How Do You Relieve Stress?
Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, it is important to make sure that we are taking care of our bodies while we continue to practice social distancing. Fear and anxiety about a disease can be overwhelming. Finding helpful ways to destress during these uncertain times is one of the ways we want to help our patients! We want to encourage activities that can help relieve your stress, as well as better your foot and ankle health! Let our team at Great Neck Family Foot Care help ease your mind and lower extremities with the below information.
What Causes Stress:
Stress is normal, but when you become consumed with it, you begin to see the negative effect it can have on your body. While people deal with stress every day, several factors may be contributing to it. Common stressors that may be impacting your life:
- Losing at your job (laid off or furlough)
- Working from home
- Heavy workload or too much responsibility
- Working long hours
Stress does not just occur at work though. Losing a loved one, uncertainty regarding current events, working on your relationship, moving to a new home, and many other things can cause you extra stress.
How Can You Treat Stress:
The physical and mental symptoms that come along with stress are why we want to help guide our patients to a stress-free life. Whether your stress has caused you fatigue or muscle tightness, we can work with you to help de-stress from your day.
There are several different ways you can treat stress. Whether you’re making simple efforts, such as changing your environment by going out for a walk or taking a relaxing bath, you can work on easing your mind and body from the stress you are experiencing.
Although there is no specific cure or medication to get rid of stress, giving yourself some extra TLC throughout the day can help keep you calm and stress-free. Below we have listed a few ways you can work on relieving the stress from your feet and ankles:
- Exercise – this helps with lowering your body’s stress hormones such as cortisol. It releases endorphins which is a chemical in your brain that help you feel good.
- Give yourself a massage – by giving yourself a foot massage at the end of a long day, you can help de-stress, aid relaxation, and relieve any muscle aches.
- Maintain a healthy diet – keeping up on your water intake and eating healthy can help keep your body, and especially your feet happy! An unhealthy diet can lead to dry and cracked skin while being dehydrated can lead to frequent muscle cramps and spasms.
- Don’t get cold feet – oftentimes when we’re stressed, we get cold feet. This is due to the reduced blood flow to our lower extremities when our bodies go into “fight or flight” mode. If you are experiencing cold feet for an extended amount of time, reach out to us at Great Neck Family Foot Care for help!
Keeping Your Feet Healthy:
There are many simple things to do to make sure that your feet are healthy and that they are staying strong. Some things that might help you are to stretch them out in the morning. Get your ankles moving so this way it helps the blood circulate and warms them up. Taking a morning or afternoon walk helps strengthen them. Another important thing is to make sure that you are cleaning your feet regularly. This will help prevent any fungus from happening.
Contact Us
If you or someone you know is looking for a podiatrist, then give Great Neck Family Foot Care a call. We know how uncomfortable foot pain is and we want to help you get rid of it the right way. Please visit our website to book your appointment today.
