The Science of Stress Relief: Tools to Reset Your Nervous System

“Calm is not a place you find—it’s something you learn to create within.”

Understanding Stress: It’s Not All Bad—Until It Is

 Stress, in its original form, is a survival mechanism. It helps you get out of bed, meet deadlines, and perform under pressure. A moderate amount of stress sharpens focus, fuels creativity, and expands your comfort zone. This is known as eustress—the kind of stress that motivates without overwhelming.

But when stress becomes chronic or unmanaged, it takes a toll. Your nervous system becomes dysregulated, switching into fight-or-flight mode more often than necessary. Over time, this affects sleep, digestion, immunity, hormone regulation, and mental health.

You can’t remove all stressors from life—but you can build a toolkit to regulate your system and return to calm more quickly.

1. Diaphragmatic Breathing: Your Nervous System’s Reset Button

 Deep, slow breathing using the diaphragm stimulates the vagus nerve, shifting your body into parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) mode.

Try this: 

Sit or lie comfortably. Bring to mind a moment where you felt peaceful, connected, or deeply joyful—your “anchor image.” Perhaps it’s a walk along the beach, the warmth of sun on your skin, or a moment of laughter with someone you love.

As you breathe in slowly through your nose, imagine that memory expanding. As you exhale gently through your mouth, allow tension to melt away.

Stay with this image and this breath for several minutes. The key is consistency: even a few minutes a day rewires your system over time.

Tip: Visualise a calming light (e.g. soft blue, warm yellow) moving through your body with each breath. Research in somatic therapy suggests combining breath with visual imagery enhances emotional regulation.

2. Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR): Releasing Hidden Tension

 Stress often hides in the body. You may not even realise your shoulders are up around your ears or your jaw is clenched until pain sets in.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation helps you locate and release stored physical tension.

How to do it: 

Lie on your back comfortably. Start at your toes—tense the muscles for 3–5 seconds, then release. Move gradually up your body: feet, calves, thighs, abdomen, chest, hands, arms, neck, and face.

Take your time. As you release each area, exhale and mentally let go.

Evidence: PMR has been shown to reduce cortisol levels, improve sleep, and support recovery from burnout. A meta-analysis of relaxation techniques published in Health Psychology Review found PMR to be one of the most effective tools for physical stress symptoms.

3. Time Management: Reduce Chaos, Reduce Stress

Many clients report that poor time management contributes more to their stress than the tasks themselves. The problem is rarely “too much to do”—it’s the mental load of unstructured overwhelm.

Try: 

• Task batching: Group similar tasks together to reduce decision fatigue.

• Time blocking: Allocate windows in your day for focused work, breaks, and admin.

• Prioritisation: Identify your top 3 tasks each day. Let perfectionism go.

• Delegation: Let go of what you don’t need to do yourself.

Tip: Diarise not just tasks but also breaks, walks, and transitions. Your brain needs buffer time between activities to reset.

4. Move Your Body—Even a Little

Physical movement is one of the fastest ways to discharge stress hormones. It increases oxygen to the brain, boosts endorphins, and helps regulate cortisol.

Low-intensity, rhythmic movement is especially effective for calming the nervous system:

• Walking in nature (adds the benefit of green therapy)

• Yoga, tai chi, or qigong

• Gentle stretching or mobility flows

Bonus: Being in motion while processing a stressful thought or emotion helps integrate it through bilateral stimulation (similar to what EMDR therapy does).

5. Reframe Your Mindset: From Surviving to Strength

Stressful moments often shrink our perspective. Reclaiming a broader view helps us return to clarity and hope.

Try this 3-step practice: 

1. Gratitude anchor – Each night, list 3 things that went well, no matter how small.

2. Reframe a past challenge – What did you gain from it? How did you grow?

3. Recall a personal triumph – A time you showed up for yourself, pushed through fear, or overcame doubt. Reconnect with that version of you.

Neuroscience insight: Recalling past resilience reactivates the same neural networks, reinforcing a sense of competence and calm.

Integrating Your Toolkit: Small Shifts, Big Impact

Building resilience isn’t about adding more to your to-do list—it’s about inserting micro-practices into your existing routine:

• One deep breath before opening your inbox.

• A 60-second stretch between appointments.

• A gratitude moment before bed.

• A walk after lunch instead of scrolling.

• Replacing a negative thought with a memory of your “beacon of light.”

Recommended Resources 

• The Breathing Book by Donna Farhi

• Progressive Relaxation and Breathing by Patrick Fanning & Matthew McKay

• Burnout by Emily and Amelia Nagoski

• The Body Keeps the Score by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk

Final Thoughts

Stress is inevitable—but being overwhelmed doesn’t have to be. When you work with your body and brain rather than against them, you begin to build a felt sense of safety and agency, even in the face of challenge.

Need Support?

At The Lighthouse Psychology, we help clients reset from chronic stress using evidence-based strategies including breathwork, somatic techniques, and nervous system education. You don’t have to figure it out alone.

Reach out to book a session and learn how to restore your calm, your clarity, and your power.