Stress Awareness Month: Practical Tips to Manage Stress

Stress is a normal part of life, but when it becomes frequent or prolonged, it can affect sleep, digestion, mood, focus and overall well-being. Stress Awareness Month is a good opportunity to step back and look at the patterns that may be increasing pressure day to day, along with the habits that can help restore balance. 

The insights in this article are provided by Vivere’s Head of Nutrition, Yusra Serdaroglu Aydin, a registered dietitian with a background in nutrition, food engineering and culinary arts. Her approach is grounded in science and shaped by a strong understanding of personalised nutrition and the human microbiome.

Stress can be managed effectively through simple, consistent habits that reduce pressure on the body, support the nervous system and improve recovery.

• What is the first step in managing stress? The first step is recognising your stress triggers and understanding how stress is showing up in your body, mood and daily habits.

• Can food and sleep affect stress levels? Yes, poor sleep, skipped meals, dehydration and high caffeine intake can all make stress feel worse and harder to manage.

• Do small habits really make a difference? Small habits such as slow breathing, gentle movement and a consistent routine can have a meaningful impact when repeated regularly.

• How does stress affect the body? Stress can influence the nervous system, digestion, sleep, concentration, appetite and emotional regulation.

• When should stress be taken more seriously? Stress should be taken more seriously when it becomes persistent, affects day-to-day life or starts to feel difficult to control without support.

Stress often builds up when the body is exposed to repeated pressure without enough time, nourishment or recovery to reset properly [1].

For many people, stress does not come from one major event alone. It develops through a combination of ongoing work demands, emotional strain, poor sleep, screen overload, missed meals and lack of downtime. These factors can keep the body in a more alert state for longer than it is designed to handle. While short-term stress can help in certain situations, ongoing stress makes it harder to switch off, recover well and maintain physical and mental balance.

Common reasons stress builds up include:

• Too many demands at once

• Poor sleep quality or short sleep duration

• Irregular meal patterns

• High caffeine intake

• Long periods of screen time

• Constant notifications and interruptions

• Lack of movement

• Digestive discomfort

• Limited emotional recovery time

On their own, these factors may seem manageable. Together, they can create a pattern of chronic pressure that gradually affects mood, energy and overall well-being.

Stress often appears through patterns in behaviour, energy and physical symptoms long before people stop and recognise it [2]. These patterns matter because they are often early signs that the body is under more strain than it can comfortably manage.

Common stress patterns include:

• Feeling tired but wired

• Struggling to fall asleep or stay asleep

• Craving sugar, salt or caffeine

• Skipping meals then overeating later

• Feeling bloated or unsettled

• Finding it harder to focus

• Becoming more irritable or emotionally flat

• Feeling overwhelmed by small tasks

• Struggling to switch off from work

• Withdrawing or feeling mentally overloaded

Many people do not realise they are stressed until it begins to affect their routine. Recognising these patterns early can help you make practical changes before stress becomes more disruptive.

Stress affects far more than mood, influencing the nervous system, digestion, appetite, energy and the body’s ability to recover well.

When the body stays in a stressed state for too long, basic functions can begin to feel less steady. Over time, this can leave people feeling depleted, uncomfortable and less resilient overall.

This matters because health depends on strong daily foundations. When those foundations are repeatedly disrupted by stress, it becomes harder to feel well and function at your best. That is why stress management is not just about mental well-being. It is also an important part of supporting physical health.

Small habits tend to work better than major overhauls because they are realistic, repeatable and less likely to create extra pressure.

When stress is high, people often try to fix everything at once. They plan strict new routines, intense exercise plans or unrealistic wellness goals. In practice, this can become another source of stress. A better approach is to focus on a few simple actions that support the body consistently. These habits may sound basic, but when repeated regularly, they can have a meaningful effect on energy, mood and resilience.

A steady routine helps reduce decision fatigue and gives the body more predictability.

Helpful routine habits include:

• Waking up and going to bed at a similar time [3]

• Planning the top priorities for the day

• Taking a proper lunch break where possible

• Creating a clear endpoint to the working day

• Reducing non-essential phone notifications

Regular nourishment helps the body cope better with pressure and supports steadier energy throughout the day [4].

Helpful nutrition habits include:

• Eating regular meals instead of long gaps without food

• Including protein, fibre-rich carbohydrates and healthy fats at meals

• Keeping a water bottle nearby

• Reducing reliance on caffeine as the main source of energy

• Having balanced snacks available for busy days

Small recovery habits can help calm the nervous system and make stress feel more manageable.

Helpful recovery habits include:

• Taking a short walk each day

• Using slow breathing before stressful tasks

• Getting outside for natural light in the morning

• Stepping away from screens between tasks

• Writing down next day tasks in the evening to reduce mental load

The goal is not to create a perfect routine. It is to build enough support into the day that stress has less room to take over.

Stress and gut health are closely linked, which is why digestive symptoms often become more noticeable during periods of pressure.

The gut and brain are in constant communication through the gut-brain axis [5]. This means stress can quickly affect digestion, while digestive discomfort can also influence mood and resilience. During stressful periods, some people notice bloating, reflux, cramps, nausea or changes in bowel habits. Others may experience appetite changes or feel more sensitive to foods they usually tolerate well.

This relationship is one reason personalised nutrition can be so valuable. The way stress affects the gut is not the same for everyone. Understanding your own patterns can help you make more targeted changes to support both digestive health and overall well-being. Vivere’s gut microbiome test can help provide a clearer picture of your gut health, giving you personalised insights that may support a more informed approach to nutrition, lifestyle and stress resilience.

Supportive habits for gut health during stressful periods include:

• Eating meals at more regular times

• Slowing down while eating

• Including a variety of whole foods

• Staying hydrated

• Avoiding long gaps without food

• Prioritising rest and recovery

• Paying attention to foods and habits that feel supportive for your own body

Gut health is not a separate issue from stress. For many people, it is one of the clearest places where stress shows up physically.

Self-care strategies are helpful, but extra support is important when stress becomes persistent, disruptive or harder to manage alone [6].

If stress is affecting sleep significantly, worsening digestion, lowering mood or making work and relationships harder to manage, it is important to speak to a GP or qualified healthcare professional. Persistent stress should not be ignored, especially if symptoms are becoming more intense or more frequent over time.

Signs that support may be needed include:

• Ongoing insomnia

• Persistent anxiety

• Low mood that is not improving

• Burnout or emotional exhaustion

• Significant digestive disruption

• Difficulty coping with daily tasks

• Feeling overwhelmed most of the time

Seeking support early can help prevent stress from becoming more difficult to manage and can provide a clearer path towards recovery.

“Stress rarely stays in one lane. It can alter hunger, digestion, sleep, focus and energy so gradually that the pattern is easy to miss until feeling well starts to feel harder than it should. What makes the biggest difference is often not doing more, but creating more steadiness through the day so the body has fewer reasons to stay in a constant state of strain.

This is also why a personalised approach matters. Stress leaves different fingerprints in different people, and the gut can be one of the clearest places those changes appear. Looking at your gut health, food patterns and daily rhythm more closely can make stress feel less abstract and help shape support that is far more specific, practical and useful to your own wellbeing.”

• Yusra Serdaroglu Aydin, MSc RD

Vivere helps you take control of your health with personalised insights from state-of-the-art gut microbiome testing, nutritional guidance, science-backed biohacking supplements, NAD+ supplementation and expert support. Sign up today and start living better, for longer.

[1] Protective and damaging effects of stress mediators: central role of the brain - PubMed

[2] Stress - Cleveland Clinic

[3] Improving Sleep to Improve Stress Resilience - Springer

[4] Stress in Health and Disease, Diet and Stress - Google Books

[5] Gut over Mind: Exploring the Powerful Gut–Brain Axis - PMC

[6] Get help with stress - NHS