Vicky shares some advice on Stress Management, Self-Care, Detox and Movement in the August edition of the Bloemfontein Get-It magazine.

Regaining your energy: Stress management

Stress can be very exhausting, it can really drain the energy out of us. I would like to share a few tips to strengthen your body’s defence against stress:

• Take care of your GUT

o The gut is often referred to as ‘the second brain’

o “For every one direction message your brain sends to your gut, your gut sends 9 directing messages to the brain.” @dr.tomobryan

o For your brain to function optimally under stressful situations, it is worth feeding your gut a variety of wholesome foods

• Spend some time in NATURE

• Prioritise SLEEP

• MOVE your body

• Dopamine rich foods (green bananas, dark chocolate, almonds & walnuts, beef, cheese, eggs, salmon)

• Oxytocin releasing activities (pets, hugs, friends)

• CHEW your food properly – (Azuma et al. 2015) suggest that chewing is not only important for eating but is also an effective strategy for stress management

• BREATHING exercises (check out @natcoliving for some breathing methods)