Surface tension (Photo credit: jjn1)

Stress is neither age, gender or culture specific. Nor is it something new.

We all experience it at sometime or the other and we all have our ways of dealing with it. I’d like to share some simple methods which work for me and should work for most women. Try them.

• Go for a walk- There’s nothing like
  a good long walk that helps you air your mind and see things in a different
  light. Walking in a city means you have to keep your wits about you as you
  navigate the traffic lights and keep an eye on the cars, pedestrians, stray
  cows, broken footpaths, pavement hawkers, street dwellers, doggy poop and any
  other objects that may impede your movements. While this may not seem very
  pleasurable, it does serve in distracting you and by the time you finish your
  walk you are sufficiently exhausted and appreciative of the fact that your
  stress indeed is nothing compared to the stress of negotiating a
  “simple” walk.

• Bake a cake –  While cooking can be a bit of a chore, baking is strangely relaxing. Somehow there is something therapeutic
  about creaming the butter and sugar together, beating the eggs stiff, sifting the flour and eventually
  smelling the vanilla wafting through the air as the cake or cookies slowly rise up. There
  is nothing more satisfying and relaxing than sinking your teeth into a soft, warm
  crumbly cake or biscuit that drives away your stress with the very first bite. And if this doesn’t do it, decorate the cake with cream topping and sprinkles or complicated designs that you pipe out of an icing cone or shape out of sugar.

• Go shopping – Retail therapy is
  great for your spirit if not your wallet. Even if you don’t come back the
  conquering shopper, a simple stroll through a mall or the shops is just great
  for the eyes. Be it antiques, fabric, food or whatever your heart desires,
  shopping is a great stress buster even if you don’t buy a thing.

• Call a friend – With everybody just
  a cell phone away, talking to a friend has never been easier. We all have our
  punching bags (parent, sibling, spouse, colleague, and friend) that are willing
  to listen while we unburden, whine and moan. The best listener is not only one
  who listens patiently but also tells you what you want to hear – yes, poor you,
  the whole world is against you. The moment you hear these words, you perk up
  and feel instantly better and stress free.

• Cut your hair – Cut hair cut care.
  There’s nothing like a new hair cut to lift up your spirits and change the way
  you look. But if you’ve done this once too often and have no more hair to cut; do not despair –  you can still go to the
  parlour and have your legs waxed or your nails manicured. Shampoo away your
  stress, feel the tension leave your body as your feet are gently massaged and
  relax while somebody is pampering your fragile ego.