Stress Relief Games

Stress and depression are the second most deadly challenges faced by the medical field nowadays. Our fast-paced life is increasing the stress in our lives and this can be disastrous if it is not treated on a timely basis. It is not always necessary to spend too much money or take strong medications for stress relief. Simple stress relieving games can make you feel so much better and give you effective stress relief as well.

By simply playing cards, playing catch with your friend, doing a puzzle or a crossword can help relax to a great extent. There are many sites on the Internet that provide really good stress relief games. They say that squishing ants is a good stress reliever. So, one of the sites has a game where you can squish ants all day long. There are also other types of stress relief games that are known as group stress relief games such as charades, softball, croquet, pictionary and board games. For those who want to be alone, there are many stress relief games to suit their needs such as solitaire, crosswords, online puzzles etc.

Stress relief games can also be either indoor or outdoor games. Outdoor games like tennis, golf, soccer are terrific stress busters and great to maintain fitness levels. Chess, Rubik's Cube, darts, crossword puzzles, computer games, mobile phone games are the indoor stress relief games. Online computer games are available on many sites in demo, free or paid versions. Some of the popular online stress relief games are arcade games, Diner Dash, Super Word Power, Sudoku, Boogle, Minesweeper, Hearts, FreeCell and plenty more.

The logic behind stress relief games is to make use of concentrative meditation. In concentrative meditation, taking your mind of the cause of stress and focusing on any object, sound, image or thoughts helps relax your mind. Similarly, playing an appropriate stress relief game makes a person forget the his/her tensions and frustrations. This relaxes the mind and helps generate endorphins i.e. “Happy Hormones”, which elevate our mood. Outdoor games like tennis, soccer etc. cause the release of stress-relief hormones called serotonin. This combats the stress hormones, cortisol. Adrenalin is also released when you exercise or play which keeps us in a good mood. The combined efforts of the serotonin and the adrenalin exhaust the stores of cortisol making and keeping you stress-free for a long time.

As is always said, a little bit of stress keeps the mind alert and prepares us for action. But, too much stress causes harm to the body, physically as well as mentally. Excess stress weakens the immune system and hence you become more susceptible to illnesses and diseases.

All people are stressed when they are in a group and also sometimes when they have to perform an activity together. Here are some simple games that can help in breaking down the natural barriers that exist as groups begin to form. One of the popular stress relief games is asking the group to sit in a circle. Then the leader of the group starts by asking a question to the next person like “If you were an animal who would you want to be?” After the person answers, he or she asks the person sitting to his right a similar question. This is a good way to relieve the stress that prevails in the group.

Many other stress relief games can help people to cooperate in a group or help then relieve stress when they are alone. Stress can make or break your life. Do not let too much of it get in your way and try not too take failures to seriously.