Ongoing stress and chronic pain can drastically reduce your overall quality of life and impact both your mental and physical health. Frequent stress can lead to poor sleep patterns, poor diet, and high blood pressure. These symptoms can exacerbate or lead to obesity, heart disease, increased risk of certain cancers, and diabetes — among other serious diseases. Chronic pain can negatively impact your quality of life by itself while also causing increased stress levels, furthering lowering your quality of life.
Too often, people treat stress like a normal part of life while ignoring the health implications that it poses. However, you do not need to live with constant stress or chronic pain. Natural remedies can help alleviate ailments while boosting your overall health and encouraging better daily habits. While non of these suggestions will work immediately, when taken or practiced consistently, you will notice a marked improvement in both stress and pain over time.
1. Yoga
Yoga has been practiced throughout many cultures for generations. It is a combination of movement, stretching, balance, and mindfulness. There are many yoga forms so that can benefit you regardless of your age or physical condition.
You can partake in fast yoga, slow yoga, chair yoga, and hot yoga — to name a few. Yoga works by strengthening your core, which can help with balance, posture, and alignment. Strengthening your core can work to alleviate pain in different parts of the body. Yoga also involves a lot of stretching, which can help with overall muscle pain and stiffness. The practice of yoga involves a level of mindfulness that helps alleviate stress, increase gratitude, and lessen feelings of anxiety.
Check out the yoga classes in your area to reap the benefits of this amazing practice while tailoring to your specific needs. There are many yoga studios in Scottsdale, for example, with the senior population of this area experiencing yoga’s benefits for staying active and managing pain.
2. Hemp and CBD Products
Hemp and CBD products have been shown to help alleviate stress, occasional anxiety, and discomfort without the mental effects of THC. Plain Jane Hemp has created a high-quality, reputable CBD and hemp products line, including CBD cigarettes, hemp flower, CBD oil, and tinctures. These great products can help in many ways, and Plain Jane has made educating the public part of their mission with ample information on CBD, hemp, and its benefits on their website.
3. Meditation
The practice of meditation can increase mindfulness, gratitude, and serenity. Meditation is often part of yoga but can also be practiced in many other ways. There are many different forms of meditation that are utilized in both spiritual ways and non-spiritual. Meditation is practiced in every major religion throughout history and has been shown to help alleviate discomfort and speed up healing.
Meditation also can be as simple as sitting quietly in your car before working or a stressful meeting. Meditation can be done in a group setting with someone leading the practice, or you can listen to a guided meditation in the comfort of your home. There is no wrong way to meditate, as long as it brings you the inner peace intended.
4. Massage
Massage therapy is utilized in many different healthcare settings, including physical or occupational therapy. A licensed massage therapist can work with you to target pain areas and work the muscles to alleviate muscle pain. Different forms of massage utilize different tools and techniques, including deep tissue massage, Swedish massage, and hot stone massage. Getting a massage can also alleviate stress since it’s highly relaxing and forces you to stop moving and lay still for a period of time.