[amdavadis4ever] Effects of chronic stress

 

Effects of chronic stress The body doesn't distinguish between physical and psychological threats. When you're stressed over a busy schedule, an argument with a friend, a traffic jam, or of bills, your body reacts just as strongly as if you were facing a life-or-death situation. If you have a lot of responsibilities and worries, your emergency stress response may be "on" most of the time. The more your body's stress system is activated, the harder it is to shut off. Long-term exposure to stress can lead to serious health problems. Chronic stress disrupts nearly every system in your body. It can raise blood pressure, suppress the immune system, increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, contribute to infertility, and speed up the aging process. Long-term stress can even rewire the brain, leaving you more vulnerable to anxiety and depression. Many health problems are caused or exacerbated by stress, including Pain of any kind Heart disease Digestive problems Sleep problems   Depression Weight problems Autoimmune diseases Skin conditions, such as eczema Dealing with stress and its symptoms "Feeling loved is nature's antidote to stress." unchecked stress is undeniably damaging. Unfortunately, many people cope with stress in ways that only compound the problem. You might drink too much to unwind at the end of a stressful day, fill up on comfort food, zone out in front of the TV or computer for hours, use pills to relax, or relieve stress by lashing out at other people. However, there are many healthier ways to cope with stress and its symptoms. Since everyone has a unique response to stress, there is no "one size fits all" solution to dealing with it. No single method works for everyone or in every situation. Focus on what makes you feel calm and in control. Learn how to manage stress You may feel like the stress in your life when out of your control, but you can always control the way you respond. Managing stress is all about taking charge: taking charge of your thoughts, your emotions, your schedule, your environment, and the way you deal with problems. HelpGuide.org - Trusted guide to mental, emotional social health involves changing the stressful situation when you can, changing your reaction when you can't, taking care of yourself, and making time for rest and relaxation. Remember the four As: avoid, alter, adapt, or accept. Avoid unnecessary stress. Not all stress can be avoided, but by learning how to say no, distinguishing between "shoulds" and "musts" on your to-do list, and be clear of people or situations that stress you out, you can eliminate many stressors. Alter the situation. If you can't avoid a stressful situation, try to alter it. Be more assertive and deal with problems. Instead of increasing your stress, let others know about your concerns. Be more willing to compromise and try meeting others halfway on an issue. Adapt to the stressor. When you can't change the stressor, try changing yourself. Reframe problems. Focus on the positive things in your life. If some work has stressed you, focus on the aspects of your job which you enjoy. And always look at the big picture. Accept the things you can't change. There will always be stressors in life that you can't do anything about. Learn to accept the inevitable rather than fight against a situation and making it even more stressful. Look for the upside in a situation—even the most stressful circumstances can be an opportunity for learning or personal growth. Learn to accept that no one is ever perfect. You can also better cope with the symptoms of stress by strengthening your physical health. Set aside relaxation time in your daily work. Exercise regularly. Physical activity plays a key role in reducing and preventing the effects of stress. Eat a healthy diet. Well-nourished bodies are better prepared to cope with stress. Start your day with a healthy breakfast, reduce your caffeine and sugar intake, and cut back on alcohol and nicotine. Get plenty of sleep. Feeling tired can increase stress by causing you to think irrationally. Keep cool by getting a good night's sleep. Quick stress relief. The best way to reduce stress quickly and reliably is by using your senses—what you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch—or through movement. By viewing a favorite photo, smelling a specific scent, listening to a favorite piece of music, tasting a piece of gum, or hugging a pet, for example, you can quickly relax and focus yourself. The key is to use your senses and know what sensory experiences work best for you. Emotional connection. Nothing contributes more to chronic stress than emotional disconnection from ourselves and others. Understanding the influence emotions have on your thoughts and actions is vital to managing stress. Life doesn't have to feel like a rollercoaster ride with extreme ups and downs. Once you're aware of your emotions, the easier it is to understand your own motivations, stop saying or doing things you later regret, gain renewed energy, and smooth out the ride.   Once you've mastered these core skills you'll have the confidence to face stressful challenges, knowing that you'll always be able to rapidly bring yourself back into balance. STRESS RELIEVING LESSIONS 1. CHANGE YOUR FOCUS: The words "SEEK AND YE SHALL FIND" offer timeless wisdom with profound implications. Simply put, we will FIND whatever it is we're SEEKING. In every situation, there is good and bad happening at the same time. Take this headline for instance: BJP WIN THE SENATE. That is decidedly good news if you're a BJP...not so great if you are CONGRESS. The headline is the same for both people reading it. It's the meaning they assign to it that gives it its power. It's the same with everything happening around you. SEEK what could be good in a situation instead of instantly gravitating toward what's WRONG. Believe me when I say this takes conscious effort. If you look back at your life, some of the hardest things you've gone through have had some element of good that came of it, even if it only served to make you more resilient and offer experience that you've brought forward with you. Our natural tendency is to notice what's wrong. If you don't believe it, ask yourself, when was the last time you woke up and said, "HEY! The electricity is on today!" We expect that when we flip a switch the light will go on...but we seldom notice it until it doesn't. 2. RESIGN AS GENERAL MANAGER OF THE UNIVERSE. When my kids were living at home I woke up one morning to a cartoon posted on the refrigerator that said, "If you want peace in your life, resign as general manager of the universe." I think they were trying to tell me something. It was true of me and I see so many other people wearing the title. There are things we must do, things we can do, and things we just shouldn't do. Among the things we just shouldn't do is trying to manage the universe. We're managing the universe when we think it's our job to run someone else's life for instance. So, let me simplify it for you. 3 STOP TRYING TO CHANGE EVERYONE INTO YOU. If you're trying to change someone...regardless of what you may THINK, your motives are, you're probably trying to clone yourself. Ever notice that people with "great taste" have YOUR TASTE? If everyone were just like you, you would be completely unnecessary. AND, believe it or not, most people aren't trying to annoy you. Most of them don't even notice that you're annoyed. My kids were right! This one made a huge difference. 4. STOP WAITING FOR "THINGS TO CHANGE." Things don't change, PEOPLE change. If there's something bothering you about your current situation, don't assume you can just wait it out and it will suddenly become what you want it to be. Change happens as a direct result of ACTION. The only action you can absolutely control is your own. You can take action to refocus and see the good in the situation, leave the situation, or take action to improve the situation. Sometimes we "feel" helpless to leave or change our circumstances, but there is ALWAYS something we can do. SEEK AND YE SHALL FIND. 5. TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR OWN HAPPINESS. One of the biggest myths ever sold to us by Hollywood is the idea that someone will come along and MAKE US HAPPY. Complete nonsense. How can we expect anyone else to know what it is that will make us happy? A lot of the time, we're not even sure ourselves what makes us happy. Even if others did know, who died and left them in charge of it? People who depend on the actions of others for their happiness, end up bitter and disappointed. Their relationships suffer because those in their lives feel pressure to continuously fill a bottomless pit. 6. JUST SAY NO. A two letter word that can change your life and is so totally underused. Many people say yes to things they have no interest or desire to do because they believe saying no makes them seem unkind and therefore unlikeable. The truth is just the opposite. When we say yes, when we really mean no, two things happen: first, we become resentful of the request and toward the requestor, and second, we DO become unlikeable...to ourselves. FYI: being resentful does NOT make us more likable. I have a new motto that has helped reduce my own stress thereby making me a much happier person: If I can't say YES with PASSION, I will say NO without APOLOGY. Feel free to adopt it. It'll bring you one step closer to living an authentic lifewhich is ALWAYS less stressful. 7. JUST SAY YES. Seek and find things that you enjoy and that fill you up. Denying your own needs has the same effect as saying yes when you mean no. It's just another way to become resentful and bitter. Say yes to causes that inspire you. Say yes to taking time with loved ones. Say yes to that good book you've wanted to read. Saying yes enough is just as important as saying no enough. Each leads to greater inner peace and allows you to give from your heart-which always feels wonderful and reduces stress. Even working twice as hard  on something you choose, or that inspires you, will feel like half the burden of something you've taken out of fear, intimidation, or obligation. 8. ASK. Asking is an under used muscle that needs a good workout. Our ASSUMING muscles are usually over developed however. We ASSUME that people know what we need or want. We have ridiculous thoughts like "if they loved me they'd know and I wouldn't have to ask." This is the second biggest myth we've adopted from who knows where. The truth is unless you can read minds, you have no business assuming that anyone else can either. Asking for what we need or want improves our odds of getting it by 100%. Keep in mind it's within everyone's right to say no to our requests, but if we don't ask, "No" is always going to be the answer by default. 9. LET GO. Examine your life for ways that you're holding on to the past that could be ruining your present and threatening to destroy your future. Being alive means living in an imperfect world, with imperfect people, while being imperfect ourselves. We will get hurt. Sometimes by design and sometimes just by means of others exercising their preferences. Those things sting but don't have to scar. Hanging on to past pain and resentment takes an enormous amount of energy. It saps you of mental and physical strength that you need to handle current tasks and responsibilities. It's been said that holding a grudge is like drinking poison and hoping the other person dies. It will destroy you while those who have hurt you have already moved on. 10. GIVE AWAY WHAT YOU WANT. I know. That sounds crazy, but hear me out. We get what we give. If you want more love, be more loving. If you want to be respected, be more respectful. We teach people how to treat us-usually by how we treat them. Does this work on a case by case basis? Not always. Saying if you're kind to X then X will be kind to you is a way to disappoint yourself early and often-but played out in the grand scheme of things it absolutely does work. You attract into your life not what you WANT, but what you ARE. In order to bring good things to you, you must give what you most want to receive. 11. DECIDE. This is a BIG one. Decide what it is that you want your life to look like, feel like, and be about. Happiness is an elusive more so when you don't know what it looks like. Trying to be happy without knowing what it is that makes you happy is like shooting arrows into the woods. Without a target, how will you know if you're getting any better? Nothing is more stressful than feeling like you're spinning your wheels and getting nowhere. I love the quote, "If you don't know where you're going, pretty much any road will get you there." A happy life is a life lived on purpose with direction. You get one shot at a great life. Don't fire a blank!Unlike exercising, getting more sleep, and eating well, I hope you'll give these things a try. You've got nothing to lose but stress.     Quotes About Stress People spend half of their life in making money and loose health in that process. In the remaining half they spend that money trying to get health - Pursue health (mind+body) and knowledge (universal knowledge) then money fame will follow as a byproduct  The time to relax is when you don't have time for it. Men for the sake of getting a living forget to live.  One of the symptoms of an approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one's work is terribly important.  Stress is an ignorant state.  It believes that everything is an emergency.  Don't underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering.  Taking time out each day to relax and renew is essential to living well. Sometimes the most important thing in a whole day is the rest we take between two work "If the problem can be solved why worry? If the problem cannot be solved worrying again why worry. It will do you no good." "Our stresses, anxieties, pains, and problems arise because we do not see the world, other people, or even ourselves as worthy of love." "Stress is the trash of modern life-we all generate it but if you don't dispose of it properly, it will pile up and overtake your life." "A positive attitude may not solve all our problems but that is the only option we have if we want to get out of problems. "Sometimes we can focus so much on nothing that we make it a big something of nothing" "Being unable to say no can make you exhausted, stressed and irritable." "Sometimes when people are under stress, they hate to think, and it's the time when they most need to think." "Worry is worthless. It can't change the past or control the future. It only spoils the moment." "Life is full of issues no matter what social status you enjoy in society, only the nature of issue would be different. You solve one issue, other would come and they would be keep on coming till you are alive. This is a reality and nobody can escape from this truth. "The top causes of death are all stress related." "Majority of people who are easily stressed are the one's who think too much about the problems instead of solutions Always focus on solutions. "It isn't stress that makes us fall - it's how we respond to stressful events." ·         DONT CRY OVER PAST ITS GONE      DONT STRESS ABOUT THE FUTURE, IT HASNT ARRIVED LIVE IN PRESENT AND MAKE IT BEAUTIFUL

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Posted by: prakashbaroda@yahoo.com

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