How to Deal With Emotional Stress

By admin | April 25, 2010

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Emotional stress can often come about from stressful feelings related relationships, career or money. It is a stress that stems from emotions or attitudes towards something. Emotional stress is not just some external situation that occurred, but how we react to that external stress.

So how do you deal with emotional stress. One way to deal with it is yoga. Many people think of yoga as just a way to relax or calm the mind, but it is also a way to release stressful emotions that are stored in the body. If we don’t deal with our emotions (express them or journal about them, etc) then they get lodged in your body and get stuck there. When it gets stuck there it is stored and blocks the energy flow in your body.

Yoga is great way to release energy that is pent up in the body as certain poses will work on certain aspects of the body such as backbends or heart openers. Yoga is also a great way to really just be in the moment. Focusing on the work of the body calms the mind down to really just be truly present. When you are present you can feel the emotions that are going on instead of resisting them. When you feel the emotion you can actually release it and then come up with a viable solution to any stressors that may be happening in your life.

While yoga is great way to become stronger or more flexible or more peaceful it is really a practice to end suffering. The end of suffering (or stress) comes really from acceptance and living right in the present moment and that is what a yoga practice is really meant to teach you – be present in the here and now and learn what you can from it. You can’t change the past and you don’t know what is going to happen in the future so living in the moment is the only thing that you really have. Yoga is a great reminder of this and it helps in dealing with emotional stress.

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Dealing with Stress – New Strategies

By admin | April 22, 2010

Everybody has heard about stress and the myriad of things that can help in dealing with stress – such as exercise, listening to music, deep breathing – but a new strategy that people don’t think about very often is nutrition.

Emotional eating and stress are like a chicken and an egg. When you get stressed out certain normal body chemicals are either released more in your body or released less in your body causing you to crave certain foods (like sugar and carbs). Now when you eat poorly you can also cause some of these chemicals to also be lessened, which also can lead to stress and dulling of your senses.

So the way to deal with stress has two components: 1) eat foods that are more natural and less processed and 2) know that stress can impact the way you eat and  so become more aware of your stressors and what it leads you to eat.

So what foods are most beneficial to eat when you are stressed out? Well foods such as salmon, avocados, pistachios, almonds, and skim milk. These are all unprocessed and health foods that help add certain things to your diet such as Omega 3 or B vitamins that help your body manage stress.

Also if you are aware that you are stressed a lot then you may also need to begin tracking what is causing some of your stressors and what you are eating as a result. If you are always craving sweet things when you are stressed out what can you do or eat instead that will actually help with dealing with the stress instead of eating poorly. Is it doing a traditional stress reducer (like exercise) or eating something healthier that will actually fill you up naturally (like a slice of avocado instead of ice cream).

Nutrition is a key aspect of dealing with stress. What we put in our bodies has a tremendous effect on how we feel and what we do. Start paying attention to what you put in your body and start eating more unprocessed foods and you will see great benefits!

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How To Be Stress Free

By admin | April 18, 2010

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Stress is caused by being out of balance in our energy levels and our state of mind. It can cause lethargy, tiredness, and a feeling of being drained or out of sorts. So how do you be stress free? Life is such that you will never eliminate stress completely from it, but stress is something that can be lessened and released by using the right tools. Reiki is one such tool.

What is reiki? Reiki is a hands-on healing method, which helps in balancing the energy in your body. It is like moving the all the stress and tension that is built up in one area of your body and releasing it so that the energy is free flowing.

So how can reiki do this? Reiki is like other forms of energy work such as tai chi or martial arts, but it is a more subtle way of moving the energy. As one reiki expert called it, it is the couch potato’s form of martial arts. It really does move the energy and boost your spirits that you feel refreshed, re-energized, and full of life.

I had a couple of reiki treatments done and felt like I had just gotten a massage. I felt so relaxed, calm, light and free of tension/stress. When I first got trained in Reiki Level 1 class I wanted to learn how these other folks were performing reiki on me. Once I got trained and was able to do reiki on myself I realized it was a great tool to help me relieve my stress and tension in my everyday life. While watching TV or right before bed I can perform some hands on healing on myself and I can release all the tension from the day or I can help my friends and family who may be going through some stressful situation.

If you are looking to feel as good, calm, and centered as a massage but be able to do it on your own or for friends/family then I highly recommend reiki as a way to be stress free.

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Emotional Freedom Technique – Relief from Everyday Stresses

By admin | April 15, 2010

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Do you get stressed out from everyday stresses such as frustrations with your boss or lack of financial security? Well the Emotional Freedom Technique (or EFT) can help. EFT is a practice that uses tapping on various points to release pent up emotions that are blocking the flow of energy in your body.

EFT is done by tapping on major meridian points (the same points that are used in acupuncture or the Chinese Medicine that is over 5000 years old). When tapping on these meridian points and vocalizing your belief (what you are stressed about) along with a statement of acceptance of yourself you will begin to release pent up energy and allow more things to flow in your body and mind. EFT is a subtle way to release this pent up energy and allow for shifts to happen in your life, similar to chakra balancing or acupressure.

As you are doing EFT you may have a thought arise that your everyday stresses may have deeper underlying emotions to them. For example frustrations with your boss could be because you don’t feel valued and could be based on something that happened earlier in your childhood. Recognizing this thought and then again doing the tapping exercise can lead to true emotional release while doing your EFT program.

The underlying core belief could vary for each person, but the core thought is the one that will ultimately lead to the release of so many everyday stresses.

What stresses are you going through today for which you can begin using EFT? EFT can really address anything from financial worries, to fears in relationships, to anxiety over career concerns. Start using EFT and you will be able to notice the shifts coming over you and begin seeing that you can relieve the everyday stresses using an easy tool.

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De-Stressing After a Rough Day

By admin | April 11, 2010

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Do you live a stressful life? Do you have a lot of responsibilities with work and family and don’t know how to de-stress after a particularly rough day? Meditation is a great way to de-stress yourself and become more aware of what is going on around you.

What causes stress? Well stress is often the result of unmet expectations or trying to control situations that are not in your control. So how does meditation help? Well meditation is a great way to sit in a quiet place and begin to gain awareness of your mind. It is a way to understand how your mind works and what you focus your attention on.

Often people are so busy that they don’t take the time to really understand and know how they operate, what motivates them, what bothers them, and what drives them each and everyday. Yet sitting in meditation can actually provide some relaxation, give you an opportunity to sit in the awareness of the breath and just “be” in the moment. Being in the moment is a great way to get some context on your life and understand that what you are worried about or stressed about may not be the end of the world.

Meditation is really a way to get some grounding and understanding of your day-to-day existence and come to know that your expectations could be wrong and that the worries you have may not be there tomorrow. It is a process of becoming more mindful, more present, and more understanding of yourself without any judgment for how the mind works. It is a way to begin to relax your mind and body and begin to work on the subtle changes in the mind – to a place of more grounding, more presence, and more centeredness.

So if you are looking to de-stress after a rough day begin a daily meditation practice of ten minutes a day focusing on your breath and you will begin to see yourself become less and less stressed, particularly on a rough day.

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Taking Control of Stress

By admin | April 8, 2010

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Stress is a phenomenon that results from fear, anxiety, and worry based upon external circumstances or internal dialogue. Whenever I do speaking engagements I get stressed out and filled with anxiety until the minute I step up to the podium. Then I am at ease, comfortable and loving it. What do people always say when I am about to go up to the podium in order to take control of my stress? Take a few deep breaths.

What does breathing have to do with taking control of stress? Well breathing has the ability to release 80-90% of the toxins in our body, which in turn clears your mind, increases your health, and helps you take the needed actions in the moment.

When I am about to go up to start a speaking engagement I take a few deep breaths and in that moment I can begin to remind myself why I really want to speak in front of groups – I want to help them solve a particular problem or help them lead healthier lives. Just by breathing properly – meaning full deep breaths with your stomach going out when you are inhaling and your stomach coming in when you are exhaling – you can bring yourself back to the present moment, know what action you need to take and remember why you are taking that action.

Another reason that breathing can help you take control of stress is that stress can cause a fight-or-flight response in the system where you either want to lash out in anger or flee.  By breathing you can delay that response and bring yourself back to the present moment. By being in the present moment you are no longer regretting the past or worried about the future which leaves you a place to make a different decision than just the fight or flight behavior.

Finally, breathing has patterns associated with it. When you are scared you may hold your breath.  When you are frustrated you may take a long exhalation (like a sigh).  When you are happy you may take a long inhalation. By noticing the breath patterns associated with your emotions you can take a deep breath and bring the breath back to a normal state of being. With a little awareness you can catch yourself whenever your breath pattern is out of alignment and bring yourself back to a more relaxed state of mind.

Taking control of your stress can be easy by just practicing some daily breathing exercises. Notice how you are breathing, get in the habit of breathing more deeply and you will begin to see some real changes.

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Stress and Health Part 5 - Physical Therapy and Pilates

By admin | February 28, 2010

Stress can be debilitating mentally (leading to anxiety and depression) and physically by leading to certain diseases. So how do people who are post surgery or post injury alleviate the stress of getting past a painful event and back to health? Through physical therapy and pilates.

Physical therapy is typically a type of exercise that helps to rehabilitate one’s body and make it more whole again after suffering some sort of illness. By making oneself or one’s body whole and working well again a person’s mental state can also become better because they feel the following:

o    More self-confidence – usually after illness (such as knee replacement surgery) a person feels down and not able to function at a level that they once were able. With physical therapy a person works on specific exercises that will help with making that particular body part stronger. Although there may be more pain in the beginning it brings a sense of confidence that eventually they will be able to use their body better. Eventually the strength and confidence comes back through diligent effort.
o    Social support – usually working with someone like a physical therapist or rehabilitating with others who are going through the same thing brings a sense of comfort and a feeling that you are not alone. This inherently helps in relieving stress when you know that others are there to support you and going through the same thing that you are.

Pilates also help in relieving stress because it really is a body mind sort of exercise. It takes physical therapy to another level. It helps in building concentration, precision, control and flow to the body and the mind by focusing on strengthening the core and keeping a neutral spine. It is different from yoga in that way (by the focus on keeping a neutral spine instead of the focus on different postures).

If you are trying to recover from an injury or some type of illness physical therapy and pilates are a great way to manage the stress associated with that. Both of these mediums can be used in a preventative way as well (an even better method) to alleviate pain and illness prior to them occurring.

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Stress and Health Part 4 - Exercise

By admin | February 23, 2010

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Stress and Health – Part 4 Exercise

So now that you know that stress can play havoc on your health – both physically and mentally – what is it that you can do to relieve your stress? In the remaining article series I will discuss tools and techniques you can use to alleviate stress. Here we will start with exercise.

You have heard that exercise is a great stress reliever for years, but what is the real reason that stress helps in managing stress?

1.    It allows for the body to detoxify stress build up of excess hormones or the flight or fight response through movement and through the breathing process that occurs with cardiovascular exercise
2.    It is a socially acceptable way to be aggressive and blow off steam – through sports (like boxing, etc) you can exert yourself in a way where you can be strong, masculine, and aggressive without hurting yourself or anyone else
3.    It can be like a meditation because it forces you (especially sports) to be more in the moment and focus on what is here and now instead of obsessing about what has been or what will be
4.    It can increase your self-esteem in that you can be achieving goals, such as running a particular race (a marathon), or because your body feels better. If you are stressed because you are overweight exercising can also make you feel better because your body looks better
5.    There is an increase in endorphins, or the feel good chemical, that helps you clear your mind and get away from the flight or fight response

So if exercise has so many benefits why don’t more people do it? Well there are so often excuses of: being too busy, it being too cold outside, or not being able to afford a gym membership. Exercise doesn’t have to be expensive or time consuming. Just walking 30 minutes 3 times a day can be very beneficial in reducing stress. Take a walk with a friend and make it fun and it won’t seem so hard to do anymore. The more you can make exercise a part of your day to day life and make it fun the less stressed you will be!

Continue to look for more tools and techniques on how to deal with stress in more of the Stress and Health series.

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Stress and Health Part 3 - Stress and Chiropractic Care

By admin | January 27, 2010

Stress can have profound impacts on both your physical and mental health. As discussed in the previous Stress and Health articles 75% of all diseases in the US are stress and lifestyle related including heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.

Stress buildup, if not dealt with from the symptom level, can impact the nervous system and therefore cause many physical ailments including back pain, neck pain, poor posture, and all sorts of other illnesses. Chiropractors deal with physical ailments that impact the nervous system and can alleviate pain and mis-alignments through adjustments to the vertebrae of the spine.

So what does chiropractic care have to do with relieving stress?  Chiropractic care can help in relieving stress in the following ways:

o    Chiropractors are able to identify the areas of the nervous system that are impacted negatively by stress through the mis-alignments of the vertebrae of the spine. Chiropractors are trained to identify these mis-alignments and focus specifically on ailments to the nervous system.
o    Once mis-alignments are identified chiropractors are able to adjust the spine through manual adjustments or by using a mechanical devices to remove the interference to the nervous system. Adjustments can be done over a period of time and help eliminate issues that affect a normally functioning nervous system.
o    When you go to a chiropractor and are able to adjust the nervous system the body is then free to self-heal other physical ailments. Chiropractors have seen other ailments being helped out as a result of their adjustments and therefore the body starts functioning in a more normal way. Elimination of pain, more regular bowel movements, and the elimination of deafness have been results of chiropractic care.
o    When physical ailments are no longer there then people are able to focus on emotional or other factors that may be leading to the stress – although stress can cause physical ailments often there is some external trigger or emotional event that causes the stress in the first place. If stress is built up for so long physical ailments can become a problem and when people are dealing with pain they often are not able to deal with emotional aspects that may be keeping them in a stressful situation. By dealing with the pain people will have the capacity to really look at the root of the stress.

Continue to look for more tools and techniques on how to deal with stress in more of the Stress and Health series.

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Stress and Health Part 2 - Impacts of Stress on Mental Health

By admin | January 24, 2010

Stress can be a big component of many emotional health concerns that are going on in American society today. As mentioned in the first of the Stress and Health series stress is a key component in 75% of all diseases in the US today. Stress starts as rush of adrenaline that is created from some external event or emotional episode that can either push someone take positive action or if it is not dealt with then can result in physical and mental health concerns.

When stress occurs many different emotional signals can be triggered. Emotional triggers are often signs that stress is not being handled or managed or that people may not be getting to the root of their stress.  So what happens emotionally when stress is triggered?
•    Creation of learned helplessness – when people do not know how to handle the stress that builds up and creates a fight or flight response they shut down or burst out. When people shut down they can get depressed or feel anxious and do not know how to dig themselves out of the hole that they are in. This leads to a feeling of helplessness or a feeling of being a victim, which can become a habitual pattern of action or inaction.
•    Self-blame – taking on much of the blame for not being able to get out of the stressful situation can lead to increased stress. Judgments about oneself can be a red flag in emotional health that people are not looking for solutions, but sabotaging themselves.
•    Isolation  - when stress is triggered often people start to isolate themselves from others. They go further and further inside and stop looking for community and help. This can result in avoiding dealing with situations and not getting the help that people may need.
•    Sleeplessness – when someone thinks about the same thing over and over and over again it can lead to an inability to get a restful night sleep. Lack of enough sleep can impact one’s energy levels and mood leading to more ruminating of the mind. This can become a continual pattern if not dealt with properly.

So what are some solutions to all of this?
•    Learn to deal with the underlying emotions – sometimes not addressing the emotions that are causing the stress, such as fear, anger, or frustration, leads to the emotional states indicated above. Talk to a friend, therapist or life coach and express the emotions that are controlling you.
•    Holistic health – look at the way you are eating, sleeping, exercising, and breathing to find patterns or healthy alternatives to release the stress buildup.

So what do you do to over come stress and manage the anxiety, depression, or feeling of being “stuck” that may occur? Stay tuned for part 3 of the series to find out more about tools and techniques to help manage and alleviate stress from a physical health perspective.

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