Tips for a Healthier Life
STRESS - WHAT IT IS and TIPS ON HOW TO RELAX
Stress the ‘buzz’ word for ‘things’ which we feel when we are overwhelmed – so what really is Stress? It is your physical and emotional response to demands put on you. They can actually be pleasurable demands such as getting married, being promoted, having a baby or difficult demands such as redundancy, bereavement or divorce.
EVOLUTION
In times before corner shops, supermarkets, kiosks etc our ancestors faced many dangers when hunting and gathering food – be it vegetables, meat, fish, cappuccinos and so on - therefore they evolved both physically and emotionally to deal with the danger through ‘fight or flight’. However in modern day life our everyday ‘stressors’ are much less (it may not seem like that!) though our ‘make-up’ has remained the same.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU FEEL STRESSED
Hormones are sent around the body, they 'fire up' the Sympathetic Nervous System getting you ready for the 'fight or flight'. The Parasympathetic Nervous System - the 'rest and relaxation' system - stands down. During long periods of stress you remain in the 'fight or flight' mode and never get a chance to truly relax - so you feel irritable, tense, angry find difficult to focus and so on. Your immune system becomes depleted and you may get unexplained illnesses, headaches, other aches and pains and you just can't seem to 'shake off' that cold. You may also find you are drinking more; coffee, tea, wine, beer, fizzy drinks, eating more cakes, or smoking more, and so on as these may initially feel like a 'treat' at the end of a hard day. Ultimately they are stimulants and persistent use or excessive use can add to stress.
SO... HOW DO YOU RELAX?... HERE COME THE TIPS
1 - Breathe – find a quiet place and spend 10 minutes breathing – in through the nose for 7 counts and out through the mouth for 11 counts. Take the breath down to the belly. (When we are stressed we shallow breathe which doesn’t allow the oxygen to move around the body so efficiently and exacerbates the situation)
As you breathe in – imagine a white light travelling around your body relaxing you and as you breathe out – imagine a grey smoke leaving you and taking all the stresses away and dissolving.
2 – Creative Imagination - imagine you are somewhere beautiful – that you have been to before or create an inner sanctuary and ‘travel’ there. Stay for a minimum of 10 minutes – up to 20 minutes.
3 – Walk – go for a relaxing walk and put your attention outside of yourself – look in a shop window or go over the park
4– Other exercise – Yoga, Qi Gong
5 – Long Hot Bath - with candles
6 - Drink - plenty of water and/or herbal teas
7 – Eat - plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit.
REMEMBER – YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO THIS ALL ON YOUR OWN – SO OTHER RELAXATION TREATS;
1 – Book yourself a massage or other relaxing treatment.
2 – Laugh! A lot! Go see a movie with family/friends
3 – Talk - share what’s going on with others
4 - Read - a joke every day!
All of these will help to re-engage that parasympathetic nervous system and have a calming influence.
Stress the ‘buzz’ word for ‘things’ which we feel when we are overwhelmed – so what really is Stress? It is your physical and emotional response to demands put on you. They can actually be pleasurable demands such as getting married, being promoted, having a baby or difficult demands such as redundancy, bereavement or divorce.
EVOLUTION
In times before corner shops, supermarkets, kiosks etc our ancestors faced many dangers when hunting and gathering food – be it vegetables, meat, fish, cappuccinos and so on - therefore they evolved both physically and emotionally to deal with the danger through ‘fight or flight’. However in modern day life our everyday ‘stressors’ are much less (it may not seem like that!) though our ‘make-up’ has remained the same.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU FEEL STRESSED
Hormones are sent around the body, they 'fire up' the Sympathetic Nervous System getting you ready for the 'fight or flight'. The Parasympathetic Nervous System - the 'rest and relaxation' system - stands down. During long periods of stress you remain in the 'fight or flight' mode and never get a chance to truly relax - so you feel irritable, tense, angry find difficult to focus and so on. Your immune system becomes depleted and you may get unexplained illnesses, headaches, other aches and pains and you just can't seem to 'shake off' that cold. You may also find you are drinking more; coffee, tea, wine, beer, fizzy drinks, eating more cakes, or smoking more, and so on as these may initially feel like a 'treat' at the end of a hard day. Ultimately they are stimulants and persistent use or excessive use can add to stress.
SO... HOW DO YOU RELAX?... HERE COME THE TIPS
1 - Breathe – find a quiet place and spend 10 minutes breathing – in through the nose for 7 counts and out through the mouth for 11 counts. Take the breath down to the belly. (When we are stressed we shallow breathe which doesn’t allow the oxygen to move around the body so efficiently and exacerbates the situation)
As you breathe in – imagine a white light travelling around your body relaxing you and as you breathe out – imagine a grey smoke leaving you and taking all the stresses away and dissolving.
2 – Creative Imagination - imagine you are somewhere beautiful – that you have been to before or create an inner sanctuary and ‘travel’ there. Stay for a minimum of 10 minutes – up to 20 minutes.
3 – Walk – go for a relaxing walk and put your attention outside of yourself – look in a shop window or go over the park
4– Other exercise – Yoga, Qi Gong
5 – Long Hot Bath - with candles
6 - Drink - plenty of water and/or herbal teas
7 – Eat - plenty of fresh vegetables and fruit.
REMEMBER – YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO THIS ALL ON YOUR OWN – SO OTHER RELAXATION TREATS;
1 – Book yourself a massage or other relaxing treatment.
2 – Laugh! A lot! Go see a movie with family/friends
3 – Talk - share what’s going on with others
4 - Read - a joke every day!
All of these will help to re-engage that parasympathetic nervous system and have a calming influence.
