伴随着疫情，我们又跨入了新的一年。许久没有机会放飞心情的人们，难免感到烦躁和抑郁，这些负面情绪和心理压力要如何排解呢？专家给出了5个建议。

 

1. Practice the "STOP" skill.

学会“叫停”

 

This is a savvy¹ strategy shared by Dr. Sabrina Romanoff, clinical psychologist and professor at Yeshiva University in New York City.

纽约市叶史瓦大学教授、临床心理学家塞布丽娜·罗曼诺夫博士分享了一个减压高招——叫停。

 

"Stop stands for: Stop; Take a step back; Observe; Proceed mindfully," she explains. "When emotions take over, you may find that you act impulsively². When you react impulsively, you do not have time to use your arsenal³ of skills."

她解释道：“叫停代表着停下来、退一步、观察、冷静分析。当情绪占上风时，你会发现自己可能会冲动行事。一旦冲动行事，你就顾不上你那些减压技巧了。”

 

When you find yourself on edge about something or feel yourself panicking, use "STOP" to regain⁴ control of the situation.

当你发现自己因某事感到紧张或恐慌时，就按下“暂停键”来重新掌控局面。

 

2. Get outside during daylight hours.

白天外出走走

 

It may be cold out, but getting outside is still important for your mental health.

外面也许很冷，但是出去走走对你的心理健康依然很重要。

 

"Having fewer hours of daylight can have a negative impact on your mood," Doreen Marshall from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) states.

美国自杀预防基金会的多琳·马歇尔说道：“接触日光的时长减少对你的情绪会产生负面影响。”

 

You can simply sit and watch the sunrise or walk around your neighborhood. Whatever you do, just make an effort to make it a daily habit, she says.

她说，你可以坐下来看看日出，也可以在社区附近走走。无论你做什么，只要每日坚持外出就行。

 

3. Connect with others if you're feeling lonely.

如果你感到孤独，就主动联系他人

 

The pandemic has completely upended the way we socialize, and millions of people are grappling with feelings of isolation⁵.

疫情彻底颠覆了我们的社交方式，数百万人被与世隔绝的感觉所困扰。

 

"Chances are pretty good that you are not alone in feeling lonely, and sharing how you are feeling may empower others to do the same," says Marshall.

马歇尔说：“很有可能其他人也和你一样感到孤独，主动分享你的感受会促使其他人也敞开心扉。”

 

It can be a little awkward reconnecting with people, but try to challenge yourself to send three emails a week to someone you haven't heard from in a while, or call a different loved one each week to check in and see how they are doing. Not only will you brighten your own day, but you'll brighten someone else's.

和他人重新建立联系可能会有点尴尬，但是你可以试着每周给很久没联系的朋友们发三封电子邮件，或者每周给不同的亲友打电话询问近况。你不但可以点亮自己的生活，你还会照亮他人的生活。

 

4. Remember the big picture.

从长远角度来看待眼前的烦恼

 

Too often we are stressed by the little things, daily hassles, making mountains out of molehills. We need to take a deep breath and ask ourselves if whatever is troubling us really matters in the big picture. If not, let it go.

我们总是将鸡毛蒜皮的日常琐事小题大做，从而把自己搞得压力重重。我们需要做个深呼吸，自问困扰我们的这些事情从长远来看是否真的那么重要。如果不是，那就随它去。

 

5. Try a stress dump.

释放压力之源

 

Stress is a result of ruminating⁶ thoughts. As such, a helpful tool is to let them out and release them. The key here is to put pen to paper and start writing. You may want to write down things that are stressing you out and why they are stressing you out.

压力源自心头想的事情太多。因此，一个有效的做法就是把这些思绪释放出来。关键在于要把你的所思所想写下来。你可以写一写让你感到紧张的事情，然后写一写你为什么感到紧张。

 

Doing so allows us to begin to separate our stress from being a part of us, and thereby⁷ putting some distance between us and our stress.

这样做可以将压力从自身分离出去，从而让自己和压力保持距离。

 

Lastly, sorting down our thoughts can also help us clear our head and begin to shift into solution mode.

最后，把思绪写下来还有助于理清大脑，进而着手解决问题。

点击收听单词发音