How to Decrease Stress by Doing a Life Reset

This guest post is sponsored by BetterHelp. See the full disclosure policy here.

Do you ever wish you could just hit the “reset” button on your life? Sometimes when things feel out of your control, you just want to make it all stop so you can catch your breath. While you can’t actually pause all of your responsibilities (unfortunately), you can use mindful practices to decrease your stress, catch your breath, and get things together again. 

Doing a life reset can be a great way to get some perspective when it feels like everything is too much to handle. Once you make some space for reflection, you can determine how to move forward. Maybe you need to make changes in your career, set boundaries, or look into mental health resources like BetterHelp. 

Your life reset may look different depending on your situation and how much time you have. You might have a weekend to spend organizing your house and doing a detox, or you may just have a few hours to get everything together. You can mix and match these techniques to build the reset you need now.

Ground Yourself

Doing some sort of grounding practice can help you reduce your stress levels to a point where it becomes easier to reflect and reset your life. Try a short guided meditation or breathing exercise. If meditation isn’t your thing, you can also slow down by listening to calming music, going outside to experience the natural world around you, or taking a walk. 

Take Stock

Once you’re in a calmer place, it’s time to untangle everything that’s going on in your brain. The first step to doing a life reset is taking stock of where you’re at. Where are you physically? How do you feel? What’s stressing you out? 

It can be helpful to do a brain dump where you write down everything you’re thinking. Don’t be afraid to write down things that might seem inconsequential or silly. This will get all the information out of your head, so you don’t have to waste energy trying to remember it. Seeing things written down on paper can also help you understand them and organize them in your mind. 

Declutter

Simplifying your life is one of the best ways to feel like you’ve hit the reset button. There’s nothing like a new, clean space to make you feel refreshed. If you’re craving a refresh, try getting rid of things you don’t need and reorganizing to prioritize what you value. 

Depending on where you’re at, pick what you want to declutter. Maybe it’s your computer, your closet, or even your whole apartment. If you’re not sure what to do, start with the room you spend the most time in. That way, when you come into that room again, you’ll instantly feel calmer and more in control. 

Try to be mindful while you’re decluttering. Pick a reasonable amount of space to work through in the time you have, and pay attention to how you feel as you work through the mess. You may feel nostalgia as you look at old memorabilia or relief as you watch your space become cleaner. Decluttering with intention can help relieve stress and give you that refreshing feeling of a clean slate. 

Reset Your Body

Doing a reset for your physical health can be a great way to feel more refreshed. You may want to do a detox or exercise challenge or simply dedicate yourself to eating clean for a few days. Getting a good night’s sleep is another great way to get that reset energy and reduce your stress. 

Mental and physical health are more connected than we often think. As you take care of your body, you’ll start to notice that you feel less stressed. Emotions seem less overwhelming, and it becomes easier to understand your thoughts again. 

Plan Ahead

Once you’ve done your reset rituals, it’s time to look to the future. In order to avoid the stress that led you to need a reset in the first place, it’s a good idea to focus on planning ahead. This is a great time to come back to the list you made when taking stock of your life. What do you still need to get done? Are there still things on that list that are stressing you out?

Address long-term worries

Doing a life reset can put some worries into perspective and even make them go away. However, there may also be long-term worries that you need to address. This can be anything from a relationship issue to a project at work or even a negative feeling that’s been coming up consistently. Whatever it is, come up with a plan to address it. What steps can you take right now? What resources do you need, and how can you access them? If you can’t see your way out of a situation, the best thing to do is to take the next step forward. 

Start healthy habits

Planning ahead can also include starting healthy habits to deal with stresses that come up in the future. If you notice that you anxiously scroll on social media as soon as you wake up, it might be time to try doing a gratitude journal as well. You may not be able to keep every new habit you try, but trying out new things can be a great way to build routines that decrease your stress and protect your mental health. 

Make sure you plan the practical aspects of your life as well. Make use of your calendars and to-do lists to organize everything you need to do. That way, whenever you start to feel overwhelmed, you can look at a concrete list of steps and focus your energy on achieving them. 

Use Small Resets When You Need Them

Sometimes you need a big life reset, but sometimes you just need a reset in your day. Using one of these reset techniques can be a great way to stop a bad day in its tracks and start over. Whether it’s going on a run or reorganizing your desk, a little break and refresh might be just what you need to catch your breath. 

It’s also important to remember that the refreshing feeling of a life reset won’t last forever. You can’t make major changes instantaneously. You will continue to feel frustrated, stressed, or burnt out at times in your life, and that’s ok. The tools you use for your resets will be available to you whenever you need them.

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