3 Simple Tools to Help Manage Stress

Ideally, in day-to-day life, you experience enough stimulation to be motivated and engaged with what you are doing but not so much that you are overwhelmed, anxious, or shut down. Not all stress is bad, and in fact stress can be beneficial when it activates or stimulates the central nervous system just enough to help you complete a task. Overstimulation occurs when stress impairs functioning; this is subjective and unique to each person.

Switching environments, tasks, and social contexts involves processing change physically, cognitively, and emotionally. HSPs often intuitively implement helpful strategies in their day-to-day functioning to cope with this processing, such as always carrying a jacket “just in case.” These strategies help prevent overstimulation and keep you in your zone of optimal functioning. Shifting from unintentional to intentional coping can increase your confidence and ability to advocate for your needs or adapt to challenges when needed. Three intentional practices for HSPs are building transition time, following routines, and curating your environment.

Transition Time

Transitions allow you time to wind down from one activity in both thought processes and stimulation levels and switch to a new focus. Similar to a warm-up or cooldown when exercising, bodies need time to adjust. These transitions give you space to calm stimulation from one task before gearing up for the next—a practice that can be crucial in regulating stress levels.

Transitions might be as simple as taking a bathroom break between meetings at work or asking if dinner with a friend can be pushed back 30 minutes. The need for transition time comes up often around waking and sleeping routines for HSPs, who often benefit from unwinding at the end of the day before heading to bed through calming activities such as reading or journaling. Similarly, HSPs often prefer not to jump out of bed in the morning, so building a 30-minute window where one might mentally prepare for the day can make a significant difference in stress levels.

Routine

Routines help you know what to expect and allow you to run on muscle memory, thus helping you regulate stimulation levels. People are often more alert and focused when doing novel tasks, so if your body never knows what to expect, you are operating in a state of heightened attention for activities that do not need that level of attention. If you follow the same morning routine each day, then cognitive resources are not being used up on each of these little tasks. Instead, you are using muscle memory and those cognitive resources are reserved for other tasks throughout the day. It is common for HSPs to occasionally evaluate their various routines for efficiency and simplicity. Don’t be afraid to reflect on what is working and what is not working and switch things up—what you need now may be different from what you needed when you first built your routine.

Curating Environments

Curating your environment can help you manage daily stress, especially shaping relaxation spaces like bedrooms or living areas. Due to high levels of processing sensory information, HSPs are constantly fielding input from their environment. New or changing stimuli, chaotic surroundings, or offensive stimuli (e.g., harsh lighting or bad smells) lead to stimulation of the central nervous system. HSPs often dislike clutter in their living environments because their brains see each piece of clutter as a data point (or novel visual stimulus) that needs to be processed and managed. Less novel visual stimuli results in less stimulation, making it easier to relax.

Curating shared spaces can be challenging. Good communication of your needs and the willingness to compromise are key. Be aware of how you respond to different colors, shapes, textures, spacing, lighting, sound, and scents. Use this awareness to create spaces that move you into (for a workspace) or out of (for a relaxation space) optimal stimulation. Even small adjustments, like tidying a stack of papers, can make a significant difference.