Lose yourself in a different world
It does not seem to matter what age people are these days, there is always something to stress about.
In schools, Year 6s are this week worrying about which upper school to choose and their SATs.
For people in Year 9 with me, we are stressing about what GCSEs to opt for.
Years 10 and 11 are worrying about all that new course content they face in their GCSEs – and their mocks. Let alone the real things looming over the horizon.
Out of school, adults are facing the ‘real world’ – bills that need to be paid; getting to work on time while making sure the kids get to school in one piece; hoping the car has enough petrol in it – because let’s face it, petrol is expensive nowadays.
All in all, everyone stresses, and people need a way to escape reality occasionally.
Why wouldn’t you want to occasionally escape this world which seems to so often be awash with the dreadful emotion known as stress?
It’s how people deal with it that concerns me, though. Many tend to deal with stress in a way which isn’t very healthy or good for them. An example of this is leaning on one thing or the other for a bit of comfort, in the false knowledge that it is going to do us some good or give us a bit of comfort. As a coffee lover myself, we love it even though we know it’s bad for us.
Staying on the topic of food and drink, quite a lot of us, including myself, are victims of emotional eating. We all love food and it’s perfectly fine to eat a bit of Ben and Jerry’s on a bad day but eating too much of the wrong things will increase our stress even more. A poor diet can lead to blood sugar imbalances, which is something else that will be added to our stressful plate. So, how should we be dealing with stress the right way?
Another advantage of books is that all they deliver is a new world direct into your imagination
Well, how about roaming free with your imagination by picking up a novel. Whether you love mystery, thrillers or crime stories, or enjoy a perfect, heart-throbbing romance, there will always be a book for you.
You might be thinking that you would rather be glued to your phones or the TV than stuck with some rather older technology – sheets of paper with printing on them. But binge-watching our favourite shows on Netflix doesn’t exactly take us into that character’s world. You don’t feel the same emotions as they do or put yourself in their shoes. Not like when you read a book.
Another advantage of books is that all they deliver is a new world direct into your imagination. They do not bring emails, advertisements or other reminders of work.
So, if you are looking to reduce stress, make a brew, pick up a novel, put your phone in a different room, sit back and relax and leave the world behind for an hour or two.
