8 Tips to Manage Stress in Traffic

Cruising around several highways or roads using that Toyota Altis here in the Philippines may sometimes be excruciating. Whether you’re a driver, a passenger, or a commuter, traffic can definitely cause irritating and seemingly unmanageable stress. There are times when we just want to scream our lungs out because of the endless traffic. Well now, lucky you! Get to know a few tips to manage that crazy stress caused by traffic as you read this article.

1. Time

Do your best to leave early. Adjust your waking up time to an hour or more beyond usual if you travel to the major highways during weekdays. Although it may be difficult to wake up early, travelling during hours when people aren’t usually awake yet is a sure-fire way fewer vehicles are on the roads. To add to this, you will also not be late to your destined area.

2. Breathe

If the stress already kicked in your system, remember to breathe and try to let go of all the frustrations you feel inside. Take time to sink in everything that’s currently occurring, close your eyes for a while (not too long for drivers, though!) then take that one big deep breath. This can definitely make you unwind.

3. Music

People have their own preference when it comes to managing stress once they include music. Some people prefer to listen to mellow-soft, hard-hip hop, pop-punk, catchy-EDM, and other genres. Whatever that might be, go play it! If you still haven’t figured out your stress-reliever genre, find what it is as soon as you can then make your ears listen to them.

4. Misdirection
Distract yourself by trying to think about something else rather than the stressful traffic currently happening. Think about your future plans, what you’ll eat, who you’ll meet, where you’ll go, and whatever thought you could possibly do. Make sure you think about peaceful thoughts! No one would want to be stressed more than what they currently feel right?

5. Scent

It’s already given that the highways in our country come with traffic. Try to bring with you scents with scientific studies proven to calm the mind such as lavender, rosemary, peppermint, and lemon as some of the recommended scents to have. Take a whiff of them during traffic to ease your stress.

6. Companion

A great recommendation during travel is to travel with others. Carpool with people who will also go to your destination to save gas and will make your journey better as you share life stories with other people.

7. Eat

If you luckily pack up food as you travel, munch on them if you do. Try not to stress eat though!

8. Stress ball

Putting pressure on stress balls has been a long and on-going trend on minimizing the stress felt by anyone. Owning one is easy to. Simply buy a stress ball in department stores or bookstores at an affordable price. It’s light-weight, too!

Manage your traffic stress by following some of these procedures. Productivity can definitely disappear because of the time spent on roads, so make the most out of your stay on vehicles by doing these stress-relief ideas!