Stress Tip: Postpone Your Reaction

For 30 days, GPS for the Soul and meQuilibrium are providing you tips on how to live a healthier, happier and stress-free life. See the previous stress tips here.

Knee-jerk reactions do not calm anyone down. One of the hallmarks of resilience is your ability to regulate your emotions, to keep your feelings from derailing your mood, your mindset or your entire day. The idea isn't to bury your emotions, but to postpone the reaction so that you can get to the root of what's causing it.

And that's because the problem isn't in the emotion itself, but the thought that caused it. Thoughts like "She doesn't respect me" or "I never get my fair share" can spur a reaction that has nothing to do with the situation at hand. Try this: The minute you feel yourself starting to spin out of control emotionally, hit pause. Ask yourself, "What thought is causing this feeling -- and is it true?" Chances are, it isn't. Promise yourself that you will take measures later to figure out what's really happening before you jump to conclusions -- and wreck your day in the process.

Read more about managing your anger.

--Posted by Lindsay Holmes