Stress Management | Yoga Masters

Stress, What is it and Management

Posted by on Sep 11, 2010

The fast pace of life is taking toll on every city dweller, right from students to home makers and workers to managers, every body is hit by the bug of the stress. Modern technological development and communication aids are adding to the stress because of their high speed. Traveling, exams, admissions etc. at times are too stressful for students as well as parents living hectic lifestyle. Stressed individuals are paying heavy toll in terms of health and well being as they are more prone to stress induced diseases such as headaches, upset stomach, rashes, insomnia, ulcers, high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. Most people get trapped into the vicious circle of stress induced diseases and find it difficult to tackle it at later stage. Hence it is very important for us to learn to manage the stress.

So what is stress?

Stress is an individual’s perception and assessment of the environment. It depends on how one perceives the situation. The positive perception is called eustress while negative perception will lead to distress. The amount of stress at which each individual functions most effectively is unique to each individual and it is known as optimum stress level (OSL).
Any response, mental or physical, which adversely affects performance, is called negative stress response.

That which creates stress is called stressor. There are different types of lifestyle stressors:
Performance Stressors: These are situations where one is stressed to perform, viz. Driving a car, public speaking, performance appraisal, big events in one’s life viz. Exams, marriage etc.

Threat Stressors: These are situations perceived as dangerous, viz.: Riots, War, High risk sport, accidents etc.

Boredom Stressors: These are situations which are perceived and assessed as lacking in physical or mental stimulation, Viz. Household chores, Routine factory work etc.

Frustration Stressors: These are situations which are perceived and assessed as being undesirable but beyond one’s power to control, Viz. Govt. Taxation.

Bereavement Stressors: Loss of relationship, Death of loved one, losing a Job, possession or Reputation, dignity etc.

Physical Stressors: Actual physical damage viz. breaking limbs, suffering from disease or infection, working in conditions where extreme temperature and pollution exists which can not be avoided.

Effect of Positive Stress:

As we have seen, positive stress adds anticipation and excitement to life, and we all thrive under a certain amount of stress. Deadlines, competitions, confrontations, and even our frustrations and sorrows add depth and enrichment to our lives. Our goal is not to eliminate stress but to learn how to manage it and how to use it to help us. Insufficient stress acts as a depressant and may leave us feeling bored or dejected; on the other hand, excessive stress may leave us feeling “tied up in knots.” What we need to do is find the optimal level of stress which will individually motivate but not overwhelm each of us. If you are experiencing stress symptoms, you have gone beyond your optimal stress level; you need to reduce the stress in your life and improve your ability to manage it.

So, how do we manage stress?

As there are many sources of stress, there are many possibilities for its management. However, all require work towards change. As stress is an individual’s perception and assessment of the environment, one needs to look into the possibility of changing one’s perception and the reaction to it. In fact, the ideal change will be to convert our reaction to response. So what is the difference between reaction and response? Reaction is habitual, uncontrolled, and impulsive while response is well thought, contemplated act with awareness. A responsible person responds and never reacts. Responsibility is one’s ability to respond.

How do we proceed?

1. Awareness of Stressors: Become aware of your stressors. Watch your physical and emotional reactions to stressors. Do you become nervous or physically upset? Notice the situations and events that create high levels of stress. Understand how your body responds to the stress.

2. Breath awareness: Bring your attention to your breath. Breath awareness will make you more aware to notice various aspects of stress, situation and its effects on your body-brain system. Breath awareness will bring the understanding of the dominant nostril. At any given time, we have one dominant nostril and one blocked nostril. The dominance and the blockage can be of varied degrees.

3. Change the dominant nostril: This is one of the oldest secret of “Shiv Swarodaya” or Swar Yoga. As you become aware of stress and the dominant nostril, simplest thing to do now is to block the dominant nostril by pressing thumb on that nostril and breathe through the other nostril for twenty one times. Normally this is sufficient to change the nostril and stop the setting in of the stress. This simple method works in a miraculous manner to manage stress!

4. Practice “Nirmal Kriya”: Nirmal Kriya is one of the most powerful methods to eliminate stress instantly. It takes only half a minute to practice it. Here is how you go about it…
Start with a couple of deep breaths. Now start with four short breaths and end with a long breath. During the long breath exhalation, create friction in the throat region. (This is known as Ujjayi Pranayam). This makes the train of five connected breaths. Repeat such train five times and you have completed 25 connected breaths Nirmal Kriya. You can do it standing, sitting or sleeping positions. You can repeat it every hour or anytime you feel you are drifting into the stressful situation.

5. Change your Attitudes: Become more positive towards stress management. Look at every situation in a positive manner, including the stressful situations. In fact we learn our best lessons of life from the worst situations!

6. Set your Goals right: Practice SMART Goal setting. Let each of your goal be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time bound. Pursue realistic goals which are meaningful to you, rather than goals others have for you that you do not share.

7. Manage your Time: Practice Time management techniques and manage your life accordingly. Prepare the list of things to do every day morning. Set your priorities right. Follow your own system to the extent possible and also be flexible to change your system to suit your new environment.

8. Improve your EQ: Emotional quotient is based on Emotional Intelligence. Reduce the intensity of your emotional reactions to stress. The stress reaction is triggered by your perception of emotional danger. Are you viewing your stressors in exaggerated terms? Are you over-reacting and viewing things as absolutely critical and urgent? Work at adopting more moderate views; try to see the stress as something you can cope with rather than something that overpowers you. Put the situation in perspective.

9. Take care of your body: Exercise for cardiovascular fitness three to four times a week Moderate, prolonged rhythmic exercise is best, such as walking, swimming, cycling, or jogging. Practice Yoga regularly. Eat well-balanced, nutritious meals. Maintain your ideal weight. Avoid nicotine, excessive caffeine, and other stimulants. Get enough sleep. Be as consistent with your sleep schedule as possible.

10. Take it easy: Mix leisure with work. Take breaks and get away whenever you can.
Develop some mutually supportive friendships and relationships. Frustrations, failures, and sorrows are part of our life, for learning lessons. Always be kind and gentle with yourself — be a friend to yourself.

For more information please visit http://www.premnirmal.com/stress_management.htm

Mr. Prem Nirmal teaches Stress Management at various B-Schools and also conducts Stress Management programs regularly at TAO, 209, Krishna, Laxmi Ind. Complex, Vartak Nagar, Pokhran Road-1, Thane (W).Mumbai. India. For more information, log on to http://www.premnirmal.com Or e-mail to prem@premnirmal.com or call 9224127682.

Author: Prem Nirmal
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Talk Yourself Out of Stress

Posted by on Sep 4, 2010

Seventy-five percent of all our problems – both emotional and physical problems – come from the same source. If you could identify that source, would you want to eliminate it?

For most people, the answer is obvious. Unfortunately, few people are able to identify the core of their problems. And those who do typically don’t know the steps to take to alleviate their challenges.

So what is the course of most of our problems? It is stress. That’s right; stress is the source of 75 percent of all our problems and a major epidemic in people’s lives. Finding ways to control stress is vital, because if your don’t control stress, it will control you.

What Exactly Is Stress?

The concept of stress isn’t new to anyone. But few people truly know what stress is. Physical stress is the depletion of the body’s resources by illness or exhaustion. The most devastating stress, however, is psychological and emotional stress. There are many sources of emotional stress: family problems, social obligations, life changes, work, decision making, phobias, etc.

Emotional stress is powerful and debilitating because it takes away any sense of control we have over our lives. And this feeling of control over our environment and our self is one of our most basic human needs. If it isn’t met, emotional or physical illness can result. For example, a number of studies directly link stress and heart disease.

The only wan to combat stress and stay healthy is to create a complete physical, mental and spiritual equilibrium within the body. Although we used to believe that the mind and body are two separate entities, we now know that all facets of our being are interconnected. Everything that happens to your body and your mind affects your health and stress level in some way. Every thought you have, every feeling and emotion you experience affects your longevity. That is why you must take a total body approach to eliminate stress and balance your life.

Physical And Emotional Stress Relief

If you want to reduce your stress level and live a happier and healthier life, use the physical and emotional stress relief techniques outlined below.

Physical Relief

· Say No

The pressure to perform in today’s world is intense. As a result, people work long hours and take on much more than they can bear. They juggle multiple roles throughout the day and sacrifice sleep or personal time just so they can get everything done. Saying “no” to a demand is out of the question, resulting in increased stress, both at work and at home.

Unfortunately, for most people, saying “no” to another’s request is a challenge. They are anxious to please others, so they put their own needs aside. They fail to realize that no one can be on call 24 hours a day, and that we all need some personal time to rest and rejuvenate.

The next time someone demands more than you can give, remember that you have to take care of yourself first. You simply can’t handle everything. Say “no” gracefully while respecting the other person and letting him or her know that you care. While you may feel some initial guilt for denying the request that feeling will quickly pass and your stress level diminishes.

· Listen to Your Body

Listening to your body helps you take control of your stress

because you become aware of the signals your body gives you regarding comfort and discomfort. Once you’re attuned to what your body is telling you, you can learn which events trigger stress and which events reduce it. Your body talks to you everyday. How often do you listen?

The most common warning of too much stress is a condition called angina. Angina consists of chest pain or tightness in the neck, arms, jaw, and upper back that is the result of a reduced blood supply to the heart. Other indicators of excessive emotional stress are arrhythmias or irregular heartbeat.

In order to listen to your body, you must become responsible for your health and your stress. Having trust in your doctors or in medical tests is now enough. The real solution lies with you and with your own awareness and responsibility for your health. This responsibility may involve doing some things that are difficult for you, such as changing your diet, stopping smoking, learning to control emotions, etc. Whatever change is necessary for you, your body will tell you. You need only to listen.

Physical Relief

· Communicate With Your Heart

Your heart has an important job, pumping 2,000 gallons of blood throughout your body each day. This merits the heart receiving your attention. To reduce emotional stress your heart needs encouragement, appreciation, and love.

Start your heart talk, your communication with your heart, by placing your right hand over the left side of your chest. Become aware of your heartbeat. Stay in that position for a few moments. Soon you’ll notice that the heating sensation becomes less forceful. It is as if your heart knows that you’re in touch with it. With your hand still over your chest ask your heart to help you be peaceful. Ask your heart to create an emotional shield that protects you from whatever the world around you may be fighting with.

Within your heart is an infinite intelligence that is sensitive to your needs. So pose a question to your heart or discuss a problem that’s causing you stress. Your heart will reciprocate with the proper answer. By doing this, you are telling your creative mind to quiet down so you can uncover new solutions to your problems. The more you become aware of your heart and what it tells you to do, the less stress you will experience. You will achieve a sense of peace and calmness knowing that you are doing what is best for you.

· Clear Out the Past Clutter

Just as you do a spring cleaning of your house, you should also do a spring cleaning of your heart to wipe away the old memories and messages that are causing you stress. This is important, because the way we fell from moment to moment, the way we behave, and the actions we take are all conditioned to how we feel inside.

Negative feelings that we harbor from our past – feelings of loneliness, feelings of low self-worth, feelings of sadness, worry, and fear – cause a great deal of emotional stress in our adult lives. It’s similar to carrying a weight on your back. The weight becomes heavier and heavier. You eventually have to walk bent over because the weight is excessive, but you are still not willing to let it go. As you clear out the chatter, you let go of the weight; you regain a sense of peace and are able to walk upright again.

To discover the past chatter that’s causing you stress, think back over your life and identify the most painful experience you have had – the one you thought you needed to hide from the world. What was that mistake or event? What message did the event trigger in your mind? Acknowledge the event, forgive yourself for it, and then release it and the accompanying stress from your heart.

Stress-Free Today

If you want to eliminate 75 percent of your physical and emotional problems, you must first reduce the stress you feel in your life. By practicing the self-communication strategies explained above, you can take the steps to talk yourself out of daily stress. When you do, you’ll gain a sense of balance and inner peace that enables you to accomplish more, enjoy life, and live your dreams.

Bruno Cortis, M.D., is a cardiologist with a major interest in Spirituality and Health. He authored two books, The Spiritual Heart and also Heart & Soul. He is a member of NSA, Illinois Chapter and he delivers speeches and seminars across North America.

You can visit Dr. Cortis at http://www.BrunoCortis.com or e-mail him at DrCortis@BrunoCortis.com. His telephone number is 708-366-0117.

Author: Bruno Cortis
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Stress Management Shouldn’t Create More Stress. 10 Ways To Reduce Unreasonable Stress and Boost Perf

Posted by on Aug 28, 2010

We all know that stress levels in the workplace are reaching unreasonable levels. And most sensible human beings will agree that we have to take action to fix this problem.

However, some government agencies and, I must say, some consultants are all for creating yet another paper and theoretical exercise that will have little benefit to the employees or the business. Managers don’t need lectures on how too much stress diminishes people’s creativity and productivity, increases absenteeism, extended sick leave and can result in tribunal payouts of tens or hundreds of thousands of pounds. Managers want assistance not lectures.

Do whatever you can to escape the form filling that supposed ensure you meet certain “stress management standards”. Avoid like the plague what are now being called “stress risk assessments”. These will require the resources of a full time employee and lead to even more stress!

Rather concentrate on straightforward and easily applied measures to reduce stress and at the same time show employees and regulatory authorities and legal courts that your organisation does stake stress seriously.

Here are just ten you could start with.

1. Ensure your Employee Handbook and Induction has plenty of wording in it that shows that management knows about the adverse effects of too much stress. Explain what people must do if they feel under stress. Go over the top to show that management wants and welcomes discussion reporting of excess stress. Who ever is giving the induction must state this orally too.

2. Have a clear, written and concise procedure that people can follow if they find stress getting out of hand. What can people do if they feel under stress? Who should they speak to? What do they do if it’s their boss who is the cause of stress? What help can the business offer? Make sure employees know they also have a responsibility to look after their physical and mental health.

3. Give people clear job descriptions so they know what is required of them and revisit the description every six months to update them. You can do this in the annual or (better) twice-yearly appraisal Involve people in writing and re-negotiating job descriptions. Specifically ask about what can be done to reduce stress and record the answer.

4. Keep referring to stress in newsletters, speeches and meetings. Put stress reduction on the agenda of management meetings and have a set section in the newsletter. Senior managers should include a mention of stress in at least one speech per year.

5. Offer people-management/leadership workshops to managers and supervisors. Many of them don’t know how to get the best from their people. Unnecessary tension is caused by ignorance of how to speak to and treat people effectively in the modern workplace. Often supervisors don’t know they’re a source of stress – nobody tells them. Keep it simple: one day is enough and avoid “models and theories of leadership”!

6. Offer stress management workshops and literature. Even if there are no current stress problems offer the workshops anyway. Even insist people go. Keep it simple – a half-day is enough and avoid all theory! Give people a book or CD on stress management as part of the induction.

7. Offer a time management workshop. It’s amazing how people can take better control when they know it’s okay to say “no”, to scrap a meeting, to scrap a report, to cut short appointments and to find better, quicker less burdensome ways of doing things. Most people get bogged down because they don’t think in terms of time management and even when they do, some are too afraid to approach the boss. They will think you’ll think, they’re lazy or uncooperative.

8. Monitor stress levels.
No, you don’t need an 80-question stress climate survey or bureaucratic stress management standards. Just twice a year issue a half-page with one question: “For you personally give three things the organisation could do to reduce unreasonable stress”. Make this an anonymous exercise and publish the results with actions taken.

9. Take time to listen and act. If a stress issue is raised, be seen to be taking it seriously. Make time to listen, document the issues and then take action. Whilst keeping confidences publicise what action has been taken.

10. Unfortunately, sooner or later you’ll have to prove to some authority that you are doing things to combat unreasonable stress. Therefore keep a running and up-to-date record – just a simple book – of all the things your organisation is doing to reduce stress in the workplace. Record everything. For example, if you run a Recruitment Interviewing Course, record how you amended the content to include an hour or so on testing to see if candidates can cope with the stress of a particular job.

Debate about what stress is, the relative responsibilities of employers and employees and what systems to use will go on and on. You might as well just get on and do what commonsense and good leadership dictates.

Dr Bill Robb is managing director of Aberdeen-based Profit Improvers Ltd and helps organisations and people improve their performance. He specialises in fixing difficult inter-company and inter-department relationships. http://www.mytimemanagementsecrets.com

Author: Bill Robb
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Health & Stress Management

Posted by on Aug 21, 2010

Stress management is not only an urgent need in today’s fast-paced lifestyle, but an important factor in both physical and mental health. It is a psychological approach which teaches people, skills to cope with anxiety and stress.

It is all about understanding where your stress is coming from, and finding ways to alleviate it, and also to manage your life so that it becomes easier and more enjoyable.

Stress management is the application of methods to either reduce stress or increase tolerance to stress. It needs to be practiced regularly is the most effective when practiced regularly.

Managing stress means our ability to maintain control when situations, people, and events make excessive demands on us. It is a key to happiness. It is your ability to effectively manage the pressures you feel at work and at home. It is about knowing your limits.

A complete nutritional approach, combined with proper fitness maintenance and stress management is most important.

Stress management is the application of methods to either reduce stress or increase tolerance to stress.

Here’s why managing your stress is important: stress wears your body out and can kill you.

Workplace stress management is a great way of making sure that you can get through the workday in peace and then go home with little or no stress weighing on your mind.

The key to stress management is to determine the right amount of stress that will give you energy, ambition, and enthusiasm versus the wrong amount which can harm your health and well-being.

One of the first rules of effective stress management is positive thinking and behavior.

Exactly how exercise helps in relaxation and stress management is not clear. At work, stress management is a breeze when you let employees take on tasks that fit their skill and interest.

Another strategy for stress management is to live in the moment. But it is not about putting yourself first at the expense of your family and clients. Fortunately, stress management is largely a learnable skill.

Stress

Stress is your response to any physical, emotional or intellectual demands. Stress management includes following a healthy diet, getting regular exercise, and making time for uninterrupted relaxation.

Nutrition is one area where stress can be reduced most effectively, because we eat every day at least 3 times a day, so even the smallest of changes could bring about significant benefits.

Stress is a normal part of life. It is an unavoidable consequence of life and it is not something exclusive of the human beings, because the animals also have it.

Stress is the answer of the body in response to external conditions that are perceived as dangerous, worrying or irritating.

Although we can’t eliminate stress, we can all do a better job in managing it. Symptoms of stress can be either behavioral or physical. And some people who have a chronic illness may find that the symptoms of their illness flare up under an overload of stress.

In the alternative, if stress is more the result of one’s lifestyle, eliminating the stress causing factors and / or gaining healthful insight on how to alleviate stress the right way might just be the best thing for an individual to do for themselves.

More recently, however, it has been argued that external circumstances do not have any intrinsic capacity to produce stress, but instead their effect is mediated by the individual’s perceptions, capacities, and understanding.

The model breaks the stressor-stress link by proposing that if stressors are perceived as positive or challenging rather than a threat, and if the stressed person is confident that he/she possesses adequate rather than deficient coping strategies, stress may not necessarily follow the presence of a potential stressor.

The model conceptualizes stress as a result of how a stressor is appraised and how a person appraises his/her resources to cope with the stressor.

The model proposes that stress can be reduced by helping stressed people change their perceptions of stressors, providing them with strategies to help them cope and improving their confidence in their ability to do so.

Anxiety

Anxiety is stress, tension and strain brought onto one’s body and mind.

Anxiety may be due to feeling that one is not in control. These symptoms may manifest themselves psychologically as irritability, anxiety, impaired concentration, mental confusion, poor judgment, frustration and anger.

We are aware that people that suffer from Anxiety Disorders have problems mixing in social gatherings.

It is found that online chat, forums and even Voice Chat can be an excellent way to deal with Anxieties, because one avoids one of the big things many people with Social Anxiety are afraid of: Meeting people.

Stress-related disorders include a broad array of conditions, including depression, anxiety, dissatisfaction, fatigue, tension, aggression, substance abuse, impairment in concentration and memory problems.

Tranquilizers, antidepressants, and anti-anxiety medications account for one fourth of all prescriptions written in the USA.

Exercise can help to relieve stress, tension, and anxiety. By expelling your excess negative emotions and adrenaline through physical activity, you can enter a more relaxed, calm state of being from which to deal with the issues and conflicts that are causing your anxiety.

Exercise is one of the most important coping medium to combat anxiety and stress. Exercise may trigger a neurophysiologic high — a shot of adrenaline or endorphins — that produces an antidepressant effect. In some people it will create an anti anxiety effect, in others, a general sense of “feeling better”.

Frequent exercise is an effective treatment for anxiety and, according to some research, is as effective as psychotherapy in treating mild or moderate depression.

In various studies, researchers have found that exercise can decrease anxiety and depression, improve an individual’s self-image, and buffer people from the effects of stress.

Other researchers have found that light exercise, such as walking or swimming, decreases anxiety just as effectively as vigorous jogging does. (If you suffer from physical symptoms of anxiety such as gastrointestinal problems, sweating, palpitations, pacing back and forth, etc).

On the other hand, if your anxiety is caused by psychological causes such as worrying, difficulty concentrating, or intrusive thoughts, you may find more relief from mental exercises such as meditation, imagery, prayer or other form of mental relaxation.

Exercising too much may lead to a state of fatigue characterized by anxiety or depression, insomnia, and a loss of interest in personal life.

Symptoms

Symptoms of stress can be either behavioral or physical. Symptoms of despair and hopelessness may be experienced in Acute Stress Disorder and may be sufficiently severe and persistent to meet criteria for a Major Depressive Episode.

Symptoms of Acute Stress Disorder are experienced during or immediately after the trauma, last for at least 2 days, and either resolve within 4 weeks after the conclusion of the traumatic event or the diagnosis is changed.

These symptoms may manifest themselves psychologically as irritability, anxiety, impaired concentration, mental confusion, poor judgment, frustration and anger.

Some people who have a chronic illness may find that the symptoms of their illness flare up under an overload of stress. Common physical symptoms of stress include: muscle tension, headaches, low back pain.

If the stress symptoms persist during many days, it is reasonable to go to see a doctor or to request psychological support. Common physical symptoms of stress include: muscle tension, headaches, low back pain, insomnia and high blood pressure.

Lifestyle

Effective stress management is a lifestyle and we must learn to incorporate into our daily lives. A commitment to live a healthier lifestyle should never take a back seat.

In the alternative, if stress is more the result of one’s lifestyle, eliminating the stress causing factors and/or gaining healthful insight on how to alleviate stress the right way might just be the best thing for an individual to do, for themselves.

Stress management is vital to being successful at work and living a healthy lifestyle. Stress management is steadily increasing in importance due to today’s busy and demanding lifestyles.

By: Pradeep Mahajan

Pradeep Mahajan: He is an engineer-MBA. He has multiple interests which primarily include health, investments, management & technological topics. Being a health enthusiast, he researches, studies & writes on health topics, often in consultation with medical & health professionals. He keeps track of proven ways for achieving better health & fitness through diet, exercises, stress management & healthy lifestyles. Do you want to learn more about current & other related articles? Visit http://www.health-fitness-wellness.com for practically useful information on health & healthy lifestyles.

This article is available for reprint on your website and/or in your newsletter, provided it is not changed and you include the author’s web-site address.

Author: Pradeep Mahajan
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Health & Stress Management

Posted by on Aug 14, 2010