some people detox through fitness, like walking or jogging. Others enjoy the detoxifying effect of yoga or relaxed mindfulness. These can do wonders for your body and help to cleanse your system. But even more powerful –and it seems more popular too–is a simple detox diet.

What changes are necessary in a detox diet? Remember that there are two goals to detox. One, you want to do what you can to reduce the flow of new toxins into your body. Two, you want to clear out the ones that are already in you. For the first goal, it is highly recommended that you only eat organic foods. This alone can cut a huge amount of harmful toxins from your diet. For the second, identify foods that are high in nutrition and antioxidants and begin to work them into your diet. Try fresh vegetables, fruits, beans, and nuts, and look for foods high in fiber. You don’t want to hear it, but that morning coffee–or evening glass of wine–may be doing you more harm than good and should be avoided if possible while detoxing.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The benefit of making these simple lifestyle changes can be enormous. When done right, a detox diet can breathe new life into both your body and mind. Of course, the results vary from person to person and depend entirely on you, but detox diets have been known to clear up lifelong skin problems, lead to smoother digestion and bring order to troubled bowel movements. Your body will show its thanks with a new vibrancy and aliveness that will surprise you. Somehow, the day just seems brighter once you have detoxed the nasty toxins from your system!

To make sure the detox process goes as smoothly as possible, take it slow at first and try to get started on a day when you can rest, relax and let your body react. Once you’ve begun to detox, you may experience certain effects of the toxins leaving your body, and as your body adjusts to the new diet. You may feel tired or sore or have headaches at first. Drink water–lots of water! You’ll need it because you may get diarrhea and you need to stay hydrated.

Despite the incredible benefits, there are some important things to remember. When you see the great effects a detox diet has on your health you may be tempted to overdo it–it’s easy to get too much of a good thing! Don’t detox too often for too long. A couple times per year is a good pace, and summer is the best time. Also, be aware that detox diets are not necessarily for everyone. When pregnant or nursing, women require certain extra nutrients that may be hard to come by when detoxing. People with specific medical conditions should make sure that the diet will not make things worse. “Talk to your doctor before making any big health decisions” might seem cliche after hearing it in so many articles and commercials but it is a very important step. Ask a doctor or nutritionist whether a detox diet is a good fit for your body.

Related articles about Body Cleansing and Detox Diets:

• Living and Raw Food Diets (thebestrawfooddiet.com)
• Alkaline Eating for Better Body Chemistry, PH Levels, and Overall Health (simplygreen.co.za)
• The Best Sources of Lycopene – Learn About the Best Food and How Lycopene Actually Works in Our Body (thebestrawfooddiet.com)

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