Stress less to give your brain a rest

With National Stress Awareness Day taking place next week (5 November), now is the time to learn how to rest our poor, overworked brains in order to be less stressed and more productive in the workplace. Luckily, Magdalena Bak-Maier, a trained neuroscientist and author of Get Productive!, is on hand to offer her tips.

She suggests periodically closing your eyes, as visual stimulation such as Twitter, Facebook, or TV is a major energy drain on the brain. Switching between different activities is another thing to try since focusing intensely for long periods of time can provoke stress.

Next up, get enough sleep; Magdalena advocates getting a regular eight hours if possible because a lack of shut-eye prevents the mind from creating order and logic. Pay attention too to your working environment, as Magdalena cautions that certain surroundings stimulate a feeling of safety in which the brain can perform and focus better, while others may create anxiety and distraction.

Taking time to journal your thoughts is a good bet also, as setting down your feelings on paper can assist in processing information, allowing the mind to declutter and heal itself. As well as writing, you may wish to consider drawing to express your emotions; this helps the brain process, order and evaluate its own thinking.

Exercise has long been known as a stress-buster and Magdalena confirms that taking part in a keep-fit programme such as yoga can be very beneficial. This is due to the fact that the poses practitioners adopt require such a high level of focus they effectively pause all other thought activity.

Coffee often gets a bad rap as a substance that leaves us feeling jittery and over-stimulated, but we shouldn’t discount the benefits of a nice cup of joe. Consumed in moderate amounts, caffeine can support memory retention in older people and is said to reduce the rate of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Lastly, talk things out to help resolve any inner conflict that might limit proper brain function. Speaking to a trained professional can help to realign the different and sometimes conflicting trains of thought many individuals experience, which in turn enables the mind to rest and rebalances a person’s outlook.

Find out more about how to beat stress at tinyurl.com/lgfk8wa.