5 Ways to Combat Stress

Posted June 2nd, 2008 By: Yorick Pinto

Are you getting agitated at the slightest bit of provocation? Do you suffer from road rage? Is your mind in a state of chaos? If your answer to any of these questions is yes, then do not despair. Because you are not alone…

In a 2006 Stress Survey by the American Psychological Association, 46 percent of respondents are troubled about the levels of stress they face in their lives.

We can attribute the rise in stress levels to factors such as the rapid pace at which we live our lives. Today instances of burnout are becoming increasingly common, especially among younger professionals. An example of burnout is when a person who was previously highly committed to a job, loses all interest as well as motivation.

Why Is Stress Harmful For You?

Stress tends to suppress the disease fighting functions of white blood cells weakening your immune system. Although stress increases the rate of your metabolism, the essential nutrients required by your body are not absorbed. As a result, your intestinal tract is often affected. In extreme cases, you could even sweat blood.

Thus, although high levels of stress may not kill you instantly, it will likely reduce your lifespan and may prevent you from enjoying a high standard of living. So what to do about it? Here are 5 tips that you can use to reduce stress from your lifestyle and live a longer and happier life.

5 Ideas You Can Start Using Today To Combat Stress

1. Get Sufficient Sleep

Most people require anywhere from six to eight hours of sleep. But this differs from person to person. To find out how much sleep is required by your body in order to receive sufficient rest, try out this technique for a week…

Sleep without an alarm and sleep for as long as your body requires. You could use earplugs and blinkers to ensure that you are not disturbed. In the morning, you can make a note of how many hours you were asleep. Do this activity for seven days.

Take an average of the number of hours you slept on the 5th, 6th and 7th day. This is the number of hours your body requires for receiving adequate rest and for reducing stress. If you receive sufficient sleep you will feel revitalized and energetic throughout the day.

2. Practice Deep Breathing

Deep breathing is one of the most simple and easy techniques that can be followed for stress reduction. This activity can be performed whether you are at home, at work or traveling.

Here is a breathing technique that you can follow

1. Sit or stand with a good posture.
2. Breathe through your nose.
3. Inhale, filling first the lower part of your lungs then the middle part, then the upper part.
4. Hold your breath for a few seconds.
5. Exhale slowly. Relax your abdomen and chest.

3. Physical Exercises

Some people like physical activities such as trekking or hiking while others may prefer dancing or brisk walking. The key is to choose a physical activity that you enjoy doing. Any type of exercise is good to reduce stress and it is even more effective if you exercise regularly. Stress tends to build up over a period of time and the best way to reduce is to do so gradually. So remember, the next time you feel stressed out, hit the gym or just take a walk. This is one of the basic steps of any stress reduction program.

Physical exercise has a dual benefit for your body. First of all it helps you stay in shape and thus helps you look good as well as younger. Secondly, when you perform a physical activity, your body releases endorphins. These chemical substances have no harmful side effects on your body. Instead, they make you feel good.

4. Maintain a Stress Free Environment

Lots of noise and clutter increases your stress levels. So a good way to reduce stress is to ensure that your work place as well as your home is free of loud noises and clutter. You can start off by getting rid of unwanted documents, papers and other litter that occupy your desk.

You can also ensure that you are prepared for work the previous night itself by keeping essential items like your house and car keys, wallet and vital documents at a particular place. A little bit of discipline and organization on a regular basis will go a long way in reducing stress in the long run.

5. Reward Yourself

At the end of a stressful day, there is no better way to unwind than to treat yourself to a long relaxing hot bath or a steam massage. Irrespective of your choice, do make it a practice to treat yourself to an activity that you enjoy doing. And during that time do not worry about work or household chores or anything else. Instead you must solely focus on enjoying yourself.

It is essential to de-stress yourself from time to time. Rewarding yourself occasionally is an excellent way to relax as well as reduce your stress. Remember stressed spelled backwards is desserts.

Do you have any personal stress relieving tips to share?

Photo credit: BrittneyBush

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5 Ways To Combat Aging

Posted May 28th, 2008 By: Yorick Pinto

Hope You Can Cut a Cake with a 100 Candles on it One Day!

1. Drink a lot of water

The benefits of drinking water cannot be understated. It is used by the body to flush out toxins and other waste products. Water also is one of the best tools for weight loss, besides assisting in clearing your skin.

Drinking a good amount of water could lower your risks of a heart attack. A six-year study published in the May 1, 2002 American Journal of Epidemiology found that those who drink more than 5 glasses of water a day were 41% less likely to die from a heart attack during the study period than those who drank less than two glasses.

The important question to bear in mind is how much water should one consume? The amount would be different for different people, depending on factors such as the body weight, physical activity, health of the person, etc. However, you should avoid drinking water only when you are thirsty, instead you should make a routine – drink a glass of water first thing in the morning, another glass with each meal, one between meals and before, during and after a workout. Thus you should ensure that you do not feel thirsty.

(To get a quick and easy formula that tells you how much water your body needs, subscribe to the “7 Essential Secrets to Longevity” above.)

2. Have an anti-oxidant rich diet

It is a well known fact that the aging process is directly influenced by the food you eat. Hence you should consume a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables such as broccoli, tomatoes, carrots, squash, berries, apricots, and pink grapefruit, as they are rich in anti oxidizing agents. The anti oxidizing agents or antioxidants as they are commonly referred to, protect the cells of our bodies from the damage caused by free radicals. This in effect means they slow down the aging process of the body and thus help you live a long, healthy life.

Also you must ensure that you get sufficient doses of Vitamin C & Vitamin E as these two are important anti-oxidants. The common sources of Vitamin C are citrus fruits such as oranges and lime, green peppers, broccoli, green leafy vegetables, strawberries and tomatoes. Whereas nuts & seeds, whole grains, green leafy vegetables, vegetable oil and liver oil contain Vitamin E.

3. Ensure that you exercise regularly

Exercise will not only help you lose weight and stay in shape, but it also helps in slowing down the aging process. If you exercise regularly, a number of ailments associated with aging can be reduced. These include insomnia, back and joint pain, flexibility, stress related disorders, weight-gain, etc. Also exercise has the added advantage of making you feel more energetic, preventing the incidence of high blood pressure, increasing blood flow to your skin, reducing stress and increasing your metabolism rate.

Another aspect of exercise – especially during the aging process – is that it helps you be more independent and increases your self-esteem, thus reducing the phobias/fears normally associated with aging.

4. Reduce stress

You would be familiar with stress and its harmful effects on the human body. However, you must remember that not all stress is bad! To a certain extent, stress is needed by the body to perform its day-to-day functions.

The problem arises when the stress level increases and the body is affected by its harmful effects. Hence in order to minimize the damage done to the body by excess stress, it is necessary to keep it in check. There are many ways by which this can be done such as deep breathing, listening to soothing music, meditation, yoga, etc.

Another way to alleviate stress is to learn the art of time management in your daily life. This will help you allocate some time for yourself on a daily basis, which can be used for practicing meditation or any other technique to reduce stress.

5. Sufficient sleep

The lack of sufficient sleep not only makes you age faster but also makes you look older.

When you do not get enough sleep, you feel tired and find it difficult to concentrate. Also you tend to be irritable and grumpy, as a result you may not be able to perform your tasks efficiently. The best way to avoid all the problems caused by lack of sufficient sleep would be to ensure that you get a good night’s rest.

The main problem is how many hours of sleep does an individual require? This figure differs from person-to-person and generally reduces as one grows older. A good way to check if you are receiving adequate sleep is to see if you feel refreshed when you wake up in the morning and you do not feel sleepy during the day. If not, chances are you are not getting sufficient sleep. In such a scenario, it is essential to sleep for some more time and see if the drowsiness reduces.

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