For one of my little extra posts this week, I wanted to talk about how I manage stress. I spent the summer at a high-stress job, and followed it up by recently moving to a new high-stress job. Don’t get me wrong, I love my job. I love being there every day. But it still can wear on me.

Find your happy place.

I love to go on hikes or walks in local nature areas. I luckily live in a place where it’s not hard to find a nice trail to visit. This is my happy place. After work, the past few days, walking the dog around by the river has been an amazing stress reliever.

Pet a puppy!

Biscuit, my beautiful dog, is also a major stress reliever. I feel fantastic when I can sit and snuggle with her. It takes my mind off of the stress immediately.

Tea

A hot beverage is also an excellent stress reliever. I prefer tea over coffee for some reasons that I’ll get into in another post, but you can choose your own poison. I especially like this in conjunction with the petting of the puppy.

Have a (healthy) snack.

I should preface this by saying don’t eat your feelings. But eating a handful of carrots or peas it takes that need-to-eat-my-stress-away feeling away, but you won’t regret it later.

Those are my tips for an awesome stress-free life, but it’s definitely something that is in flux for me. I get stressed like everyone else, but I feel like these tips keep me on track.

What are your tips for destressing after a long day?