by Natascha Polomski – Food for Thought Blog
Food for thought: What if stress relief does not always look the way we expect?
Yesterday, I stumbled upon a Facebook reel by Dom Dowling that mentioned some surprisingly unusual stress-relief techniques. It caught my attention, partly because some of them sounded a little odd, and partly because I realized I already do quite a few of them instinctively when life feels overwhelming.
Instead of scrolling on, I got curious.
I decided to take a deeper look into what research actually says about some of these unexpected ways people regulate stress and calm an overwhelmed nervous system.
Because sometimes the things that help make absolutely no sense… until they do.
When most people think about stress relief, they picture yoga mats, bubble baths, meditation apps, and someone sitting peacefully on a mountaintop pretending emails do not exist.
And while those things can absolutely help, sometimes stress regulation looks… weird.
Really weird.
Sometimes it looks like crying in your car after one of those days where everything somehow felt urgent.
Sometimes it looks like petting the dog for ten minutes because answering one more text feels like too much.
Sometimes it looks like standing barefoot in the grass wondering whether adulthood was slightly oversold.
And honestly? The more I looked into this, the more I realized how often we judge ourselves for the exact things that may actually be helping.
The truth is, your nervous system is not always asking for logic.
Sometimes it is asking for sensation.
For interruption.
For grounding.
For something physical that reminds your body that you are here, safe enough, and not stuck in the stress loop forever.
Here are some surprisingly odd things that may help lower stress — and what research actually says about them.
1. Smell Something Strong
Ever noticed how one smell can instantly change your mood?
Fresh coffee. Peppermint. Lavender. Citrus. Bread baking.
Your sense of smell has a direct connection to the emotional and memory centres of the brain. Strong scents may help interrupt spiraling thoughts and shift emotional state.
Research on aromatherapy suggests certain scents may support relaxation and perceived stress reduction, although results vary from person to person [1].
Food for thought:
Maybe your nervous system does not need another productivity hack. Maybe it needs peppermint.
2. Laugh
Laughter sounds far too simple to matter.
Yet research suggests it may lower cortisol and help the body shift toward relaxation [2].
No, this does not mean forcing toxic positivity.
It means giving yourself permission to watch the ridiculous video, call the funny friend, or laugh at the fact that life occasionally feels like a badly organized group project.
Food for thought:
Your nervous system might appreciate bad jokes more than perfectionism.
3. Rearrange Something in Your Environment
Why does moving a chair, clearing a counter, or reorganizing a drawer sometimes feel weirdly calming?
There is not a mountain of research saying, “rearrange your bookshelf to lower stress.” But there is evidence showing that chaos, clutter, and lack of perceived control can increase stress.
Sometimes restoring a little order helps your brain feel safer. While direct research on rearranging spaces is limited, environmental order and perceived control are associated with lower stress [3].
No, you do not need to Marie Kondo your entire life.
Maybe just clear the kitchen counter.
Food for thought:
Small changes in your environment sometimes create bigger shifts internally than expected.
4. Cry
We tend to treat crying like failure.
But what if it is not?
Sometimes crying is emotional release.
Sometimes it is exhaustion leaving the body.
Sometimes it is your nervous system changing gears.
Research suggests crying may support emotional processing and nervous system recovery for some people, especially when followed by safety, support, or self-compassion [4].
Food for thought:
Maybe crying is not falling apart.
Maybe it is your system saying, “that was a lot.”
5. Pet an Animal
Science continues to support what pet owners already know.
Animals are ridiculously good at helping us regulate.
Petting a dog, cat, or other companion animal may lower cortisol and support emotional calm [5].
Also, animals rarely ask awkward follow-up questions.
Food for thought:
Sometimes healing looks like sitting beside something that simply loves your presence.
6. Walk Barefoot on Grass
Before anyone panics… No, we are not making dramatic claims about magic Earth energy.
Research strongly supports spending time in nature for stress reduction [6].
The stronger claims around “grounding” itself are still emerging and not fully settled.
But slowing down outside?
Feeling the grass?
Taking a breath without a screen in front of your face?
That part matters.
Food for thought:
Maybe the grass is not magical.
Maybe you finally stopped multitasking for five minutes.
7. Chew Something Crunchy
This one sounds oddly specific.
But research suggests chewing may help regulate stress responses.
The physical act of chewing appears to influence nervous system activity and may help redirect overwhelm [7].
Translation?
Your nervous system occasionally appreciates carrots.
Food for thought:
Crunchy snacks may secretly be emotional support with texture.
8. Put Your Hands or Feet in Cold Water
Cold water is basically a nervous system plot twist.
Putting your hands or feet in cold (or cool) water gives your body something immediate and physical to focus on.
For some people, it interrupts spiraling thoughts.
For others, it helps shift emotional overwhelm.
Research on cold exposure and hydrotherapy suggests temperature changes may influence nervous system regulation and physiological stress responses [8, 9].
Important note: not everyone finds cold calming. Some people regulate better with cool rather than freezing cold.
Food for thought:
Sometimes your nervous system does not need a motivational quote.
It needs cold feet.
9. Sit in Direct Sunlight
Sunlight does more than make photos look better.
Light exposure influences mood, sleep rhythms, and energy regulation, all deeply connected to stress resilience [10].
Sometimes feeling overwhelmed has less to do with motivation and more to do with being chronically under-rested and disconnected from natural rhythms.
Food for thought:
Maybe the answer is not always “push harder.”
Maybe it is “go outside for ten minutes.”
10. Scream
Movies make this seem incredibly therapeutic.
Science? A little more complicated.
Research does not strongly support the idea that repeatedly screaming or “blowing off steam” reliably lowers stress long-term and may even increase emotional arousal for some people [11].
In some cases, it may actually increase emotional arousal.
That said, for some people, a brief vocal release in a safe space may feel relieving in the moment.
Food for thought:
Science is not fully on Team Scream.
But your pillow may occasionally volunteer for emotional support.
11. Swear (Yes, Really)
Apparently science occasionally validates colourful language.
Research suggests swearing may briefly increase tolerance to discomfort and help release tension in moments of overwhelm [12].
Before you celebrate too hard, the evidence is stronger for acute frustration and pain tolerance than long-term stress reduction.
Still, there may be something oddly human about occasionally muttering a very passionate word when life decides to life.
Food for thought:
Stress management is not always elegant.
Sometimes it sounds like vocabulary your grandmother would disapprove of.
Final Thoughts
If I am being completely honest, researching this made me feel a little validated.
Because I recognized myself in quite a few of these.
The crying.
The swearing.
The stepping outside barefoot.
The petting animals.
Even the occasional need to dunk hands or feet in cold water when my brain feels overstimulated.
And maybe you recognized yourself too.
Sometimes we instinctively reach for things because our body already knows what it needs, even when our brain is busy overthinking it.
What if stress relief is not about becoming calmer all the time?
What if it is about learning how to interrupt the stress cycle in ways that actually work for you?
Because nervous systems are personal.
What helps one person may annoy another.
The goal is not perfection.
The goal is awareness.
Pay attention to what helps your body exhale.
Notice what makes you feel even 5% more grounded.
Experiment.
Be curious.
Sometimes relief arrives in unexpected ways.
And sometimes the weird thing works.
Awareness matters.
Because burnout rarely happens overnight, and recovery usually begins with small moments of noticing.
Reflection Questions
Open-ended: Which unexpected stress reliever has helped you most, even if it made absolutely no sense?
Specific: Which one from this list are you willing to try this week?
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End Notes & Research References
[1] National Center for Biotechnology Information. (2012). Aromatherapy and essential oils. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK292412/
[2] Kramer, C. K., & Leitao, C. B. (2023). Laughter as medicine: A systematic review and meta-analysis of interventional studies evaluating the impact of spontaneous laughter on cortisol levels. PLOS ONE, 18(5), e0286260. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0286260
[3] Evans, G. W., & McCoy, J. M. (1998). When buildings don’t work: The role of architecture in human health. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 18(1), 85–94. https://doi.org/10.1006/jevp.1998.0089
[4] Bylsma, L. M., Vingerhoets, A. J. J. M., & Rottenberg, J. (2008). When is crying cathartic? An international study. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 27(10), 1165–1187. https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2008.27.10.1165
[5] Beetz, A., Uvnäs-Moberg, K., Julius, H., & Kotrschal, K. (2012). Psychosocial and psychophysiological effects of human-animal interactions: The possible role of oxytocin. Frontiers in Psychology, 3, 234. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00234
[6] Bratman, G. N., Hamilton, J. P., Hahn, K. S., Daily, G. C., & Gross, J. J. (2015). Nature experience reduces rumination and subgenual prefrontal cortex activation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(28), 8567–8572. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1510459112
[7] Hirano, Y., & Onozuka, M. (2015). Chewing and attention: A positive effect on sustained attention. BioMed Research International, 2015, 367026. https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/367026
[8] Mooventhan, A., & Nivethitha, L. (2014). Scientific evidence-based effects of hydrotherapy on various systems of the body. North American Journal of Medical Sciences, 6(5), 199–209. https://doi.org/10.4103/1947-2714.132935
[9] Tipton, M. J., Collier, N., Massey, H., Corbett, J., & Harper, M. (2017). Cold water immersion: Kill or cure? Experimental Physiology, 102(11), 1335–1355. https://doi.org/10.1113/EP086283
[10] Bedrosian, T. A., & Nelson, R. J. (2013). Influence of the modern light environment on mood. Molecular Psychiatry, 18(7), 751–757. https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2013.70
[11] Bushman, B. J. (2002). Does venting anger feed or extinguish the flame? Catharsis, rumination, distraction, anger, and aggressive responding. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28(6), 724–731. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167202289002
[12] Stephens, R., & Umland, C. (2011). Swearing as a response to pain: Effect of daily swearing frequency. The Journal of Pain, 12(12), 1274–1281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpain.2011.09.004