Handling stressful situations: what the research supports

Stress is normal. What matters is what you do about it. This is a short toolkit based on what the research actually supports, ordered from the quick to the long-term.

In the moment: the next five minutes

Slow your breathing. A systematic review links slow breathing, around six breaths a minute with an unhurried exhale, to lower stress and anxiety scores, though study quality varies and effects are modest. Try the breathing timer.

Move a little. A short walk or some stretching costs nothing and fits the exercise evidence below.

Over weeks: what has the best evidence

1. Regular physical activity. A review of reviews found that exercise reduced symptoms of anxiety and depression in adults without a clinical diagnosis.

2. Enough sleep. In experiments, people who were sleep deprived reacted more negatively to mild stressors. Plan a bedtime with the sleep calculator and set a caffeine cutoff with the caffeine clock. In one trial, caffeine taken six hours before bed still cut total sleep by more than an hour.

3. Cognitive-behavioral skills. A meta-analysis of workplace stress programs found that cognitive-behavioral approaches, such as reframing unhelpful thoughts and planning one step at a time, had the largest effects.

4. Mindfulness programs. A large meta-analysis found moderate evidence that they improve anxiety and depression, and low evidence for stress itself. They help some people and are not a cure-all.

5. Social support. Stronger social relationships are linked with better health outcomes in a large meta-analysis. Talking things through with someone you trust is a simple form of support.

Check your load

The lifestyle stress load index shows which everyday habit adds the most strain, so you can change one thing at a time. The recovery score tracks how you feel day to day.

When to get help

Talk to a doctor or a mental health professional if stress or low mood lasts more than two weeks, affects your work, sleep or relationships, or if you are thinking about harming yourself. In the US you can call or text 988. In the EU, call 112 in an emergency. Elsewhere, use your local crisis line or emergency number.

Additional material

Some people also try herbal or mineral supplements for relaxation. The evidence is limited, which we explain in Stress and sleep: what the research supports. They are an optional extra, not a substitute for the steps above.

Sources

1. Zaccaro A et al. How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing. Front Hum Neurosci 2018. Find on PubMed
2. Rebar AL et al. A meta-meta-analysis of the effect of physical activity on depression and anxiety in non-clinical adult populations. Health Psychol Rev 2015. Find on PubMed
3. Minkel JD et al. Sleep deprivation and stressors: evidence for elevated negative affect in response to mild stressors when sleep deprived. Emotion 2012. Find on PubMed
4. Richardson KM, Rothstein HR. Effects of occupational stress management intervention programs: a meta-analysis. J Occup Health Psychol 2008. Find on PubMed
5. Goyal M et al. Meditation programs for psychological stress and well-being: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Intern Med 2014. Find on PubMed
6. Holt-Lunstad J et al. Social relationships and mortality risk: a meta-analytic review. PLoS Med 2010. Find on PubMed
7. Drake C et al. Caffeine effects on sleep taken 0, 3, or 6 hours before going to bed. J Clin Sleep Med 2013. Find on PubMed

Links open a PubMed search for each paper so you can read the abstract and full citation. Always check the original study.