Stress Management
How to manage stress
Maybe you just moved or started a new job, or maybe you just always have too many things on your to-do-list; stress is caused by many things and is all too common in our lives. Change in our life can cause stress and anxiety, especially if we perceive this change as negative.
Unfortunately stress can cause physiological effects such as muscle tension, stomach aches and even headaches.
Tips to reduce stress and its side effects:
Progressive Muscle relaxation: Lay down in a quiet place, close your eyes, and breath in deeply and exhale slowly. Next tense a muscle group, such as your thigh muscles, for about 10 seconds and then relax them. It is best to start with your lower extremities and work your way up. Repeat this with other muscle groups; shoulders, feet, legs, stomach and up to your head. Meditation: Meditation is a focusing of the mind, and for many it brings peace, serenity and stress relief. Two prevalent forms of meditation are mindfulness meditation and transcendental meditation.Yoga: Besides helping manage stress, yoga helps tone muscles, improve flexibility, and improve postureR and R: Take time to rest and relax. Be sure the rest after a long stressful day at work and on the weekend. Hobbies and sports are a great way to relax.Exercise: Studies show exercise is an excellent way to reduce stress.Keep a diary: If you have persistent worrying thoughts, write them down in a journal. This will help you put the thoughts aside.Aromatherapy: Lavender, jasmine, frankincense, myrrh, chamomile and orange essential oils are used for relaxation
Six Ways to Relief Stress?
Listen to Music - Put on music that you love and enjoy. If you are so distracted by life and your chaotic schedule just sit down and listen to one song and before you know it your blood pressure will be down you will be breathing deeper and be less stressed. Dance - put on a great song that you can’t help dancing to and just go for it. Dancing is a great way to relieve stress and get some exercise. If you are self conscious - try dancing alone in the bathroom. You will make yourself laugh when you look in the mirror. It is delightful. Enjoy Green - research has shown that green is the easiest color for the eyes to see. It is also thought to balance emotions and bring a feeling of calm. If your outside focus on the branches of a treeStand in a steaming shower - Let the hot water beat down on your back and loosen the stiff muscles in your neck . Stand there and just breathe in the steam and enjoy.Breathe - practice breathing! Breathe in 1-2 3 and exhale 1-2-3. Focused breathing is one of the best ways to relieve stress and relax.
The benefits of Laughter to Reduce Stress
Laughter’s benefits on your health are no joke. A sense of humor can’t cure all ailments, but data are mounting about the things that laughter can do. Short-term benefits
A good laugh has great short-term effects. When you start to laugh, it doesn’t just lighten your load mentally, it actually induces physical changes in your body, beginning with your face. Laughter can:
- Stimulate your organs. Laughter enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins that are released by your brain.
- Activate your stress response. A rollicking laugh fires up and then cools down your stress response and increases your heart rate and blood pressure. The result? A good, relaxed feeling.
- Soothe tension and tummy aches. Laughter can also ease digestion and stimulate circulation, which helps reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.
Long-term effectsLaughter isn’t only good for a quick pick-me-up, though. It’s also good for you over the long haul. Laughter may:
- Improve your immune system. Negative thoughts manifest into chemical reactions that can impact your body by bringing more stress into your system and decreasing your immunity. In contrast, positive thoughts actually release neuropeptides that help fight stress and potentially more serious illnesses. In fact, in one study, people with cancer who watched a humorous video showed less stress and an increase in a particular cell activity that’s beneficial in fighting diseases such as HIV and cancer.
- Relieve pain. Research increasingly shows that laughter may ease pain by causing the body to produce its own natural painkillers.
- Increase personal satisfaction. Laughter can also make difficult situations a little bit easier. One study of nurses who work in emergency rooms found that nurses who use humor in dealing with their patients and co-workers experience greater job satisfaction and feelings of personal accomplishment than do those who remain dour during their shifts.
How to have - or gain - a sense of humor
Are you afraid you have an underdeveloped - or nonexistent - funny bone? Developing or refining your own particular sense of humor may be easier than you think.
- Put humor on your horizon. Find a few simple items, such as photos or comic strips, that elicit a chuckle from you or others. Then hang them at home, in your office or even on the visor of your car.
- Laugh and the world laughs with you. Develop a sense of humor about your own situation and watch your stress begin to fade away.
- Think positive. Look for the positive or the humorous in every situation and surround yourself with others who do the same.
- Knock-knock. Browse through your local bookstore or library’s selection of joke books and get a few rib-ticklers in your repertoire that you can share with friends.
- Know what isn’t funny. Don’t laugh at the expense of others. Some forms of humor are not appropriate. Use your best judgment to discern a good joke from a bad, or hurtful, one.
Laughter is the best medicine
Go ahead and give it a try. Turn the corners of your mouth up into a smile and then give a laugh, even if it feels a little forced. Once you’ve had your hearty chuckle, take stock of how you’re feeling. Are your muscles a little less tense? Do you feel more relaxed or buoyant? That’s the natural wonder of laughing at work.
Tags: Stress Management
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