It is important for individuals with multiple sclerosis to keep stress to a minimum. People suffering from stress are much more likely to gain weight and report being unhappier than people who believe they have found effective ways of dealing with the stress in their lives. If you’re feeling overly stressed, attempt one or a few of the strategies listed below to help your relax.

Stop Spending

While many consider retail therapy to be therapeutic, it can easily become the opposite if you exceed your budget. Fighting crowds, spending money you don’t have and figuring out what to do with all the stuff you just bought do not help to lower your stress. Instead, resolve to only spend money deliberately. Plan your purchases, and try to spend money only on things that will really make you happy.

Volunteer

While it may seem that adding more activities to your schedule would increase your stress, multiple studies have shown that helping others will go a long way to reducing your overall stress level. Start small by donating a few hours per month at a homeless shelter or food pantry.

Add Some Light

Natural light has been shown to improve the mood of people who are exposed to it. Open some windows, and/or resolve to spend more time outside. Take your lunch break outdoors or participate in a hike on the weekend.

Exercise

Even a few minutes of physical activity has been shown to increase your body’s production of stress-reducing and mood-improving endorphins. In addition, exercising will help you to lose weight and improve your muscle tone. If you don’t have the time to spend hours at the gym, try incorporating a fifteen minute walk to clear your mind and burn excess calories.

Music Therapy

Music has been shown to improve mood. Even if you don’t have a great singing voice, just listening to music can help. It doesn’t matter what type of music you listen to, but it is important to make sure you set aside the time just to listen. Having background noise while you work won’t give you the same effect.

Keep a Journal

Writing down the good things that happen will help you stay positive. Furthermore, some studies have suggested that reviewing happy memories, such as old photographs; can lower a person’s stress levels. That means that just reading your journal should help improve your mood.

Being able to control your stress is one of the first steps to living a happier and healthier life.