HOW DOES STRESS AFFECT US?
To say that stress has an uncanny ability to affect all of us, in many ways, would still be an understatement. Stress is a tricky devil because it has the capacity to create outward impact in our lives, (we feel overwhelmed, we feel tense or nervous) as well as to sneak up on us when we least expect it (we experience low or no appetite, we have trouble sleeping or waking up, and we’re feeling unmotivated).
This article helps us to understand that the many ways in which stress can have a negative impact on our life are not limited to one area. While we may have an easier time recognizing overt symptoms of stress like negative feelings or visible frustration, what’s more difficult to ascertain sometimes are whether symptoms like headaches, staring at the ceiling long past bedtime and digestive issues may also be related. The short answer? They just might be.
The truth is, common effects of stress can influence your physical health, your mental and emotional health as well as your behaviors and the way you ‘act out’. Physically, many people report ailments like headaches, stomach aches, fatigue and soreness in the body. Mentally and emotionally, this may look like prolonged periods of anxiety, restlessness, sadness, irritability and overwhelm. In terms of behavior, you may be impacted by stress if you find yourself doing things you might not normally do, like over or undereating, over and misusing drugs or alcohol, socially withdrawing and isolating, or many more.
Many strongly suggested tools to add to your wellness kit in an effort to combat stress are luckily available to us regularly and with little effort. In order to address daily stressors, you can consider paying mind to your diet and ensuring you’re eating healthily and balanced, you can add a consistent amount of movement and activity to your every day, you can carve out time for hobbies and interests that make you feel more like ‘you’, and you can prioritize dedicated time spent with friends and loved ones to help fill your cup, so to speak.
USING NATURAL WELLNESS PRODUCTS TO MANAGE YOUR DAILY STRESSORS
Another one of the considerations you may make when it comes to addressing the impacts of stress is through the use of natural wellness products. Many people find they experience tremendous benefits from using essential oil-based products to support their wellness topically (being applied to the body in different ways) and through inhalation (like through the use of an ultrasonic diffuser). Read on to learn more about the products we recommend adding to your daily routines.
NATURAL WELLNESS PRODUCTS: ROLL-ONS FOR STRESS
Here at Saje, we offer a number of different products and product formats to fit your lifestyle and your routines seamlessly. We create different product formats to help address personal preferences and to ensure access to stress relief is simple and convenient to use.
Our essential oil roll-on blends are portable, easy to use and understand and pack a big punch in a small bottle. Designed to be applied to areas of the body where one might experience symptoms of stress, we like to suggest rolling-on to areas like the forehead, temples, along the jawline, over the throat and chest, wrists and in the elbow creases when stress strikes. And remember to breathe deeply each time you apply; essential oils work in two main ways, by being applied to our skin topically and permeating through to our bloodstream and by being inhaled into our olfactory system.
Our favorite roll-ons to combat the effects of stress:
Stress Release: a floral, herbaceous and euphoric blend of lavender, orange, roman chamomile, vetiver, geranium, clary sage and myrtle.
Unwind: a sweet, citrusy-floral and balancing blend of orange, bergamot, lavender, geranium and cinnamon.
Yoga: an earthy, citrusy-herbal and grounding blend of patchouli, orange, ho wood, bergamot, cardamom, cedarwood, vetiver, neroli and champaca.
NATURAL WELLNESS PRODUCTS: DIFFUSER BLENDS TO ADDRESS STRESS
Another one of the ways we like to use natural wellness products to help relieve and ease symptoms of stress is through diffusing calming, relaxing and peaceful scents, like our 100% natural diffuser blends.
We thoughtfully and carefully curate these formulas with top, middle and base notes to support your body and mind in receiving these scents as tranquil, balancing, uplifting and most importantly, stress relieving. We suggest starting with 5-10 drops added to your diffuser (or more, according to your personal preference) for a soothing sensory experience.
Our favorite diffuser blends to help you stress less:
Deep Breath: an herbal, renewing and invigorating blend of eucalyptus, lemon, peppermint, marjoram and lavender.
Tranquility: an herbal, floral and balancing blend of orange, lavender, marjoram, ylang ylang and roman chamomile.
Goddess: a sweet, floral and euphoric blend of orange, palmarosa, rose otto, jasmine, neroli and champa.
Spa Day: a bright, fresh and herbal blend of lemon, juniper, black spruce and labrador tea.
NATURAL WELLNESS PRODUCTS: BODY CARE PRODUCTS TO HELP YOU STRESS LESS
The category we reach for most often when it comes to products with which we can create self-care routines to help support our physical and mental health is natural body care. Self-care practices like self or partnered massage, baths and skincare can help elevate our mood, soothe and nurture the body and generally help support us physically and mentally in feeling well and being taken care of.
Our favorite body care products to help ease stressful feelings:
Stress Release mist: formulated with the same soothing and balancing essential oils in the Stress Release roll-on, a mist is the perfect product to use whenever you need a refresher or a pick-me-up. To use, simply shake to combine water and essential oils and mist generously over the face and body with the eyes and mouth closed, taking a few deep breaths to encourage peace and calm in the body and mind. This mist can also be spritzed over your pillows and sheets at night for a soothing effect at bedtime.
Stress Release body oil: smooth on this powerful yet grounding blend of essential oils and carrier oils of grapeseed, apricot kernel and vitamin E to help relax tense muscles, hydrate the skin and encourage feelings of restfulness and ease. Hot tip: apply to damp skin post bath or shower for an extra soothing treat for the skin.
Stress Release bath salts: soak your worries away with our well-loved bath salts made from naturally sourced Epsom and sea salts to help deeply relax the body while providing an uplifting natural aroma to tantalize the senses. We recommend adding a few tablespoons of salt once the bath is full, dispersing in the warm water and soaking for up to 30 minutes for optimal benefits.
LIFESTYLE TIPS FOR INCLUDING NATURAL WELLNESS PRODUCTS IN YOUR DAILY ROUTINES TO COMBAT STRESS
When it comes to our wellness routines, it can feel even more stressful to have to consider whether adding products or practices into your daily life is likely to cause additional stress! In order to keep self-care feeling beneficial and supportive, here are a few of the ways we encourage you to try adding natural wellness products to your daily routines:
1. Incorporate products into practices you’re already doing. Do you start or end your day with stretching or journaling? Consider rolling on a stress relieving roll-on before or after practice to give your mind and body a supportive boost.
2. Are you a coffee or tea person in the morning? While the kettle is warming up, why not create a habit of filling your diffuser with water and choosing the blend you most feel you’d like to support you that day?
3. If you’re a person who likes to bathe or shower in the most efficient way possible, try body oiling, which is applying oil to wet skin while still in the bath or shower, massaging in and then rinsing off. You’ll still get the benefits of hydration for the skin and when you step out, you’re already ready to be towel dried.
Do something nice for yourself today. Find some quiet, sit in stillness, breathe. Put your problems on pause. You deserve a break.
— Akiroq Brost
