These six simple steps are all part of my Unplug Yourself Everyday® regimen. Practice these tips to achieve a life of balance!

6 Simple Stress Tips to Unplug Everyday

1. Laughter. Laugh as often as possible to release the healing hormones known as endorphins—they are the body’s natural painkillers. You don’t have to buy pills for your stress! Go watch a funny movie or go online to a humorous website and share the link with your coworkers. Laughter lowers blood pressure, reduces stress hormones, and boosts your immune function. People that are optimistic produce 50 percent more antibodies than the average population.

2. Play. Reestablish your “childlike” qualities. Science tells us when we play it increases our immune cells that combat diseases. Playfulness also increases creativity and optimism at home and at work.

3. Eat breakfast. Making time for breakfast in the mornings is great for relieving stress. Breakfast eaters are healthier and live longer lives than non-breakfast eaters. Breakfast increases your metabolism by 25 percent. Without breakfast, you are susceptible to weight gain, impaired memory, and impaired learning. When you don’t eat breakfast, your body is stressed from the onset of the day.

4. Gratitude. It is physiologically impossible to be grateful and experience stress at the same time. Research shows grateful individuals report having more energy and less physical complaints than their non-grateful counterparts. Studies tell us daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism, and energy. The individuals in the study also reported experiencing less stress.

5. Take a break. Even the busiest person needs a break now and again. Scheduling time for morning relaxation (such as meditating, drinking a warm cup of tea, or taking a walk) can help you throughout the day. For more information on how to make the most of your mornings, consider these Mindful Living chaos-free morning tips.

6. Literally unplug yourself. Technology can be a benefit to your life, but it can also add to your stress with the constant updates and notifications. Conducting a technology detox, by unplugging and enjoying the here and now, may be exactly what you need. For more on this, try these Mindful Living technology detox tips.