UNITED STATES—Everyday life can be stressful. Between work, family and home life, it’s enough to put someone into a tailspin.  We sometimes forget or don’t know how to take steps to ‘escape’ from the constant pressures of daily life. I’m speaking from personal experience; juggling two jobs and other countless stressors leaves little to no time to relax.  So just what can we do to ease the constant pressures that we encounter in life? It’s simple; indulge in something that brings you inner peace or jubilation.

Many may speculate hey if I watch television that may alleviate some pressures I’m feeling, I’d agree somewhat, but not fully because TV can be a distraction for a small time period, but unless you’re in a home all alone, its difficult to fully get engrossed in the program; not to mention the fact that most shows have commercials throughout the episode, which only halts your attention span.

Another hobby could be writing or reading a book.  Both great forms of distractions, but once again can be difficult to achieve unless you’re in a mental place that allows you to completely clear your mind and focus on the task at hand. You could draw, you could work on a project, play a video game, etc. There are lots of things that can provide an escape, but in my opinion, the best ‘escape’ is a trip to the multiplex.  Why is the multiplex the great ‘escape’ for me, because it’s an environment that eliminates distractions and allows the mind to be engulfed in someone else’s world?

The theater is dark; the mind can easily become engrossed in someone’s life.  This allows your brain to forget about your problems for about 2 hours. For 2 hours, you are at peace, not worrying about something that you can’t really control. Its not just the fact of being submerged in another ‘world’ it’s the notion that you are able to relax and reflect on what transpired in the movie that you just watched. It can create big emotions like happiness, sadness, fear, excitement and so many others.

The power of a movie is hard to describe in words because there is no precise way to determine how people will react to a film.  Also the movie experience provides a camaraderie with others that most others ‘escapes’ fail to do. There is nothing like watching a horror movie with a group of people who sense the same amount of dread as you do or perhaps the excitement of a grand moment that just shatters your heart or forces you to jump out of your chair for a shear thrill.

In life, an ‘escape’ is a must to prevent allowing yourself to be overwhelmed with stress. The only way to deal with stress is to discover various ways to handle it.  Work will always be stressful at times, so will family, so will your personal life, so anytime you feel a bit pressured, take some time to yourself.