continually changing environment; it has physical and emotional effects
on us and can create positive or negative feelings.
As a positive influence, stress can help compel us to action; it can result in
a new awareness and an exciting new perspective. As a negative
influence, it can result in feelings of distrust, rejection, anger, and
depression, which in turn can lead to health problems such as headaches,
upset stomach, rashes, insomnia, ulcers, high blood pressure, heart
disease, and stroke.
With the death of a loved one, the birth of a child, a job promotion, or a
new relationship, we experience stress as we re-adjust our lives. In so
adjusting to different circumstances, stress will help or hinder us
depending on how we react to it.
Exercise
As a way of draining off stress energy, nothing beats aerobic exercise.
To understand why, we need to review what stress is. People often think
of stress as pressure at work, a demanding boss, a sick child or
rush-hour traffic. All these may be triggers but stress is actually the
body's reaction to factors such as these. Stress is the fight-or-flight
response in the body, mediated by adrenaline and other stress
hormones, and comprised of such physiologic changes as increased heart
rate and blood pressure, faster breathing, muscle tension, dilated pupils,
dry mouth and increased blood sugar. In other words, stress is the state
of increased arousal necessary for an organism to defend itself at a time
of danger.
Meditation
Another way to reduce stress in the body is through certain disciplines
which fall under the heading of relaxation techniques, reiki healing and
other forms of healing are great to reduce stress. Just as we are all
capable of mounting and sustaining a stress reaction, we have also
inherited the ability to put our bodies into a state of deep relaxation
which Dr. Herbert Benson of Harvard University has named "the
relaxation response." In this state, all the physiologic events in the stress
reaction are reversed: pulse slows, blood pressure falls, breathing slows
and muscles relax.
Sleeping
As mundane as it sounds, sleep is an important way of reducing stress.
Chronically stressed people almost all suffer from fatigue (in some cases
resulting from stress-induced insomnia), and people who are tired do not
cope well with stressful situations. These dynamics can create a vicious
cycle. When a distressed individual gets more sleep, they feel better and
are more resilient and adaptable in dealing with day-to-day events.
Leisure
Pacing has two components: monitoring your stress and energy level,
and then pacing yourself accordingly. It is about awareness and
vigilance; knowing when to extend yourself and when to ease up. It is
also about acting on the information your body gives you.
Expectations
A common source of stress is unrealistic expectations. People often
become upset about something, not because it is innately stressful, but
because it does not concur with what they expected. Take, for example,
the experience of driving in slow-moving traffic. If it happens at rush
hour, you may not like it but it will not surprise or upset you. However, if
it occurs on a Sunday afternoon, especially if it makes you late for
something, you are more likely to be stressed by it.
Reframing
This is one of the most powerful and creative stress reducers of which I
know. Reframing is a technique used to change the way you look at
things in order to feel better about them. We all do this inadvertently at
times. For example, many people view a split from a partner as huge
disaster where as others may realize that they may have needed this
time to assess personal priorities and what they really want from a soul
mate.
Belief Systems
A lot of stress results from our beliefs. We have literally thousands of
premises and assumptions about all kinds of things that we hold to be the
truth - everything from, "You can't fight Government" and "The
customer is always right," to "Men shouldn't show their emotions" and
"Children should make their beds."
Support
We have all had friends who come to us upset, talking incessantly about a
problem, and feeling better when they are finished. They have told their
story, cried or made some admission, and the act of doing so in the
presence of a trusted and empathic listener has been therapeutic.
Humour
Humour is a wonderful stress reducer, an antidote to upsets. Laughter
relieves tension. In fact, we often laugh hardest when we have been
feeling most tense.
Idols
We all inadvertently have idols that we worship. These idols can consist
of objects of desire such as a particular type of car, a big house, a
handsome or beautiful partner and maybe even celebrity pop star. The
old saying that the grass always seems greener on the other side has an
familiar ring to it. Humans can become slaves to there desires and
obsessions, even people that appear outwardly content have deep
seated desires that become there goal in life.
Massage
One of the best ways of discharging stress and staying happy and
healthy is by having massage. What is massage? Massage is rubbing,
kneading, tapping or otherwise manipulating the soft body tissue with
the hands or with some instrument designed for this purpose. Massage
relaxes tense muscles, eases stress, relieves pain and can help you get to
sleep.
Smoking
Smokers often report that cigarettes help relieve feelings of stress.
However, the stress levels of adult smokers are slightly higher than those
of non-smokers, adolescent smokers report increasing levels of stress as
they develop regular patterns of smoking, and smoking cessation leads to
reduced stress. Far from acting as an aid for mood control, nicotine
dependency seems to exacerbate stress.