It can be difficult to leave work stress behind when you clock out each evening.
However, learning how to decompress after work is crucial to living a healthy and happy life. After all, prolonged stress can lead to a wide range of issues, taking its toll on both your mental and physical well-being.
With that in mind, here are twelve ways in which you can destress after work!
Actually leave your work behind. According to a recent study, “over 80% of employees respond to work-related calls or emails outside of their working hours.” While this may seem like a way to get ahead before the next working day, or necessary when you’re particularly busy, it makes it nearly impossible to leave stress behind, as you are bringing it home with you! As such, you should make sure that you leave work behind when you’re done for the day.
This will also help you to build a healthier work-life balance, as it means that you’ve put stricter boundaries in place for yourself. While this can be hard to do, especially if you don’t like to say ‘no’, you will notice the benefits of this relatively quickly.
Listen to music during your commute home. Listening to music is a great way to relax after a busy or stressful day. However, you should make sure that you curate your playlist with this in mind. For example, “a slower tempo can quiet your mind and relax your muscles, making you feel soothed while releasing the stress of the day,” while faster music may have the opposite effect.
Alternatively, listening to your favorite songs can have a similarly positive effect.
Play online games. Online games, such as Fantasy Madness, can also help to lower your stress levels. This is because they allow you to immerse yourself in a new world, leaving anything that is troubling you behind for a little while. They can also increase your brain’s production of dopamine, which is the hormone that makes you feel good. As such, any time spent gaming in this way is time well spent. In some cases, you may also be able to make money when doing so.
Talk about your day. Talking to those around you about your day or how you are feeling will also help you manage your stress levels better. This is because doing so means that you aren’t keeping things to yourself, and a problem shared is often a problem halved. As dealing with stress (and other negative emotions) can be isolating, having honest conversations with those who care about you will also show you that you are not alone and that you have a strong support system to rely on moving forward.
Finally, talking about your day will help you get everything off your mind. This way, you can enjoy the rest of your evening without having negative thoughts running through your head.
Squeeze in an exercise session. Whether you’re heading to the gym or going for a run, exercising can also help you to shake off the stress of your workday. Much like gaming, it can trigger the release of feel-good hormones while also lowering your cortisol (stress hormone) levels. Beyond this, it is also a great way to stay fit.
Pick up a book. Reading can also be a great way to lower your stress levels. In fact, one study found that reading can reduce stress by up to 68%, due to the fact that it also serves as an act of escapism. It also provides you with plenty of opportunities to learn more about the world around you, even if you typically prefer to read fiction over non-fiction.
If you find that you’re really struggling with your stress levels, reading self-help books may be particularly useful during this time. This is because they will help you better understand why you may be feeling a specific way, while also providing guidance on how to start feeling better.
Try meditating. Mediating after work can also go a long way when it comes to lowering your stress and anxiety. This is because it will provide you with a sense of inner peace and calm, while also providing you with some much-needed mental distance from whatever is bothering you.
If you’ve never meditated before, you may want to start out by finding some guided meditations online that you can follow. They’ll only take up a few minutes of your time, but they are a great way to change the tone of your evening. Over time, you’ll find that you’re able to practice this independently, whether you’re doing so when you arrive home or during your break at work.
Ask for help at work. There are many reasons why you may feel stressed at work. For example, you may be dealing with burnout or feel as though you’re falling behind on your deadlines. In any case, receiving help, whether that’s from your boss or members of your team, can help to combat this, meaning that you’ll start to feel like yourself again in no time.
Of course, in order to gain access to this help, you need to be willing to ask for it. Don’t try to hide how you are feeling or the fact that you are struggling. While this may seem like a way to protect your best interests, your employer will be more than willing to put accommodations in place to support you. As such, now is the perfect time to open up and ask for help should you need it.
Consider starting a new job. If you have been unhappy at work for some time, then this may be a sign that it is time to start looking elsewhere. While job hunting is, within itself, inherently stressful, it will be incredibly worthwhile if it puts you on a happier path. Try to weigh all of your options carefully, applying for jobs that are well-suited not only to your skills, but also to your temperament and goals.
For example, if you’re currently working in a fast-paced company and find never-ending deadlines and targets draining, you may want to look for work with more flexible deadlines. Working with a careers advisor can be incredibly useful during this time, as they’ll help you to find jobs that you’ll be a good fit for, saving you a great deal of time and stress. They can also ensure that you feel as prepared as possible when you are going for a job interview, which can improve your chances of success.
Find a hobby you enjoy. Finding a hobby that you genuinely enjoy will help you reduce your stress levels. This is because it will capture your attention, making it harder to focus on what is worrying you. Furthermore, despite popular misconception, you’re never too old to pick up a new hobby – not when there are simply thousands upon thousands to choose from. Ideally, you should select a hobby that is quite far removed from your work. This way, you will not begin to associate one with the other.
Hang out with friends. Hanging out with friends and family after work may seem difficult, especially when you’ve got to navigate your way around individual and often conflicting schedules. However, the truth is, life is too short not to spend it surrounded by those you love. This means it is well worth the effort of trying to sort out a time and place to meet, especially when you’ll leave these meet-ups feeling happier and less stressed.
Maintain a consistent nightime routine. Maintaining a consistent nightime routine can also help you to lower your stress over time. This is because it can lower our cortisol levels while also ensuring that we have the necessary energy levels required to get through the following day. Fortunately, there are many ways in which you can set about improving your sleeping patterns. For example, you could start by upgrading your bedroom so that it is as comfortable as possible. However, the best way to achieve this goal is to go to bed at the same time each evening. This is because it tricks your body (and mind) into feeling tired when this time approaches, so that you’ll find it easier to drift off, even if you’re dealing with a great deal of stress and anxiety.
Final thoughts. If you’re currently finding it hard to destress after work, you are not alone. In fact, this is something that the majority of working adults deal with from time to time, no matter how long they have been working in a specific role. However, finding ways to reduce your stress levels is important.
Fortunately, there are many steps that you can take to leave stress behind. This includes playing online games as a form of escapism, or simply making sure that you get to bed at a reasonable hour.
Do you have any tips or strategies that help you to decompress after a busy day at work? Leave them in the comments below.