Beat Stress without Breaking Sweat

As circa 2017 rolls to an end, I am left wondering at the speed at which it flew. The roller-coaster ride has left me breathless and panting. As the days flew by all I was doing was running to catch-up on tasks. Stress has been my arch-enemy for years now and we are often found squaring each other up, looking in the eye and getting ready to fight. This year was no different from the last though over the years I have invented many old fashioned ways to beat stress, my arch-nemesis.

Stress, that dreaded six-letter word never leaves the modern person even for a minute. Whether you are committed to working for one organization or juggling work for a multiple, like I do these days, it keeps dogging your footsteps all the time. The only saving grace this year was the fact that I didn't have to travel as much as I was earlier in my full-time job holder avatar. But, working from home or even from one office for another can be equally tricky because the distractions or the lack of them are often enough to bring on their own set of issues.

Over the years I have found several easy and cost-effective ways to stay happy. I would like to believe that I am my own anti-stress ninja. So because I an feeling extremely generous today, I thought of sharing some here with anyone who'd care to read this post. 

Here's my list:

Meditation: I absolutely swear by it. If you can just sit is one space and count your breath and feel it going in and coming out for even 15 minutes in a day you will be able to face the day much easily.

Chanting: Chant anything that makes you feel good. It could be an ancient and holy mantra or something that you have made up yourself to give you a morale booster. For example, you can chant, "I shall overcome anything that comes my way" over and over right before you start your day and just see how it effects your psyche. You can chant anytime of the day and under any circumstance to overcome your latent fear, fatigue or worries. It always helps.

Deep Breathing: No. This is not a new-age fad. Deep breathing is actually helpful. If you are unable to make a choice or you have too much work that is all on priority, deep breathing will help you overcome any kind of panic. Close your eyes, take a deep breath. Hold it for a few seconds. Pass it out through your mouth. Repeat a few times till the palpitation in you heart has settled down and so has your brain. Don't let panic get the better of you. Never decide when your head and heart are in turmoil.

Walking: This is the best way to settle your mind though I don't walk so much these days as I used to earlier because of the high rate of pollution but, if you are in a deeply troubled state and need to clear your head, walking till you sweat really helps. In case you have trouble sleeping then, half an hour of brisk walking before you sit down for dinner really helps. It works up your appetite and tires you enough to make you fall into sleep on time. In case you have time to take longer walks, then do so by all means, walking is the best cardio exercise you can indulge yourself in. I walk alone but, you can also do it in a group however, see to it that the group should not be walking too slow. The walk that will help you overcome stress and help you sleep needs to be brisk and long. Hang out with your friends at leisure at some other time if they want a leisurely canter with lots of gossip thrown in.

Listen to other peoples' problems: This is a very useful therapy but, indulge only if you can be unbiased and can keep things to yourself. By just listening to other peoples' problems and suggesting solutions as a third party helps you to unplug your immediate worries and lets you think. This helps immensely because, it helps your head and heart to detach from your own sufferings and start thinking of solutions. However, do it ONLY if you can be unbiased and also if you can stay detached to be able to guide and help others without getting sucked into their problems and adding to your own.

Help Out: Do it purely as a physical activity that goes on to help others. It need not necessarily be for an NGO or in a slum. You can help someone ill in the neighborhood by cooking for their family or taking care of their infant or a pet. You could help your elderly neighbor by watering their plants or buying grocery for them when you go out to buy your own. This kind of neighborly volunteering helps you build relationships with real people who appreciate your help and it is not something you need to go out of your way to do either. It's like car pool. You pick up a few people to ride with you because there is space in your car and they are going your way. 

Adopt a Pet: It could be a tree that needs watering or a stray cat or dog or any other animal or bird that needs to be fed. You don't need to bring them home, just ensure that they are fed and happy wherever they are and run them to the neighborhood vet if they are not feeling well.

Start a Hobby: This is the best way to beat the blues. Pick up a hobby that doesn't need too much time or expense like, cooking or clicking pictures with your smartphone. You could also take up painting or singing if you have the time and a teacher nearby. Hobbies make you happy. They give you a sense of accomplishment. You could just get a bunch of underprivileged kids on your balcony and teach them the English alphabet if teaching is what you like. The sense of joy is immense.

Travel: Go away for a few days if you can. You could go solo or take that one dear friend with you who never badgers you. Taking a simple break is always a great therapy for a stressed mind. If time is a constrain then play tourist in your city. Instead of hitting the mall, go to a museum or for a painting exhibition. Walk around a famous monument, eat local food from authentic joints or do a picnic with your family on a Sunday. A change of scene is always a great detox. It will help you overcome your immediate problems and think clearly.

Sleep: This is my personal favorite though it is often only a short-term solution. If I don't know the answer to a problem, I sleep on it. Sleep refreshes the body and relaxes the mind. Usually, it is easier to find the solution to your problems when you wake up with an uncluttered mind. 

Smile: This is perhaps the most difficult to do than all the others that I have noted above. But, if you can crack a smile and think of a funny incident in the midst of a chaotic day, your stress levels will take a southwards plunge. A smile is like a personal cuddle. It warms you up from inside and immediately relaxes you. Personally, I think of the antics of my young niece whenever I feel stressed. It never fails to make me smile even on a really dark day of work. Whether sitting in a traffic jam or unable to prioritize work for the day despite multiple deadlines, a simple happy thought and the smile that it brings can relax you in seconds. So, keep the happy memories handy on a difficult day. Think of all the happy times you have had and smile a lot. 

These are a few things that I practice to de-clutter and reactivate my brains on stressful days and even when things are going great. The idea is to practice these things so that they become a part of your life and personality. With these simple things as a part of your life, you can breathe happy and stay stress-free all the time. 

(Images courtesy, the Internet)

Paris on My Mind: Flights of Fancy

What's a human without active imagination that allows for flights of fancy? Erm... Very successful? Maybe in terms of money amassed yes, but, is this person as stress-free as someone who can shut off all reality and go on an Everest expedition if nothing's working out in real life?

The answer, is not easy. It will vary from person to person but, for someone who does not know what's a lucid dream outside of the dictionary it may not cut ice. However, for someone who uses imagination to hibernate like me, it is the best and the most heavenly de-stress exercise ever.

Having a strong imagination has huge advantages. Whenever bored or irritated by a power cut or a droning voice in a boring meeting on a sultry afternoon, I can happily  imagine myself at far away places doing things that can only be imagined!

Please don't start smirking yet. Have you never read Calvin and Hobbes? What I meant was things like wearing a bikini and emerging from a tranquil sea at Casablanca or eating gelato in Rome at an exquisite piazza with pigeons flying around me or winning huge amounts at a casino in Las Vegas and drinking champagne from a glass slipper in Paris!

Somehow I find my imaginary self slipping in to Paris pretty often. It is not unusual since there's hardly anyone with overactive imagination who does not imagine waking up smelling roses and drinking coffee looking at the iconic Eiffel Tower. (Here I must tell you that I detest coffee and tea is my poison but, in an imaginary situation...)

But, sometimes I imagine more. Much more. I imagine walking down a quaint rue and bumping into a street artist who then shares a sandwich with me and tells me about the underground art districts. I sit around chatting with him (though I speak not a word of French) while he makes a very flattering picture of me.

Van Gogh's Paris Cafe at Night

I often find myself strolling off to small street-side cafes to drink the house wine with cheese that the waiter suggests while smiling at absolute strangers who may think I'm slightly crazy or shrug indulgently (here I imagine a very Gallic shrug). I often see myself walking down a bridge looking down at the mighty Seine and staring at the blue sky while listening to Dido sing Paris in my ears. Sigh!
Dido: Paris (Listen to this!)

I sometimes see myself at the front rows of high-end fashion shows wondering with one raised eyebrow on who wears such unwearable clothes and walking out mid-show to go looking for arty boutiques that sell style that can be worn with elan at any place and in any decade. I would of course be wearing impossibly high heels in all these dreams without getting a killer backache. I'd also be at least a good six inches taller than my real 5'2". My ankles however, remain mine because they are very nice as they are.

To my heat or cold-strapped mind (depending on the season in Delhi) Paris is often the chic place where I write this supposedly huge epic thriller with loads of swashbuckling adventure and buckets of intrigue and espionage mixed with high-octane action!

Sometimes just strolling around and smiling at strangers is not enough. Those days I add adventure to the mix and solve a Da Vinci Code-type mystery and meet a really mysterious guy who whisks me into a world of crime and quest. Well...

Once the book is out and an international bestseller, everyone thinks it's a great story to make a movie and it gets adapted into a Hollywood blockbuster with Humphrey Bogart and Gregory Peck in the lead roles. Didn't I tell you this is all imagination. Death is never a deterrent. I even met Marty once. Marty who? You gotta be kidding folks! Marty McFly! Back to the Future! Come on!!!

He wanted to take me on a ride in the time machine but, Doc Brown wanted Marty to take him somewhere in the past and fast. I of course, never have the time or patience to wait in a lucid dream. So, I never got to travel in time. But, I know I will - soon.

My best moments in Paris are when I sit sipping wine with Van Gogh while he tells me how no one understands him while I keep quite because he is from the past so, I cannot tell him about the present. Mostly I am happy that he got to off-load because he needed to - all his life. Maybe I did get to ride with Marty. It is very difficult to keep track of how and why in a dream!

There are thousands of adventures I've had there and I know there are millions that still await me as I walk through the two iconic bookshops on the Left Bank, Shakespeare and Company and get to be awed by the charisma of Earnest Hemingway while browsing banned literature! Oh! did I say, "...as I walk through...?" Sorry, got carried away multi-tasking! You know writing and dreaming are so interconnected they could be twins!!!

I know that at this point, many of you would be itching to call the shrink in with a thought to putting me in a  straight jacket but, believe me, imagination is something you should never block. Once you stop imagining you also stop dreaming. Simple happy things that don't cost a bomb and give immense joy and lift you up just because you know you have beaten all odds to achieve what others spend a lifetime just planning to get for a few days or weeks! You can do it any time and have it your own way.

Try it sometime on a hot Sunday afternoon when the heat is frying your mind and making you sluggish. When you can no longer concentrate on the book in hand and your eyes keep straying at the air conditioner remote to see if it increased the temperature on its own. When your eyes are drooping with sleep because your body needs to maintain its normal temperature so, needs you to hibernate. Then you are ready to embark on an adventure to a strange city that you've only read and seen on celluloid but, never set foot on. Go on try it. It's awesome fun! You can think of Paris in the rain or even a snow covered Notre Dame!