Mental Health | Healthy Alternatives

Stress can lead people to make poor nutritional choices

Thursday, October 23rd, 2008

Stress can lead people to make poor nutritional choices which can affect overall health. Poor nutrition also can greatly affect a person’s capability of reacting and coping with stress. And because of this, good nutrition is always part of effective stress management.

Here are just some simple tips that would help people use good nutrition as a means to manage the stresses in life… FULL STORY

Stress Management When it Comes to Work
Studies show that working condition in the workplace is among the top reasons why many people suffer from stress. This is because people are exposed to various factors such as working with other people that have different sets of values and ethics, meeting job demands as well as meeting the expectations of the boss/es.

Being stressed in the workplace is not a new occurrence but it has evolved in years. Maybe because of the changing times, stress in the workplace has become more intense and the people within have become more competitive… FULL STORY

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Tags: Coping, Health, Mental Health, Nutrition, Stress, Stress management, wellness

How To Use Relaxation Techniques For Daily Stress Relief

Thursday, August 21st, 2008

How To Use Relaxation Techniques For Daily Stress Relief

If your life filled with anxiety and stress? Does the thought of feeling calm and peaceful as you go about your daily work seem impossible to you? If you set aside some time to learn some easy relaxation methods you can experience for yourself the many benefits of relaxation. These tips will increase your ability to relax quickly in any situation.

Create A Calm Environment

Look around you. How peaceful and calm are your surroundings? Do you see a lot of clutter or unfinished work waiting to be done? Or is your workspace simple, and inviting? The environment we are in can affect our ability to relax. If we are surrounded by unfinished tasks then the mind will be constantly reminded of those tasks. Try and create a space that is free of clutter and distraction. If you share an office then focus on creating a clear workspace. Use calming picture or objects to give you a focus point for relaxation. When you feel stressed in the day look at the focus object while you consciously relax your body and slow your mind.

Focus On The Present Moment

To relax the mind it needs to have less information to process. Closing your eyes will help to block out information that can be distracting to you as you try and relax. It is natural for you to continue to have thoughts while relaxing, the key is to try and keep focused on what is happening right now. Notice what your body feels like, what sounds you can hear. When a thought comes in just let it go without worrying about it. Remind yourself that you can think about that problem later, for the moment you are concentrating on the present. If you tend to worry a lot, ask yourself if you need to work out the problem today or if you can put if off till tomorrow. Most of our worries can wait, and worrying does not really solve anything, it just adds to your stress.

Pay Attention To Your Body

In stressful situations your body releases chemicals to prepare the body for fight or flight. Start to pay attention to the subtle changes in your body that happen when you are under stress. Often the heart rate and breathing increases, there is tightness in the chest or stomach and irritation increases. When you notice these changes begin to use relaxation techniques of breathing and muscle relaxation. Learn these with regular practice at a class, or at home with an audio. If you begin to use relaxation techniques as soon as you notice the changes in your body then you will cope better with the situation. You will also prevent some of the damaging effects of stress on the body. Relaxation techniques, once learned, can be used anytime, anywhere to relieve stress.

The ability to relax when and where you want to can make a big change to your daily stress level. Relaxation skills are easy to learn and use. The use of relaxation self help audios are very effective in relaxing the mind and body in times of stress. Practice the techniques each day for a few weeks and you will begin to see the benefits and feel calmer during the day.

To your good health,

Joe Golson

Health and Wellness Coach

Get In-Shape Without Much Effort

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Tags: Emotional Health and Wellbeing, Health, Management, Mental Health, Stress, Support Groups

3 Easy Relaxation Techniques For Fast Stress Relief

Wednesday, August 13th, 2008

As the pace of life gets faster it is easy to start feeling the negative effects of stress taking its toll. Ongoing stress has been shown to have a negative effect on health and increase risk of some illnesses. Stress also affects sleep, concentration, mood and relationships. Using proven relaxation methods to combat stress can help you improve your health and wellbeing. These five easy relaxation methods will get fast results and are easy to learn and use.

Learn Abdominal Breathing

Often when people feel tense or anxious they get told to “take a deep breath” and relax. Many people say that this does not help them to feel relaxed. Taking a deep breath can actually increase stress and make relaxation more difficult. The key is to learn a technique called abdominal breathing. Learning abdominal breathing when you feel calm is one of the most effective relaxation methods. Don’t try and learn it when you are upset or stressed, it won’t work.

Place one hand on your chest and the other on your lower abdomen. Now take a deep breath in. Which hand moved? Concentrate on breathing in slowly so that your abdomen goes out with each inhalation and keeping your chest still. Practice this twice a day in front of a mirror and you will soon feel the positive relaxation effects. Just do a few breaths so you don’t feel dizzy. When you feel stressed, use abdominal breathing to calm the mind and body.

Use Stretching Techniques

This is a very simple and fast relaxation technique. When you are feeling tense or anxious your body will send extra blood to the muscles which makes them tight and tense. You may feel your shoulders or head begin to ache, or your jaw clench as stress increases. The tense muscles in your chest may restrict your breathing.

A fast relaxation technique is to move your body and stretch out. This will relax the muscles and also allow you to breathe more deeply. Stretch muscles out regularly through the day to reduce stress. Yoga exercises include these types of relaxation techniques.

Use Relaxation Audios

Like any new skill, learning relaxation techniques takes some time and practice. One way to reduce the time it takes is to use audios each day for several weeks. Then you can use them once or twice a week to maintain the benefits. Relaxation audios work by helping you to concentrate on the sensations of relaxing your body and slowing down your busy mind.

Subliminal relaxation self help audios are very effective as they work at the pre-conscious level. Most people report that this is the fastest method for learning relaxation skills and reducing general feelings of stress. Set aside half an hour when you won’t be disturbed, lie on a comfortable bed or chair and just listen.

At first you may not feel very different but daily use for 2-3 weeks gets very good results for most people. Daily stress can quickly build up and cause health and relationship problems. Learning effective relaxation methods can help you to reduce stress and improve your health. Use these easy relaxation methods for fast stress relief.