Simple Ways to Unwind After a Long Day

Not all screen time is equal. There is a significant difference between scrolling through social media and playing a simple low-stakes game. One tends to leaves people feeling more anxious and overstimulated, the other gives the brain a different kind of focus without adding more stress.

Online solitaire and other card games are a great example of this. They require just enough concentration to keep the mind occupied and pull it away from the thoughts of the day, but not so much that it feels like work. The reason is the repetitive nature of card games. It can be genuinely calming for many people and a form of mental decluttering, if you will.

You don't even need long to help you get into a more relaxed mindset; just a short ten-minute session can be enough to have benefits.

Reading is one of the most consistently effective ways to unwind, and research backs this up, too. Even a few minutes of reading has been shown to reduce stress levels significantly. The key thing here, though, is you need to enjoy what you read.

There's no fun in forcing yourself to read something that holds no interest to you. So find something you genuinely want to read and dive in. Give yourself permission to read without guilt and get absorbed in a story that takes you out of real life and puts you in a place that holds your attention.

Exercise is one of the most effective stress relievers there is. And you don't need to hit the gym for an hour for it to count. Even ten to twenty minutes of movement, be it a short run, a swim, a walk, yoga, or even gentle stretching, all count.

Movement releases endorphins and works off the physical tension that accumulates throughout the day.

Some good tips to help you move more include putting on music and having a dance in the kitchen, playing with the kids, running up and down the stairs, and doing some exercises in your bedroom to an online tutorial.

Putting on music or a podcast allows your brain to engage in a gear shift, and it's one of the easiest ways to change the atmosphere of an evening. Music in particular has a direct effect on mood, and choosing something calming can help lower your heart rate and reduce anxiety, while something upbeat can help lift your energy or meet you where you are if you're overstimulated. Music with binaural beats is best listened to via headphones, as you get two slightly different frequencies per ear, and then your brain perceives a third one. And different frequencies have been proven to be beneficial for different mental states.

However, if you prefer a podcast or an audiobook, this will give your brain something else to focus on and engage with, and naturally crowds out the mental replay of what happened in the day. And the passive nature of listening means you can do it while doing other things that need taking care of at the end of your day.

Laughter is not a trivial part of recovery from a hard day. It is physiologically significant. Laughter reduces cortisol, the stress hormone, and releases endorphins in a way that has a measurable effect on how you feel. So deliberately seeking out something that makes you laugh is one of the most underrated stress-relieving strategies out there.

Try watching a film or show that you enjoy, listening to or watching a comedian you find funny, or spending time with a person who genuinely makes you laugh. Even reading something funny can be helpful here, too.

Self-care means different things for different people, but the common thread is doing something that is specifically for you. For some people, it's taking a long, hot bath or shower. For others, it's skincare, journaling, or a small ritual that helps them change gears after a long day.

The actual activity you choose to do for your self-care isn't important, just that you do something that is for you alone and makes you feel better.

The value here is the ritual itself. It's what the activity brings you, but the actual benefit is making the time to put yourself first and pay attention to your wants and needs. And when you do this on a regular basis, you will automatically find it easier to relax and shake off the stress of a busy day.