Causes of Stress
Most of us are living with stress year round, if you don’t have stress I would wonder about you. We have economic stress, working for unreasonable bosses, looking for employment, families have stress caring for children, being able to adequately provide food clothing shelter and health care for their families, dealing with health problems, traffic, and many of us are dealing with aging parents that are declining in health. So, most of us have enough stress to deal with.
Then, some have stress around certain times of the year, like during the holidays. You are off work more during these times but the work still must get done. There are deadlines, quotas, and all kinds of work related stress. Also, many have stress dealing with fragmented families, how to make everyone happy, fitting everything in, extra expenses, and dealing with family members that might be difficult.
Some of the stress we experience is just because we are living in these crazy times.
Managing stress will take time and effort; nothing that is worthwhile is totally effortless. It may even take scheduling some of these activities until they become deeply ingrained habits. But, if you do them you could be enjoying more of your life and improving the lives of those you love.
Because of the additional stresses of this crazy world we are in fight or flight mode most of the time. Fight or flight mode is important for us occasionally, but when it is on all the time it causes problems with overwhelmed adrenals and leads to total exhaustion and damage to the body.
Whatever causes your stress, too much of it leads to damaged health.
Does stress affect health?
The American Institute of Stress in New York lists 50 of the signs and symptoms of stress. Here are some of them: Frequent headaches, jaw clenching or pain; insomnia, nightmares, disturbing dreams; gritting, grinding teeth; difficulty concentrating, racing thoughts; stuttering or stammering; trouble learning new information; tremors, trembling of lips, hands; forgetfulness, disorganization; confusion; neck ache, back pain, muscle spasms; difficulty in making decisions; light headedness, faintness, dizziness; feeling overloaded or overwhelmed; ringing, buzzing or “popping sounds; frequent crying spells or suicidal thoughts; frequent blushing, sweating; feelings of loneliness or worthlessness; cold or sweaty hands, feet; little interest in appearance, punctuality; nervous habits, fidgeting, feet tapping; frequent colds, infections, herpes sores; increased frustration, irritability, edginess; rashes, itching, hives, “goose bumps”; overreaction to petty annoyances; increased number of minor accidents; heartburn, stomach pain, nausea; reduced work efficiency or productivity; constipation, diarrhea; chest pain, palpitations; problems in communication, sharing; frequent urination; social withdrawal and isolation; constant tiredness, weakness, fatigue; excess anxiety, worry, guilt, nervousness; frequent use of over-the-counter drugs; weight gain or loss without diet; depression, frequent or wild mood swings.
I found some that fit me. What about you?
Risk Factors by Rebecca J. Frey in part said this could “….include feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, extreme fear or anger, and cynicism or distrust of others.”
Since we would like to avoid these risks, let’s see what we can do to turn things around.
10 stress reducing steps for the holidays or any time
We must keep a good sleep routine. Go to bed at the same regular time each night. Deep sleep stimulates and energizes the immune system, while sleep deprivation has the opposite effect. The experts usually agree that adults generally need from 7 to 8 hours of sleep, but you could need more or less. Just make sure you are not sleep deprived.
In addition to regular sleep hours, be sure to avoid stimulants such as decongestants, tobacco and alcohol. Alcohol doesn’t keep you from falling asleep, but does interfere with REM sleep, which does restore and repair the body, and helps us reduce stress.
Today many moms are totally overwhelmed by too many tasks to do. They take care of husbands, children, homes, cooking, and a career. We are not super-mom’s. Don’t overwhelm yourself with too many projects-you may delegate. Don’t allow yourself to be forced to do too much during the holidays. Be reasonable, and thus bring the stress level down. For dads in that category, you get the same suggestions. You must have boundaries too-or you will be stressed, overwhelmed and will be dealing with exhaustion.
More than ever before, live within your budget and don’t overuse your credit cards. Too much debt is extremely stressful.
I realize this tip is difficult in today’s economic atmosphere, but, because of this very thing-this is even more important to do.
Take some quiet meditation time or pray. Quiet down time has been shown to slow the body down, reduce blood pressure and reduce stress.
Laugh and have some fun. Play with the kids, put in the funniest movies you can get a hold of to make you roll on the floor. Laughter is helpful in restoring a sick body and in handling stress. Also, during stressful times it is very important to have good quality and fun time with your children. They are under stress too.
When you have time constraints, you might have to schedule it or it won’t happen. This is just as important as your work schedule, eating or doctor’s appointments.
Laughter has become a wonderful non invasive and safe form of medicine, with no bad side effects. So use it—-it’s free.
Deep breathing is very therapeutic for slowing the cycles of the body down. Most today are shallow type-upper lung breathers, so this will probably take practice, but it is worth while. Additionally, deep breathing has also been shown to reduce your blood pressure.
There are many deep breathing programs out there. I have used some for my classes, and they are very effective. Try it for yourself and feel the benefits.
Journal writing to reduce stress. Studies show that another way of coping with stress is by pouring your heart out in a journal. Putting things down on paper removes them from the weight on your shoulders.
Also try listing everything you are grateful for. This is an additional way to use your Journal to help release or reduce stress. Sometimes we don’t feel like we have any blessings in our lives until we begin to list them daily in our journal-then we suddenly feel much better.
Try it for yourself and see if you benefit from it.
Have a massage. Massages are relaxing and can also work stress as well as toxins out of the body. Massage therapists have many types of massages to choose from. Find the right combination just for you.
You may also take a wonderful hot soaking bath. A candle lit bath is very relaxing and therapeutic. You may even try it with relaxing music. Music has its own benefits. This is another free form of therapy.
And number 10, exercise. Exercise does a body good. (I know it is supposed to be milk, but, this is my article and I thoroughly believe in exercise) Regular exercise also helps to reduce stress.
The Mayo Clinic tells us that physical activity — whether it’s a relaxing walk, bicycle riding or meditative tai chi — helps relieve stress.
You may also include music with your exercise. I love Rebounding to music. It makes my stress float away. I really do love it!! Music has its own health benefits and even can be used to improve behavior and it affects brain waves.
I hope this information helps you handle stress now during the holidays and throughout the coming year. Remember, you and those you love are worth the effort of reducing your stress.
For the rest of the story go to: www.squidoo.com/ banish-Depression or contact me at: AWellnessCoach@Gmail.com
(Carmel Aaron lives in Heber Springs, has a degree in biology and has been certified by Proevity in Nutrition and Glycemic Indexing, and takes ongoing Wellness classes. She owns and operates Anatomy Academy Wellness, where she teaches a Certified Wellness Weight Loss Coaching program as a GKCC. To get in touch with Carmel: AwellnessCoach@Gmail.com)
Heber Springs, Ark. —
