Four Benefits of Relaxing More Often

You may have heard that dealing with a little bit of stress can be good for you, and in many cases, it actually can be. However, the problem is that in order for stress to work to your advantage, you have to get the amount just right. Too little stress can be useless since it won’t push you enough to get stuff done, whilst on the other hand, too much stress can lead to all kinds of problems with your emotional and physical health and well-being. However, at the end of the day, relaxation always feels much better than stress at any level. And the good news is that there are also several health benefits of getting the right amount of relaxation in your life. These include:

#1. Better Heart Health:

Relaxing more can lead to improved heart health and actually protect your heart from serious problems such as heart attacks, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease and more. Being stressed can seriously increase your risk of being prone to heart problems, whilst on the other hand, relaxing often is an activity that your heart will always welcome. Several studies have shown that too much stress is comparable to other serious risk factors such as a poor diet, little exercise, and hypertension when it comes to your heart.

#2. Lowered Risk of Stroke:

Along with lowering your risk of suffering from a heart attack, relaxing more often will also help to decrease your risk of suffering a stroke. In 2007, a study carried out at the University of Cambridge found that people who coped better with stressful life events had a 24% lower risk of stroke than others. Bear in mind that these results could have been partly due to the fact that people who have healthier coping strategies for stress are less likely to be engaging in harmful habits such as smoking, drinking alcohol or binge eating.

#3. Reduced Risk of Depression:

If you are concerned about your mental health, then relaxing more could be one of the best things that you do for yourself. Studies have shown that being under chronic stress can actually kill brain cells, and in some cases even prevent the creation of new ones in the hippocampus, the part of the brain which is involved in a healthy response to stress. As a result, allowing yourself to get stressed out for too long and too often can lead to serious changes in your brain that can significantly impact your mental health and well-being. Visit Examined Existence for more information about looking after your mental health.

#4. Lose Weight:

Last but not least, relaxing more often can actually help to keep you slim and prevent you from putting on weight in the future. When you’re feeling stressed and anxious, you’re more likely to reach for comfort foods, which are usually high in fat and sugar and can quickly cause you to pile on the pounds if eaten too often. So, stay relaxed for a slimmer figure!
What’s your favorite thing about relaxing? We’d love to hear from you in the comments.