Chess as a stress reliever, how has it helped you?

Personally, I find chess somewhat stressful when I playing or when I'm analyzing a daily game position. That doesn't mean I don't enjoy it: I love the challenge.

But if I want to relax, I'll sit at my piano open a sheetmusic songbook or classical masterwork and play something that suits my mood: perhaps Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata or Adele if I want something on the dark side, or maybe a Mozart Sonata or Jazz or John Denver or Norah Jones if I want something lighter.

Yes GothicWalmart!

Stress is not necessarily a bad thing of course; we need a certain amount. I will therefore assume you  refer to unwelcome stress, the kind that produces not so good results. I agree that chess is great for

this at times for me. Chess is great for many other reasons. But at times, it is almost a meditation on the dark and white squares, the shifting variations and possibilities. To get through a game of Blitz 10 minutes each especially against someone at or above my level challenges me to focus deeply. Just by doing so I put aside my other concerns so the stress that goes with them is also gone temporarily. 

But it is enough. So when I get through the game I am better able to manage the situations that caused the stress. I know when my mind is wandering when I make stupid move and my opponent takes full advantage. That then brings me back into focussing on the game. So doing better and avoiding the many opportunities to mess up, actually winning takes on a whole other layer of meaning because it is a confirmation that I let my stress go and was really present in the chess game. 

R

It entirely depends how you play. If chess is a sport for you, every game is a lot of adrenaline. I wouldn't say that even the regular 90 min game is relaxing. It is a very hard work.
Rapid and especially blitz are even worse, as everything depends on a chance much more that in a regular game.

I find it very similar to stepping in broken glass and having to remove the shards one by one as a stress reliever.

Now beer on the other hand....

Chess has helped me a real lot to get over stress, acne, snakebites etc. etc.

bullet and blitz chess are great pastime and stress relievers

I get anxiety when I play

Stress reliever? The opposite more like

Very useful stress reliever. During a game I feel my brain trying to figure things out and that takes energy to let concentration happen, but not unpleasant. Even when I start to lose I get enjoyment from playing as well as I can anyway. It's like yoga, even if a position is uncomfortable by the end of the session I feel relaxed and deeply fulfilled. If its a casual game and I've had a stressful week then its not even mentally tiring, I'm just happy to be over the board chatting with another chess enthusiast

I would say every competitive activity a person does creates stress. The more serious you take it the more stressful it is. For me, it's stressful.

made me much more stressed

Yes, it has helped a lot. Depression and to some extent anxiety are fueled by mental rumination. Chess has the capacity to completely absorb your concentration for some time, giving some respite from the constant stream of reliving bad memories and having hopeless, self-loathing thoughts.

What it mostly comes down to for me......If I am playing well, chess is relaxing. If I am playing badly chess can become very stressful. The other thing is reading certain chess books can provide some relief from the stress that playing badly can cause. Mikhail Tal's "My life and games" and David Bronstein's "200 Open games" come to mind.

idk, but most people would probably just say its fun. its a good way to spend time for me and maybe someday i'll get a chess title.

I started playing chess precisely because it is a stress-reliever for me (though also influenced by a sibling who plays haha). I guess I understand that different people feel differently about it, i.e. if you take it very seriously it can be stressful. (In particular, I can find rated blitz/rapid games quite stressful at times haha.) My situation, though, is I do math/CS, but in around the past year I found myself quite unable to do much that I usually can due to some health issues. I would play chess because it would be an enjoyable way to engage in logical thinking without being too high-stakes or intense (at my level of chess at least haha). I really enjoyed being able to do something logical when I found it difficult to do work, read proofs etc, and it was fun to find interesting patterns or fight exciting battles. It definitely brought me some enjoyment in the midst of a rough patch.