Have you ever lain in the grass or on the beach, your hands behind your head, gave a big sigh of relief and just watched the clouds go by?

We would all find so much more stress relief and relaxation if we did that just once a day, every day, just for a time ...

Here are some lovely white clouds for you to de-stress, breathe deeply and let your stress and worries lift away, into the blue sky, to drift away on the winds ...

* Now also The White Clouds video - more white clouds for you to relax and enjoy!

Health stress - If you are ill or worried about your health, the stress is doubled by the worry, and it is especially important to de-stress often, and to pay attention to steering the mind away from worrying.

The body needs all the help it can get to restore itself, and the best thing we can do from our end is to reduce health stress by staying calm and to keep the mind as peaceful as possible.

This in an interesting and very effective anti-stress technique from the magic kingdom - burn your stress in a magic fire.

Write down what stresses you the most, then hit "BURN!" to make it clear to "the powers that be" that you want to get rid of that cause of stress from your life.

After a long, hard day's work, there is little as stress relieving as sitting down and watching the sun set over the sea.

Here is a beautiful gallery of stunning sunset images captured by Nicola Quinn on the beach over the English Channel.

Look at one sunset picture at a time, and remember to breathe in deeply the peace and tranquility of these images, and to breathe out stress and worry.

A lot of people think of aromatherapy as a slightly "woowoo" hippie thing that doesn't pack a punch, but let me tell you that I've got a deep hole in my computer case. I got it because I placed a bottle of Rose Geranium essential oil on it and it must have leaked a drop or two - and burned straight through the space age plastic!

Apart from the fact that aromatherapy essential oils are madly concentrated - over a million flowers go into a single bottle of Jasmine, for example! - it is their intensive effects on the olfactory system, human smell, that makes them such a perfect choice for stress relieving.

Smell is the only one of our major senses that is not routed through the neo cortex and goes straight into the "reptilian brain" - the oldest parts of our brain, and the ones that have a lot to do with how we experience especially danger and stress.

Herbs are not second best to "chemical medicine" in helping to fight stress. In the contrary - herbs are much more intelligent, have many more components that all work together, and of course, they have EVOLVED TOGETHER with our likewise immensely complicated human bodies, side by side.

Especially when it comes to reducing the effects of stress on the body - which is so more than "just a chemical reaction"! - herbs are a perfect solution to reduce stress related build ups of toxins, to calm the overactive mind, to help break down adrenaline, to strengthen the heart and breathing systems, all of which are under attack by ongoing stress.

Here are the 7 best herbs to reduce stress and the effects of stress.

There is nothing more stress relieving than the beauty of nature - standing by a gorgeous waterfall, in a peaceful valley, a tranquil garden or a tropical paradise, for example, makes stress simply disappear, as though fear cannot be in the presence of such beauty.

Many of us live lives devoid of these experiences every day, but we can evoke nature's beauty and healing energies by turning our minds towards such times and places of rest and relaxation.

Take a few moments and look at these images of nature, "wish you were there", and let the colours and energies give you a mini-holiday from stress, and a boost to get on with your daily life.