Back to Basics: Simple Habits to Calm Stress and Anxiety

You're not thinking about how do I take care of myself through this thing right now or through life right now or through this circumstance or this stressor. You're just trying to make it through. You're just trying to get to the end of the day. Hey there and welcome to let's Talk about it with Laurie Streeter. A space to talk honestly and get real about mental health, therapy and all things wellness. I'm Lori, licensed therapist, speaker and your host, here to bring you insights, tools and information you can actually use. Whether you're navigating anxiety, healing your relationship with food, or trying to figure out which techniques will work for your life. I'm so glad you're here. Let's dive in and let's talk about it. Welcome back to another episode of let's Talk about it with Laurie Streeter. It is currently middle of August 2025 and in this spirit of Back to School, we are going back to basics right now because when stress, anxiety, life changes, all of the things start to get the better of us. We tend to stop doing the exact things that can help us feel better. All of our habits that make us human start to fall to the wayside when stress and change and life and anxiety come into play. So, so today we are going back to school, the school of basics. If you are someone who is trying to juggle a lot of things, this is your sign to get a notebook, take some notes on your phone if you're driving, come back and make some notes later. But I really encourage you to find some kind of way to take some notes today because I am going to be giving you 10 basic things that probably fall to the wayside when you are stressed that you will tend to forget about or deprioritize when life is busy, when things just get in the way. And these are the things that help us again feel human again. I'm not talking about anything fancy, nothing aesthetic, like super beautiful, super crazy. These are basics that help you feel human again, that can calm your body and calm your mind and things again that just start to get deprioritized and fall to the back burner because you're busy and there are other things to do. So it's not to say that it's complicated or we need to add more things to your life. This is a reminder that when things are busy, these are the habits you need the most. These are the basics, the things, the activities, the techniques that can help you feel like you again. When you start to get stressed, you probably start to shift Into I just have to get to the end of the day. I'm in survival mode. I just have to get to the weekend. I just have to finish this task. When we have a response to stress, we are not necessarily. Unless you're really good at it or you have some really solid habits in play. You're not thinking about, how do I take care of myself through this thing right now or through life right now or through this circumstance or this stressor. You're just trying to make it through. You're just trying to get to the end of the day or the weekend, right? You're skipping meals or you're eating whatever is fast. You are standing at the kitchen counter grabbing things from the fridge because you're not sitting down for meals. You're not being intentional about getting outside. Maybe you're skipping workouts or you're avoiding text messages or calls because you're too busy or you're too tired to catch up with that friend. Stress in general life stress, anxiety, whatever you want to call stress, it makes you cut out the very things that help you cope. So today we're going to hit the reset button and talk about these basics that can make a big difference. I'm going to give you the basic, the habit, the technique, the activity, whatever you want to call it and then why it works, the reason it helps, the impact it can have on stress and anxiety and the positive impact it can have on your life. And these are things that can easily be reimplemented when you are forgetting about them. So 10 things that are going to help you feel like a human again. If you are someone who is in that survival mode that you're in the place where you're skipping meals, you're not getting outside, you're avoiding messages, and you're just trying to get to the end of the day. So grab your piece of paper, open your notes app on your phone, and let's do this. We're gonna go through them so that this can be a very productive episode for you. And you are off to the races in terms of putting something in play can help you today, immediately, tomorrow, whenever you need it most. So, number one, exercise. This is always something very much talked about in terms of stress relief, but it's something we skip, it's something we forget about, it's something we deprioritize when we get busy and when we get stressed. And the reason you need to know that this is important is because it releases endorphins. Happy hormones is what is what we call them. And it reduces stress, it reduces tension, it moves energy through your body, it's an outlet, it can release pent up anxiety and energy and it can help you build self confidence. When we feel confident, when we feel capable, we feel like we are capable of handling stress. So if exercise is something that has fallen by the wayside, I want to strongly encourage you to find a way to build it back in. Maybe it's getting back to a regular workout routine, maybe it's getting back to classes, maybe it's just taking a quick walk, walk to the mailbox. Whatever it is for you that's going to help you implement exercise, movement, physical movement into your day so that you can get those body and brain benefits. Number two, time in nature. The reason this works is because it can help you feel grounded. We know that nature, sunshine, lower stress levels. It is literally good for your physical and mental health. It is good for your brain. You need vitamin D. So getting outside again, pair that with your walk, your exercise, your physical movement. Find a way to get outside. If you're not doing it at all right now, just for a couple minutes a day, maybe if you're only walking outside when you're going to and from the car or to and from the store, maybe walk a little slower, maybe add in a walk when you get home, something that will allow you to be outside in nature. Number three, community involvement. Being part of a community, getting out there, going to an event, doing something in your local community, whether it's volunteering or just attending an event, it can help ease stress. It can remind you to be present. And the important part about this is that it will encourage activity outside of your house, outside of your comfort zone. A lot of times when we're stressed, we retreat to our house, our comfort zone. We don't want to leave, we don't want to make plans, we don't want to return those phone calls. So making some kind of plan to again volunteer, go attend an event, go do something outside of your house can be a significant improvement. This might not be something you can do every day, but once a month, maybe for you it's once a week. Maybe it's something you used to do regularly that you're like, yeah, that really hasn't happened in a long time. And that is something that's missing in my life right now. So whatever this means for you, maybe it's getting back to it or maybe it's implementing it because it's not something that you've put as a priority, but doing something community based where you Are in your local community. Helping out. Being part of something will help get you outside of your house and reintegrated back into the world around you. Number four, Social connection. This, a little bit goes with community, but more on a personal level. The reason social interactions Social connections are important is because they raise oxytocin. Support systems are shown to increase resilience, and they remind you you're not alone. So these calls and text messages that you're avoiding because you're too tired or you're too busy to talk, plans you've canceled because again, you're too tired or you're too busy, try to do something social. Whether it's a phone call, a facetime, a coffee date with a friend, a lunch to catch up, maybe you're gonna go watch a show at your friend's house. Something to help you have a social outlet is going to help release stress and help you manage more effectively. Number five, mindfulness. Mindfulness helps you train your mind to be present and focus on what you want it to focus on at that moment. When we're stressed, a lot of times we automatically go to the what ifs. We pour gasoline on the fire of stress and anxiety. We are overthinking, we are future thinking, we're panicking or we're frozen, right? Sometimes when people are really stressed out, they feel like they can't do anything and the to do list just continues to pile on. So practicing ways to be mindful will help you realize and have the awareness of when you're feeling stressed so that you can check in with yourself and be aware of it even sooner, and then help you focus on what you need to focus on instead of your brain just reverting to these automatic what ifs and overthinking and future thinking and stuff like that. So one awesome way to implement mindfulness in your day is anytime you're at a stoplight, specifically a red light, and you're sitting and you're waiting, take a deep breath and engage your senses. Take a deep breath and be like, wow, that tree is really green. Ooh, it kind of smells like a campfire. Oh, the water tastes really cold that I just took a drink of. Do something to engage a couple senses and this will help bring you back to the moment and get you to focus on what you want to be focused focusing on in that moment instead of just driving mindlessly to wherever you're going. So using red lights as an association to have a mindful moment is a super easy way to systematically implement mindfulness into your day. So anytime you hit a red light, think of this podcast, take a deep breath and engage a couple of your senses so that you tell your brain, hey, we're here, we're in this moment. We're not stressing, we're not what if ing, we're not overthinking, even if it just gives your brain a break for a couple seconds. Awesome. That's what we're after. Number six is creativity. Creativity helps you redirect your energy. So much of stress and anxiety is nervous, pent up extra negative energy. And we want to redirect that towards something that's beneficial for you. So creativity can help you tap into something that also you may be missing in your life. A lot of times, if someone loves painting or taking an art class or taking photos or doing something else creative, I like to cook. When I make sourdough, that's a creative outlet for me. So maybe for you it's baking. Doing something creative helps give you that outlet, helps you redirect that energy into something that feels good, into something that's productive, that helps you. Maybe you produce something like sourdough bread or a painting, or it just gives you a way to channel the energy, the stress into something that feels good. So having some kind of creative outlet can be incredibly beneficial when it comes to managing stress. Number seven, journaling. Journaling will help increase your clarity and your mental capacity. And it lessens the mental clutter and chatter. When you journal, you're able to get your thoughts out onto paper and in a non judgmental, uncensored way. There are a billion ways to journal. You have to figure out what works for you. If journaling is really something that you despise, fine. That's okay. Find something else. But if you're open to it, use journal prompts. Use doodling and writing or making Venn diagrams or charts. Or maybe you're a free journaler where you just want to write openly and get all your thoughts out onto paper. And just don't do it right before bed because sometimes if it elicits any emotions or it's at all stimulating to your mind now it's going to like wake you up again and not be beneficial to helping you get to sleep. So do it in the middle of the day or maybe right after dinner, a couple hours before bed. But use journaling as a way to get your thoughts and the mental chatter and clutter out onto paper and so that you're not holding on to everything. The power of pen to paper. And I'm not talking about, like journaling on your computer. If that's your outlet, if that's all you have access to, okay, fine. But I'm talking about the power of pen and paper from your mind out and writing it out and sitting and getting your thoughts out. So journaling is an incredibly good basic to get back to if you're stressed. Number eight is sleep. Sleep is the pillar of health. We know this, and it is unfortunately the first thing to go when we're stressed, when we're busy, when life is getting to us. Sleep is restorative. It is a foundation for decision making, for organization, for executive functioning, for your brain's ability to function optimally. You need sleep. You have to sleep. So often. I hear from women sleep is the first thing to go when they are stressed, when they have a lot to do, when there's a lot going on in life. I can't sleep. I have racing thoughts. I'm waking up in the middle of the night or I'm staying up late to do xyz, or I'm staying up later these days because I have to finish this task or, or work on that thing. I understand that life happens. I've definitely gone to bed later because something needed to get done. I've definitely sacrificed some sleep because something in life was happening. I have empathy for it. I totally understand. We're human, we're not robots. If you are someone who, like sleep is what falls to the wayside when stress happens or when anxiety happens, or when you're having a hard time, this is something I encourage you strongly to try to figure out. If you take anything from this episode and sleep is something that you are struggling with, focus on that. I would love that for you. Sleep is so, so paramount to physical and mental health that if that's the one thing you can do, then please let that be your focus. It is literally the pillar of everything that all of this and our ability to function as humans is built upon. Basic number nine is limiting screen time. When we are stressed, what do we do? We maybe watch tv. We zone out into our phones. We're staying up late because we're scrolling through TikTok or Instagram just trying to escape the stress of life or get our brains to shut down. I understand the purpose of it, and we can't really, at this point in life and society get away from screens. But limiting screen time can improve your ability to be present. It gives your mind a break, and more importantly, it gives your nervous system a break from constantly being overloaded every single day. We are inundated with information. We are inundated with words and screens and images and all of these things. And it's not. It's not our fault. But we can do a better job of limiting things. Turning on do not disturb. Shutting your phone down at a certain time every night, making sure you don't sleep with it in your room. Get an alarm clock versus using your phone as your alarm clock when you're working. Put your phone in the other room or turn it on. Do not disturb or flip it over. We're constantly looking at our phones throughout the day and it is such a distraction. It takes away from our ability to be mindful. It adds to our stress. There's also such a dopamine hit with constantly looking for notifications. So it's stressful, but it's also rewarding for a lot of people, which takes away from other things that we maybe used to find rewarding. So if stress is something you're struggling with and we're talking about getting back to basics here, really look at your screen time and try to audit it and start to pare it down. And you'll be surprised at how quickly your brain can adapt in a positive way to having less screen time. It's actually way more stimulating and stressful than we realize. So trying to find ways to of auditing and limiting your screen time, you'd be surprised at the positive impact it can have. And the last number 10 basic activity that often falls to the wayside when we are stressed and anxious and life is happening is tidiness. The reason this is important is because visual clutter can impact our mental health. Visual clutter in our households can increase anxiety. Tidiness can help offer a sense of control. A lot of people who say, when I get really stressed, I clean. There's a reason for that. There's dopamine there. There's the ability to have finished a task. There's the visual representation of looking at something that they accomplished. When we start to get stressed and busy and life is taking over, things start to get messy. Everybody has their level of tidiness. This does not mean that your house has to look like an HGTV magazine home. That is not what I'm talking about. But if you're looking around and there are piles on your dresser and your kitchen counter or your kitchen island looks like a mess, or there is a closet that is overflowing, or you haven't done laundry and these things, while you are probably busy and very stressed out, rightfully so, these things are not helping. Finding a way to try to tidy things up can significantly impact your stress levels. It can help you feel like there's a sense of control. It will reduce the visual clutter and the visual mess that our eyes tend to go to if that mess is there. My tip for you with this is you probably have a place in your house that is what I call the hot zone, where things throughout the day and throughout the week just get dropped. Usually for people, it's a kitchen counter or the shelf when you walk in your front door, or maybe it's your island. When I walk in my house, the first thing you generally see is a kitchen counter that's like bar height. And, and that is where things just end up all day and throughout the week. And over time, it just, it's like a magnet for stuff. Couple times a week I go through, I clear it off, I clean the counter and it's empty. And now my eye has a clean line the minute I walk in the door. So find the hot zone in your house or find a pile that has just started to grow itself, or the dresser in your room that is just gathering things and start to tidy things up. You'll feel more in control. It will feel good because you'll have accomplished something and your eye will have cleaner lines of sight that will allow the representation of less clutter. And it will help free up some mental capacity to think about and manage other things. So there's the 10 simple habits that will help to calm stress and anxiety and remind you to get back to basics. When life has happened and it has thrown you off kilter. If you are struggling with stress right now, think of this list of 10 things. What's missing? What have you gotten away from? And just keep in mind to come back to your basics. They are simple, they're not super aesthetic, they're not fancy, they're not complicated, but they work. You don't need anything wild or any huge overhaul to manage stress levels. A lot of times it's the basics that are going to make the biggest impact. Pick something and start today, start tomorrow, start this weekend. You don't have to fix your whole life in one day. Just come back to the habits that remind you that you're human and you have some control in your life and that you can do things other than just make it to the end of the day. If you want a really quick recap, the 10 simple habits are exercise, time in nature, community involvement, social connection, mindfulness, creativity, journaling, sleep, limiting screen time, and tidiness. If this was helpful. I would love for you to tag me on Instagram. Where are you listening? I want to hear what basics you are going to get back to. Connection nature, moving your body, finding a creative outlet. Tag me in the loaf of sourdough that you've baked or the painting that you've painted because that is a creative outlet for you. I would just love to hear how you are implementing this stuff in your life and I will talk to you next time. Until next time, take care. Thanks for hanging out with me today on let's Talk about it with Laurie Streeter. If this episode resonated with you, it would mean so much if you'd leave a five star review, share it with a friend or come say hi on Instagram. Lori Streeter, your support will help this podcast grow and I so appreciate you being here today. I want to help people just like you feel like they're not alone and gain the tools they need to grow. Until next time, take care.