5 Easy Tips to Reduce Stress at Home

Introduction

Stress is a part of everyday life. It’s something that we all experience, but it can be tricky to manage. When you’re feeling stressed out, it can be hard to know what to do — but there are some simple ways you can reduce stress at home!

Build a home gym

Building a home gym can be a great way to reduce stress. Home gyms allow you to work out in your own space, rather than going outside or going somewhere else.

The key is finding one that’s right for you and your lifestyle. You may want an extensive workout area or just something simple enough to use while watching TV on the couch! Either way, there are lots of options available online or at local sporting goods stores so it shouldn’t be hard to find what works best for YOU!

Check out these home gyms available on Amazon!

Have a “stress-free” drawer

  • Keep your stress-free drawer organized.
  • The drawer can be a good place to keep items that help you deal with stress, such as aromatherapy oils or meditation CDs. You could also keep things like an ice pack or a hot water bottle so you’re not just lying on the couch all day; this will make sure that your muscles aren’t stiff and sore when you get up. If there’s room for it, consider adding some extra pillows or blankets as well!
  • The drawer should be easily accessible at all times—not just when it’s time for bedtime! This will allow access whenever there’s an issue (like when someone has been stressed out about something). It also means if someone else needs something from the drawer during their own busy day (for example: “Can I borrow this?”), then they shouldn’t have trouble finding it themselves instead of asking around until someone else helps them find what they need first.”

Find items for your “stress-free” drawer here.

Connect with people who inspire you and make you feel good

  • Find people who make you feel good.
  • Find people who inspire you.
  • Find people who are supportive and positive, not just in their words but also in their actions. This means being there for each other, supporting each other’s goals and dreams, helping one another through tough times—whatever it takes! If someone is always complaining or feeling sorry for themselves then it will be hard for them to stay motivated when things get tough; instead they might give up on themselves altogether because they feel like they can never measure up to everyone else’s standards (even though those standards may not even exist). When we surround ourselves with other people who have similar interests/goals as ours then our lives become more fulfilling because we know we aren’t alone in this big world full of endless possibilities!

Get a pet — or pet a pet

If you’re feeling stressed out, consider getting a pet. Pets can help reduce stress in many ways. They provide affection, exercise and companionship in addition to being great sources of entertainment and fun. They can also help you feel less lonely and isolated from the world around you — which can be good for your mental health as well!

Try aromatherapy

Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils to reduce stress. Essential oils can be diffused, inhaled, or applied to the skin; they are even used in a variety of ways.

Essential oils have been shown to stimulate your body’s natural defenses against bacteria and viruses by strengthening your immune system and improving circulation. They also help lower blood pressure, increase heart rate variability (the variation in how fast your heart beats), improve memory function and alertness while reducing anxiety levels during stressful situations

Head over to Amazon to check out their selection of aromatherapy devices and oils here.

There are lots of simple ways to find stress relief at home.

Stress is a natural response to a situation. When you feel stressed, it means that your body is preparing itself for action by releasing hormones and adrenaline into your bloodstream. This can be helpful when faced with danger, but too much stress can be harmful in many ways.

Stressors are anything that causes you to feel stressed out: deadlines; traffic jams; unexpected expenses; arguments at home or work; being late for an appointment… The list goes on! While there’s no way around these things (except maybe changing jobs), there are plenty of other ways we can reduce our stress levels besides avoiding those external factors altogether—by taking time for ourselves!

Conclusion

The good news is, you don’t have to be a rocket surgeon or a doctor to know how to reduce stress. With the right tools and strategies, anyone can find the peace they want while living in their own home. This article has offered five simple steps that anyone can use to feel better at home or when they travel or spend time away from it. All it takes is some effort on your part and some practice with these techniques over time — but by doing so, you will begin feeling more relaxed as well as happier overall!

3 of the Best Sleep Aids for Us Grown-ups

As we get older, it becomes more and more difficult to get a good night’s sleep. Whether it’s due to stress, anxiety, or simply the fact that our brains are always going, it can be tough to drift off when our heads hit the pillow. If you’re struggling to catch some z’s, you might want to consider a sleep aid. Sleep aids come in many different forms, from supplements to prescription medications. Here are three of the best sleep aids for us grown-ups:

This article does contain affiliate links. By following the links, I may make a small commission on your purchase. The statements below are personal reviews, and are not meant to be used for medical advice. Everything below is strictly anecdotal; for medical advice, please seek advice from licensed medical professionals.

1. Drift Off – Zhou

Drift Off is one of those supplements that is pure relaxations. With natural herbs like chamomile, melatonin, and tryptophan, a solid night of sleep awaits. Drift Off comes in easy to swallow capsules, meaning there is no lingering taste in your mouth that comes with other tablets or liquid sleep aids. The herb blend in Drift Off provide a strong push to sleep without the lingering effects in the morning that come with many other sleep aids. Within usually 30 minutes, I was ready for sleep when it usually takes 3-4 hours for me to fall asleep naturally. Drift Off gave me an almost whole body relaxed feeling, and whisked me off to sleep. This is the one supplement from this list I put on for a monthly subscription with Amazon to keep my supply coming. 

2. Power to Sleep PM – Irwin Naturals

Power to Sleep PM is another herb blend supplement that gave me a great push to sleep at night without the hangover from other common sleep aids the next morning. Like Drift Off, Power to Sleep PM comes in capsules for easy dosing. Taking this supplement is super easy, and puts me to sleep within an hour. My sleep while taking Power to Sleep PM was still a solid night of sleep, and should I come across it if Drift Off is unavailable, I would gladly pick this up again. 

3. ZzzQuil Pure Zzzs – Vicks

As much as I love a good night’s sleep, I really love fruit snacks. The lab rats at the Vicks factory finally put together a tasty treat for bed time with these ZzzQuil Pure Zzzs gummies. With a blend of melatonin, chamomile and lavender, these gummies have a great taste and a mild effect. They will get you to sleep (this is probably my wife’s favorite for when she has trouble sleeping), but these gummies are not the strongest aid on the market. Like the supplements above, the Vicks gummies don’t give that sleep aid hangover the next morning. Sleep for me comes around an hour to an hour and a half after eating them. For those who look for something more mild, the Pure Zzz gummies would be a great fit.

Bonus Sleep Aid… Single-Use Foam Ear Plugs – Howard Leight

I became a light sleeper during basic training just over 15 years ago now. I could hear those footsteps coming to wake us up before all hell would break loose, and ever since, noise has been an issue. My favorite remedy for this has been ear plugs. I’ve tried using in ear headphones, but they hurt my ears especially after laying on my side. I’ve also tried re-usable ear plugs, but so far, they don’t fit my ears correctly and they either fall out, or hurt the same as the headphones. The single-use ear plugs quickly became my best friend at night. These are super soft foam, and form to your ear so gently you hardly notice them, but you’ll certainly notice the 32 dB of noise cancellation. Even if your partner or roommate is a snorer like somebody I know… these ear plugs will mute the noise sufficiently to get to sleep.

Best wishes and sweet dreams. Love ya’, buddy.

Papa Bear

Solo Saturday

Being a parent, there’s not much time that just you alone. That is exactly what I was able to achieve today. While technically not alone, I had a day away with a group of my friends, it was a day out without my kids. It was a day in which I didn’t have to keep a constant, vigilant eye out for what my band of mischievous ninjas was up to, and it was wonderful.

I got to meet up with my group of friends and head across the Mississippi to Illinois and head to a German brewery, Hofbrauhaus. For those who have been an you know the place is absolutely brilliant. A huge interior dining area fit for an Oktoberfest all of its own, but still spilling out to a vast patio, and today, an extra tent set up for a separate Fest I didn’t catch the name of. Wurst Fest maybe? Doesn’t matter. This place is huge. They have a standard bar of liquors, but the highlight (naturally) is their selection of beers. There’s a lager and a dunkel plus a rotational beer served in a .5 liter glass or a massive 1 liter stein. The food is some phenomenal German fare; I got a version of jägerschnitzel.

While the food and drinks were great, the real star of the day was being out with friends. So often, we make our kids and our spouses the priority, and neglect to take care of ourselves.

About a year ago, my wife and I went to marriage counseling. We weren’t at each other’s throats, divorce wasn’t on the line, we just weren’t at our best functioning selves. One of the first things the therapist asked about was how much time each of us had to ourselves. Like many of us, our answer was almost none. For me, my only real alone time was driving to and from work. My wife was in the same boat as me. We were spending all of our collective time watching the boys, we weren’t talking time or for ourselves.

Constantly being there with your kids sounds like good parenting, I know. But the problem is you neglect your own needs, and you’re wearing yourself out. The therapist stressed that we can’t really be there for our kids without taking time out for self care. Think of it like your car, it can’t keep running without regularly stopping to top up with fuel and occasional maintenance. So take regular time and set it aside for you, and a little less frequent, take a bigger chunk of time and get away for the day.

Keep up with your friends, schedule time each month at minimum to get out and do something not at home. Start a hobby to take a step back for yourself if not daily, then a few times a week. And try to keep healthy habits. Take up yoga, go for a walk, learn a new skill. Do something to better yourself, you’ll see your life start to come together again.

None of us are perfect machines. We all have things we need to do to keep ourselves operating the best we can. Know that you aren’t perfect, and that’s perfectly ok. But give yourself some time for you, and you’ll begin to see more of what you remember from your past.

Love you, buddy.

-Papa Bear