Seven Super Stress Solutions
By Julia A. Keirns
(This article was published at ChildrensMall.com in September, 2000)
Stress was a condition my “President of his own Company” older brother had. His blood pressure was high, there were ulcers in his gut, and he couldn’t sleep without pills. But me? I was not the type of person to have stress. What could I possibly have to be stressed about? Read on…
Well, first of all, what is stress anyway? Quite simply put, stress can be defined as “day-to-day” life. I have that. Don’t we all? But excessive stress can be brought on by such major events in life as death and bereavement, a financial crisis, sudden illness, worry, or a national pandemic. It is during these times that stress can cause real problems, physical and mental.
Stress, whether minor or major, produces adrenaline. Adrenaline, in turn, produces tense muscles, increased breathing, stomach aches, headaches, and raised blood pressure. Tense muscles, in turn, produce more adrenaline. See the vicious cycle? So, stress has definite physical consequences, and when we cannot handle or control these minor or major physical conditions, our body can be in danger of shutting down in an attempt to survive, hence mental consequences.
Stress is real. It is a real problem, with real consequences. But it is not only the stress itself that causes the most trouble for us. The real danger lies in how we handle that stress. Learning how to manage and control the stress in our lives is a must for continued good health. We do not have to settle for just mere survival in today’s hassle-filled world either. We can take control of our stress. We can grab it by the horns and beat it. It’s all in the way we handle it.
I have researched and studied books on stress. Why? Because I deal with stress daily. I discovered this one day when my eyelids started twitching and wouldn’t stop. I let it go for a while. Then one day I had enough. I went to the eye doctor and guess what he told me was the cause of my little twitch? Stress. Another symptom I had was the little muscle spasms inside my ear. Do you have any idea how annoying it is to have a muscle spasm in your inner ear? Guess what the family doctor said was the cause of this little condition? Yep. Stress.
I have come to the enlightening conclusion that I too, along with millions of other people, have stress. It even came to the point of me being diagnosed with anxiety and panic attacks. I also have stomach ulcers. I now take medicine regularly to stop the physical attributes of the stress in my life. In my research, I have found the seven best ways that have helped me deal with my stress and I would like to share them with you. They work for me.
Here are seven things you can try when you feel yourself tensing up (or shortly after)…
1. Breathe! This is probably the most important thing to remember to do because many people will hyperventilate under stress from breathing too fast. Some people will hold their breath. Sometimes you just need to remember the basics. Breathe in, breathe out. Take full breaths. Concentrate and breathe deep, clear from your gut. Force yourself to breathe slow and regular. This convinces your body that the stress is gone. It may not be, but your physical body takes its cues from you, so it will think the stress has passed.
2. Muscle relaxation. Simply relax. Exercise your muscles any way you can. Stretch, pull, massage. Target those muscles that tense up the most. Get them to relax. Remember, stress produces adrenaline, adrenaline produces tense muscles, tense muscles produce more adrenaline. Untense those muscles!
3. Get away from it! Look away or walk away. Think about something else, anything else. Distract yourself from the immediate situation. Count to ten. Get your mind off of it, even for a few seconds. Refocus your thoughts. Go look out the window. Just get up and leave.
4. Take a hot bath. No, not at the office, but as soon as you can when you get home. Hot water increases the blood flow to the muscles in your extremities. Increased blood flow relaxes muscles. Relaxed muscles stop producing adrenaline. My hot baths include candles and wine.
5. Yell, scream, or cry! A sudden (or not so sudden) major emotional outburst can release stress that may be built up. Hold it in and it will just continue to mount and cause havoc on your body. This is a perfectly acceptable way to handle stress. Drive out to the country down some back dirt road and just get out and let it loose.
6. Get alone. But don’t just get alone, get alone with God. Okay, this one may not help everybody, but for those of you who do believe, prayer is a great way to release a situation that seems out of your control. In a life of faith, giving it to God through prayer, and knowing that He will take care of it for you, can immediately take the pressure off.
And finally,
7. Go to your local discount store and purchase a Eucalyptus Stress Relieving candle for a few dollars. Light it, burn it, and tell yourself it works. Buy two of them and set one on your desk and light it every day. Breathe in the smell of eucalyptus and allow it to convince your mind to calm down. It works if you let it.
There are my seven super stress relieving solutions. These are what work for me. They have worked in the past and I will continue to trust them. I hope they help you too. Just remember, if your stress ever gets to the point of causing more serious ailments such as dizzy spells, blackouts, sweaty palms, chronic back pain, neck pain, headaches that will not go away, anxiety or insomnia, please see your physician. Don’t be afraid to tell him or her the truth of your symptoms, and don’t let stress interfere with your quality of life.