Stress is a common way of describing how we feel when the demands of our day to day lives start to feel overwhelming and too much for us to cope with. Everyone is different and what we find stressful, someone else may not and vice versa. A little bit of stress is normal and can even be helpful to us – for example motivating us to prepare for an exam.
However, maybe you are finding it difficult to relax even when doing things that normally work for you, such as listening to music or going for a walk. Or maybe your stress is affecting how you go about your day to day life – for example avoiding things you are worried about. If this is the case, it might be a good idea to learn some techniques to help you mange your stress.
This page has lots of ideas and resources to help you with this.
Self Help Guides
- 10 tips for coping with Stress
- Sleeping problems (produced by Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust)
- Self help guides on topics including stress have been produced by Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust
- Let’s get moving
- Stress
- Workbooks for Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners produced by University of Exeter
Self Help Books
- The Books on Prescription scheme offers self-management books that are highly recommended by reputable practitioners and organisations. Many of the books are self-help versions of evidence-based treatments. They offer a way of helping you to help yourself to take control of your life.
- You can borrow the books from many local libraries, free of charge.
- For details of local libraries visit your local council website.
- If you use a book from the scheme, and it doesn’t help, you should ask your GP for further advice.