Stress Relief Tools from Stress Relief Experts

By Lynn Zingel

We all go through it sometime or another; this intruder called stress. It is part of life and we all feel stressed at some time. Too much stress can be harmful and is possibly the first cause of ill health today. How we interpret and deal with stress is a crucial factor.

Allow us to explore 6 techniques to deal with the stress in your life in a healthy and efficient way.

Discuss the troubles you are going through with acquaintances, loved ones or a professional person. “Bottling” it within will only produce more troubles later on. There are many support groups with people experiencing similar problems.
Exercise is important for relieving your tension. Exercise stimulates the delivery of certain chemical substances in your brain, called neurotransmitters. These substances help your body to react to stress. People who improve their exercise habits change in their mental attitudes which give them the building blocks to better cope with the stress.

Listening to your preferred music is great way of bringing down stress and relieving anxiety.
Healthy meals can become a crucial ingredient in restricting your tension. See to it that you eat three meals a day and make it an attempt to keep off caffeine and sugar. Natural stress supplements are also available. In addition to being safer than prescription medication; natural stress relief can be just as effective if not more so. Consult with your health care professional.
Sleep deprivation can cause stress. Go to bed early. Seven to eight hours sleep can make all the difference.

Confronting stress can be difficult. Every day it may seem you are forced in every direction, trying to adapt to others. The foremost precedence is to take care of you. You are the thread which holds your family together. If you are stressed, you won’t be much good to anyone.

Take a break every so often. Do something that you desire to do; whether it be purchasing a new outfit or going to a movie. Some solitude is just as essential to you as it is for everyone else. Consider yourself as a gas tank; sooner or later you will conk out .

Laughter is now thought to be a tremendous stress reliever. Didn’t our granny tell us that years ago. Laughter Yoga clubs are springing us and is currently referred to as the “latest exercise craze” .

It is a good idea to acknowledge the kind of situation that causes you to feel stressed so you can learn to recognize it before it materializes and address it in your own way. You may even learn to look a the situation differently next time.

Overcoming and indeed surviving what life throws at us is a never-ending challenge, but if we change stress into a positive energy then it’s a great help. Remember, everyone needs some stress, its only when it becomes overwhelming, relentless and damaging that you need to correct the balance, look after yourself better and make move to reduce its impact on your life.

Life is too fleeting; and stress can shorten it further. Nothing is more significant than your health or frame of mind. Eleanor Roosevelt wisely said. “No one can make you a victim without your consent. “ She is right; it is, after all, up to you.

Lynn Zingel is the author and editor of www.icando.co.nz. This is a place to find encouragement, inspiration,and challenge to change

There are definitely a number of ways to relieve daily stress; from things like breathing exercises and finding a relaxing quiet place to clear your thoughts to listening to audio similar to the Holothink’s Totally Tranquil Program…

And these are all very good tools to managing your stress. Sometimes though, what you really need is to get silly and laugh uncontrollably (even if it’s at yourself!).

Here is what I mean. Check out the video below and then follow the 5 simple steps to instantly relieve your stress today:

And with that here are the 5 steps to your own instant stress relief:

1. Get your hands on a wig or crazy hat - put it on your head
2. Get into your pj’s
3. Put on your favorite toe-stomping track (make sure it’s a tune that you can’t help but dance to and play it loud)
4. Move your body like no-one is watching - even if it means moving it ‘ugly’:-)
   
5. Laugh at yourself until your sides hurt. Then laugh some more…

Get a friend or friends to join in. Hey, if you can muster up the courage, do this at work and get your colleagues involved. Work after all is usually the cause of your stress anyway:-)

Have fun!

As we all know too well, getting extremely stressed can not only be hard on your physical and emotional well being but it can also cause problems in the relationships you have with the ones you love the most. If you are someone who finds that they get stressed out fairly fast and often, you need to start seeking out ways to maintain control over the situation and learn how you can get instant stress relief. By learning how to get instant stress relief, you are able to handle things like you could never handle them before.

There are just too many positives to go over when it comes to learning instant stress relief and there is nothing that can be negative about it. Instant stress relief does mean taking a medication either but what it does mean is that you are able to quickly and efficiently take control over the situation and calm yourself down quietly and quickly. There are different ways to go about getting instant stress relief but one thing that you must remember is what works for one person may not work for you, as everyone is different.

Methods For Relief

There are many natural ways to obtain instant stress relief without having to go through many different types of medications. The best way to obtain instant stress relief is to quickly remove yourself from the situation and then meditate or think slow and positive thoughts in order to remove your mindset from the troubling situation. Instant stress relief can be found by examining what works for you such as a certain song or thought that seems to calm you done quicker then anything else. If there is a certain song or melody that sets you at ease, try to play that when things get hectic or think about the melody in your head.

Also, if there are places that you enjoy going to such as a special park or such, try to envision that place after you have removed yourself from the bad situation. Instant stress relief does not have to be this major process but it is simply just something that sets your mind in a different thinking pattern.

The instant stress relief system that works for one person may not work for another so just see what works for you and stick with it. Even if it seems silly to other people, as long as it is working for you, then stick with it because instant stress relief is extremely important.

The amount of stress per person in the United States is continuing to grow at record rates, along with heart disease and diabetes. If you are stressed out, pressure builds up inside your body until you feel like you are going to explode. The more out of shape you are in, the more likelihood your stress level will be high.

You need to stop worrying about things in your life that you have no control over. If you are unable to get a good night’s sleep, because you are worrying about issues in your life, try writing down those issues on a pad beside your bed. Now they are out of your head, so go to sleep.

There are many different stress remedies that can help; yoga, acupuncture, weight training, aerobic exercise, massage, meditation, low fat natural diet, colon flushes, and herbal remedies.

Types of Herbal Stress Relief

Kava - This popular herbal stress relief beverage has spread rapidly through the United States, Europe, Japan, and China. It has been used in traditional ceremonies of the Pacific Islanders for the past 3,000 years. Although Kava is non-alcoholic, it produces a similar high of relaxation and happiness. People primarily use it as a means of herbal stress relief.

Valerian - This medicinal herb has been used since at least the time of ancient Greece. Most commonly it is used as a relief from, insomnia, convulsions, migraine headaches, and pain

Hops - This herbal stress relief is most effective in treating restlessness and anxiety. Hops has a long history of use as a sleep aid and is often added to tea. It also contains xanthohumol, a natural compound that can protect against prostate, breast, and stomach cancers.

Passion Flower - Known as the “calming herb,” it is used to treat stomach bloating, stress, and anxiety. The leaves, stems, and flowers are all used for medicinal purposes. It is known commonly around the world as “the crown of thorns.” It was given its name because its corona resembles the crown of thorns worn by Jesus during the crucifixion.

Lemon Balm - This herbal stress relief has been used since the middle ages and is a member of the mint family. Back then it was steeped into wine to additionally lift the spirits.

Marijuana - This herb has been used for centuries to treat stress; anxiety, digestion, insomnia, and nausea. Now legal in many parts of the world, many people refer to it as a miracle drug. This is the oldest form of herbal stress relief in the world.

Stress is all around us in the busy lives we lead today. Balancing work and family life alone can bring more stress than the average person is equipped to handle. When you couple that with issues like death, divorce or caring for an ailing family member, the effects of stress on the body can become quite devastating indeed. If you are going through a particularly challenging time of life, it is important to understand the effects of stress on the body and what you can do to relieve them.

Protecting your Mental Health
While the effects of stress on the body are generally focused on the physical issues, the toll that stress can take on one’s mental health is significant as well. Stress can affect your judgment and decision making process, by preventing clear thought processes and encouraging you to look at issues with a negative perspective. Another effect of stress on the body is forgetfulness and memory lapses, which can make it difficult to function efficiently throughout the day and perhaps even add to the severity of your stress. You may find that much of your time and energy is going into worry and anxiety, which is counterproductive and may even be harmful over the long term.

Keeping your Body Healthy
In addition to the mental impact, you can also experience physical effects of stress on the body. These might include headaches and back aches that can be a result of the increased muscle tension. Digestive problems like nausea and diarrhea can also become problematic for many people. Insomnia and a loss of sex drive are more effects of stress on the body.

Other symptoms might include chest pains and a rapid heartbeat, as the heart has to work harder to accommodate the “flight or fight” response the body naturally has to stressful situations. Over the long term, the effects of stress can include more frequent illness due to a reduction in the efficiency of the immune system.

Many people find that the best way to keep the physical symptoms of stress at bay is to adhere to a healthy diet that is rich in antioxidants like fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants can help to repair the damage to the body that stress can cause, and give you more energy and mental clarity. Daily exercise is another good way to manage the muscle tension and mental effects of stress on the body. Just thirty minutes of walking, biking or swimming can keep your body and mind better prepared to handle the normal stress of life. Stress happens, but you don’t have to let the negative effects of stress on the body control your life. Get a grip on your stress by sticking with a healthy lifestyle and your mind and body will sail through challenging situations in a much healthier, happier way.

There are many things that can be done now to get prepared for dealing with holiday stress the next time it rolls around. The approach that you take when dealing with daily stresses in your normal life will have to be modified a bit.

Exercise

Whether you are going to be out of town for the holidays or entertaining guests in your home, your daily exercise routine is likely going to be altered a bit. Dealing with holiday stress is a time when your exercise level should be increased not decreased.

You are going to be consuming a lot of junk food and probably some alcohol during this holiday period, which makes it even more important that you work up a sweat to release toxins and stress from your body.

Positive Attitude

This is something you can do while dealing with holiday stress that just uses your mind and can be accomplished while lying down our standing up. Just repeat to yourself, over and over, “I will not worry about things that I have no control over.”

Dealing with holiday stress, while surrounded by relatives and friends that you only see once or twice a year, can be a little tricky. Remind yourself that if someone says something about religion or politics that you do not agree with; then bite your tongue. By avoiding confrontation and/or embarrassment, you keep your heart rate low.

When you do not see people very often, the chances of you misinterpreting what they say or do, greatly increases. By giving someone the benefit of the doubt if this situation occurs, you will likely feel the glow of stress rushing out of your body.

Diet And Sleep

Try to not to alter your diet and sleep habits during these holiday periods. Changing them too drastically may send shock waves through the body, making you more prone to illness and stress. This is easier said than done; if they are altered a lot, increase your water consumption to avoid constipation and additional stress.

Planning Ahead

The further you are able to plan ahead the more you are going to be equipped for dealing with holiday stress. By taking care of even the smallest of details far in advance, you might even be able to enjoy the holidays.

Remember the mind is a powerful tool in dealing with holiday stress. The key to overcoming stress reactions during the holiday period lies in the way you control your emotions.