Being in your 30’s comes with a lot on unwanted baggage – baggage in the form of careers, relationships, physical looks, money, and more. It seems like every day there is something new that is demanding your energy, and not just some of it – all of it.
It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the million and one things you are juggling in your 30s. I know for a fact that getting overwhelmed and stressed in your 30s happens pretty frequently, that is if you let it.
Feeling stress and overwhelm isn’t necessarily a bad thing always – shift how you view stress can change your relationship with it. Instead of using stress to cause a mental breakdown, I’ve been there, try to view stress as your body’s way of telling you that something has to change. When you start to see stress as a sign that change should be made, you can start to address the problem instead of trying to continue to juggle everything – again, I’ve tried that and been there, it sucks.
Embracing the not so great moments of your 30s is part of the fun. Not everything is sunshine and rainbows and you will encounter stress, honestly a lot of it. But working through the emotions can be done and will help you live more freely and less captured by stress. There are some truly incredible moments that will happen in your 30s and it’s important to be in the best mindset possible to enjoy every single one to the fullest!
Here are Helpful Tips and Tricks to Manage Stress in Your 30s.
Focus On The Good.
In a world full of chaos, we need to focus on the good. You can’t ignore of the not do great things that are happening but instead try to find the good that lies underneath. There is a silver lining in quite literally everything.
If you worry about the person at work that is constantly talking down to you or undermining you, then you may not realize that there are other opportunities for you to explore that put you in a better place for success. Maybe you just went through a break up and are feeling alone and maybe even some feeling pressure to settle down, you may put up blinders to welcoming in some of the great things that are in-store and enjoying your life. Life isn’t a race and sometimes we forget that in our 30s. Don’t forget – when you focus on the good, the good gets better.
Say No.
Obligations pile up. Navigating your time between work, family, friends, hobbies, travel, etc. can be unbelievably daunting. The endless pile of wedding invitations, baby showers, birthday parties, and text saying “we need to catch up,” can build up and lead to endless stress and wondering how in the world can I do all of this? There is a magic word that can stop you from picking up too many commitments and that word is no.
You can start saying no to people and they will not care! If you cannot do something, say no. There is no reason to rush around between obligations or crunch your schedule down to the minute – it just creates stress. If you don’t want to do something you do not have to lie and say yes. Maybe you feel that someone will be upset if you say no, and that’s ok because disappointment happens – but you have to make the right choice for you. If that means turning down an invite or respectfully declining a dinner date, that’s totally okay.
Pick Up Meditation.
My head is constantly overflowing with thoughts – thoughts about literally everything – work, finances, where I want to live, family, my schedule and to-do list that I can never remember… I don’t know about you but my thoughts fly around my head quicker now in my 30s than they ever did before. But what if there was a way to silence you brain for a short bit and allow you to refocus?
Meditation is a fantastic way to keep your mind sharp and focused, but also still and calm. Whether it be a morning meditation to help you feel centered and clear-headed as you begin a new day or a nighttime meditation that helps you release the stress of the day and go to bed truly relaxed & ready to wind down. Meditation is just one part of my personal self-love & self-care practice – embracing a self-care routine is a fantastic way to manage stress and give yourself some much needed me-time. For some ideas on how to build out your own self love and self care practice you can read this blog post!
Talk TO A Friend.
Getting stressed can sometimes lead to isolation – whether it be staying in a ignoring plans or just wanted to disconnect from all people all together. You are balancing so many different things in your 30s and sometimes the first defensive mechanism we have to to run away, isolate, and try to ignore everything around us to prevent one more item from falling into our radar. It could even be one issue or part of your life that is just thoroughly consuming your thoughts to the point where engaging in anything seems impossible.
I get it. I’ve been there. The best way to get through the stressful moments is to call a friend or even a family member. My mom is my lifeline and so are my best friends – a conversation that can be 2 minutes or 2 hours can be the different between spiraling into the endless abyss of overthinking and being able to express my emotions and come to a solid conclusions. Friends and family are always there to support you and should be key fixtures in your life – having people to lean on is so important.
If you are in need of a friend or someone to talk to about something, you can always reach out to me!
Get Active.
Getting active is a great way to manage stress in your 30s – it’s also a great way to get in shape, which always affects your mood for the better. Stress can sometimes cause us to shelter up and not want to be around others or simply do anything. If you’re looking to manage your stress in your 30s, getting active is a great method.
If you have ever read any other blog post of mine around self-love and embracing an active lifestyle, you know how much I love a hot girl walk. Personally, I’ve lost a lot of weight from walking but it’s also an amazing mindful habit that you can embrace rather easily. Movement is a great way to move around stagnant energy in your body – that stagnant energy can 100% be aiding in the stress that you can be experiencing. Movement is medicine when it comes to stress relief, especially in your 30s.
Grab yourself some Hokas, some lululemon dupe leggings, and get to moving that body. Your physical and mental health will thank you!
Take A Social media Break.
Social Media can be the root of so much stress – from seeing the perfect body, the perfect relationship, people completing milestones that you have yet to reach, and even people living luxurious lifestyles that you can only dream of… The comparison to others can lead to so much stress, especially in your 30s. When some friends are married having their 4th child, while others are just starting to figuring out what career they are passionate about, while others just got back from a month long European solo-travel trip… and then there’s you thats done none of that. I’ve felt this way, maybe you have too. I hope this isn’t the first time you’ve heard this and it probably won’t be the last, but social media is not real.
The curated lives of influencers, celebrities, and those closest to you, can be major contributors to stress in your 30s. Taking a social media break is a great way to cut the comparison to others and really focus on the life you live and what you need to do to get the life that you want. …It also leaves a lot more time in the day to go on hot girl walks and meditate, instead of getting stuck in the endless doomscroll – You can read about some of my favorite ways to combat the doomscroll here.
If you feel like stress could be originating from viewing others lives on social media, then a social media break may be perfect for you.
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