Stress can affect your body in various ways, resulting in unhealthy habits. If you don’t learn proper stress management, it could develop into chronic disorders and physical health complications. It might also progress to anger issues or cause you to partake in self-isolation whenever things get overwhelming. Once you become aware of the impacts of stress, you need to take action and reflect on how you deal with it. You have to carefully process your emotions in order to know how to respond healthily. If not, you’ll ruin your quality of life, your relationship with yourself, and your relationship with others. Figuring out how to deal with stress is also part of delving into your personality — creating a better version of yourself.

Photo: Pexels/Karolina Grabowska

People are now more aware of mental health, especially stressors and triggers. With the help of social media, it’s easier to discuss mental health problems because you feel heard and seen through the experiences of others. Netizens are given a platform to share about searching for inner peace and providing stress management advice. Reddit is one of those social media platforms where people are comfortable talking about anything.

Tips are also often posted in a Reddit community called LifeProTips. An LPT post started an interesting discussion about stress management as Redditors exchanged questions and solutions regarding their problems.

Photo: Pexels/Mart Production

The thread was started by NUMBerONEisFirst with the post, “Feeling stressed or overwhelmed? Try the 5-4-3-2-1 technique: Name five things you can see, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell, and one thing you can taste. This exercise can help you ground yourself in the present moment and reduce anxiety.”

Your brain can be in a fight or flight mode whenever overwhelmed with stress. For this reason, it’s best to distract yourself so you can get sufficient time to assess your feelings. Give yourself permission to cool down — preventing impulsive decisions you might regret later.

Aside from NUMBerONEisFirst’s main LPT post, he also answered stress management problems asked in the comment section. BigTime76 asked, “What if math and memorization are the things that stress you out? Asking for a friend.” To which OP replied, “Try taking deep breaths and focusing on your breath as it enters and leaves your body. You could also try progressive muscle relaxation, where you tense and release each muscle group in your body, one at a time, to release tension and promote relaxation.”

He also suggested practicing mindfulness — allowing yourself to feel and not judging yourself for having those emotions. “You can do this by focusing on your breath, or by simply observing the sensations in your body or the environment around you. Ultimately, the key is to find a grounding technique that works for you, whether it involves math and memorization or not,” OP wrote.

Photo: Pexels/Anete Lusina

A therapist from a youth residential treatment center also joined the Reddit discussion. She says she could vouch for OP’s advice and has introduced the method to her kids. “Sometimes they get overwhelmed remembering how many items of which sense to count, so I tell them ‘just do whatever you can remember. How about 3 of each?’ Because in their little amygdala-powered brains, pulling up all the steps in their brains can be too overwhelming in a panic or crisis state,” ManicAcroNymph says. She engages kids in the method mainly when they have anger management issues.

Photo: Pexels/Kelvin Valerio

If you are caught up between stress, anxiety, and overwhelming emotions, try to remember OP’s advice. It’s definitely going to be challenging having to remember five things while feeling a lot at the moment. However, as you get used to it after several practices, your quality of life will surely improve. And if you have done OP’s stress management method, you might want to join the conversation below the post. You could also share other cooling down tips that were effective for you which might create an impact on some people. Be a mental health advocate through Reddit posts — someone might need your advice.