Are your nerves frazzled? Are ready to get away on a long vacation but you can't get any time off for the next 40 weeks? Relax; you don't need to go somewhere far away to calm down. Just follow these 7 easy steps and you'll be cool as a cucumber in no time!

1-Get a check-up

It's amazing how we often waste time worrying about some illness we might have. Every time we hear about a new disease on the radio, we become afraid we have it. Sometimes, when in a nervous state, we will feel some passing sensation and wonder if we have something that is about to destroy us. This is normal. All people worry about their health.

It is very refreshing to have a clean bill of health. It is also comforting to know that most illnesses can be cured with early detection. Therefore, it's wise to keep on top of everything medically. Doing so will give you peace of mind. There's an easy solution to eliminating this worry from your life, and that is to get a check-up.

2-Audit your diet

Do you know certain foods can make you nervous? Yes, this is true! Too many processed sugars will cause your glands to secrete adrenaline unnecessarily. When adrenaline starts pumping through your body, you will feel nervous. This is not the worst part. Adrenaline may cause certain physical sensations, even visual sensations, and of course, this can be quite scary.

Once the rolling snowball of fear has started, it becomes a big problem. The first thing is to never be afraid of fear because being afraid pumps more adrenaline through your body and makes you more nervous. More importantly, don't give adrenaline a chance to start flowing unnecessarily. Audit your diet and see if you have been eating unhealthy foods. If so, make an adjustment. Try eating healthier and if you're successful in doing so, it will help calm you down.

3-Exercise

Exercise releases tension. It relaxes your muscles and actually secretes chemicals through your bloodstream that counteract the negative effect of adrenaline. Though this is very unscientific, and not an AMA approved explanation, I hope it makes the point that exercise is beneficial to a person who wants to live a calmer life.

If you already exercise, or have some time previously in your life, you understand exactly what I mean. Try right now to imagine the feeling you had after a vigorous workout. See what I mean? I think I made my case.

Take note however, if you haven't exercised in a long time and you're not sure you should exercise, see your doctor first.

4-Relaxation techniques

Daily, or even bi-daily relaxation techniques can go a long way toward helping a person live a calmer life. With relaxation techniques, you lie down on your bed or recline in a comfortable easy chair and, in turn, instruct each individual part of your body to relax. After about 10 minutes of that, instruct your mind to relax. This is usually; best achieved by imagining some peaceful scene you have been in. Or, it is sometimes just as good to imagine a peaceful scene you've seen on TV or in a movie.

Then, the next time you are in a stressful situation, call back the relaxed feeling you had when you were practicing relaxation techniques.

5-Deep breathing

In through the nose, hold to the count of 5, exhale through the mouth, very slowly. That's all there is to it! Do this about five times a day at first. Then work your way up to a couple times an hour. You'll be amazed at how the tension will be flowing out of your body just by using nature's wonderful tranquilizer known as oxygen.

6-Take more time

Road rage is an epidemic today. No, I'm not going to tell you to sell your car. However, you would be amazed at how giving yourself five minutes extra for each trip could turn your life from a veritable nervous breakdown, into a day of relaxing in front of a babbling brook.

When you're in a hurry, adrenaline starts pumping and your whole life becomes scattered. People who are in a hurry say things they don't mean to people they don't know and they have no idea how horrible they look!

Don't believe me, the next time you're in traffic and you see someone who is experiencing road rage, take a look at him or her. Do you want to look like this? Remember, that's just the outside you're looking at. Imagine what road rage is doing to their insides! You can avoid all the stress just by leaving earlier.

7-Goals

Goals are great! Life without a goal is a road map to nowhere. The problem is, people make lofty goals for the long-term. While doing so, they ignore their short-term goals. There's nothing quite as exhilarating as a goal achieved. So, why not cheat! Make a goal for yourself today that is totally achievable. In fact, make a goal it would be very difficult not to achieve. Make this goal viable and make sure you have to make some effort to achieve it, but make it easy. Then go do it.

The funny thing about reaching this easy goal is, if you were to accomplish this much every day, you would probably accomplish more than you would ever imagine by the time a year has passed!

Living a calmer life takes a little forethought and yes, a little effort, but it is well worth this effort. Your life will be more fun. You'll be an easier person to be around, and though I don't really have any proof, I'll bet you'll live a lot longer, too!