What is something simple that you do to decompress and keep yourself centered?

There was a period in my life that lasted about 4 or 5 years when I refused to admit that I needed to decompress. I had multiple employers, spent 6 days a week leaving before the sun came up and coming home after dark. I was drinking upwards of 10 coffees per day plus loads of soft drinks. When I did get in I would watch series or movies late into the night. I gained weight and developed anxiety. I also began having migraines multiple times a week. Then I developed pericarditis. I lived like that for a long time. Just popping Xanax to get through the day.

Finally, I managed to see a neurologist who confirmed my migraines (unilateral acephalgic etc. etc.) and gave me a doctor's note and strict instructions. The TL;DR of those instructions was: REST.

So, I gave in and admitted defeat. That was the first step.

Very quickly my stress levels dropped. It took a few months for the pericarditis to stop.

I stopped all caffeine and other stimulants. Stopped the Xanax. Energy levels exploded.

Step 2 was doing something with that energy. Something I hate with a deep passion: EXERCISE.

After almost 5 years of thinking my life would just be like that it only took 6 weeks for things to get back on track. I deflated and dropped from 108kg to 82kg.

You didn't need to story, but everyone else here is right. Rest and moving your body helped. Mentally, I was even more creative. I was friendlier. I was even recommended to apply for a promotion.

If you need to decompress, I think sleep is the best. If the sandman ain't visiting, then combine with movement and fresh air.

Honestly, I smoke. Usually hookah, sometimes I'll have a cigarette. I know it's bad, but I want a good life, not a long one.

Quality over quantity. I feel that.

Just sleep longer.
6 hours is too short. 7.5 hours is OK. 9 hours is best in my case.

I wish I could sleep even 6, ugh

Definitely exercise is great for stress management. Something about cardio cuts through stress like a knife through warm butter.

I have a few things I like to do! In no particular order:

Make a pour over coffee. From measuring, grinding, pouring, and all, it takes 10 to 15 mins. It's the perfect amount of time to make for a break for something. Then you get all the nice aromas, warm mug, and caffeine general helps stabilize my mood too.
Walking or sitting outside! Gets the blood moving, change in air, sometimes you hear the birds or insects.
Take a relaxing bath. You can go extra hard with bathbombs for fragrances and stuff too.
Light candles, incense, dim lights, put on jazz or some other nice background music. Dim moods and calming smells and good sounds help bring good sensory experiences to block out any bad feelings.
Lose myself in my instruments. Playing anything requires my focus and forces me to turn off my depression spiral thought patterns and focus on creating something wholesome and pure.

I like to bottle it all up and explode at a later date over something trivial

Dad?

I do meditation. Not mindfulness because I need dissociation for my chronic pain management. I basically do a version that I altered to stay as disconnected from my body as possible and just focus on emotions and observing them.

I also use a yoga ball sometimes, helps me regulate as well

To manage chronic pain you might want to look into the app Curable, my therapist recommended it. It’s a very well-designed app, there’s also a free trial (it’s under $100 for a year). It helps you reprogram your nervous system, but it also feels very supportive. It’s like care and support whenever you need it. I highly recommended it. 👍
- It sounds a bit iffy to me that app, ngl
  
  You can't cure what's causes by a real physical disease causing dislocations in my body, I can't reprogram my body into making my connective tissue actually work work. I can't reprogram my brain into being cured as the name suggests
  
  To me this app looks from a cursory glance like the type of stuff I get peddled by people who don't believe in my disability and instead call all chronic pain "psychosomatic". I know that mental health can cause physical symptoms including pain and worsen it. But that doesn't mean all pain is psychosomatic.
  
  If people like me are not careful with what they say to certain people I can be undiagnosed with my physical disease by a therapist who knows nothing of said disease

I like to dance. Sometimes it’s angry dancing, sometimes it’s happy dancing, but it helps me blow off steam and express emotions in a healthy way.

How do you dance? Do you look at music videos online and try to minic it, like in a Just Dance videogame? I'm very bad at dancing lol.
- You don’t have to be good at dancing to dance, I’m definitely not!
  
  Most of the time I just put on music that suits my mood and move however I feel. Getting into that flow state of just doing what comes naturally, not caring if I’m dancing well or look stupid is really helpful to me personally.

Have a nice porch sit

I really enjoy working on my car. It's almost meditative. When you're under the car with a rusty bolt to remove, all stress disappears as you focus everything into an extremely small problem. When that bolt gives, you move to the next small problem until the job is done. At that point, you're left feeling satisfied knowing that a complex problem had been solved with your own two hands.

Same thing with working on electronics you just comcentrate on one problem which gets you distracted from everything around you and makes ypur mind relaxed when finished

Get a lower paycheck for a stress-free working environment.

Can I opt for a higher paycheck and a stress-free working environment? I think I'd like that slightly better.
- That require to face the stress of constant job-hunting.
Yup! I'm 21 so it's not like I have much experience, but stop working as a waiter in a shitty 5-star holet to do the same job, with a shittier contract, but in a much better and laid back working environment has been a game changer.

Yeah I earn less, but I have more time to study and relax and I don't hate the place I have to go to six days a week, so...

Honestly: Smoke weed. It helps chill me out.

My favorite is to smoke in the back yard with a little fire in my Solo Stove going. Preferably with marshmallows. I can zone out for hours out there. I live in town, but there is greenery along most of my fence, so it *feels *secluded even if it really isn't. My neighbors have a new fountain they put in a little pond in their front yard, too, so I get to hear the water :)

Biggest thing for me is mindfulness in whatever I'm doing. It's such a difference between "I am going to relax" and "I am staying busy relaxing to avoid processing my feelings".

Usually a hot bath is my go-to. It's helpful to have some music and quiet to ponder why I am compressed, what changes need to be made, or if I just need time to be allowed to feel.

Great points here. Sometimes I will go for a walk and then wonder, why don’t I feel any better? And it’s likely because that wasn’t what I actually needed.
It's so, so easy to end up just scrolling through social media - fediverse included - or through youtube or whatever just because it fills your mind with bees so that you don't think about your problems, rather than because it is actually what you'd most like to be doing.
- The biggest thing I'm taking from the fracturing of the spaces like reddit and Twitter is to try and break myself out of that fog. Isolation during the pandemic really didn't help those tendencies!
I switched from daily showers to daily baths about a year ago. It's a great way to relax at the end of the day.
- I alternate between the two depending on how much effort I want to do, but I think you never get too old for a bubble bath!

Funny in literally midpoint in a walk at the moment... though I've paused to get my nails done as another source of calm.

For me it's yoga. Doesn't have to be long or even a structured session, just taking the time to stop and stretch and reconnect with myself and my body does wonders.

15 minutes of guided meditation after a hard workout. Sitting on a camping chair with a cold beer on a hot summer day by yourself. High quality noise cancelling headphones with your favorite music. Being around a friend or friends that all fits the right vibe and everything just clicks. E: Another one is buy one or two in-season quality fruits from a local grower... Just had strawberries in Japan and my life is different.

Well, when I'm at home a cup of tea usually does the trick. When I'm outside on the other hand, I like to take long walks, I just pick a direction and start walking without worrying about where I'm going and stop thinking, maybe with some music in my headphones. I do this until my legs start hurting, and by that point I feel better.

I take a timed, twenty minute nap. Under the sheets. Undressed. And just let me mind wander wherever it wants. I've found that generally I don't often fall asleep but am just on the cusp when the alarm goes off but I feel more rested from that than when I wake in the morning after a 'full nights sleep'.

Skate on my local bike trail and smoke weed

Put on some music and sing your motherfucking heart out. 👍

This is always a good idea, but it's an especially a good idea if you have a lot of energy that you can't just will away or let go of. Sometimes when you can't calm down or slow down, you can redirect and reframe that energy instead, until you've vented it out.

I unfortunately have rarely time for a long walk, but I do love them.

As I spend a lot of time in the kitchen cooking dinner I use this time as a little me-time. I pour myself a glass (one is always sufficient) of white wine, put on a podcast and then cook.

Washing my face! Sometimes something as simple as some refreshing skincare, and maybe a little something extra - like a scrub or sheet mask, makes me feel calmer and relaxed. Paired with a warm drink like tea or coffee, this usually helps soothe me when I’m anxious.

The absolute daily bare minumum: Drink 2 liters of water. Eat as little processed food as possible and as little sugar as possible. Yoga for 10 minutes. Intensive breathing meditation. Sleep for at least 6 hours a night and fall asleep before 11.

On top of that, walk, jog, or run 2 miles every day and read things to expand your mind.

So, I think walking is one of the easiest and most universal answers, and I agree. But also, may I suggest live music. Even if it's not amazing or not something you'd otherwise choose to listen to. Just something about hearing it live, feeling the thump of the drums and the reverb of the bass in your chest, makes the world all right again for the length of the song. (Wear appropriate hearing protection, kids. Tinnitus is no joke.)

I love climbing outdoors. When you're on the boulder and focused on climbing, your thoughts are only focused on your next moves. At the top, you get a wonderful view of nature. It's quite rewarding and certainly decompressing.

I agree with most of what others have said especially walking. On top of that I'd recommend breathwork. It's odd our society focuses so much on health and fitness in any areas but now how we breath. A recent study found that 5 minutes of breathwork or meditation has a signifinant reduction in stress.
Study: https://honehealth.com/edge/health/physiological-sigh-andrew-huberman/
Video from one of the guys who conducted the study: https://www.google.com/url?q=https://m.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DrBdhqBGqiMc&sa=U&ved=2ahUKEwid2uyujdL_AhUSCDQIHTkJB5sQFnoECAIQAg&usg=AOvVaw1h4Aoj5PyHbJtO3kuGflAX

I do some breathing exercises using a colorful blob on the screen and do some journaling. I also do tarot readings to assess my energies for the day and to ground myself better since I'm an anxious person. I guess I should really get back into it because I'm getting really antsy these days

How does tarot reading actually work? Can you explain a little the process? Is it hard to learn?
- Sorry for the late reply ~~I've been stuck in a reddit binge before Apollo dies.~~ Anyway, every tarot practitioner views it differently. For me, it's a way to connect with myself and the energies around me. It's very grounding since it's just another tool for me to assess my actions and possible outcomes. It's not something that predicts your future per se. I avoid personal bias by evaluating whether the reading resonates with what I feel and what is objectively happening around me.
  
  In a nutshell, it's a bunch of cards (78 cards) with different symbolisms and meanings. Pull as many as you need, interpret it based on the basic symbolisms and key words on your guide. Decide whether it resonates or not. Do it again as you please. It's hard at first since there are a lot of cards but it just takes some practice to get better as with any other thing. Sometimes it takes me weeks before I grab my cards again, sometimes I need it on the daily.

I enjoy brewing loose leaf tea gongfu style (in a small vessel with many infusions): it gives me just enough to do, and a pleasant stimulus to focus on, that it's very grounding.

Is that where each cup(infusion) tastes different and there's a whole ritual kinda thing?
- It's just one method to make tea. Some teas taste quite different from cup to cup (wuyi oolongs, for example), some are more consistent, in my experience. What I like is that it's easy to adjust depending on the outcome - one infusion is too weak or too strong? Brew the next one more or less.
- Yeah, I found a neat article that explains it: https://pathofcha.com/blogs/all-about-tea/a-detailed-guide-to-gong-fu-cha-the-chinese-way-to-taste-tea

I'm a very flitty sort of person, and can be pushed off balance decently easily. My job is pretty fast paced, so I can't just go for a walk or meditate for 10 minutes. So my rule is to not focus on everything coming up, but just focus on what's directly in front of me. Which, yeah, I know sounds dumb but it honestly does work.

Instead of thinking "Oh, that line of customers is long" -> "Oh god I'm not going to be able to serve the customers fast enough" -> "oh my god they're going to leave and I'm going to get in trouble for not being fast enough."

I don't even acknowledge the length of the line. Look directly ahead, and focus on what you're doing right now. Shit will always be coming in from every direction, but quick steps make for shorter journeys.

Outside of work, hobbies, crochet, gardening. Getting in touch with nature is a big one for me.

Just spending time at the park or near water. I love walking too, and biking. Just listening to music… Breathing techniques, guided meditations, jogging, spending time in nature. Lately I started practicing self-reiki and it’s amazing. Also eating a plant-based diet. Listening to mantras.

Walking alone and tending to my allotment. Although sometimes trying to get things to grow can be a bit frustrating!

Along with several other suggestions here (full night's rest, sitting in my yard/porch, smoking), I'd also add taking a long, hot bath with either bath salts or bubbles. Wonderful way to melt away even the worst of days.

kava

I really enjoy spending time alone to recharge. I make espresso, watch YouTube, play video games, listen to music. Just whatever grabs my fancy. I’m a single dad so that doesn’t happen very often tbh, but also why it helps bring my back to my middle.

Alone coffee is fantastic! Sometimes with something to read, sometimes kot.

A couple of things:

I find hand washing dishes to be very meditative.
The practice of chanting Hindu mantras Here's an example Or doing japa

People find it weird when I say I actually like doing the dishes by hand. Good to see I'm not alone.

Planning my evening and getting to bed at a decent time, letting myself sleep all night, does a lot. Especially after taking a shower.

Prayer, typically on my front porch, with a cup of coffee. Biking has also become a big thing for me. I don't live near the sea but have lots of lakes nearby, so sitting on a beach also.