STRESS MANAGEMENT

As we’ve said before, stress is a part of life. There’s no
getting away from it. In fact, some stress is good stress.
You may not believe that, but sometimes stress can
motivate us to do things we may not normally do in a
relaxed state. Stress can make us brave enough to go
forward when normally we might hesitate.
We have to be resilient in order to effectively cope with
stress and help it enhance our life instead of control it. How
do you get strong and resilient? By learning how to take
control of your stress and make it work FOR you instead of
AGAINST you.
Recognizing stress symptoms can be a positive
influence in that we're compelled to take action – and the
sooner the better. It's not always easy to discern why you
have the stress in each situation but some of the more
common events that trigger those emotions are the death of
a loved one, the birth of a child, a job promotion, or a new
relationship. We experience stress as we readjust our lives.
Your body is asking for your help when you feel these stress
symptoms.
We’re going to give you many suggestions in this
chapter. Not all of them will work for you, but we’re willing
to bet that some of them will.
There are three major approaches to manage stress.
The first is the action-oriented approach. In this method, the
problems that cause stress are identified and necessary
changes are made for a stress free life.
The next approach is emotionally oriented and in it, the
person overcomes stress by giving a different color to the
experience that caused stress. The situation, which causes
stress, is seen humorously or from a different angle.
I especially advocate this approach to stress
management. Sometimes if you don’t laugh at a situation,
you’ll cry – uncontrollably. That’s no solution. So learn to
see the humor instead of the doom.
The third way is acceptance-oriented approach. This
approach focuses on surviving the stress caused due to
some problem in the past.
The first stress management tip is to understand the
root cause of your stress. No one understands your problem
better than you do. A few minutes spend to recognize your
true feelings can completely change the situation.
During this process, identify what triggered the stress.
If someone close to your heart is nearby share it with the
person. If you are overstressed and feel you are going to
collapse, take a deep breath and count till ten. This pumps
extra oxygen into your system and rejuvenates the entire
body.
When under severe stress meditate for a moment and
pull out of the current situation for a little while. Stand up
from your current position and walk. Stretch yourself. Soon
you will find that the stress has lessened.
This is because you have relaxed now and relaxation is
the best medicine for stress. Smiling is yet another way of
stress management. If you are at the work place, just stand
up and smile at your colleague in the far corner. You will see
a change in your mood. Learn some simple yoga or
mediation techniques.
You can also invent your own stress management tips.
The basic idea is to identify the cause of stress and to pull
out from it for a moment and then deal with it. Taking a
short walk and looking at objects in nature is another stress
reliever. Drinking a glass of water or playing small games
are simple stress management techniques. The whole idea is
change the focus of attention and when you return to the
problem, it does not look as monstrous as you felt before.
Here are five quick steps you can take toward relieving
stress:
1. Don’t just sit there. Move! According to many
psychologists, motion creates emotion. You might
notice that when you are idle, it’s easier to become
depressed. Your heart rate slows down, less oxygen
travels to your brain, and you are slumped somewhere
in a chair blocking air from reaching your lungs.
I challenge you right now, regardless of how you are
feeling, to get up and walk around at a fast tempo.
Maybe you might want to go to an empty room and
jump up and down a little bit. It may sound silly but the
results speak for themselves. Try it now for a few
minutes. It works like magic.
Exercise can be a great stress buster. People with
anxiety disorders might worry that aerobic exercise
could bring on a panic attack. After all, when you
exercise, your heart rate goes up, you begin to sweat,
and your breathing becomes heavier.
Don’t panic – it’s not an attack! Tell yourself this over
and over while you’re exercising. Realize that there’s a
big difference between the physical side of exercise and
what happens when you exercise.
2. Smell the roses. How do you smell the roses? How
about investing some money to go on that one trip
you’ve been dreaming about? Visit a country with lots
of exotic places to jolt your imagination and spur your
creativity. You need to detach from your daily activities
and venture a little bit.
3. Help others cope with their problems. It is very
therapeutic when you engross yourself in helping
others. You will be surprised how many people’s
problems are worse than those you may be facing. You
can offer others assistance in countless ways. Don’t
curl up in your bed and let depression and stress take
hold of you.
Get out and help somebody. But be careful. Don’t get
caught up in other people’s problems in an attempt to
forget about your own.
I am constantly being called by friends and family when
they want to vent or get advice. I joke and tell them
“Don’t call the ‘crazy’ person for advice!” But there are
times that I find myself worrying about the ones who
call me and I get caught up in what they’re going
through. This just gives me more stress than I already
have and I find that I have to step away and re-assess
myself and my priorities.
I’m now to the point where I can tell them that I just
can’t deal with it right now and to call back later.
Sometimes, they get upset, but more often than not,
they understand. But I’ve learned not to get too upset
about their reactions. If it won’t matter in a week, it
should matter right now.
4. Laugh a little. By now you’ve heard that laughter is a
good internal medicine. It relieves tension and loosens
the muscles. It causes blood to flow to the heart and
brain. More importantly, laughter releases a chemical
that rids the body of pains.
Every day, researchers discover new benefits of
laughter. Let me ask you this question: “Can you use a
good dose of belly-shaking laughter every now and
then?” Of course you can. What you are waiting for? Go
a comedy club or rent some funny movies.
5. Wear your knees out. If there were one sustainable
remedy I could offer you when the going gets tough, it
would be prayer. Many people, depending on their
faith, might call it meditation. It doesn’t matter to me
what you call it, as long as you have a place to run to.
There you have a few quick fixes when you’re feeling
stressed. Want more? No problem!