Stress Management Magic

Fear is an emotion we’ve all felt at one time or another!

Fear translates simply into “anticipation” of something bad happening. It is the emotion that makes you feel within that danger lurks close by, and is a threat to you, whether it be physical pain or something else.

Fear can be a positive emotion that reminds you to take care of yourself. Keep in mind, however, fear without restraint that becomes habitual, is dangerous and serves no purpose in resolving anything.

Listen to your feelings, take good care of yourself, and keep your emotions in proportion to the situation by keeping an appropriate perspective.

Being fearful of the future is pointless.  No one can know what will happen ten minutes from now, not even the very next moment.  A better approach to seeing the future would be to anticipate the good that you desire in your life and the lives of those around you.  It is a choice.

No matter what stress you are dealing with at the moment, life can change radically, and without notice. What you have feared may happen you may never see in reality.  Over ninety percent of what you fear will never come to fruition.

Visualization

The ability to visualize with colorful and vivid images, rich imagination and detailed action are natural skills of childhood.  Somewhere along the path between childhood and becoming an adult many people are so overwhelmed with life itself, and so plummeted with “information and responsibilities” that the skills are tucked somewhere in the back of the mind

Visualization skills can be very useful in empowering people to overcome

obstacles in their lives.  FEAR is at the forefront of the list that can be a major obstacle to progress. .  When fear is corralled you will find everything will improve.

Learn to be rational

Man is endowed with the capacity to reason.  We are capable of thinking clearly, sensibly, and logically. Oftentimes, though, our emotions run wild with us and information processed with that thinking disables our ability to manage our thoughts and actions, our ability to use intellect proportionately with our emotions as needed.

When your fear level goes up your ability to think rationally trends downward to the point where you can act in ways inappropriate to the situation.  Being fearful does not indicate there is anything wrong with you since, everyone feels afraid of a wide variety of things, but when fear takes over your life or becomes prevalent in situations where it isn’t appropriate, that is where you should take control.  Learning to be in control of yourself is an important skill to learn and will serve you well all your life.

There are numerous ways to learn to overcome fear.  Stress management videos, classes, and corporate training seminars are only a few ways to help yourself loose this useless appendage.  Take advantage of help available.

But always remember, your number one point of empowerment when fear overrides rational thought is to BREATHE!  You brain needs fifty percent more oxygen for your brain to function optimally.  Use it.

Stress “Unmanaged” Will cause violence in a staggering number of people. It is almost inevitable!

Whether we choose to believe it or not, stress unmanaged will ultimately cause violence in many people.  Domestic violence, abuse towards children, intimate partners, (regardless of gender) and the elderly is on the rise.

Stress unmanaged can change of the body chemistry and can do can do infinite damage to credible brain function management. Anger causes words to cut to the heart, and actions to damage the recipient for his or her entire life in many circumstances.

Don’t be fooled.  Don’t be naïve.

There is a boiling point for water and for human emotions.  Whether the water stays in the pot or boils over, ultimately that, which is in the circumference of the pot, can be damaged or ruined entirely. .

Such is it with human behavior. Consequences of unmanaged stresses inflict suffering and can be life threatening.

Family conflicts are usually the result of stresses created in dysfunctional families.  Low levels of family conflict are warning signs for families that they are at risk of much greater abuse.  Any family member may intentionally or unintentionally contribute to the escalation of violence.

Stress is often created by feelings of hopelessness and or helplessness.  Other things that add to that could be excessive work hours, financial strain, and alcohol or drug abuse.

Personality disorders and/or early traumatic life experiences often predispose people to use violence in their own family relationships as adults.

Arguments created by stress can escalate.  Spontaneous arguments can lead to threats or actual physical assaults…without specific patterns, but they almost invariably escalate to more serious and injurious physical assaults.

We like to think “things” will resolve, or time will pass to “make it better”. For those individuals with particular personality traits or particular body chemistry, the danger lurks in close proximity to all who are near.

If YOU or someone near you is within the perimeters of this description, do something! Whether it be finding counsel (and if it is for YOU – please – do it now!) or just talking with family to consider action.

SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE IMMEDIATELY>not just for the individual, but also for all who may tread in the same path, either by coincidence, or choice.

It YOU one of the people referred to in the paragraphs above, PLEASE take a slow breathe now in though the nose.  Now exhale slowly through the mouth.  Please do it again several times.

The added oxygen will calm you and help you to think more rationally, and remember, you have already taken the first step towards helping yourself by searching the Internet!  Don’t give up.  Don’t give in.  Connect with someone – perhaps a local group that deals with anger management.  Take time for yourself – you can’t afford not to do so!

If you are totally overwhelmed and need help and don’t know who to turn to you can email:  mo@jett.net.You are not alone.

We’ve all been there!

Life gets harder in the long run.  This statement is not meant to discourage you.  It is simply a fact, another stress that must be met head-on.  That doesn’t mean you can’t meet the challenge.  You were born with an instinct to survive, and along this journey in life there are times that are so spectacular that the “down time” can be met with the knowledge you will be stronger and wiser as years increase.

Part of the reason that life gets harder is because our bodies age, and with aging comes some problems that we just can’t avoid.  Some can be avoided with proper nutrition and exercise, but some changes must simply be accepted.

You are encouraged to continue to learn stress management and seek good mental and physical health.  No one in the years past age fifty can promenade “back” to the good old days.  Even those of you in your thirties won’t be able to turn back the clock.  Your age is a done deal, so acceptance is imperative, and your true beauty is honestly reflected in your heart and mind.

When your reality seems more like “bleak than bling”, keep these thoughts in mind.

1.  You are not alone.  Every single human being faces these same problems -aging and sometimes trying to find a reason to live.

2.  If you are aging, you aren’t dead.  If you aren’t dead then there is a reason to live; you just may not recognize it at the moment!   Take time to counsel with others. There is help available, and no one will judge you. We’ve all needed help at one time or another.  Just getting your feelings out in the open and sharing with someone will help.

3.   Part of the reason you may feel that life just isn’t worth it, is the fact these are difficult times, and are often compounded by personal traumas.  Try to sit back and change your perspective of the scenario that is your biggest stumbling block. .  Sometimes we are so emotionally charged we neglect to focus clearly on options.

4.  Enter the world of volunteering your time.  Why? Because you will divert your own attention to something worthwhile and in the process you may find many reasons to live.

5.  Remember the one thing you can count on is CHANGE.  Whatever the problem is – everything can change in the blink of an eye. What seems an insurmountable problem at this moment may be handled in the next moment.

6.  Because you are overwhelmed by stress you have probably begun shallow breathing.  Your body needs oxygen.  Concentrate on deep breathing and getting what you need to supply your body and mind optimally.

7.  If you are using alcohol to “relax”, keep in mind it is a stimulant.  After the rush and purported relaxation there will be the letdown.  The chemical reaction is always the same.  Don’t be deceived.

8. Pray.  It can’t hurt, and even if you don’t believe, you will mentally be releasing your concerns and thoughts. This action can help and is a positive step towards your healing.

A great thought for those thoroughly challenging times:  LIFE ISN’T ABOUT HOW TO SURVIVE THE STORM…BUT HOW TO DANCE IN THE RAIN!

The benefits we experience when pets are in close proximity to us are really not recognized fully by most of us.  There is a powerful human-animal connection that is only now being fully recognized.

There have been many workshops held on the benefits of owning pets.  There were just a few scientific papers available on the subject a few years ago, though snow studies have revealed that pets boost survival rates for coronary care unit patients. That was an eye-opening finding.

People have known the healing effect for centuries, but recently new data on the role of chemistry in the relationship has been revealed.

When a person interacts with a pet, the central nervous system releases several hormones that cause feelings of pleasure.  One hormone in particular, oxytocin, seems to play a major role in reinforcing this bond.

The hormone creates a sense of warmth, nurturing and calm.  Simply petting dogs releases the same chemical in both humans and the animals!  Researchers know this with certainty, but are not clear as to how two species can produce feelings of peace, closeness and contentment in each other.

What is clear is the fact that this bonding is very helpful in managing stress of almost any kind.

Animals (particularly dogs) give unconditional love.  It doesn’t matter if the owner yells, or is unkempt, or even doesn’t offer the best care to the animal.  All the animal wants is love and approval by their owner.  They accept their owners and companions without qualification.  An animal’s acceptance

is nonjudgmental and forgiving. They don’t play psychological games people sometimes play.  They accept you the way you are.

Pet ownership particularly helps children to learn to read body language.  The experiences children have with their pets later develop into relationships with people, and actually helps develop more empathy for others.

Children who are fortunate to have a pet learn nurturing skills, and the responsibilities that come with it. They also have in store for them lots of fun to share with a new pet.

Over eons it is well established that touch is very important for the nourishment for our spirits and minds.  Sometimes people who have been neglected find it difficult to accept touch from other humans.  The relationship with animals, simply the act of petting a dog, can create feelings of security and warmth; feelings of love without demands humans often desire.

In cases like these, having an animal to hold, hug, and touch can make a world of difference to people who would otherwise have no positive, appropriate physical contact.

Astounding cases of pet heroism and loving acts prove that the interaction between pets and humans, even just passing contacts, are healing and worthy of categorizing as important relationships in the management of stress.

Find ot for yourself and consider, if you don’t own a pet, possibly adopting one for yourself and your family.  More fun and less expensive than therapy, pet ownership can truly be a healing factor in your life.

When stress is not managed well, you are headed to a potentially parlous journey of poor physical health, and possibly deadly diseases.  The risk you take by ignoring your symptoms of stress and the feeling of being overwhelmed by it, is life threatening.

Without a doubt mental stress unmanaged affects your physical health.

The body is all one thing, a coherent whole, with many different systems and functions.  There is no separation of parts when one is afflicted.

Your thoughts, what goes into the mouth, and how you treat your body all have an effect throughout the body.  Just like when something happens to one member of the family, it affects all the rest of the family, some more than others, but everyone is affected.

It is the same with our bodies.  If there is a tight muscle in the hip for instance, from a corresponding weakness on the opposite side, then that hip is favored because of the tension restricting its motion.  That puts a different strain on the foot, and with the foot in a different position; there will be a strain on other sets of muscles.  This is going to change the body’s general posture, affecting the positions of the internal organs. That, in turn, restricts the nutrition to the organs and changes the excretions and hormonal functions.

The chemical/psychological balance of the person is changed and this affects the individual cells in the body.  As the body and mind are affected, the person will think and feel differently, so he is going to assume still a different posture.  Then there is one more tight area, one more tension, one more cycle.  Everything we do affects all the rest of the body.

Humans are structural, chemical, psychological and spiritual beings.  The primary structure and the natural chemistry work together to influence the psychological, and vice versa.

A problem may exist in any part of an area, and disturbances that arise in other systems may represent the body’s efforts to compensate for the troubled system

To put our body in true balance, we must take into account all aspects of health – structural, mental and nutritional – as well as need for exercise and rest.

You only have one place to live – YOUR BODY.  Your body houses your intellect and your spirit, and will serve you well for many years if you take the time to learn to manage your stress.

Start today for this moment and for a better tomorrow.

Take a breath slowly in through the nose.  As you exhale let the carbon dioxide out slowly.

As you inhale again know you are providing for your LIFE.

As you exhale, picture negative thoughts flying out with your exhalation.

Take care of yourself and you take care of your family and friends.  How much will the works you do count if you find yourself mentally and physically sick from allowing unresolved stress to take control of you?

It’s a choice.

Exercising your mind!  Your thoughts and words are self- fulfilling prophecies.

Be careful – You will get what you desire and think about.

Whatever you pay attention to, whatever you dwell upon, will ultimately manifest in your life.

You can choose your thoughts.

You are the energy you project, whether it is negative or positive.

From your perceptions you conceive much of your life.

Find celebrations in the moment. Don’t regret the past, for it is the past and experiences can be tools for learning. It cannot be changed.  Don’t anticipate trials and fears happening in the future, for they may never happen.

The power of your thoughts is real. Never let another person, or a scenario in life, enhance your healing, your thoughts, your heart. You are in charge of you.

Seeds have been planted in us all our lives.  Many of them, tragically, planted from failings of other generations long ago, transported as habit, doing great harm decades later.

Start to plant your own garden.  Create and elevate the thoughts that will bring the reality you choose into your life.

You can’t celebrate what you can’t detect.  Most of us are living in the fog of our own thoughts, unaware of the blue sky above.  You are so much more than your negative and limiting thoughts. Let go.  Happiness can be yours this very instant, if only this instant.  The moment can be yours.

Mind over matter works in stressful times

Exercising your mind will help manage your stress.  It doesn’t matter if you are about to begin the performance of a lifetime, start a project of killer magnitude, attend the funeral of a best friend, or visit your in-laws:

WHATEVER NEEDS TO

BE DONE CAN BE DONE MORE EFFECTIVELY WHEN YOU EXERCISE YOUR MIND.  IF YOU ARE IN CONTROL OF YOUR MIND, YOU WILL BE IN CONTROL OF YOUR “MATTER” (your own body).

You need to begin to take charge and learn that you can manage whatever the circumstances may render necessary. If you exercise your thoughts, your resolve will be finer.

No matter what the circumstance, think about your oxygen and take a breath!  Take another and exhale deeply, regaining your composure; get the oxygen to the brain for this oxygen machine.

Kill the pain with internal pharmaceuticals and positive thoughts created by you.  Regenerate.  Relax and take control of your life.  In that moment or two you supply your “tank” with premium oxygen, your brain will charge and the more profitable and beneficial response will then come to fruition.  It will happen.

When you think, “I can’t handle this” – think again.  Think instead, “I can and will handle this.”  Take a breath.  Make it happen.  Only you can make it happen.

Tap the resources we all have.  The gold comes from within.

When was the last time you actually thought about the breathing process?  Have you ever?

For many of you this will be reviewing material that warrants a regular review.  For some this will be NEW and IMPORTANT information that can really help your stress level when activated.

Isn’t it amazing that this involuntary process of breathing, one that gives us a FREE commodity, one we take for granted, can be refined and used to radically improve the quality of every moment of our human lives.

By cultivating your ability to improve the quality of your oxygen you’ll actually see these things happening to the body.  Your level of energy will increase, the quality of sleep will improve, and your muscles, tendons and ligaments, in times of stress, will relax easier.

You can create morphine like painkillers from within you.  You can lower your blood pressure, slow your heart rate, control the flow of hydrochloric acid and adrenalin, and even create endorphins that are similar to an opiate like high.  “Get high” naturally.  Additionally, beta-endorphins also kick in when you walk or exercise, because of premium breathing.  Do something that is good for your body.

You may think it’s too simple and ask why isn’t there more promotion of the benefits of using oxygen optimally.  Simply, as yet, the “prescription” of oxygen for you hasn’t been necessary (with exceptions such as inhalants for asthmatics or COPD patients).  No one can market the oxygen you can freely use.  No one profits from breathing the air all around you, EXCEPT YOU. You don’t have to ask permission to obtain the healing powers of this wonderful gift for your oxygen machine.

The idea is that mindful breathing techniques will get enough oxygen to all the hidden and infinite areas of the only place you have to live – your body.

What else can you expect when you tend to your oxygen garden?  Your breathing will become easier, because the muscles in your chest will be stronger.  Your air will flow in and out more rapidly and with less effort.

The tiring work you do will be easier as the more mindful oxygen you take in, the more energy you produce.  You oxygen will distribute rapidly from your lungs to your heart and to all parts of your body.

Your heart will beat strong and will pump more blood with each stroke.  Even when you are working your hardest, you heart will pump blood at a lower rate than if you were “de-conditioned”.

You will increase the number and size of the blood vessels that transport blood to your body tissue, thus enriching that tissue and increasing circulation.

Cultivating this oxygen will pay off not only with better health for your body, but the quality of your oxygen intake is the basis of dynamic and creative intellectual activity.  Intelligence and skill function will always peak with increased intake of oxygen.  Your brain actually requires fifty percent more oxygen than the rest of the body to think optimally.

This is the physiology of your body.  If you work on getting in the habit of breathing deeply and exhaling fully, all these things will automatically happen.  How cool is that!

Think about your oxygen and take in a few mindful plugs of right now, exhaling fully and deeply. It’s  a wonderful thing to do for your life!

Easy Quick breath :

3 short deep inhalations- sniff, sniff, sniff.

and

1 long and slow exhalation – with head high but humbled- shoulders back – make room for the new.

Do it again.

Do it again.  (Be careful: it’s natural, free, and WILL envigorate and relax at the same time!)  Could be addictive!

Do it again and slowly now both on the inhalation and exhalation.

SLOW DOWN – it’s okay! Listen to music you love, dance around just for fun,  get back to work refreshed from your short break, or simply return to the tasks at hand!  Remember  your life is your choice – really!  How you respond to what happens is one-hundred percent your decision.

Before any response to circumstances get oxygen to your brain.  The brain needs fifty percent more oxygen to make the best decisions.  It’s available any time you choose to breathe mindfully. It is a very positive secret weapon in times of high stress.

Read below and Find Immediate and Simple Solutions

1.  Stop it.  Stop the pity party.  Wearing your burdens like a fine gown or suit will not change a thing.  I don’t mean to be hard nosed, (this admonishment is for me too), but it is the truth!  All the whining in the world does not change a thing!

We all have days that we just can’t seem to pull our brains up to even a flat-line.  It happens. It happened to me today, at least until a “resource” cell I planted in my brain reminded me:  It is a choice!  How you respond to life is a choice.

2.  Take a breath.  Right now.  Don’t do another thing until you breathe deeply in through the nose – and exhale slowly through the mouth, completely emptying your lungs.  Now inhale slowly and think:  “I am alive. I have a choice how to respond to stress.  I have the choice to be happy.”

Exhale and think:  I will exhale all the garbage that is making me feel overwhelmed.  Thinking negatively will do nothing but hurt me.”

3.  Divert your attention. If you cannot resolve all that is terrorizing you – move to something that is less stressful.  Tackle something else with the resolve that you will return to what has upset you, when you are calmer.

4.  Fake it!  Fake yourself right out of your misery. Have you never counterfeited feelings to help someone else, or because you needed to ignore your feelings to complete a deal, or when someone else needed help and you were there for them?  It’s your turn now.  Do it for yourself.  All the classes in the world, all the counseling, all the reading of fine materials on the internet and books, won’t do a thing for you if you let yourself be down time after time.  If you have to do so, fake it until you feel better.

5.  Immerse yourself in doing something for someone else.  You can’t think of two things at once.  Get busy doing something for someone else and get off the train to hell, which is throwing a pity party for you.  There is always someone worse off than you.  Open your heart and give when you hurt – you’ll feel better.

6.  Be your own best friend.  We critique ourselves, we demean our own being, and we needn’t do it.  If you think about it you will find there are some terrific qualities within you.  Give yourself a pat on the back for good things you’ve done and remember whatever the trials that are plaguing you today, will be replaced with other worse ones tomorrow! Truly, THIS TOO SHALL PASS.   Give yourself a break, and take a breath!

Someone cares.

Stop here now! Take two minutes to refresh and regenerate these vital areas simultaneously.

If you have been here before, it is time right now to start mindful breathing.  If you haven’t, the following paragraph explains the breathing.

When we are tired or burdened with various elements of stressors, most people begin shallow breathing.  No one knows why, but stress causes this reaction.  It is the worst thing you can do for your mind and body.

When you slow your breathing two things happen: the brain doesn’t receive the needed oxygen to think optimally, and the body begins to tense up from the lack of oxygen and the already foreboding stress.  This is why our first line of defense again ANY mental or physical “challenge” is to think about our breathing.

Try it.  Inhale slowly through the mouth, think: “I breathe in new energy and finer intellect”.  As you exhale think:  “I am releasing all the negativity from within and will let it fly into oblivion.”

Eyes

The natural way to massage your eyes is to blink your eyes.  The eyes use eight times the nerve energy as any organ in the body.  We use our eyes constantly without much care.

Blink your eyes quickly ten times.  Open your eyes widely.  Look up.  Look down.  Look to the right – then left.  Blink your eyes again ten times.  Rub your fingertips together until they warm then close your eyes and gently place them on the lids for a moment.

If you are in your forties or older, it is great to carry a natural lubricant for the eyes and use it several times a day.  Viscine and “get the red out” products dry the eyes severely if used often.

Neck

This information is not new, but it is pertinent, so worth  a review. It is helpful to learn how to relax and lengthen, and decompress your neck as you become familiar with your own body.  Because of the structure of our chairs, the positions we sit in, the kind of pillow we use, the weight of our own heads, and the stress we maintain, our necks compress little by little.  This can cause horrible neck and headaches, and can cause your shoulders to further tighten up.

Here is a simple exercise to prepare you for keeping your shoulders down and your neck relaxed.  Hold an object weighing one or two pounds in each hand if you are at your desk you can bring one pound weights to use or find a substitute (such as a heavy tape dispenser-be creative).

Let the weight of the objects pull shoulder blades down.  Make sure that you keep the breastbone lifting up so that the tops of the shoulders don’t pull down and forward, collapsing the chest.

Now set the objects down and see if you can find the muscles you need to pull your shoulder blades down just as the weights did.

These muscles are called the lower trapeziums.  They attach to the vertebrae of the midback, and insert on the inner border of the shoulder blades.  They are antagonist muscles to the upper trapeziums. In other words, they are very important posture muscles, helping support the spine in the midback.  When the lower traps are too weak to counteract the pull of the stronger and tighter upper traps, the scapulae will tend to ride up, compressing your neck.

As a second exercise, sit up straight.  Press your pelvis to the back of the chair.  Drop your neck to your right shoulder and use your oxygen while hold the position for a few seconds.  Now drop your neck to the left shoulder and use your oxygen while holding the position.  Return the neck to center.

A few more mindful breaths and you will be better for the two-minute break.  You’ll never feel the benefits if you don’t try it.  You will be glad you did!

Teach your family, your children, your friends and peers.  Feeling good is addictive – and certainly NOT illegal!