stress

For Fast-Acting Relief, Try Slowing Down…

Mush Happiness, Life ,

Thanks to all those who read and forwarded and commented on the post on Stress. You can view all the comments here – some very interesting perspectives and useful tips on managing stress. Seeing the level of interest, I have put together some nice quotes on stress:

  • The time to relax is when you don’t have time for it.  ~Attributed to both Jim Goodwin and Sydney J. Harris
  • Stress is nothing more than a socially acceptable form of mental illness.  ~Richard Carlson
  • For fast-acting relief, try slowing down.  ~Lily Tomlin
  • The mark of a successful man is one that has spent an entire day on the bank of a river without feeling guilty about it.  ~Author Unknown
  • One of the symptoms of an approaching nervous breakdown is the belief that one’s work is terribly important.  ~Bertrand Russell
  • Stress is an ignorant state.  It believes that everything is an emergency.  ~Natalie Goldberg, Wild Mind
  • Don’t underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.  ~Pooh’s Little Instruction Book, inspired by A.A. Milne
  • There is more to life than increasing its speed.  ~Mohandas K. Gandhi
  • A crust eaten in peace is better than a banquet partaken in anxiety.  ~Aesop, Fables
  • Slow down and everything you are chasing will come around and catch you.  ~John De Paola
  • How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then to rest afterward.  ~Spanish Proverb
  • Stress is poison.  ~Agavé Powers
  • It is impossible to enjoy idling thoroughly unless one has plenty of work to do.  ~Jerome K. Jerome, The Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow
  • Sometimes a headache is all in your head.  Relax.  ~Hartman Jule
  • Tension is who you think you should be.  Relaxation is who you are.  ~Chinese Proverb
  • Stress is an admission of weakness, a cry of defeat to the world.  ~Carrie Latet

Please share your favorite quotes through comments.

[Photo taken at Hua Hin beach, Thailand]

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Readers’ Tips on Stress Management

Mush Happiness ,

The last post, 17 Things You Should Know About Stress, attracted a lot of views and some interesting comments. Here’s some advise from readers on how they manage stress:

“I usually manage stress by writing. I write down all the possible reasons which I think are causing stress. First in points and then I write detail paragraphs for each point. Then I read each point again and again very carefully. Finally I start crossing out the points. Most of the time I am able to cross out all the points and find no reason left to remain stressed.”

“I either listen to soft music or read a good motivating book and mostly what i do at difficult situations is , i go to a silent place and CRY. Once i’m done trust me i feel relaxed, find a solution and just move on. Trust me stress will never come back once u r able to let your feelings out.”

“Hey you forgot to mention laughter as a means to reduce stress, a good joke and friends with good sense of humar always releases my stress.”

I look forward to more tips from the readers.

 

17 Things You Should Know About Stress!

Mush Health, Motivation, Relationships ,

We are all affected by stress at some level or another, though we don’t like to admit it. Stress can be positive when it helps you achieve your goals, or implement a change in your lifestyle. But it’s obviously negative when it results in anxiety, depression and illness. This article can help you identify, prevent and deal with stress.

CAUSES OF STRESS
Most common causes of stress are:

  1. Work-related: This includes deadlines, overload of work, conflicts with the boss or co-workers, job insecurity, lack of recognition etc.
  2. Money-related: Financial crisis, credit card debt, mortgage, loss of job or just lack of money to do the things you really want
  3. Relationship-related: Lack of communication, understanding and trust with your partner, parents, kids or close friends
  4. General lack of fulfillment: Unfulfilled dreams and ambitions; failure in job or relationships
  5. Attitudes that cause stress: Certain traits and ways of seeing the world can cause stress. E.g. Pessimism, perfectionism, addictions, poor communication, anger, obsessing and other such negative behavior.

SYMPTOMS OF STRESS
One or more of the following symptoms could mean that you are going through stress:

  1. Headaches: Certain types of headaches can be related to stress.
  2. More frequent colds or flu: There’s an inverse relationship between stress and immunity, so if you’re under too much stress, you may be getting sick more often.
  3. Sleep problems: There are many ways that stress affects sleep. Too much stress can rob you of sleep and make the sleep you get less restorative.
  4. General anxiety: Anxiety does serve an important function for survival, but if you’re feeling anxious much of the time, it could be because you have too many stressors in your life.
  5. Fuzzy thinking: Your body’s stress response pumps your body with hormones that make it possible for you to fight or flee quickly. But when triggered in excess, this stress response can actually cause you to think less quickly. Continue reading →

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Negative Emotions Can Cause Heart Diseases!

Mush Happiness, Health , ,

0909 depressionThere’s huge amounts of research into the effects of our emotions on our health. It seems to have been established that negative emotions like anger, anxiety, bitterness, un-forgiveness and depression release chemicals into our system that weaken our immune system and reduce its ability to fight disease. And positive emotions like happiness, gratefulness, pleasure, love and kindness produce chemicals that strengthen the immune system. Following quotes by experts suggest a direct link between stress and heart diseases, especially in women:

“Because men’s hearts aren’t as responsive to emotional stimuli, emotion is a more important predictor of heart problems in women. Hurtful emotions can cause a woman’s arteries to spasm and close down like a boa constrictor squeezing around its prey.” (Dr. Mehmet Oz, MD, Cardio Surgeon at NY-Presbyterian/Colombia University.)

“Stressful emotions account for roughly 30 percent of all heart attacks. They rank at par with high blood pressure and abdominal fat, straining the heart by increasing your rate and flooding your body with high levels of potentially toxic hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.” (Landmark Interheart Study – a survey of heart disease in 24,000 people in 53 countries)

“Stress from negative emotions also makes the blood clot faster, adding to heart disease risk. Stress can also play an indirect role in heart disease by interfering with exercise, a healthy diet and adequate sleep.” (Karina Davidson, Ph.D., co-director of the Center for Behavioral Cardiovascular Health at Colombia University Medical Center)

“Anger, anxiety and depression are the main ways women channel stress, and each emotion has a profound effect on the heart.” (Redford Williams, MD, Director of Behavioral Research at Duke University and author of In Control.)