Dealing with stress can be hard for anyone, particularly, if you are a male. All thanks to the gender stereotypes! Associating “dominance” and “tough it out” are the characteristics to describe male is not new to us. But let’s just admit the fact that doing all these things has made men more reluctant towards seeking emotional help.
Why is men’s stress more harmful?
Both men and women can be equally affected by stress but what makes men more vulnerable? The truth lies in the fact that men perceive problems as a weakness. So, if you are a man going through a similar problem, make yourself clear that not managing your stress can be bad for overall health in general.
Stress can affect you both mentally and physically, even it can interfere with your normal biological functions. I remember once my uncle was suffering from sexual dysfunction and was going to an andrologist in Peshawar. After a few treatment sessions, the physician was able to identify the problems and yes, you guessed it right! It was nothing more than stress.
How to handle stress?
Let me share some tips that can help you to effectively manage your stress.
1. Identify your feelings first
The first thing that can help you to manage your stress is to identify your feelings and name them. Most of the time, people can’t name their feelings and use a catch-all term to describe their feelings. Accepting that you are stressed is not going to harm your macho man reputation. So, the first step of your stress management journey is the identification of your feelings and naming them.
2. Differentiate between good and bad stress
Stress may sound like a bad word but just look at the positive side. Without stress many of us would never be able to avoid a car coming to run over us or being able to appear at a job interview in time. . The stress that helps us to function well is basically good, however, once it starts bothering it no more remains good. For effective stress management, you need to distinguish your bad stress from good stresses that keep you working.
3. Be more active
No matter what’s the cause of your stress, physical activity can effectively lessen your stress. Working out regularly can balance your stress hormones naturally by reducing stress. You can begin with a 5 or 10 minutes activity because stress is a proven stress reliever.
4. Focus on what you eat
Your diet plays a crucial role in determining several aspects of your health. Nutritionally insufficient diet can make you restless and lead to improper stress management. Apart from this, certain foods can increase the level of happiness hormones. Thus, eating a healthy or sometimes unhealthy diet can help in stress management.
5. Don’t overtake burdens
One of the potential causes of stress is overloading you while trying to excel. We normally set these bars for ourselves. Committing more than we can do or putting more effort than you can, can lead to stress. So, for a better mental and emotional health, you need to accept the fact that sometimes you are not going to be enough.
6. Learn to prioritize things
Not all things in our lives are equally important. Not being able to manage all your tasks together can often lead to uninvited stress. And as a matter of fact, not all people are good at multitasking. But to prevent this kind of stress, you can enlist your tasks on a priority basis and conserve your energy on the less important stuff.
Here, I want to share a relevant incidence. My nephew who was preparing for the medical school entrance exam was stressed to the extent that we had to take him to Abaseen hospital emergency.
7. Avoid stress factors
Not all stress factors are under our control, but many are. Further, stress triggers can be different for every single person. Some people get stressed while stuck in a traffic jam or while shopping in a crowded place. Certainly, these are the things you can easily fix on your own to prevent unwanted stress.
8. Look into your lifestyle habit
Your habits play a key role in your overall performance. If you sleep late at night or are habitual of smoking and drinking, you can switch to better lifestyle practices that can surely help you in stress management.
Takeaway Note!
Talking about your mental and emotional health doesn’t make you weak.
Embracing your stress and controlling your triggers (at least those few of them) can be your way to a stress-free life!
