By Robert Shindell

Being unemployed can be one of the more stressful events in ones life. Unfortunately, there is no “quick-fix” to the stress you are feeling. You can’t turn it off and on at will, so you need to learn how to control stress so that it does not control you. Sometimes we deal with stress in unhealthy ways like overeating, drinking or other self-destructive behaviors. Well, there are better ways to de-stress, and they are easier than you may think. The most important thing to remember to reduce stress is to find a way to feel more in control of your circumstances. The following are some ways you can take control and, thereby, feel less stressed:

Be prepared
At the end of each day, prepare for the next day. Make a to-do list of all the things you must do the next day and clean your work area. If it is making a list of phone calls to make or job applications to fill out, making a list on a daily basis to help you see the progress you are making in your job search. It will also help to keep your day busy so that you do not focus on what has happened, but rather focus on working toward a goal in the future.

Snack healthy.
Do not “feed” your stress with cookies or ice cream, because they will not help. All too often when we are stressed we turn to comfort foods. Unfortunately these foods are high in fat, sugar, and calories. Stay away from soda and drink lots of water. Remember you are what you eat!

Use every minute!
Make good use of all spare minutes that come up each day. The old saying “idle hands do the devils work” has never been more true than when you are unemployed. You need to keep busy and productive things so that you do not end up watching reruns of “Law and Order” on television during the day. If you have an extra 5 or 10 minutes revisit your list that you created the night before in order to reprioritize or add items to your list.