Stress management
In today’s fast paced environment, stress is a part of everybody’s life. It’s hard to avoid; traffic is off the charts, the economy is giving us a run for our money (literally) and the news seems to be filled with all kinds of negative scenarios not conducive to a relaxing evening.
And to make matters worse, stress is a contributing factor to many health problems including cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, insomnia and obesity. So how are we supposed to relax?
According to a recent “Stress in America” poll conducted by the American Psychological Association, one third of those polled said that they experience extreme levels of stress and one in five people reported that they had high stress at least 15 days out of the month.
1 Stress can cause irritability and insomnia and can adversely affect relationships at home or work. These are some unpleasant by-products of stress. Stress can also cause weight gain, because of the stress related hormone Cortisol. This hormone becomes elevated during times of anxiety and has been linked to type
2 Diabetes because of its propensity to help concentrate fat around the stomach area.
Stressed Out:
Methods to mitigate stress
It is very important that stress be controlled so you can live a better, healthier life. But what are some reliable stress busters?
Sometimes simply identifying the source of the stress can be helpful and will mitigate feelings of frustration and of being overwhelmed. A surefire way to relieve stress is to exercise.
If an important meeting, deadline or some other known stress trigger is coming up in your life, try to tackle it by taking a walk, hitting the gym, going for a hike or a bike ride.
As a result, the body will release stress-fighting endorphins that, in turn, can help you sleep better, and as an added plus, the exercise itself will help combat any stress related weight gain.
More stress:
The bad habit backslide
Because of the confines of a busy, overloaded schedule it is often hard to find the time to exercise every day and stress and anxiety can pile up on us.
This is a universal problem. Some placate stress by “emotional eating” which has the obvious pitfalls of unwanted weight gain and therefore other health complications as a result.
Others might find prescription drugs relax them initially but then there is the problem of possible addiction or dependence to worry about.
Also sleepiness and daytime grogginess is associated with some anti-anxiety medication. But there is an alternative that is all natural, non addictive and effective.
Stress management starts with identifying the sources of stress in your life. This isn’t as easy as it sounds. Your true sources of stress aren’t always obvious, and it’s all too easy to overlook your own stress-inducing thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Sure, you may know that you’re constantly worried about work deadlines. But maybe it’s your procrastination, rather than the actual job demands, that leads to deadline stress.
To identify your true sources of stress, look closely at your habits, attitude, and excuses:
* Do you explain away stress as temporary (“I just have a million things going on right now”) even though you can’t remember the last time you took a breather?
* Do you define stress as an integral part of your work or home life (“Things are always crazy around here”) or as a part of your personality (“I have a lot of nervous energy, that’s all”).
* Do you blame your stress on other people or outside events, or view it as entirely normal and unexceptional?
Until you accept responsibility for the role you play in creating or maintaining it, your stress level will remain outside your control.
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Category: PEOPLE
