How To Manage Stress

Instead of coping with stress, one needs to learn how to manage stress. Learning how to manage stress has been shown to prevent serious health problems. Stress causes many negative effects on the body, including inhibition of the processes of digestion, reproduction, growth, tissue repair, and the responses of the immune and inflammatory systems. http://faculty.weber.edu/molpin/healthclasses/1110/bookchapters/stressphysiologychapter.htm All of these are essential functions that help keep your body healthy.

Learning how to manage stress can give you essential tools that will help you relax and be more at ease with your life. All people experience events that trigger a stress response, or a "flight or fight" physiological change of the body. http://www.harvardsquarelibrary.org/unitarians/cannon_walter.html This is a sympathetic nervous system imbalance which has many negative effects on the functions of our bodies and mental health. http://www.thecausewayretreat.com/blog/2009/06/fight-or-flight-response/ Fortunately, you can condition your body for a "relaxation response" so that you can keep yourself healthy.

The first step is to reserve some time for yourself immediately after you awake in the morning. The best time to do it is from 5 am to 6 am, when there are no distractions. If you need to get up a few minutes early, do it, because you will reap many benefits. During this time, you need to do two things. First, start a meditation practice to clear your head.http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress-relievers/MY01373/NSECTIONGROUP=2 You need to do each practice session for at least 15-20 minutes. Use a timer that can gently wake you at the end of each session or some music which ends at the appropriate time. You can choose from various practices as outlined in the section on various meditation techniques. Once you find a practice, stick with it and do it daily. Twice daily is better for progress. Evening or afternoon sessions help you let go of the tension that accumulates in the mind and body during the day.http://www.fi.edu/learn/brain/relieve.html

Movement of the body and creating body awareness is known to alleviate a number of different problems that people experience, including stress. Take 15 minutes to exercise in the morning, preferably an exercise that helps you with your body's flexibility and ability to breathe. Practices of yoga, qigong, and tai chi are best for this. The exercises do not have to be complicated, but they should help you move and breathe better. It is important to do the exercises in a gentle manner, Do not force movements. With practice, you will note that your range of movement, flexibility, and breathing will improve gradually. With a more functional body, you have a more functional emotional state of mind.http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/health-and-balance-work-out

Keep a journal. You can use this journal to help you identify the events that trigger your stress, which may lead you to an understanding as to what it is within you that allows you to react. In this way, you can do some self-analysis. Reflect on other factors that you can change in your life that will help you in balancing your life; diet, your work, your friends, the things that are good and positive in your life. Most of all, use the journal as a practice of gratitude and be kind to yourself. You can also look up some other references on the art of journaling. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/stress-relievers/MY01373/NSECTIONGROUP=2