Advice on self calming

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Could anyone suggest anything for stress? I'm having trouble putting the question together clearly because I'm so stressed out. Any suggestions would be great, I would try anything safe. I feel like I'm going to implode, and I can't take time off work. I do not think it is a medical problem, there are just some things that can't yet be resolved going on, and I can't seem to function.
Maybe some others dealing with stress and anxiety would like some ideas, too.

Try L-theanine it's harmless and most people find it works well, it's not cheap where I am though. It doesn't completely get rid of anxiety but helps take the worst of it away for me.

Look up progressive relaxation techniques. They help calm me down.
Also, there are many herbal remedies available for stress and anxiety, such as valerian and passionflower but mostly mixes of many plant extracts. I've found herbal remedies helpful.

I heard Andrew Weil on the radio talking about breathing exercises. To start breathe in through your nose slowly to the count of 5-hold for another count of 5 and exhale slowly through your mouth to the count of 5.

If your workplace does not do drug testing, you can smoke a doobie, or if you do not like the idea of pot, you can have a couple rye whiskey and colas...

I do that when Im kinda stressed.In the evening, I lay back, have some rye and cola, listen to George Strait songs, and post online.

Only, cola contains caffeine - not exactly calming ...

But booze - yes (OK, probably not a good long term solution). And lots of very dark chocolate.

Since stress has become a lifestyle in our society, destressing is a lifestyle or not at all. Anxiety damage on the adrenals, mind and body are accumulative and far reaching. I believe this to be especially true for those of us with sensory overload, if you have a daily grind outside your home that in itself would render me a gigantic stress ball at the end of each day! My suggestions are as follows.
1) Remember who you are.
What makes you you? What makes you unique? Do something that feeds into your personhood, every day. ie: I fancy myself a writer, when I am super stressed, I find for me, wriring in my journal (yes, manually!) is ver affirming to my personhood as well as calming in a tactile sort of way.
2) Remember what you love.
What makes you come alive? What did you LOVE as a child? Whatever it is, as long as it doesn't hurt someone else or yourself or break too many (important) laws, lol, then go for it!! ! Indulging in special interests help myself as well as the other two aspies in my home cope with stress. My son likes to dissapear into the world of model railroading while my dd loves to let the world melt away while she surrounds herself with every kind of craft supply and has at it for the longest time (she is only 4!! !) I think we can take good advice from my children here and remember what we loved as children... and don't forget to continue it as adults.
3) Reconnect yourself to your body.
Every day we must take care of ourselves, paying attention to what we put in it, not just food, but into our minds, our conciousnes. We can't feed our brian and body with junk all day long and expect to feel all warm and fuzzy and ready to sleep at the end of the day. We must find some activity that will connect both mind and body once again and get them acting in harmonty again. Almost impossible for this aspie to stay connected while in the NT world! Part of me shuts down and I get on overload. This does many bad things to me, and sounds like to you too. I get the fight or flight response, I get inability to wind down and sleep.... all these things, for me, are aleivated for the most part by doing some kind of purposeful movement each day. Yoga type moves and Pilates type exercises are my attempts to stay strong and calm. Find what activity works for you and do it every day!
4) Put you first, and make a commitment!
Or you will be no good to anyone else. your employer, your family... whomever you have in your life. Even the clerks at the store don't want to serve a cranky person and that is what we become when we come last all the time. (as a Mom to 4 children, I should know, lol) Create a life that is what you would love to have during the hours of the day you DO have control over. Honor your body, your mind, your life. Respect what your body has to go through in the NT world everyday and give it the TLC it needs every evening to go out and do it again. Live your dream every chance you get. And make it a commitment.

Hope you find what works best for you~ this is YOUR life and you can do whatever you want to with it. I hope you can choose a path that leads you to peace and not waste any more of your precious days in anxiety and stress. I hope the same for myself!
PS~ I agree w/ pp who said herbals as an acute remedy... I employ a number of herbs including Motherwort and Skullcap, as teas or tinctures. Look into it! It used to be forign to me... but now I wouldn't do without them.

Then have more rye whiskey in the glass than cola, or just drink the rye whiskey straight on the rocks.

Heres a few good songs that are pretty relaxing

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9INIKltDfs[/youtube]



[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZlN9ZMgiR8[/youtube]

I totally agree with all that you suggested ONIGI, and the bit i took out to quote from I think is especially important.
In mid 1990s i realised how mad my fight and flight mechanism was working. At that time i had no idea about anything ASD. But i put the following strategies in place to "protect my adrenals" and hopefully allow me to live to my dream age:-
1. At 6pm every evening I stopped - making a decision on ANYTHING- if someone wanted me to do that I asked them to wait ountil after 0700 the next day.
2. I bought a tape machine with ear phones and would play only tapes that soothed me; gentle talk...NO music as music makes me want to move.
3. when i felt fear so bad (would come in response to 'how am i going to survive' type imaginings- i would read out loud passages from a little spiritual prayer book .
4. I would sit in my backyard and stare into the trees around me (only in broad daylight. -most neighbours at work!!Lol
5. I drank chamomille teas as often as coffee, but lots of water.
6. Diet = fresh everything-minimal supermarket stuff.

Hope this can add to above bank of de-stressor approaches.