Unfortunately food.

Any food? Or is there a specific dish? One of my sisters tends to comfort herself with stove top stuffing of all things....

Carbohydrates. Anything you can buy in a bakery.

My friend and I often call each other when one of us is stressed out. That helps a lot.

Nice that you find the holidays comforting. They are a big source of stress for me.

Prayer

Not food. If I can address the stress causing matter, I do. If I can't, I deal with it as best I can and look for distractions... Family, friends, music, other activities, singly or in combination.

I find comfort in praying and sleeping snuggled with my cats.

Well definitely horses whether its riding and working with them or just hanging out with them or even just watching them.Riding mountain trails through forest adds an even greater dimension of peace.

Being by the ocean. The beach is in first place but the others bodies of water or rivers work too as long as I can get to the shoreline.

At home reading and doing all sorts of puzzles is relaxing but doesn't bring the rush of peace and all things being well the above do.

Humor. There is plenty to be found on the internet including right here. ;-)

When I'm upset or stressed, I sit with my dogs. Sometimes we play fetch, sometimes I watch them sniff and explore. The best times are evenings on the deck, listening to the quiet, waiting for the first of the bats to fly over, Spice sitting on my feet, Shasta draped over my lap. Alas not tonight because it's raining.

The scent of cherry-almond Jergen's lotion is comforting to me, because it reminds me of my Mom.

Food I like a lot, but there's no single taste I can think of that makes me go "ahhhhhh, all will be well" in the same way as the touch of my dogs, or the scent of my mom. Or a few songs ....

Interesting to think about :-)

nickel_kg Normally my dog would definitely be in my above post as a stress reliever. But just right now we are in a heat wave and the poor girl is in her own heat cycle. She gets very clingy and I am what she wants to cling to. 80 pounds of hot Rottie trying to stay close enough to be a Siamese twin or crawl into my body in triple digit weather is stressful. LOL

Food. Not just eating, but getting involved in cooking or baking. Cycling. A particular project, such as chalk painting a piece of furniture. Watching an old but familiar movie or series or listening to oldies songs.

Books.

Nature. Walking in a forest listening to birds and focusing on the quiet beauty of nature. It allows me to shed stress and recenter myself.

Quiet time with DH.

I find comfort when both my DD’s don’t have drama in their lives.

Since Covid, I have a daily check in group text with three friends.

Walking has always been my thing. Last August I tore a tendon in my foot. Up until this past month, I have had to walk with pain. Now though it is very manageable.

Petting the dog.

Having a cup of tea. There is just something about taking a few minutes, sitting and sipping tea.

Coming here. What a comforting escape!

I use a heating pad the way a child might use a teddy bear. It's always plugged in next to the bed. Stress goes right to my stomach, so I hug my heating pad. I also like the microwaveable heating pads, but they cool off too fast. I wish they made an electric heating pad in the shape of a teddy bear.

Not electric but....

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Love easy listening music.

When the Pandemic was new and very scary...still scary but have gotten used to the new way of life, I didn't want to read....did a lot of baking and watched Hallmark movies for the umpteenth time! I have a freezer full of baked goods that I really don't want to eat. I gave some away but I'm afraid to give to certain people because they feel they have to reciprocate and then I have even more baked goods. :-))) When I want to be comforted, junk food helps but as a rule, I don't like to have junk food in the house.

Amylou, pretty much any food. lol. Sushi, lasagna, chili, meatloaf, yakisoba, egg,rice,cheese & cabbage, spaghetti, fried chicken, all things my mom used to make when I was growing up.

Hot tea and coffee too.

I get on my bike, and go for a long ride... or, if the weather is total crap, I knit... :)

Moni

wildchild, your poor rottie girl -- I hope she 'cools off' soon. I knew you'd say "Horses" -- I think they are your spirit animal :-)

elizabeth, one of the things I miss about my old house is the smell of our bedroom. It was large enough to hold lots of bookcases, so I kept my favorite books there. Getting home, walking upstairs, the first breath with the scent of clean laundry and bed linens mixed with books ... ahhhh!

All the dogs I have had the pleasure to have known. Just being next to them and petting them gives me comfort.

Sewing my bags or masks keeps my mind busy and my hands out of the snacks!

I overeat whenever I am frustrated. Food is an easy pleasure, though I am not sure I would call it a comfort. I have gained at least five pounds and I fear it may be closer to 10 pounds since March. There is no one kind of food in particular, anything tasty will do, from the wholesome, and not terribly deadly, like seasonal fruit, to the latest pound cake recipe from the NYT (called Field Day pound cake and it is very, very good.)

I start my day with the chain reaction thread. After breakfast, have my music playing all the gospel songs I grew up singing. Amazing Grace, Peace in the Valley,etc, have hours of music as I piddle around. What has worked for me is planning my day. I have been retired for years and until this change, we never planned, we played at home or took off in the car traveling, anything we wanted to do . In our eighties,we are being sensible, staying safe. I plan each day, somedays sewing, some days beach walking, some swimming and exercising. Get bored with one thing, go do something else. Or it may be sitting on front porch watching waves. I still dress in my best outfits and wear makeup everyday. Love cutting my hair. Cut mine and hubs every three weeks. When this first started found myself just wanting to sit on porch watching the ocean, this did not keep me occupied. This works for me . Still feeling we have purpose in life. Gotta go get that first cup of morning coffee to start the body moving. That’s my start up. Only two cups in the morning with breakfast starts my day. Feels good finding comfort just being with hubs at home.

I've been watching travel documentaries and videos on Youtube the last few weeks. Interesting, relaxing, and somehow comforting. They were filmed before covid - in some cases a decade or more before. Back when life was "normal" - which seems so long ago.

I don't have an answer yet, but I just thought I'd mention that Nigella Lawson and I are distantly related. When I started looking into my genealogy I learned that two of my great-great-grandparents are Nigella's great-great-great-grandparents. However, I have no influence over her. :-)

Although I love to read, I find it difficult to concentrate in times of great stress. Instead, I light a candle and page through books that are mainly illustrations, such as gardening or elegant homes. I also enjoy watching (on mute) old black and white movies that make me recall wonderful times visiting a beloved aunt when I was a child. Some of the fashions are entertaining to see, particularly the hats that most women seemed to be wearing.

Reading a book or doing a yoga or stretching routine to calm music. Sometimes just a run by myself and I solve all the world’s problems while pounding the pavement.

Any physical activity, whether running, or pulling weeds, or fixing something - Just accomplishing something, whether a chore or a hobby.

Diving into a good fiction book

I've had periods when watching a particular TV show was also an escape or comfort - like the PBS serial of Pride and Prejudice - or watching the Tour de France (still enjoy that even when not an escape!)

I was about to deny really finding any food a "comfort", but then I remembered 2 stressful periods in my life where I (unconsciously) really did - the first involved cookies from Ralph's grocery, frozen, especially the double chocolate; the second was delivered pizza -- I gained significant weight in both periods also

A flower garden and me in the shade... sitting on the porch swing. Cold raspberry iced tea. Watching a bee, a bird...or....

Definitely food. Mashed potatoes and baked goods, not at the same time. :) It is terribly hot and humid this summer, even late in the evening and early in the a.m., which hasn't been conducive to working off the extra calories. Cannot wait til autumn and cooler exercise-friendly temps.

I love the 2 Fat Ladies cooking shows. So much fun. Ina Garten puts me to sleep, and I just can't with Nigella and her "sexy shtick". There used to be reruns of The Galloping Gourmet with Graham Kerr on PBS years ago, it's a very old show with a British host who really enjoys his wine and gets more and more animated as the show progresses. They may have the shows on Youtube, not sure.

When I was working I would come home and cut the grass. There was something about watching the grass fly from under the push mower that helped. Before I had all the trees trimmed and the overgrowth removed it was lopping off branches now it is pulling weeds or would be if the ground was not so hard and dry. Right now I need a good hard soaking rain so that the roots will release more easily.

Prayer is always my first line of defense.

Followed by reading or working on a hobby, doing something creative.

I can't seem to eat at all if I am stressed about anything.

Rusty

Oh I miss Two Fat Ladies! But right now it's Americas Test Kitchen/Cooks Country on Pluto TV for me- reminds me of the weekends when mom and I would sit down together to watch the show.. and then go cook.

So I'm doing a lot of watch/listening to the show and cooking.

I also like to watch what I consider "junk food TV" on youtube. Lately it's been shows from the 50s through 70s -- The Dating Game and What's My Line? There are quite a few actors who were on The Dating Game before they were famous ( for instance, Jon Hamm and Kristin Johnson.) Some of the the old What's My Line? shows also include commercials, which are fun to see. And they, too, sometimes feature guests who later became famous. No one recognized Colonel Sanders. Also, there are literally hours and hours of composites put together of Jay Leno's Headlines segment. I watch them while I cook.

Comfort for me comes just sitting on the front porch watching the world go by. I realize then how lucky I am that I don't have to go out and 'beat the bushes' to survive. DH and I are retired with a comfortable income and can enjoy our immediate surroundings.

As a rule reading is my go-to comfort, but like others here, my attention span has suffered during the times I have been most stressed by our circumstances.

Cleaning, walking, and meditation have brought me comfort of late.

My Grandsons and music...always have music going....mostly 70's but like

most ...and cuddling with pets.

It seems like I’m always stressed lately. To help relieve some of it I will go for a drive, window shop or when it’s really bad I spend money, never on myself but usually on a project for the house. Now, because of covid, I spend way too much time on my ipad.