stress management

Develop an effective stress management

2008-08-05T02:24:00.000-07:00

If you are living a life with high stress then you putting yourself in a problem. if life is full of stress it will cause our emotional thinking as we are unable to think clearly which will leads to bad health and bad temper. In order to develop an effective stress management programme it is first necessary to identify the factors that cause stress and the goal to it, is to bring our mind and body back into balance by adopting a positive attitude thinking and living a healthy life by exercise and meditation.

The cause of stress that most people cannot forget and harbor it very serious for a long time is the departure of a very love one who is no more in this world very suddenly. The work load of their jobs and the break up with their lovers or their sponge.

There are several ways of coping with stress. Some techniques of time management may help a person to control stress is to put your mind back by thinking in a positive ways. Exercises helps us to release our tension thus release our stress, Meditation to clear our mind and thought, having fresh air if you feel tired, relax and listening to soft music.

To mange stress we must have time management and planning

2008-05-21T22:09:00.000-07:00

Everyone experience stress at least a numbers of times in their live time. Stress is somethings that our body experience the wear and tear and has a physical and emotional effects on us which can create into positive and negative feeling. But most people experience negative stress due to many reason such as over works, death of love one, just quarrel from your wife, parents or your got scolding from the boss which result in feeling depression, feeling rejection and lost of temper, which in turn can lead to health problems such as heart disease, stroke, headaches, insomnia and high blood pressure.

In order to escape stress we must know how to manage stress and not let stress stay too long in ourself. The few things to manage stress is to have a time management and planning which we can be avoided stress if we had our planning ahead rather things to happen in last minutes. Put a side a hour or two for exercises. Daily yoga exercise can calm the mind and relax the body. Listening to soft and sentimental music which can relax our mind. Watch comedy or laughter picture or even cartoon picture which can decreases stress hormone and allows our mind to return to normal. Meditation are said to be the most effective ways of releasing stress in our body and besides it free our minds from evils and negative thinking and change it into positive thinking.

Symptoms of stress can be identify

2008-03-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

In order to have an effective stress management a person had to first identify the factors that are central to a person controlling their stress. As stress is part of a day to day living. Stress can happen in any place, such as school, college, working and living environment. Some stress can be good, while some are not harmful if it is a mild form of stress. However, if your stress level is too high, medical and social problems can result.

Symptoms of stress can be identify as there are several sign that a person can experience stress or notice the sign of stress. Most of the stress a person experience are feeling scared, anxious, moody and irritable. Always had thoughts of failure in their jobs or things their do, Worrying about themselves and its future or their family and its jobs or business, having low self-esteem and easily feeling shy or embarrassing. Having loads of works in working place and at home. To reduce stress a person had to change their life style, delicates not important works to the bottom line, make time for exercise and entertainment. Relax and listen to soft music.

Yoga practiced one way of prevention stress

2007-12-07T01:17:00.000-08:00

Yoga exercise is one of the best ways to reduced stress, as most people don't realise that are suffering from stress until there find they are very stressful. Today we are living in a world of a fast paced and everythings we do must in a fast ways inorder to survived. Thus stress has become every way of life that we are living and can easily build up to emotional and physical exhaustion. So prevention is the best way to keep stress from affecting our well being, and the effective methods is to practice yoga to release stress.

Yoga exercise is practice by the Indian people very long time ago and its said to brings our mind, body and our spirits together and yoga excerise has a lots of benefits, from stress management and physical wellbeing to spirtual transformation. Yoga practice has evolved into difference forms and helps ones emotions to remained the same and besides it is one of the best nenefits for physical health.Yoga practice has alots of its benefits such as meditation, maintaining postures, stretching and controling our breathing. Yoga practiced helps us from aging, stress and get rids of allergy.

Manageing stress in work place

2007-09-25T22:16:00.000-07:00

Stress always happen in work place due to pressure from your superior or because of workloads. Most stress in work place are always comes from accepting a promotion and this can be consider a good stress if you know how to manage your stress. Accepting a promotion means increament in pays and title but you can also expect more works and responsibility.

I had a friend before accepting a promotion he had many times with his family and friends and always a happy guys with a smiling face, after accepting this promotion everythings start to change after a month or two. He will always comes home very late because he could not finish the workloads in time for his boss. Most of the time will missed one meals and sometimes you will hear him yelling at his staff for a small things in his office. His happy face is gone and most of the time you will see stress face and also consider of resigning from his present post.

Since everyone knows he is a good person and will be a good leader in future, we advice him to withdraw his resignation and will work as teams with him if he could let us share his problems. Now he had many times to spare and had times to join us for lunch as most of his not very important works are share among all his down line.

The best method of stress management is exercises

2007-07-26T23:35:00.000-07:00

The cause of stress can leads to many illness such as headache, stroke, insomnia, high blood pressure and heart disease if it is not well manage. Stress most happen to most people are cause by death of love one, job promotions, the birth of a child and also a break up with your parners or a divorce as stress is known to be wear and tear of our body that we had to experience and also had to adjust to enviroment changing.

It has been found that most illness is related to unrelieved stress. If you are experiencing stress symptoms, you have gone beyond your optimal stress level, you need to reduce the stress in your life and or improve your ability to manage it. Stress will help or hinder us depending on how we react to it. Exercise in the morning and in the evening like jogging, swimming, walking and cycling is one way to released stress.

Others methods of stress management and are very popular with most people are yoga exercise and rhythmic exercise. Had a well balance nutrition diets, sleeping early and wake up early, listen to soft music and seeing happier movies and maintain your ideal weight. Break up your work loads, the less important to your junior and mix leisure with work.

A negative stress is bad for health

2007-06-26T23:56:00.000-07:00

A negative stress can be a result to depression, anger, distrust and rejection and leads to health problems such as heart disease, headaches, insomnia, high blood pressure or stroke. A bad stress was occur with the death of someone very near to you or someone you love or fond. Birth of a child, broken relationship and job promotion with works loads. So don't let stress ruin our lives, we must readjust our lives and live a life of positive stress.

There are many ways where we can elininate bad stress for instance if is in job site, try to get your subborninate to attend or do works that are not very important to the company. Don't waste time and wait for last minutes to do your important things. Stress can be elininate by doing exercises, yoga exercise claim to reduce stress. Listening to soft music, watching happy or comedy movies and try to relax your mind and body and eat a well balance nutrition meals.

Stress in your working place

2007-06-05T02:24:00.000-07:00

Stress is most associated with physical, mental or emotional strain or tension and mostly defined as distress and this types of stress can be very harmful. Stress are most commom in your working place as most of the staff are complaining to much works to do and cannot finish in time for the boss.

To see to that ones must set a stress management for ourself. Try not to waste to much time talking with a staff or customber or on the phone. Let the not important things to your downlines. Tell your staff that you do not to be disturd unless it is very important issues so you canfinish your jobs.

Ways to management of stress

2007-04-19T20:42:00.000-07:00

In life everyone had to go through stress, feeling stress at working place beause of the works loads given by the company or your superior or at home having to do the household works or looking up the small children. Before you think about managing the stress, you need to understand the cause of your stress and how to minimized or how to management of stress and free from stress.

If stress happened in works place because of the work load, try not to waste to much time in talking or doing unnecessary things. Passed some works to your junior or your bottom line which you think it is not very important to the company. If stress happened at home try to solve it with your partners, as discussion and suggestion can help to manage stress.

Things to manage stress is by relaxation, exercises or listen to soft music when you feel very tired or even a short nap can help you overcome stress. Other stress management techniques, a night out with your friends for comedy pictures, a group chat or even a slow walk along the seaside.

Regularly exercise to get rid of stress

2007-03-13T02:04:00.000-07:00

Stress comes in many form of our lives such as job promotion as you are going to carried more respondsibity and more jobs, death of a love one, that you are going to missed them forever. School examination the hours of time you are putting in it. Stress is like a disease ones has to get rid off.

Regularly exercise is one of the cause to get rid of stress as proverd goes all works and no play make Jack a stress boy. So inorder to get rid off stress ones has to have stress managament the time of works, play and even relax. Regular hours of sleep. The time for bed and the time to wake up. If you are going to missed the one you loves most, had a good cry.

Stress management within ourself

2007-02-04T18:16:00.000-08:00

Stress is sometimes that we bring in by ourself, never control our finance, not have enought of sleep, losing your temper very quickly when listen to on one side story without investicating, poor time management and poor management at home.

I had a leader working in the same small company who has a good heart but always lost his temper for a simple things and who ever reports to him first will always win. Always try to push his works to his staff as his time is always wasted in phone calls. The conversation of his call is always soccer betting, horse betting or loan shark chasing. After works he will go to his gamble den to play manjong or cards until early morning only a few hours of sleep and limited time with his family.

His stress became very heavy as he had no time for his job as loan shark keep chasing after him at working place and always feel very tired when turns up for works. Even the boss go after, I presume his jobs was not done and our sales keep going down. Lastly he was sacked from the company. Ego and habit of gambling has cause him problem in stress management.

Over stress cause problems

2006-11-22T22:19:00.000-08:00

Cause of stress can comes in many ways in our daily life. Some of our stress can be very obvious with extra work loads, your parners asking for a divoice or break up with your lover.

I had a very bad experince in my life. Working in a big restaurant catering western food and local cuisine in Malaysia. The capacity of the place can go in 200 custombers with about 120 tables. Having a full house inside and a long queue outside waiting for their turn to get a table beside that three of staff did not turn up for works only left 7 staff including me to handle with the over capacity.
Begin a leaders, had a quarrel with my wife, had only two hours of sleep searching for my missing kids and is 3pm not having my lunch yet and not the change to have a glass of water. Stress can cause you to loose your temper where there is a angry or impatient customber. Learn my lesson have a rest if you feel you are over stress.

managing your own stress

2006-10-30T22:21:00.000-08:00

Stress and anxiety are everywhere and can cause many problems if ignored and can lead to health diseases.
Changing the way you think can change a life of stress and discomfort to a life of challenge and excitement.

Before you think about managing the stress, you need to understand the bottom line of your stress. Its root cause and its real cause. Only then you can think about the management of stress. Relaxation, exercises, and other stress management techniques can be very helpful in overcoming stress and anxiety caused by everyday life in your working place or even at home.

Manage your time don't let time manage you. Unfinish jobs will give you alot of stress so manage your jobs well.
Do light exercises regularly daily.
Keep a diet control of yourself. Heavy stomach will cause stress.
Listen to light music, it will help reduce stress
Plan weekend outing with friends or family

Your self is the best teacher to stress management

2006-10-08T23:53:00.000-07:00

People experience stress in different ways. A stressful event for one person might be relatively minor for another person. Happy events such as graduation or marriage can be stressful. Again, how you cope emotionally and physically depends on how you perceive the stressful event and what interventions you use on a daily basis.
There are many situations which cause stress. Some are obvious, such as an excessive work-load, coping with a death or the break-up of a relationship. Others you may feel are just part of life and should be taken in your stride.

Your self is the best teacher to stress management. Takeing time to study, learn, listen, hear, practice good, and so forth you will have the ability to see your future is successful. You have a stress management that is surpassing any other management scheme, since no one can lead you if you choose to reject. It is good to take other people's beliefs into consideration, however, investigating and collecting evidence that proves a fact is more beneficial than accepting everything your are taught or told.

People feel little stress when they have the time, experience and resources to manage a situation. They feel great stress when they think they can't handle the demands put upon them. Stress is therefore a negative experience. And it is not an inevitable consequence of an event: It depends a lot on people's perceptions of a situation and their real ability to cope with it.

Time planning release stress

2006-10-01T22:02:00.000-07:00

Self belief plays a major role in stress control. Having enough faith in yourself that you can handle anything and everything without much trouble help make you confident through your work and relieves you from stress. Another thing that sometimes tends to buy us stress is when we involve ourselves into others problems. Do not trouble yourself with problems of your coworkers. Manage your work in office and your life at home in some balance. Good management is the number one stress killer.

Often, stress is a result of simply not having enough time to complete everything you need to do. Stop wasting time talking with colleagues, close your office door if you must from people walking in and distracting you from your works and eliminate other time wasters. Time management planning is a way to finish your jobs and a way to release stress.

stress in working placed

2006-09-19T23:05:00.000-07:00

Stress is the reaction people have to excessive demands or pressures. You may find it difficult to cope with tasks, responsibilities or other types of job related pressures or you might get anxious trying to meet such demands. It isn't just bad for your work, it could also be affecting your health.

Stress may be caused or amplified by a number of factors including:

Bad relations with other work colleagues

Long and/or irregular hours

Repetitive work/boredom and lack of job satisfaction

Jobs with heavy emotional demands

Poor working environments such as excessive noise, the presence of dangerous materials, over-crowding, poor facilities, or extremities of temperature or humidity

Increased accessibility--the use of mobile phones, pagers and emails means the boss can always chase up work.

The situation can be made worse if there is bullying, conflict, harassment, and indifference to staff needs. Where the organization lacks leadership, work arrangements, deadlines and demands are set without consultation and seem to be inflexible, this leads to a high degree of uncertainty about direction, purpose, objective and job responsibilities amongst staff.

stress management : Decrease or Discontinue Caffeine

2006-09-12T00:56:00.000-07:00

In terms of "bang for the buck," it is hard to beat this simple intervention. Most patients do not realize that caffeine (coffee, tea, chocolate and cola) is a drug, a strong stimulant that actually generates a stress reaction in the body. I tell patients that the best way to observe the effect of caffeine is to get it out of the system long enough to see if there is a difference in how they feel. Three weeks is adequate for this purpose and all my patients accept this suggestion, especially when I frame it as an experiment. ("If you dont notice a difference, you can go back to it; but if you feel better without it, you will probably want to stay off it.") I would guess that 75% to 80% of my patients notice a benefit. They feel more relaxed, less jittery or nervous, sleep better, have more energy (a paradox, since you are removing a stimulant), less heartburn and fewer muscle aches. Many patients feel dramatically better and cannot believe the difference.

One warning, however. Patients must wean themselves gradually or they will get migraine-type withdrawal headaches. I suggest decreasing by one drink per day until they are down to zero, then they should abstain for three weeks. When they feel better, they will thank you. In fact, you will be a hero because it is such an easy thing to do and delivers a big payoff. Incidentally, I do not believe caffeine is a highly addictive substance. I have never met a patient in 10 years who could not give it up within one week.

copyright © 1995-2005 by Phillip W. Long, M.D.

stress management : For Patient and Physician

2006-09-12T00:51:00.000-07:00

Stress is the most common cause of ill health in our society, probably underlying as many as 70% of all visits to family doctors. It is also the one problem that every doctor shares with every patient. This presents physicians with two advantages:
It is an issue we can relate to experientially so we can use ourselves as a reference point.
In studying and better understanding stress, we can derive personal as well as professional benefits.
As my mentor, Dr. Matthew Budd of Harvard University, told me at our first meeting in 1982, "If you want to help your patients deal with their stress, you're going to have to learn to handle your own." Therefore, when I talk to physicians, I invite them to listen on two channels: one for their patients and one for themselves. The material is much more meaningful if you can connect with it on a personal level.

The manifestations of stress are legion. Early in this century, medical students were taught that, "if you know syphilis (the great masquerader), you know medicine." One could say the same about stress. It can contribute to or mimic just about any symptom you can think of. However, the main presentations can be summarized under four headings: physical, mental, emotional and behavioral (see Patient Information sheet.)

The causes of stress are multiple and varied but they can be classified in two general groups: external and internal. External stressors can include relatives getting sick or dying, jobs being lost or people criticizing or becoming angry. However, most of the stress that most of us have is self-generated (internal). We create the majority of our upsets, indicating that because we cause most of our own stress, we can do something about it. This gives us a measure of choice and control that we do not always have when outside forces act on us.

This also leads to my basic premise about stress reduction: to master stress, you must change. You have to figure out what you are doing that is contributing to your problem and change it. These changes fall into four categories: change your behavior, change your thinking, change your lifestyle choices and/or change the situations you are in. By getting to the root causes of your stress, you can not only relieve current problems and symptoms but you can also prevent recurrences. For example, if you keep becoming frustrated over arguments with your children, you might discover that the cause of your upset is not their behavior but your unrealistic expectations. By modifying your standards, you might find the children's actions no longer bother you.

There are many ways to relieve stress, from going for a walk to quitting your job. What follows is a list of 10 practical and down-to-earth strategies which I have found helpful over the years for both myself and my patients. Some are simple and can be implemented quickly; others are a bit more involved. All are feasible and beneficial.

copyright © 1995-2005 by Phillip W. Long, M.D.

stress management : Causes of Stress

2006-08-30T02:05:00.000-07:00

There are many situations which cause stress. Some are obvious, such as an excessive work-load, coping with a death or the break-up of a relationship. Others you may feel are just part of life and should be taken in your stride.

However, all of the following (and in no particular order) are classic stress-inducing situations and it is important to recognise them as such - especially if you are dealing with more than one at a time:

an excessive workload
an uncomfortable physical environment, eg, prolonged extremes of temperature or noise
not enough sleep
ill health
prolonged physical activity
financial difficulties
renovations
a change in your living/working patterns: leaving home, new flatmates, a new job
moving house
pregnancy
bad self-image: 'I'm too fat', '... too dumb', '... too ugly'
living/working/studying in an environment that is not of your culture
living/working/studying using a second language
hostile, or uncomfortable emotional environments, eg, restructuring, redundancy
a break-up of a relationship
the death or loss of a friend or relation.

© 2003 Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

stress management : STRESS MANAGEMENT 2

2006-08-30T02:01:00.000-07:00

It is important to take some time to examine what is stressful to you and then devise a plan for yourself. Try to figure out what you can and cannot change. Maybe you can eliminate some stressors or find a way to encounter them less often. It is better if you can do this evaluation and put some methods of stress reduction to work for yourself before you are in the middle of a crisis.

Let's examine some possible problems and resources. Do you create stress for yourself? Do you procrastinate and leave major projects to be completed at the last minute? Do you fail to organize your time and simply cannot get your work done? Then a workshop on time management might be helpful to you. There are also many books available regarding effective time management.

Sometimes energetic, organized people get themselves overcommitted and do not allow enough time in their schedule for relaxation. The wear and tear of always having to be somewhere and doing something can be quite stressful. Can you make sure you schedule exercise, Yoga, or meditation into your daily routine?

Another way in which people sometimes contribute to their stress is by overreacting to events. Do you sometimes exaggerate the magnitude of the problem rather than put it in perspective? Do you complain about a problem to the point that it starts to take on a life of its own? It is important to assume the attitude that life is to be lived, taking the good along with the bad. It is important to accept your feelings and to express them and at some point be able to start problem- solving.

And finally, do you add stress to your life by trying to please everyone? The end result of this is that you ignore your feelings and they build up inside of you. In addition, those around you begin to ignore your feelings too because you have taught them that your feelings are not important. This can lead to much tension, stress and unhappiness in your life. Doing some reading on assertiveness or attending an assertiveness workshop would be a helpful stress reducer in this situation.

These are just a few of the possible ways in which stress can affect your life. This message is simply an overview on stress management and frequently people need help examining their specific situation.

by Loyola College Counseling Center

stress management : STRESS MANAGEMENT 1

2006-08-30T01:51:00.000-07:00

Stress is the accumulation of tension that you begin to feel, both physically and emotionally, as you try to adapt to all the changes and demands in your environment. There are many stressful life events that we all experience at one time or another, such as death of a loved one or the loss of an important relationship. While these events would be stressful to anyone, it is not so much what happens out there, as what you do with it for yourself. In addition, stress can build up on a daily basis due to school and financial pressures and can be just as damaging as major life events if you do not learn how to release it. How you manage the stressful events in your life will determine whether you feel temporary anxiety or long-term anxiety, relatively short-term sadness and grief, or chronic depression. This is true for physical problems as well. If you find ways to manage your stress you might have only mild stomach or intestinal distress from time to time rather than developing ulcers or colitis. That is to say, if you do not manage the stress in your life on a daily basis, it can have long-term consequences.

People experience stress in different ways. A stressful event for one person might be relatively minor for another person. Also, stress is not necessarily bad. A small or manageable amount of stress might motivate one to achieve and could help them give their best performance. Even anticipated and happy events such as graduation or marriage can be stressful. Again, how you cope emotionally and physically depends on how you perceive the stressful event and what interventions you use on a daily basis.

Our stress reaction is triggered when we perceive danger: whether it is physical danger or emotional danger or both. Our bodies have what is known as a "fight or flight" response which helps you respond quickly if you are suddenly faced with danger. This reponse was helpful to the caveman who had to fight on a regular basis to obtain food and protect his shelter. Unfortunately, our bodies have the same physiological response when we hear a frightening noise or fail to achieve something that is important to us. Anything that we perceive as a threat stimulates our body to respond: the heart rate increases; blood pressure rises; hormones pour into the blood that send sugar to the muscles and brain to mobilize energy; digestive processes are turned off so energy is available elsewhere, and so on. These changes were designed to help us react physically but we rarely need to respond in that way anymore. Therefore our bodies begin to experience wear and tear when these processes are stimulated over and over again with no outlet.

http://www.loyola.edu/campuslife/healthservices/counselingcenter/stress.html

stress management : Being Self-Employed

2006-08-24T04:22:00.000-07:00

Being self-employed brings You a
Whole New level of stress Management

being self-employed, or freelancing is a truly unique environment in which to work. Basically, you wake up every morning and "reinvent the wheel." That means that you begin every day knowing that you'll be required to provide your customers with something they feel that they can't live without. That's not an easy thing for your stress level to handle.

being self-employed is synonymous with long hours, and working through those days that you really should have taken off. It means that your stomach is repeatedly in knots and the adrenaline just doesn't flow anymore.

If this describes you, you're not alone.

Working for oneself from home, in front of the computer on weekdays and weekends is becoming evermore popular thanks to the internet and the World Wide Web. However, with this ever growing popularity of independence, comes the increasing build of stress.

Symptoms of high stress in those who are self-employed include:

* The inability to concentrate
* The general feeling of being uptight
* Biting everyone's head off
* Aching shoulders and neck
* A constant headache
* Indecisiveness
* Fatigue
* Insomnia

Of course, these are only a sample of the symptoms, but they are among the most common. If left unmanaged, stress can even develop further into more dangerous health conditions.

For people who are self-employed, proper stress management becomes critical to living a healthy, rewarding life. stress management itself is a matter of recognizing your individual stresses, finding the cause, and taking responsibility for these stresses, making changes where they are necessary.

This can be as simple as taking an aroma therapeutic bubble bath at night, yoga, or something more structured, such as consulting a stress management therapist.

If you are self-employed, and you wish to make certain that your stress level is managed effectively, you may wish to consult your doctor, who can advise you with regards to the techniques and strategies that will work best for you.

by John Baker

stress management : Behaviors Causing Stress

2006-08-24T04:18:00.000-07:00

Do you believe in predictions? Well, if you were educated you would know that no man or woman could predict our future. However, we all have the ability to predict our future. Sounds contradictory does it. behaviors help us to determine how our lives will turn out. behaviors are the manner in which we conduct our self on a daily basis. behaviors are organisms that react to stimulus producing action and response.

behaviors are formed when we first arrive in the world and the more we practice a certain behavior the more attached that behavior comes. How does behavior cause us stress? It depends on the person and the teachings the person endured throughout his or her lifetime, but many of us lack in development in one way or another. Since, we have religion, law, parents, teachers, siblings, employees, employers, peers and so forth playing a part in our life we often become confused since all of us have our own beliefs.

The best teacher in the world is your self. If you take the time to study, learn, listen, hear, practice good, and so forth you will have the ability to see your future is successful. You have a stress management that is surpassing any other management scheme, since no one can lead you if you choose to reject. It is good to take other people's beliefs into consideration, however, investigating and collecting evidence that proves a fact is more beneficial than accepting everything your are taught or told.

For example, I am a logician. I take extremely complex problems and break them down to simplicity. This means I analyze each problem carefully weeding through the pile and eliminating any areas that produce negative results. I also collect and gather evidence to support my claims when I am finished, and this is a healthy practiced behaviors, since I do not lie, steal, or do anything that will cause another person harm.

As you can see from my example, my problems were minimized, since my behaviors are positive and my stress level is not controlling my life. We can review behaviors and teachers to grasp hold of a better understanding how behaviors cause stress. For example, his or her parents teach a child that speaking out of term in inappropriate. The child is punished each time he or she disobeys the parent.

We see a series of problems developing, since this teaching will tell the child during his or her development that it is not ok to speak up when someone hurts, violates, or induces other types of fears on this person. The person will go through life with the fear of punishment if he or she asserts self. How can we help this poor wrongfully taught individual find a way to reduce stress and avoid stressors? First, our parents are important people in our life that we believe in most cases that will not lie to us and believe these people have our best interest at heart. Now we see another problem, since this person will trust the parents before listening to someone else that tells him or her that they are safe and it is ok to speak your mind.

We can teach this person to practice self-talk first since self-talk is an approach that helps us to rely on self, rather than others. Self-talk is a method that tells us that we have control and that we have a right to determine what we think, feel and believe. The method teaches us to take responsibility and learn communication that is effective, since our thinking habits are in the process of change. We can also help the person by offering him or her the tool known as visual display.

Visual display is helpful since it allows us to stroll back into the past and review our learning so that we can sort through the facts and eliminate the lies. It teaches us to display a pictorial event in our mind and then role-play to see if what we were taught is true.

Think of a time in your life that you spoke up and no one hurt you or punished you for your action. Think about how many times this happened and what the consequences of your behavior led to. Practice these techniques daily to learn a new method that benefits you and your life. If you do not see prediction by now in behaviors, then you probably never will.

by Burt Cotton

stress management : PHYSIOLOGY OF THE STRESS RESPONSE 2

2006-08-15T21:52:00.000-07:00

The main sympathetic neurotransmitter is called noradrenaline which is released a the nerve endings. The stress response also includes the activity of the adrenal, pituitary and thyroid glands.

The two adrenal glands are located one on top of each kidney. The middle part of the adrenal gland is called the adrenal medulla and is connected to the sympathetic nervous system by nerves. Once the latter system is in action it instructs the adrenal medulla to produce adrenaline and noradrenaline (catecholamines) which are released into the blood supply. The adrenaline prepares the body for flight and the noradrenaline prepares the body for fight. They increase both the heart rate, and the pressure at which the blood leaves the heart; they dilate bronchial passages and dilate coronary arteries; skin blood vessels constrict and there is an increase in metabolic rate. Also gastrointestinal system activity reduces which leads to a sensation of butterflies in the stomach.

Lying close to the hypothalamus in the brain is an endocrine gland called the pituitary. In a stressful situation, the anterior hypothalamus activates the pituitary. The pituitary releases adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) into the blood which then activates the outer part of the adrenal gland, the adrenal cortex. This then synthesises cortisol which increases arterial blood pressure, mobilises fats and glucose from the adipose (fat) tissues, reduces allergic reactions, reduces inflammation and can decrease lymphocytes that are involved in dealing with invading particles or bacteria. Consequently, increased cortisol levels over a prolonged period of time lowers the efficiency of the immune system. The adrenal cortex releases aldosterone which increases blood volume and subsequently blood pressure. Unfortunately, prolonged arousal over a period of time due to stress can lead to essential hypertension.

The pituitary also releases thyroid stimulating hormone which stimulates the thyroid gland, which is located in the neck, to secrete thyroxin. Thyroxin increases the metabolic rate, raises blood sugar levels, increases respiration/heart rate/blood pressure/and intestinal motility. Increased intestinal motility can lead to diarrhoea. (It is worth noting that an over-active thyroid gland under normal circumstances can be a major contributory factor in anxiety attacks. This would normally require medication.)

The pituitary also releases oxytocin and vasopressin which contract smooth muscles such as the blood vessels. Oxytocin causes contraction of the uterus. Vasopressin increases the permeability of the vessels to water therefore increasing blood pressure. It can lead to contraction of the intestinal musculature.

If the person perceives that the threatening situation has passed then the parasympathetic nervous system helps to restore the person to a state of equilibrium. However, for many people they perceive everyday of their life as stressful. Unfortunately, the prolonged effect of the stress response is that the body's immune system is lowered and blood pressure is raised which may lead to essential hypertension and headaches. The adrenal gland may malfunction which can result in tiredness with the muscles feeling weak; digestive difficulties with a craving for sweet, starchy food; dizziness; and disturbances of sleep.
Below are some of the symptoms of stress. Please note that these symptoms can also occur with a range of medical or psychological disorders. When in doubt, do consult your doctor or consultant.

Copyright 2000, Stephen Palmer

stress management : PHYSIOLOGY OF THE STRESS RESPONSE

2006-08-15T21:45:00.000-07:00

This article provides an insight into what happens at a physiological level when a person becomes stressed. Although this article may seem rather complicated, it is an oversimplification of what happens. It is suggested that readers interested in increasing their understanding about this topic refer to advanced texts that are available.

The Stress Response
When people perceive that they are in threatening situations that they are unable to cope with, then messages are carried along neurones from the cerebral cortex (where the thought processes occur) and the limbic system to the Hypothalamus. This has a number of discrete parts.

The Anterior Hypothalamus produces sympathetic arousal of the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS). The ANS is an automatic system that controls the heart, lungs, stomach, blood vessels and glands. Due to its action we do not need to make any conscious effort to regulate our breathing or heart beat. The ANS consists of two different systems: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system. Essentially, the parasympathetic nervous system conserves energy levels. It increases bodily secretions such as tears, gastric acids, mucus and saliva which help to defend the body and help digestion. Chemically, the parasympathetic system sends its messages by a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine which is stored at nerve endings.

Unlike the parasympathetic nervous system which aids relaxation, the sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for action. In a stressful situation, it quickly does the following:
Increases strength of skeletal muscles
Decreases blood clotting time
Increases heart rate
Increases sugar and fat levels
Reduces intestinal movement
Inhibits tears, digestive secretions.
Relaxes the bladder
Dilates pupils
Increases perspiration
Increases mental activity
Inhibits erection/vaginal lubrication
Constricts most blood vessels but dilates those in heart/leg/arm muscles

Copyright 2000, Stephen Palmer

stress management : Music Therapy Healing For Stress

2006-08-08T22:13:00.000-07:00

Everyone has stress in their lives. Stress can range from mild to severe. If we let the stress build up without doing anything to relax, our health can be affected. Headaches, diarrhea and gastric problems can be caused by stress. If it is constant and for a long period of time we are putting our health in danger. Serious problems such as heart problems and diabetes could develop.

One way to combat stress is using music therapy. A music therapist views the particular needs of their client. The client and the therapist both are involved in the therapy. Music heightens mental functioning, promotes healing and helps you feel calm and relaxed. It is considered a creative art therapy. Experts propose that it is the rhythm of the music that has a calming effect on us. A therapist encourages the use of different kinds of instruments. One way listening to music can manage the degree of your stress is it relaxes tense muscles. When you feel relaxed, your worries float into the background.

If you listen to music that has affirming lyrics you are feeding your brain positive thoughts. This may make music therapy twice as successful. It will surround you with positive energy instead of negative energy. The positive energy should decrease your stress levels.

Our energetic system is affected by the tone of music. This causes a physical reaction to certain sounds and frequencies. No one likes the same type of music. Whatever you choose to listen to should make you feel comfortable. Listen to your emotions. Make sure your nerves feels soothed. That way you'll know if it is a positive type of music for your individual taste. Fast paced beats can speed up your heart rate and cause difficulty in relaxing your mind. Slow beats or rhythms will slow down your thoughts and you will naturally relax.

There are other ways to listen to music for lessening your stress besides going to a music therapist. Music affects the mood in different situations. If you listen to music when you wake up in the morning, your day might run smoother. When you have a hard day at work, the last thing you probably want to do is to make supper. Put on your favorite music and cooking may seem like a breeze. Taking a walk and listening to music with nature sounds or sounds of the sea can be extremely calming. Slow tones will cause relaxation and is great to hear right before bedtime.

Illness can cause severe stress. Listening to music together with whatever treatment you are receiving can have a strong healing effect on your body. It can also cause your endorphins to raise in your brain. Endorphins are natural painkillers.

Serotonin is a chemical that transmits the nerve signals between nerve cells. If your serotonin levels are to low, you may become depressed. Depression can make the stress in your life seem a lot worse. Music may raise your serotonin levels and lift your depression and stress anxiety.

by Michael Russell

stress management : Five Strategies That Really Work

2006-08-08T22:04:00.000-07:00

Please try this experiment right now: Google "how to reduce stress" and notice that about half the entries are essays of the form, "Top [number] Ways to Relieve Stress." It sounds like there are a lot of resources for the stressed-out people in our society, but if you look more closely you'll see that most of them are pretty lightweight. A typical list entry might read:

"Learn to Laugh at Yourself
Don't take yourself so seriously - learn to see the funny side of your predicaments and feel that stress just drain away."
I don't mean to be unkind, but whoever wrote this advice never had to work for a bullying boss who threatened her with firing if she wouldn't sleep with him. There is just no way to see that in a humorous light. So I want to offer my top five list - but these suggestions are all based on solid scientific evidence taken from the field of cognitive psychology. There are going to be harder to achieve on your own, but they will work.

Identify Your Stressors

Even though it seems like everything in your life is causing you stress, the bulk of it probably comes from a few sources: perhaps five or six, and dealing with those stressors will provide enough relief that you the rest of the stress will become manageable. The best way I know to identify your real stressors is to keep a stress journal (you can read more about stress journals here). As you journal your stress experience, you'll start to see a pattern of when your stress increases and what's happening when you get stressed. Those are the stressors you should concentrate on first, because you'll get much more relief for your effort.

Start Taking Control

Stress happens when you're under pressure or in pain and you feel helpless. The last part is important: if you feel like you're in control then you may be afraid or angry, but you won't feel stressed. So if you can start taking charge of your situation, even a little bit, your stress will start to subside. If there's nothing you can do about the big problem you're confronting (like a layoff) then try to take control of a smaller problem. Even if you only clean off your desk or decide not to take work home, you'll start to feel a little less stress.

Build a Support Network

There's lots of research that shows that people who have strong social ties and people they can rely on, survive stress much better than those who try to go it alone. So make sure that you have at least one person you can call at any time who will just listen to your side of the story. He or she doesn't have to fix anything, or even agree with you - he or she just has to listen sympathetically. (But don't use this as a bitching session - when you talk with your support person, just describe what really happened and how you're feeling: save the revenge fantasies for later.)

Eat Well and Exercise

Prolonged stress will wear your health down in many ways, so you have to take extra care of yourself in stressful times. Stress may make you eat more or less than you normally do, but make sure that you're eating a balanced diet, and that you're eating at regular times. Make meals a stress-free moment in your day and eat them with friends and family if you can. Even moderate exercise is effective in clearing the stress hormones out of your body, so try to get a little exercise as soon after the stressful event as you can. You don't need to go to the gym - even taking a five minute walk will help your body return to its rest state.

Take Care of Your Mental Health

Telling you to "just ignore the stress" would be stupid advice, because it's a fact of your life. But if you can counteract stressful, anxious thoughts with calming pleasant ones, the stressful thoughts will have less of an effect on you. So when you start worrying about the impending layoff, don't fight the feelings of anxiety. But at the same time, think of something you treasure: your family or your last vacation, or even the game of golf you'll play this evening. The pleasant thoughts will rob the anxious ones of much of their power and you'll get over the anxiety much sooner.

There they are: five techniques you can use to effectively counteract the stress management in your job and life. I know that none of these is easy - they require effort and persistence - but they're a lot more effective than advice like "learn to laugh at yourself."

Take stress seriously - fight back fiercely.

by Bruce Taylor

stress management : Breathing to Reduce Stress

2006-08-02T21:25:00.000-07:00

Do you realise how important your breathing is? I mean, apart from the fact that it keeps you alive? Do you know that your manner of breathing directly affects your stress levels? Would you like to learn how to use your breath to calm, focus or invigorate you?

Your breath moves the air in and out of our body. If you do not inhale completely, the necessary oxygen does not reach the necessary organs. If you do not exhale properly, the stale air stays in the body and affects your breathing, your concentration and your health.

I want you to do a simple test:

Place your left hand palm down over your belly button. Now place your right hand on your chest. Take a deep breath in…and out… Focus on your hands.

What moved? Did your left hand move when you inhaled? Did it move in our out?

If your stomach moves inwards when you inhale, you are not breathing as your body intended.

If your stomach inflates when you inhale, you are breathing correctly.

Your right hand is not supposed to move. Your chest should only move minimally if at all.

It is easily remembered if you visualise a balloon in your tummy. When you inhale, inflate the balloon When you exhale, deflate the balloon.

As babies we breathe like this and then somewhere along the line someone tells us to pull our stomachs in when we inhale.

Now we need to unlearn a pattern that has formed over many years.

Practise breathing properly whenever you are stressed or want to relax (before bed is good).

Inhale and make your belly as round as you can. I call this my Buddha belly ;) Then exhale using your stomach muscles to push the air out End by having your stomach drawn in and abs tight

Practise this breathing for 3 minutes a day and within weeks your subconscious will start to adopt the new habit.

I guarantee your stress will be easier to manage and your mind more clear to focus on what you need to.

by Lana Rolfe

stress management : The Best Article on Stress Management

2006-08-02T21:22:00.000-07:00

Have you been looking for an article on stress management that could really make a difference in your life? Are you tired of the exhaustion, fatigue and irritability that have now become a way of life for you in how you relate to stress?

This article on stress management isn’t your usual top 10 list of what to do. I’d like you and I to shift our focus and attention on who you are choosing to be that is really fueling what you are doing.

I know you are pretty sure that your stress is caused by all external factors, but it’s really more important to look at how you are relating to what you identify as stress internally. Let’s face it, we only have so much control over our external environment and 100% control over our internal one. This maybe a new concept to you, but I assure you it’s a powerful one if you want to feel the freedom and power that managing stress can provide.

Have you ever heard of the concept “Be, Do, Have”? It can be revolutionary in your life if you haven’t. Most of us live our lives out of the concept of “Do, Have, Be” which is extremely stressful because we are trying to do, do, do in order to have what we want so that we can then be how we want to be. This is backwards and futile. I mean really aren’t you exhausted, fatigued, irritable, and still don’t have what you truly want?

Shifting your focus away from what you want to have to who you want to be can eliminate a lot of stress and start bringing forth that which you desire. The following exercise can give you a start on this path. Take out a blank piece of paper and draw a vertical line down the middle of it so that you have 2 columns. On the right side column write at the top of it “What do I want?” Now, make a list of everything you want to have from the most mundane to the most profound. After you have completed that, at the top of the first column write “Who would I be being to have what I want? One by one go through the list of what you said you wanted and ask yourself the above question. Write down the answer in the first column. Can you see that you don’t have to know what to do if you focus on who you are being? If you focus on who you are being, you will become that and the actions to take will readily be available to you. This eliminates a lot of stress.

by Pamela Catey

stress management : Stress and Handling Incompatible Activities

2006-07-31T01:41:00.000-07:00

Is stress something personal or pure business, or … something in between?

Personal situations will affect the stress level experienced at your work. Examples are well known -- problems with a close relation or with family member or even more specific a situation of divorce.

These situations will bring stress because of the emotions that are involved and which are not easily controlled; they interfere with your ‘normal’ life. And will affect your attention at work.

At work, you have a specific role to fulfill. The journalist, for example, will have to cope daily with an amount of stress to meet the deadline. This is a seen as a healthy level of stress inherent to the job; a news agency can’t survive otherwise. If you can't handle it, you should choose another career.

But now the journalist is writing his article, and he is interrupted by his boss because of some management issue that pops up. There is not enough time to finish both -- meet the deadline and discuss an organizational issue; because these are incompatible. One needs time (a discussion), the other needs velocity (the article).

Dealing with stress is dealing not only with priorities, but understanding that each type of activity requires some specific approach. And your question in this is, Am I fitted for such an approach or do I constantly need more time to think.

If you face stress at work for a long period your job probably doesn’t fit you. If you like your job but you are confronted with stress you probably can’t separate different activities according to their characteristic. This is a switching problem in which you need to change your mindset according to the situation. In those cases a simple -- “not now,” is sufficient. Those are simple tricks you can learn.

© 2006 Hans Bool

Hans Bool is the founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company that offers online management advice. Astor Online solves issues in hours what normally would take days. You can apply for a free demo account

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Hans_Bool

stress management : Stress Management Tips

2006-07-31T01:37:00.000-07:00

You have probably heard this before but again stress is a key contributor to poor health. Study after study has found that when a person is stressed, the body reacts. The result of stress could be high-blood pressure, tension headaches, upset stomach, poor posture, and so on. Keeping stress in check will help you manage your overall health much better. Here are a few stress management tips for mental relaxation and self development.

Sleep Well

Does sleep really affect health? You bet it does. During sleep, your body is resting and recovering from all the work is has done throughout the day. Your serotonin levels are brought back in line, your muscles relax, and mind is allowed to clear itself in preparation for the next day. If you are not getting the proper amount of sleep, you will notice it in a physical way. While there is no magic number, usually between six and eight hours a night is appropriate. If you have difficulty getting to sleep, before you climb into bed, try Yoga, listening to soft, relaxing music, a glass of wine, or if you can talk someone into it, a good massage.

Laugh it Off

The medical field has proven that laughter actually works with your body toward good health. Have you ever heard the expression, “Laughter is the best medicine”? The truth is, when you laugh, several positive things happen. Your muscles relax; stress hormone product is reduced; you forget about pain; your body’s immune system is improved; high-blood pressure is lowered; the heart and lungs are strengthened; and overall, you feel better!

Learn and practice Yoga

The practice of Yoga is actually a spiritual practice. However, with the many benefits received it has quickly become a popular choice to thousands of people strictly for health. Yoga helps stretch out muscles and ligaments, tone the body, and the greatest benefit is that it helps to clear the mind. Having a clear mind works toward a healthy body. If you want to learn more about yoga, go to the internet and do a search.

Terje Brooks Ellingsen is a writer and internet publisher. He runs the website 1st-Self_Improvement.net. Terje is a Sociologist who enjoys contributing to the personal growth and happiness of others. He tries to accomplish this by writing about self help issues from his own experience and knowledge. For example, self development in general and self esteem development in particular.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Terje_Ellingsen

stress management : Handling Work Stress

2006-07-29T01:16:00.000-07:00

Stress management in the workplace is a reality that most of us have to face for one reason or another and coping with it is key to long-term career success.

Some careers are more stressful than others and some companies and managers you work for might provide you with more stress than you’d otherwise like.

Having some stress can be helpful because it can provide motivation that allows you to work with a bit of a sense of urgency and purpose.

When stress in the workplace reaches a high level and carries over to your personal life in a negative way though, this is a sign that you need to do something to properly manage it so that it doesn’t spiral out of control further.

Here are some suggestions for successful stress management in the workplace:

1. Try to address issues that might be affecting your stress level that you might not readily think of, especially the ones you can change. Do you drive 1 hour to work each day and feel beaten up by the time you get into the office each morning? Are there ways you can lighten your workload? Do you need to learn how to say “no” to certain requests from time to time? Look for ways of changing how you to things especially ones you have some control over.

2. Look for ways to improve your time management. Often, stress is a result of simply not having enough time to complete everything you need to do. Stop wasting time talking with colleagues and making personal phone calls, stop surfing the Internet for personal reasons, and eliminate other time wasters. Shut your office door if you have trouble with people walking in and distracting you or find a quiet office where you can work undisturbed if necessary.

3. Find some sort of athletic endeavor to take part in. I like working out at the gym but you might find jogging, playing squash or taking yoga classes will help. Try something athletic that gets your mind off work. Start by going for a walk at lunchtime just to get out of the office for a bit.

4. Don’t neglect your personal life. Remember to try to find the proper balance between your work life and your work outside of work. Try when possible to leave work at work. A separation between work and personal life is paramount.

5. Carefully consider whether or not you are in the right job. If successful stress management at work is just not possible and if you yearn for your time with a previous employer when things were better, maybe you’re in the wrong job. Do you like what do you or is it simply a job to you? If it’s simply a job there might be other jobs that are less stressful that are better suited to your personality.

Stress management in the workplace is critical to your long-term career and long-term health. When stress management is simply not achievable through change, consider consulting a doctor for a medical opinion in case you are suffering from more than just stress.

Carl Mueller is an Internet entrepreneur and professional recruiter who wants to help you find your dream career.

Visit Carl's website to separate yourself from other job searchers: http://www.find-your-dream-career.com

Sign up for The Effective Career Planner, Carl’s free 5-day course: http://www.find-your-dream-career.com/effective-career-planner.html

Ezine editors/Webmasters: Please feel free to reprint this article in its entirety in your ezine or on your website. Please don’t change any of the content and please ensure that you include the above bio that shows my website URL. If you would like me to address any specific career topics in future articles, please let me know.

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stress management : Does Stress Cause CANCER?

2006-07-29T01:13:00.000-07:00

One of the main causes of death today is stress. People think it is cancer, or heart disease. But how do you think it gets started? Stress is present in all areas of our lives, and we have become so used to it that we are even unaware of its constant presence in our lives. Yet, stress invades our space when we are stuck in a bumper-to-bumper traffic jam and the cars are not moving. We feel stress when we rush to catch the morning train because we left a little bit later than usual. Stress attacks us with billboards advertising everywhere your eye turns, with blaring music and engine noises. We are invaded with pollution, we go to shops and our senses are blasted with stimulus to get us to spend our money, music, announcements, colours, signs to read. Have you ever been on a holiday to a really quiet place? If you’ve been to a quiet place, it might have been at the beach or the mountain, or in the country, but it would have been a place where there is no television, no radio, no music of any sort, and the external stimulation was provided by natural sounds. This is getting increasingly more difficult to find, even your local café or restaurant is saturated with music, loud cappuccino machines and many TV sets.

The fact that conditions such as stress have a serious impact on immunity is no longer in question. Temporary stress, like studying for an exam, can completely wipe out the body’s interferon levels, literally reducing them to 0. Interferon is necessary for certain cells of the immune system to do their jobs. For example, one kind of immune cells is a lymphocyte known as the natural killer cell. Natural killer cells have 2 functions. First, they patrol the body and seek out virus-infected cells for elimination. Second, they seek out and destroy cancer cells. In students, the stress of exam week often results in colds, cold sores or other minor illnesses, perhaps as a result of the poor natural killer cell activity brought about by low interferon levels. In terms of long-term health, chronic stress is much more important than short-term stress. Walter Cannon first described the body’s response to acute stress which he called the fight or flight response, in 1929. When we are faced with an emergency, there is a miraculous symphony that plays itself out flawlessly in the body.

Adrenaline pours out of the adrenal glands, causing blood pressure to rise and the heart to beat more forcefully. At the same time, sugar is liberated from storage in the liver and pours into the bloodstream. This rapidly burning fuel is quickly delivered t our muscles, giving us uncommon strength. Adrenaline simultaneously improves visual acuity, short-term memory, and mental sharpness. We can make decisions fast and then act on the, we can survive. To learn more about how stress causes disease, read Cancer Free For Life.

If you have a scare in traffic, your body responds instantly. A minute later, calm prevails unless you decide to wallow in anger or frustration. Then stress can become chronic when we hang on to ancient anger for years. Research showed that chronic stress leads to enlarged adrenal glands and the thymus gland, the producer of T-lymphocytes used to fight cancer, is very small. Chronic stress leads to illness. When we are stressed the hypothalamus secretes a hormone which causes the adrenal glands to manufacture cortisol. In the long run, it is a suppressor of the immune system. It prevents the formation of new immune cells, and inhibits the activity of the ones already in the system.

Visit www.alternative-health-ebooks for more information and free articles. This article is available for reprint for your website and newsletter, provided that you maintain its copyright integrity and include the signature tag.

From the office of Dr. Laurence Magne, author of www.cancer-free-for-life.com.

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stress management : Avoid Stress to Secure Energy and Vitality

2006-07-27T00:33:00.000-07:00

After a long day's work, it is natural to feel drained and tired. Working on any task for about five hours or more can really lessen a person's energy and vitality. Stress is the most common factor for loss of energy and vitality especially among people who work everyday. Stress is also the most known factor contributing to a person's risk of getting sick.

Stress is inevitable, and it's even omnipresent. In clinical language, it is any physical or psychological stimulus resulting in the production of mental tension or physiological reactions. If understood and handled well, stress can lead a person to regaining his/her energy and vitality and to living a healthier life. But if not, illnesses and even fatal diseases can arise.

Deadlines, finances, relationship or marital problems, work or profession, school, existing ailment, and other emotional or psychological disturbances are the most common causes of mental or emotional stress. Lack of sleep, poor nutrition, sedentary lifestyle, and very tiring activities are on the other hand leading roots of physical stress. Doctors, however, claim that mental stress reduces a person's energy and vitality more than the physical stressors do.

When the body detects stress, it naturally responds to it. When the mind is stressed, the brain releases chemicals that cause headache, prompting us to do something about it. The same happens when your leg or arm muscles are already tired and weary. But these bodily responses do not automatically result to regaining energy and vitality. The way we respond to these natural body responses are the determinants of stress reduction.

Different individuals respond to stress in many varying ways. Most resort to smoking cigarettes because of its calming effect, others drink alcohol, some go to the gym and work out, others rest and meditate. These responses are responsible to successful and unsuccessful regaining of lost energy and vitality.

The primary step to avoid or mitigate the effects of stress is to know where it is coming from. Once the source is identified, you can then think of a way on how to deal with it. But don't just deal with it, but deal with it properly. Overdoing your response to stress can yield to more damaging results. Excessive alcohol intake and even exercise can result to further negative implications. Your response should be something sustainable (can be regularly done and in right frequency) and basically safe and beneficial. Evaluating your lifestyle (eating habits, physical activities, etc.), having a positive outlook in life, excellent time management, and balancing your priorities are what most doctors would say some of the best ways to avoid stress and prevent surmountable loss of energy and vitality.

Having enough energy and vitality is crucial for our survival throughout our life. The amount of energy and vitality we acquire, lose, and regain will determine our body's longevity in this stress-filled world. There's no way we can get rid of stress, it's as constant as change. But we can do ways to avoid or lessen its effects. Stress is embedded in our nature and just like everything that is, it exists for a purpose. It's up to us to know how to optimize the possible good effects it can give by knowing how to properly deal with it.

For more valuable information on Energy and Vitality, please visit http://www.eknowitall.com/health/fitness-healthy-living/energy-vitality/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Teleo

stress management : Stress Management by Relaxation

2006-07-27T00:30:00.000-07:00

The method for stress management which I am going to show you below is actually a combination of two methods; a regular deep breathing exercise and Jacobsen's Progressive. Both are proven relaxation exercises and by combining them they function even better. These relaxation techniques can help you reduce tension in your muscles as well as manage the effects of the fight-or-flight response on your body - link when you feel you are about to get overwhelmed by panic. In a situation where you have to perform by thinking clearly under pressure, this relaxing exercise is really great. Here is what you do:

Sit down comfortably in a way that enables you to relax.

While you focus your body on relaxation take a series (10, 20 or even more) of deep breaths. For each breath you take, try to relax your body even more.

Tense up the muscles of both your hands maximally, make a fist and hold this tension for five seconds.

From the state of maximum tension, relax your hand's muscles to the state they were in before you tensed them.

Focus on your hand muscles and try to relax them even further so that you are as relaxed as possible.

Repeat step 3 to 5 but instead of your hands muscles, now concentrate on the following parts of your body in sequenze: your feet, your legs and tighs, your arms, your breast and stomach, your back and finally your neck and head's muscles.

The idea is that you'll probably be able to relax your muscles more by tensing them first, than you would if you just relaxed your muscles directly. You can also repeat the deep breathing steps in between the tensing / relaxation of the muscles of your different body parts.

Terje Brooks Ellingsen is a writer and internet publisher. He runs the website 1st-Self_Improvement.net. Terje is a Sociologist who enjoys contributing to the personal growth and happiness of others. He tries to accomplish this by writing about self improvement issues from his own experience and knowledge. For example, stress management by self esteem improvement and relaxation exercises to stop smoking

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Terje_Ellingsen

stress management : Reduce Your Stress, Your Children Are Waiting

2006-07-24T23:58:00.000-07:00

Mothers are expected to possess huge hearts, big shoulders, a minimum of 3 hands, all the answers and the list goes on! What many mothers forget is they are not born with super hero powers to handle all of those things at once.

Mom=Stress. It’s a fact of life. Reducing stress is of the utmost importance to everyone, but especially mothers.

You know stress can lead to depression, heart disease, and an unhealthy mom. Did you also know your stress, if not handled correctly, can have a negative impact on your children too?

The most important things in a mother’s life, her children, are also the most influential. Children are sponges and everything Mom does they will, at some point in time in their lives, mimic. If children see their mother constantly stressed out, they will be more inclined to follow those patterns. What you do today can determine the kind of life your child will lead tomorrow, including how you make it a point to reduce stressful situations.

Mothers tend to overload themselves, which in turn overloads their children. Adults move at a much faster pace and their bodies are more adept to handle the speed of life. Children, on the other hand, are not able to function this way, which can lead to developmental and behavior problems in the long run if constantly pushed to keep up with an adult’s quicker pace.

Studies have shown a mother who is under excessive amounts of stress will hand out harsher punishments than one who is not. Prolonged stress can cause a mother to get to the point that she feels overwhelmed and will not stop to think before handing down discipline. This type of behavior teaches children it is ok to let your mood control your life as a parent

Children need to feel a sense of security and know that their mom is there to help them work through and understand the stressful times in their lives. If children are not taught what stress is and why it is a part of their lives, they will never learn how to reduce it, therefore leading them down a path of unhappiness and unhealthy choices. Give them the tools early about how to deal with stress and more importantly, how to reduce the amount of stress that occurs in their lives.

There is no one who lives an entirely stress free life. In fact, you shouldn’t want your children to have a life with absolutely no stress. The day will come that a stressful situation occurs and they will have no idea how to cope with it, which is cause for an extremely negative outcome.

As a mother you must show your children that stress does not have to control your life. Mother’s have a tendency to try and do it all; even when they know they are not capable. STOP! Make a point, each day, to reduce your stress levels. Eliminating just one stressful situation can make a world of difference in the way you feel and how your children handle stress as adults.

Aurelia Williams, certified Personal Life Coach and owner of Real Life Coaching. Are you looking to reduce your stress? Join our Stress Less program. Free Consultation included.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Aurelia_M._Williams

stress management : How To Avoid Summer Holiday Stresses

2006-07-24T23:54:00.000-07:00

It's summer time again and the masses are flying away for two weeks of sun, sea, sand and good times. Actually, this summer, we're even enjoying holidays on the UK's own beaches and waterways with temperatures reaching 36 degrees in places. We all look for different things from a holiday; some look for sheer relaxation, others live for two weeks of partying hard and sleeping it off the next day, and then there are those that appreciate culture and like to get off the beaten track. Whatever type of holidaymaker you are there is one thing that nobody likes – unnecessary stress! Who wants to feel like they need a holiday to recover from their holiday!?

The great news is that holiday stress can be avoided; you just need to set aside some time in advance to make preparations. There are now some fantastic websites that can help by providing advice on a number of potentially stressful areas; from packing effectively to advice on food, drink and transport in your chosen location. Just search for “holiday tips” in your search engine of choice, adding your destination to the "key words" if you're looking for specifically local advice. Don’t you just love the online world?

For those parents out there, fear not. Going away with your family does not have to be difficult. Some simple research and planning will ensure you are prepared for an enjoyable, safe and stress free family holiday. Your children will look back fondly on the holiday and hope to do something similar when it’s their turn to raise a family. The Mothercare website has a great section on summer travel which covers many essential areas. Useful topics include feeding on the move, baby and kids summer clothing tips, sun safety for babies and toddlers and travelling when pregnant.

For anyone who hasn’t decided on their ideal holiday destination, or needs a comprehensive guide, there are many online sites that can provide help, however an easy to carry guide in book form is usually the best option. Currently one of the best is the Dorling Kindersley’s series of Eyewitness Travel Guides. The DK travel guides are well illustrated and comprehensively cover all the general areas you would expect from food and drink, to entertainment, weather, cultural information and lots more. What a productive way to kill some time on the plane!

Wherever you decide to go just remember, a little time spent planning in advance will lead to a lot of relaxation and happy times in your chosen destination. Happy holidays!

About the author:
Andrew Regan is an online journalist who enjoys socialising at his local Edinburgh rugby club.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Andrew_Regan

stress management : Stress and the way we think

2006-07-18T22:56:00.000-07:00

Particularly in normal working life, much of our stress is subtle and occurs without obvious threat to survival. Most comes from things like work overload, conflicting priorities, inconsistent values, over-challenging deadlines, conflict with co-workers, unpleasant environments and so on. Not only do these reduce our performance as we divert mental effort into handling them, they can also cause a great deal of unhappiness.

We have already mentioned that the most common currently accepted definition of stress is something that is experienced when a person perceives that “demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize.”

Stress, a matter of judgment
In becoming stressed, people must therefore make two main judgments: firstly they must feel threatened by the situation, and secondly they must doubt that their capabilities and resources are sufficient to meet the threat.

How stressed someone feels depends on how much damage they think the situation can do them, and how closely their resources meet the demands of the situation. This sense of threat is rarely physical. It may, for example, involve perceived threats to our social standing, to other people’s opinions of us, to our career prospects or to our own deeply held values.

Just as with real threats to our survival, these perceived threats trigger the hormonal fight-or-flight response, with all of its negative consequences.

Building on this, this site offers a variety of approaches to managing stress. The navigation bar in the left hand column offers a range of practical methods for managing these stresses by tackling them at source. It also offers some powerful tools for changing your interpretation of stressful situations, thereby reducing the perception of threat.

Pulling these mechanisms together – the integrated stress response…
So far, we have presented the Fight-or-Flight response, the General Adaptation Syndrome, and our mental responses to stress as separate mechanisms. In fact, they can fit together into one response.

The key to this is that Hans Selye’s ‘Alarm Phase’ is the same thing as Walter Cannon’s Fight-or-Flight response.

We can therefore see that mental stress triggers the fight-or-flight response, and that if this stress is sustained for a long time, the end result might be exhaustion and burnout.

© Mind Tools Ltd, 1995-2006

stress management : What Stress Is... Definitions

2006-07-18T22:50:00.000-07:00

This is a dangerous topic!

There have been many different definitions of what stress is, whether used by psychologists, medics, management consultants or others. There seems to have been something approaching open warfare between competing definitions: Views have been passionately held and aggressively defended.

What complicates this is that intuitively we all feel that we know what stress is, as it is something we have all experienced. A definition should therefore be obvious…except that it is not.

Problems of Definition

One problem with a single definition is that stress is made up of many things: It is a family of related experiences, pathways, responses and outcomes caused by a range of different events or circumstances. Different people experience different aspects and identify with different definitions.

Hans Selye (one of the founding fathers of stress research) identified another part of this problem when he saw that different types of definition operate in different areas of knowledge. To a lawyer or a linguist, words have very precise, definite and fixed meanings. In other fields, ideas and definitions continue evolving as research and knowledge expands.

Selye’s view in 1956 was that “stress is not necessarily something bad – it all depends on how you take it. The stress of exhilarating, creative successful work is beneficial, while that of failure, humiliation or infection is detrimental.” Selye believed that the biochemical effects of stress would be experienced irrespective of whether the situation was positive or negative.

Since then, ideas have moved on. In particular, the harmful biochemical and long-term effects of stress have rarely been observed in positive situations.

The current consensus

Now, the most commonly accepted definition of stress (mainly attributed to Richard S Lazarus) is that stress is a condition or feeling experienced when a person perceives that demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize.

People feel little stress when they have the time, experience and resources to manage a situation. They feel great stress when they think they can't handle the demands put upon them. Stress is therefore a negative experience. And it is not an inevitable consequence of an event: It depends a lot on people's perceptions of a situation and their real ability to cope with it.

This is the main definition used by this site, although we also recognize that there is an intertwined instinctive stress response to unexpected events. The stress response inside us is therefore part instinct and part to do with the way we think.

stress management : Stress and Your Performance

2006-07-13T08:12:00.000-07:00

So far, we have seen that stress is a negative experience. We have seen the short-term negative effects that stress hormones can have on your performance, and have seen how stress can contribute to burnout.

The Positive Effects of Pressure

Sometimes, however, the pressures and demands that may cause stress can be positive in their effect. One example of this is where sportsmen and women flood their bodies with fight-or-flight adrenaline to power an explosive performance. Another example is where deadlines are used to motivate people who seem bored or unmotivated. We will discuss this briefly here, but throughout the rest of this site we see stress as a problem that needs to be solved.

And the Negative...

In most work situations jobs, our stress responses causes our performance to suffer. A calm, rational, controlled and sensitive approach is usually called for in dealing with most difficult problems at work: Our social inter-relationships are just too complex not to be damaged by an aggressive approach, while a passive and withdrawn response to stress means that we can fail to assert our rights when we should.

Before we look further at how to manage stress and our performance, it is important to look at the relationship between pressure and performance in a little more detail, first by looking at the idea of the “Inverted-U”, and second by looking at "Flow". This is the ideal state of concentration and focus that brings excellent performance.

Pressure & Performance – the Inverted U
The relationship between pressure and performance is explained in one of the oldest and most important ideas in stress management, the “Inverted-U” relationship between pressure and performance (see below). The Inverted-U relationship focuses on people’s performance of a task.

The left hand side of the graph is easy to explain for pragmatic reasons. When there is very little pressure on us to carry out an important task, there is little incentive for us to focus energy and attention on it. This is particularly the case when there may be other, more urgent, or more interesting, tasks competing for attention. As pressure on us increases, we enter the “area of best performance”. Here, we are able to focus on the task and perform well – there is enough pressure on us to focus our attention but not so much that it disrupts our performance.

© Mind Tools Ltd, 1995-2006

stress management : Stress and Your Health

2006-07-13T08:07:00.000-07:00

We've already looked at the survival benefits of the fight-or-flight response, as well as the problems this caused for our performance in work-related situations. We've also seen the negative “burnout” effect of exposure to long-term stress. These effects can also affect your health – either with direct physiological damage to your body, or with harmful behavioral effects.

The behavioral effects of stress

The behavioral effects of an over-stressed lifestyle are easy to explain. When under pressure, some people are more likely to drink heavily or smoke, as a way of getting immediate chemical relief from stress.

Others may have so much work to do that they do not exercise or eat properly. They may cut down on sleep, or may worry so much that they sleep badly. They may get so carried away with work and meeting daily pressures that they do not take time to see the doctor or dentist when they need to. All of these are likely to harm health.

The direct physiological effects of excessive stress are more complex. In some areas they are well understood, while in other areas, they are still subject to debate and further research.

stress and heart disease

The link between stress and heart disease is well-established. If stress is intense, and stress hormones are not ‘used up’ by physical activity, our raised heart rate and high blood pressure put tension on arteries and cause damage to them. As the body heals this damage, artery walls scar and thicken, which can reduce the supply of blood and oxygen to the heart.

This is where a fight-or-flight response can become lethal: Stress hormones accelerate the heart to increase the blood supply to muscles; however, blood vessels in the heart may have become so narrow that not enough blood reaches the heart to meet these demands. This can cause a heart attack.

other effects of stress

Stress has been also been found to damage the immune system, which explains why we catch more colds when we are stressed. It may intensify symptoms in diseases that have an autoimmune component, such as rheumatoid arthritis. It also seems to affect headaches and irritable bowel syndrome, and there are now suggestions of links between stress and cancer.

stress is also associated with mental health problems and, in particular, anxiety and depression. Here the relationship is fairly clear: the negative thinking that is associated with stress also contributes to these.

The direct effects of stress in other areas of health are still under debate. In some areas (for example in the formation of stomach ulcers) diseases traditionally associated with stress are now attributed to other causes.

Regular exercise can reduce your physiological reaction to stress. It also strengthens your heart and increases the blood supply to it, directly affecting your vulnerability to heart disease.

Although this site focuses mainly on stress and work performance, many of the tools and techniques within it will help you manage stresses that would otherwise adversely affect your health. However, if you suspect that you are prone to stress-related illness, or if you are in any doubt about the state of your health, you should consult appropriate medical advice immediately. Keep in mind that stress management is only part of any solution to stress-related illness.

© Mind Tools Ltd, 1995-2006

stress management : The Underlying Mechanisms...

2006-07-11T11:28:00.000-07:00

There are two types of instinctive stress response that are important to how we understand stress and stress management: the short-term “Fight-or-Flight” response and the long-term “General Adaptation Syndrome”. The first is a basic survival instinct, while the second is a long-term effect of exposure to stress.

A third mechanism comes from the way that we think and interpret the situations in which we find ourselves.

Actually, these three mechanisms can be part of the same stress response – we will initially look at them separately, and then show how they can fit together.

“Fight-or-Flight”
Some of the early work on stress (conducted by Walter Cannon in 1932) established the existence of the well-known fight-or-flight response. His work showed that when an animal experiences a shock or perceives a threat, it quickly releases hormones that help it to survive.

These hormones help us to run faster and fight harder. They increase heart rate and blood pressure, delivering more oxygen and blood sugar to power important muscles. They increase sweating in an effort to cool these muscles, and help them stay efficient. They divert blood away from the skin to the core of our bodies, reducing blood loss if we are damaged. And as well as this, these hormones focus our attention on the threat, to the exclusion of everything else. All of this significantly improves our ability to survive life-threatening events.

Power, but little control...

Unfortunately, this mobilization of the body for survival also has negative consequences. In this state, we are excitable, anxious, jumpy and irritable. This reduces our ability to work effectively with other people.

With trembling and a pounding heart, we can find it difficult to execute precise, controlled skills. And the intensity of our focus on survival interferes with our ability to make fine judgments based on drawing information from many sources. We find ourselves more accident-prone and less able to make good decisions.

It is easy to think that this fight-or-flight, or adrenaline, response is only triggered by obviously life-threatening danger. On the contrary, recent research shows that we experience the fight-or-flight response when simply encountering something unexpected.

The situation does not have to be dramatic: People experience this response when frustrated or interrupted, or when they experience a situation that is new or in some way challenging. This hormonal, fight-or-flight response is a normal part of everyday life and a part of everyday stress, although often with an intensity that is so low that we do not notice it.

There are very few situations in modern working life where this response is useful. Most situations benefit from a calm, rational, controlled and socially sensitive approach. Our Relaxation Techniques section explains a range of good techniques for keeping this fight-or-flight response under control.

The General Adaptation Syndrome and Burnout
Hans Selye took a different approach from Cannon. Starting with the observation that different diseases and injuries to the body seemed to cause the same symptoms in patients, he identified a general response (the “General Adaptation Syndrome”) with which the body reacts to a major stimulus. While the Fight-or-Flight response works in the very short term, the General Adaptation Syndrome operates in response to longer-term exposure to causes of stress.

Selye identified that when pushed to extremes, animals reacted in three stages:

First, in the Alarm Phase, they reacted to the stressor.
Next, in the Resistance Phase, the resistance to the stressor increased as the animal adapted to, and coped with, it. This phase lasted for as long as the animal could support this heightened resistance.
Finally, once resistance was exhausted, the animal entered the Exhaustion Phase, and resistance declined substantially.
Selye established this with many hundreds of experiments performed on laboratory rats. However, he also quoted research during World War II with bomber pilots. Once they had completed a few missions over enemy territory, these pilots usually settled down and performed well. After many missions, however, pilot fatigue would set in as they began to show “neurotic manifestations”.

In the business environment, this exhaustion is seen in “burnout”. The classic example comes from the Wall Street trading floor: by most people’s standards, life on a trading floor is stressful. Traders learn to adapt to the daily stressors of making big financial decisions, and of winning and losing large sums of money. In many cases, however, these stresses increase and fatigue starts to set in.

At the same time, as traders become successful and earn more and more money, their financial motivation to succeed can diminish. Ultimately, many traders experience burnout. We look at this in more detail in our section on burnout.

.© Mind Tools Ltd, 1995-2006

stress management : Understanding Stress & Stress Management

2006-07-11T11:23:00.000-07:00

This section of stress.mindtools.com helps you understand what stress is.

It defines stress and then explains the fundamental mechanisms behind it. Next, it shows you the effects that stress has on your health and on your performance. Finally, it introduces you to the different approaches to stress management used on this site.
This section helps you to understand the current state of research into stress. We look at this so that you understand how soundly some of these ideas have been examined.

It also introduces you to the fundamental principles behind stress management. While the techniques on this site cover the most common sources of stress, a good understanding of the fundamentals will help you to adapt these tools and create new ones to handle unique situations.

Explaining the fundamentals...

Much research has been conducted into stress over the last hundred years. Some of the theories are settled and accepted; others are still being researched and debated. This section helps you understand some of the key concepts and theories from current psychological research. These are the foundation on which this site and the tools and techniques within it have been designed.

We start by defining stress. We then look at the underlying mechanisms that cause it.

Stress and its impact on you...

Next, we look at the nature of stress and consider the relationships between stress and health, and between stress and work performance.

We see how stress can have very negative effects on your short- and long-term health, performance and career success, as well as on your personal happiness. This emphasizes the importance of good stress management.

Introducing stress management

Finally, we look at the three types of approach to managing stress:

action oriented (reducing stress by taking action);
perception oriented (dealing with attitudes and emotional responses to stress);
and survival oriented (living and coping with stresses that cannot be otherwise resolved).
The concepts introduced here lie behind the tools and techniques that you will encounter elsewhere on the site, helping you to manage stress constructively.

Note: This site focuses on the sort of stress people can expect to experience as a normal part of a business or public service career. It does not consider in any depth the intense stress experienced in life-threatening situations. Nor does it look at handling the effects of, for example, Depression or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. These are very real issues; however, they are outside the scope of this site.

© Mind Tools Ltd, 1995-2006

stress management : A Basic Outline To Cope With Stress!

2006-07-06T19:51:00.000-07:00

Your ears might have heard countless number of times "do this… and get away from stress," or, "do that…, and you will be totally relieved of stress,"turning you even more stressed out!!

…Stop scratching your head over what to be or what not to be done. I have compiled a definite set of action plan to cope with stress in life. I have tried it in the past and it really helped. In fact, I have used them time and again.

This might help you as well, simply read on.

1. Beware of your own warning signs. For, this could just be a sudden feeling of anxiety.

2. Consider what is really causing stress to you? You may be surprised to find the fact.

3. Think over what you could do to change the things. Find out how much of stress is indeed caused by you?

4. At times, due to excessive stress we fall into vicious trap of not eating properly and go to ill practices such as smoking and drinking to further worsen the situation. Instead, you should try and eat a balanced diet.

5. Eat complex carbohydrates rather than refined ones. This will really help you cope with mood swings.

6. Eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables and keep sugar and salt intake low.

7. Drink plenty of water, it will rehydrate your body. Try to keep caffeine consumption to the minimum.

8. Avoid nicotine or any other self prescribed drug.

9. Don't feel guilty about including a period of relaxation every day. We all need to turn off from time to time.

10. Do something that is creative and helps you relax. Say, listen music, do yoga, meditate, enjoy aromatherapy or any other stress busting exercise.

11. Learn to be more assertive and try to manage your time properly.

12. You can even consider attending a stress management training course.

13. Don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it.

These are certain steps that can truly help you cope with stress. It will work wonders for you. The choice is yours, if you wanna live with stress or acquire any of these good points to mar the stress out of your life.

by Ashish Jain

stress management : 7 Successful Stress Management Techniques

2006-07-06T19:47:00.000-07:00

Everyone needs successful stress management techniques. Easy to learn and easy to implement, you can use them for your own stress management or teach them to help others manage theirs.

Manage your stress and be a healthier, happier and more pleasant person to be around. Let's cut to the chase…

1. Make stress your friend

Acknowledge that stress is good and make stress your friend! Based on the body's natural "fight or flight" response, that burst of energy will enhance your performance at the right moment. I've yet to see a top sportsman totally relaxed before a big competition. Use stress wisely to push yourself that little bit harder when it counts most.

2. Stress is contagious

Stressed people sneeze stress germs indiscriminately and before you know it, you are infected with stress germs too!

Protect yourself from stress germs by recognising stress in others and limiting your contact with them. Or if you've got the inclination, play stress doctor and teach them how to better manage their stress.

3. Copy good stress managers

When people around are losing their head, which keeps calm? What are they doing differently? What is their attitude? What language do they use? Are they trained and experienced?

Figure it out from afar or sit them down for a chat. Learn from the best stress managers and copy what they do.

4. Use heavy breathing.

You can trick your body into relaxing by using heavy breathing. Breathe in slowly for a count of 7 then breathe out for a count of 11. Repeat the 7-11 breathing until your heart rate slows down, your sweaty palms dry off and things start to feel more normal.

5. Stop stress thought trains

It is possible to tangle yourself up in a stress knot all by yourself. "If this happens, then that might happen and then we're all up the creek!" Most of these things never happen, so why waste all that energy worrying needlessly?

Give stress thought-trains the red light and stop them in their tracks. Okay so it might go wrong – how likely is that, and what can you do to prevent it?

6. Know your stress hot spots and trigger points

Presentations, interviews, meetings, giving difficult feedback, tight deadlines……. My heart rate is cranking up just writing these down!

Make your own list of stress trigger points or hot spots. Be specific. Is it only presentations to a certain audience that get you worked up? Does one project cause more stress than another? Did you drink too much coffee?

Knowing what causes you stress is powerful information, as you can take action to make it less stressful. Do you need to learn some new skills? Do you need extra resources? Do you need to switch to de-caffeinated coffee?

7. Eat, drink, sleep and be merry!

Lack of sleep, poor diet and no exercise wreaks havoc on our body and mind. Kind of obvious, but worth mentioning as it's often ignored as a stress management technique. Listen to your mother and don't burn the candle at both ends!

And those are the 7 successful stress management techniques! Take time to learn them, use them and teach them, and be a great stress manager.

by Lyndsay Swinton

stress management : How Can I Manage Stress Better?

2006-07-03T01:37:00.000-07:00

Identifying unrelieved stress and being aware of its effect on our lives is not sufficient for reducing its harmful effects. Just as there are many sources of stress, there are many possibilities for its management. However, all require work toward change: changing the source of stress and/or changing your reaction to it. How do you proceed?

1. Become aware of your stressors and your emotional and physical reactions.
Notice your distress. Don't ignore it. Don't gloss over your problems.
Determine what events distress you. What are you telling yourself about meaning of these events?
Determine how your body responds to the stress. Do you become nervous or physically upset? If so, in what specific ways?

2. Recognize what you can change.
Can you change your stressors by avoiding or eliminating them completely?
Can you reduce their intensity (manage them over a period of time instead of on a daily or weekly basis)?
Can you shorten your exposure to stress (take a break, leave the physical premises)?
Can you devote the time and energy necessary to making a change (goal setting, time management techniques, and delayed gratification strategies may be helpful here)?

3. Reduce the intensity of your emotional reactions to stress.
The stress reaction is triggered by your perception of danger...physical danger and/or emotional danger. Are you viewing your stressors in exaggerated terms and/or taking a difficult situation and making it a disaster?
Are you expecting to please everyone?
Are you overreacting and viewing things as absolutely critical and urgent? Do you feel you must always prevail in every situation?
Work at adopting more moderate views; try to see the stress as something you can cope with rather than something that overpowers you.
Try to temper your excess emotions. Put the situation in perspective. Do not labor on the negative aspects and the "what if's."

4. Learn to moderate your physical reactions to stress.
Slow, deep breathing will bring your heart rate and respiration back to normal.
Relaxation techniques can reduce muscle tension. Electronic biofeedback can help you gain voluntary control over such things as muscle tension, heart reate, and blood pressure.
Medications, when prescribed by a physician, can help in the short term in moderating your physical reactions. However, they alone are not the answer. Learning to moderate these reactions on your own is a preferable long-term solution.

5. Build your physical reserves.
Exercise for cardiovascular fitness three to four times a week (moderate, prolonged rhythmic exercise is best, such as walking, swimming, cycling, or jogging).
Eat well-balanced, nutritious meals.
Maintain your ideal weight.
Avoid nicotine, excessive caffeine, and other stimulants.
Mix leisure with work. Take breaks and get away when you can.
Get enough sleep. Be as consistent with your sleep schedule as possible.

6. Maintain your emotional reserves.
Develop some mutually supportive friendships/relationships.
Pursue realistic goals which are meaningful to you, rather than goals others have for you that you do not share.
Expect some frustrations, failures, and sorrows.
Always be kind and gentle with yourself -- be a friend to yourself.

Copyright © 2005
by IVF.com, Atlanta, GA, USA.

stress management : How Can I Eliminate Stress from My Life?

2006-07-03T01:33:00.000-07:00

As we have seen, positive stress adds anticipation and excitement to life, and we all thrive under a certain amount of stress. Deadlines, competitions, confrontations, and even our frustrations and sorrows add depth and enrichment to our lives. Our goal is not to eliminate stress but to learn how to manage it and how to use it to help us. Insufficient stress acts as a depressant and may leave us feeling bored or dejected; on the other hand, excessive stress may leave us feeling "tied up in knots." What we need to do is find the optimal level of stress which will individually motivate but not overwhelm each of us.

How Can I Tell What is Optimal Stress for Me?
There is no single level of stress that is optimal for all people. We are all individual creatures with unique requirements. As such, what is distressing to one may be a joy to another. And even when we agree that a particular event is distressing, we are likely to differ in our physiological and psychological responses to it.

The person who loves to arbitrate disputes and moves from job site to job site would be stressed in a job which was stable and routine, whereas the person who thrives under stable conditions would very likely be stressed on a job where duties were highly varied. Also, our personal stress requirements and the amount which we can tolerate before we become distressed changes with our ages.

It has been found that most illness is related to unrelieved stress. If you are experiencing stress symptoms, you have gone beyond your optimal stress level; you need to reduce the stress in your life and/or improve your ability to manage it.

Copyright © 2005
by IVF.com, Atlanta, GA, USA.

stress management : Career Goals and Stress

2006-06-26T00:12:00.000-07:00

"Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time."
Max Ehrmann
"Desiderata"

When it comes to career success, direction and focus are crucial. But beyond direction, how effective is it to have goals?

Requirements for Effective Goal-Setting

Much has been researched and written about the effectiveness of goal setting.
The findings say that :

 Difficult goals lead to higher performance than easy goals.
 Difficult goals lead to higher performance than "do your best" goals.
 Setting specific goals results in more precise performance than setting "do your best" goals.

Just having the goal is not enough. You must develop a strategy to make it happen. What are the activities you need to perform everyday? Plan those activities, but also stay alert and open to new ways to achieve your goals as they present themselves.

There are three critical requirements that dictate how well goal setting will work:

 Commitment to your goals.
 Periodically reviewing where you stand regarding goal achievement (getting feedback).
 Belief that you can achieve your goals (self-confidence and self-efficacy).

You need to genuinely desire the goals you set. If you don't like your job and don't want to be there, then it is difficult to be committed. It's also crucial that you believe that you can achieve the goals you set for yourself.

Stress and Goal Setting

Goals create striving which results in more stress. So how do you deal with this stress?
Since I am notoriously poor at pacing myself, I created a structure to help me with this process. My plan includes eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly, but also not scheduling clients on Fridays. I never work past 8 p.m. I plan vacations and weekends away, and schedule social events with friends at least once per week. Part of my stress management program also involves not over-booking myself with social activities so that I have time to retreat for rest and recuperation.

As I approached graduation from college many years ago, I wrote a poem about goal setting which I titled, "My Brook and I."

I remember the brook
streaming though the woods;
spending hours around it,
building forts, wiping the mud off me with skunk cabbage.

I remember the brook on sunny days;
Water babbling over stones and rocks, pieces of wood;
making the water ripple the way it did.

I wondered what happened to the brook
traveling away from my yard.
I had a goal for my brook
to flow to the ocean...but then what?

I see goals for myself thwarted, rearranged, fulfilled.
But the goal for my brook; What happened to it?

Deepak Chopra, in The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, says that if we want to have a successful career, we should first center ourselves and then release our intentions (our career goals) to the universe. We should not be attached to the way these goals develop, or to the exact outcome, but leave the details to the universe. We can get the same results through effort and trying, he says, but the result is stress, which can lead to heart attacks and other physical illnesses.

Sometimes we focus more on our unhappiness with our present situation, than on what we want to achieve. Chopra says that we should accept where we are now, be fully present in the moment and concentrate on our deepest intentions (goals).

Goals should be difficult, but achievable with persistent effort. Goals that are too extreme, such as doubling your income in one year, can only discourage you.
Goals work because you persist and focus your efforts in a specific direction.
Without that direction, we can find ourselves floating through our lives, more at the mercy of outside forces that are not devoted to our welfare or success. But we can manage our goals in a way that does not create undo stress by not being attached to the exact way they are achieved.

Having set goals the brook and I build toward them. The brook unable to know...
about a pipe in the ground, a seeping marsh, a dam.
Myself not knowing the course I will follow.
Knowing what I want, yet finding it hard to grasp.

I remember years of competition, of struggle, of acceptance.
Then discovering what is real, important;myself, my friends, expression;
a soft kitten purring on my lap; peace.

Being more than a doctor, a lawyer.
Knowing comfort, relaxation. Being myself.

Approaching the completion of one goal, I set new ones.
But fulfilling them means going away, sorrow.
Like the brook moves on, streams to the river... the ocean.
Saying goodbye to familiar things, friends.
Facing a reoccurrence of similar past memories, painful.

Conclusion

In my business I set performance goals for myself every year. I also set goals for relationships, finances, home, physical and mental health, as well as spiritual development. I can attest to the fact that the more specific the goal, and the more frequently I review that goal and focus on it, the more likely I am to meet that goal. It helps to write down your goals, read through them periodically, visualize them and keep a picture journal that represents the achievement of those goals. But it also helps to listen to the feedback from the universe, and make adjustments to those goals when necessary. We should have a career plan, but be flexible with how it unfolds.

by Brenda Smith, EQ Coach

stress management : Career Enhancement Tools For Stress Management

2006-06-26T00:08:00.000-07:00

No matter what your career, you will periodically face stressful situations from time to time. Handling stress in the workplace is challenging. Those that manage it well will be top candidates for career advancement.

Stress management requires skills and techniques. These are learned over time in a work environment or through career enhancement courses.

The first effective step in stress management is to "carve" away at it a little at a time. Solving stress issues with a "rip the bandaid off" approach more often than not creates even more stress. Take a step-at-at time approach to solving the issue.

Second, most stress at the office starts at home. Take a look at your personal life. If you can narrow down the issues there as to what is causing the stress you can them begin to work it out slowly. Once things are running better at home they will be better in your work arena, too.

Third, your job and career can be a stressful one. If it is, decide either how you can handle the stress better or think of changing careers. You may need outside help with this decision and this is where a lot of other career enhancement tools come in to play: by providing help and information for this type of decision.

It's also important to know many people experience severe stress in their careers. You are not alone. Career-minded individuals who are focused on success tend to stick with their jobs over the long haul. In order to advance and prove your value when the next round of promotions come, you must be able to deal with stress effectively.

Finally, a few quick tools to help with stress:

1. Avoid Stress

Stay focused on your work. Exceed expectations by demanding excellence from yourself even if no one else does.

2. Be Organized

Keep a day planner and use it!

3. Talk Less

Professionals focus on doing their work. Gossip creates stress. Playing "he said she said" is not only tacky but dangerous. Danger will cause stress.

These little tools will help while you look for larger and better solutions in handling stress on your way to career advancement. There is also career enhancement information for your use at Career Enhancement Basics.

by Joyce Jackson

stress management : Career Enhancement Tools

2006-06-22T01:26:00.000-07:00

stress management : How To Reduce Your Stress Like The Pros Do

2006-06-22T01:11:00.000-07:00

Stress is a huge problem especially for people in western societies. There are three types of stressors:

- Physical
- Psychological
- Environmental or Social.
The first group of stressors affect physically, for example : hunger ,hot and cold, illness, pain and injury, viruses, lack of sleep.

The Psychological affects your mind. Examples are : loneliness, fear, death of a relative or friend, threats to security, rejection, depression.

The Social occurs on your environment and they are such as: unpleasant work, extreme weather, economic depression, family environment and friends.

The Job stress is the most important that dominates our lives. It's high unlikely to find someone without stress.
Some of the symptoms of stress are :

Tension, anxiety and confusion.
Withdrawal and depression.
Feelings of isolation and alienation.
Boredom and job dissatisfaction.
Low self-esteem.

So how you can reduce your stress?
One factor which is diminished is the nutrition. Most of us eat junk food, like fast food , snacks , refreshments which contain a lot of sugar e.t.c. That kind of food will cause illness sooner or later and there is no way you can reduce your stress.

Another factor is smoking especially when is compined with caffeine. These two triggers the stress response.

Medical research has proved that during the stress situations particular vitamins are needed to maintain proper functioning nervous and endocrine systems.

Deficiencies of vitamins B-1, B-5 and B-6, can lead to anxiety reactions, depression, insomnia, and cardiovascular weaknesses, while vitamins B-2 and niacin deficiencies have been known to cause stomach irritability and muscular weakness. Their depletion lowers your tolerance to, and ability to cope with stressors.

One widely popular theory is that the body's need for vitamin C increases when under stress.

The reasons are two:
Vitamin C is stored in the adrenal gland. After the gland releases adrenal hormones as part of the stress response, the supply needs to be replenished. The production of adrenal hormones is accelerated by vitamin C.

Vitamin C is also needed for the synthesis of the thyroid hormone. Thyroid hormone production regulates the body's metabolism. Thus, when the metabolic rate increases under stress, so does the need for vitamin C.

Where do you find these vitamins, particularly B and C?
The B vitamins are amply supplied in protein rich foods.
Vitamin C is found in : citrus fruits, broccoli ,strawberries, tomatoes, green peppers

You may want to give special attention to foods that provide those vitamins affected by stress, but not to the extent that you neglect other important nutrients.

Relaxation is the best tool you could use in order to reduce stress. You can achive relaxation by following the techniques below:

- meditation
- yoga
- hypnosis
- deep breathing
- Progressive relaxation

Relaxation essentially means paying attention to something calming. For example, you can concentrate on your breath and your body. Your aim is to calm your mind and lower your metabolism.

Stress management is a lifelong process. With a successful stress management program, you'll note positive changes:

-In your own health and well-being .
-In your relations with family, friends and coworkers .
-In your performance your energy your concentration your ability to cope your efficiency

by Christos Varsamis

stress management : Choose a Stressless Lifestyle!

2006-06-16T22:52:00.000-07:00

Choose a stressless lifestyle? That's very easy to say.
Yet it is so important. Our health should be our # 1 priority.
We all know that, and still we keep hearing about yet another
work mate who is now on the sick-list for several weeks to come.

The book stores are filled with books on stress management.
But, should we manage stress or reduce it? Stress and burnout
are two very common signs of a lifestyle that needs to be
changed. The changes must take place on three levels:

1. Our society
2. Our place of work
3. Our personal life

The third level, our private life, is the one that we can change
most easily. But we must also make efforts to bring about
changes on our job/school and keep claiming that society
takes its responsibility for our health. Of course, there are
no easy solutions.

Back to our question: Should we manage or reduce stress?
Personally I do not like the word "manage". It doesn't have
a good ring to it. To me, manage sounds like trying to handle
a situation by working very hard. I close my eyes and see this
tired out woman carrying heavy shopping bags up the stairs.
"I'll manage", she says as her heart pounds heavily. I don't
want to be that woman. And maybe that is not at all what the
stress experts mean when they use the word "manage". But,
still, I prefer the word "reduce".

On the personal level we can do a lot to reduce stress. There is
also stress that cannot be totally reduced. Then we need to learn
how to manage it. But watch out, because your boss might
prefer that you manage when you could reduce! It has become
a virtue to manage stress in our modern society. Don't try to
be the perfect employee, the perfect partner or the perfect
parent. When you can reduce, don't manage. Start with reducing
the unnecessary stress, then learn to manage the necessary in
a way that is good for your general health.

by Matt Moncrieff

stress management : Combat Stress

2006-06-16T22:46:00.000-07:00

Tips To Ease Tension

We all know what it feels like to get emotionally mangled by the weight of day to day struggles. Our bosses yell at us, our spouses yell at us - it feels like an endless circle where getting ahead at the office can leave us with so little energy for home that home turns into battlefield that leaves us with no energy for work.

Is mere survival all you can ask of a hassle-filled world ? No. Stress, in fact is not only something you can beat, but a force you can turn into an advantage. You don't have to run from it, and you don't need any special stress management. The following tested tips show you how to combat stress - and win.

Work On Your Attitude.

The most important point you can make about stress is that in most cases it's not what's out there that's the problem, its how you react to it. Changing the way you think can change a life of stress and discomfort to a life of challenge and excitement.

Think About Something Else.

Distract yourself - to break the thoughts that are producing your stress, you must think about something else. Anything will do, as long as it breaks the chain of bad thoughts.

Think Positive.

Thinking about a success or a past achievement is excellent when you're feeling uncertain, remind yourself of all the good things you've achieved in the past, and tell yourself that you're going to do the same in the future.

Take A Mental Vacation

Imagine yourself lying in warm sand on a beach in the Bahamas, a cool wind blowing off the ocean, the surf rolling in quietly in the background. It's amazing what this can do to help you relax.

Take Deap Breaths

Belly breathing is what some people call it. It's an old and useful trick for defeating anxiety and nervousness. The basic idea is act calm, be calm. When your experiencing stress, your pulse races and you start breathing very quickly. Forcing yourself to breathe slowly convinces the body that the stress has gone, whether it has or not.

The correct way to breathe is abdominally - feeling the stomach expand as you inhale, and collapse as you exhale.

Stretch\

A lot of us respond to stress with muscle tension. Ideally, we'd prefer to eliminate the cause of the stress, but stretching the muscles at least reduces the sensation of stress - the muscles relax, and we feel less tense.

Take A Hot Soak

Hot water works by defeating the stress response. When we're tense and anxious, blood flow to our extremities is reduced. Hot water restores circulation, convincing the body it's safe and that it's ok to relax. Cold water must not be used because it has the opposite effect, and will increase tension.

An office alternative might be running hot water over your hands until you feel the tension starting to drain away.

Excercise.

Regular exercise will burn off some of the stress chemicals tension produces, and exercise will tire your musles - a tired muscle is a relaxed muscle.

Listen To Music

Music soothes as perhaps nothing else does. You can use it in two basic ways - to relax or to inspire. New - Age music is very relaxing.

by John Moore

stress management : 5 Steps to Stress-Guard Your Family

2006-06-13T02:01:00.000-07:00

5 Tips to Stress-Guard Your Family

Part 1: Recognize the importance of family stress management

Joe and Emily live in Southern California with their three young children. Both work and must commute 2 hours daily on busy freeways, often not getting home until 7:30 PM, exhausted and depleted.

Stressed, they have little patience for the antics of their
young children. This results in frequent shouting matches, defiance on the part of the children, and escalating family tension.

As the above illustrates, stress is often an underlying cause of anger in family members. Sometimes the stress is caused by events outside of the family which family members bring into the home. In other cases, the behavior of family members creates stress and tension in the home. In either case, it becomes a problem when parents find themselves constantly yelling at their children or disagreeing with
each other on parenting strategies.

In the meantime their children continue to do what they please—or continue bickering and fighting with each other. When not addressed, stress becomes a major factor in marital unhappiness and, ultimately, divorce.

Stress and family members Joe and Emily both suffered individual stress symptoms. These included fatigue, irritability, angry outbursts, headaches and a discontent with their lives. They began feeling increasingly distant from each other.

Their children were also stressed-out; tired, irritable, cranky, and demanding of attention. They often fought with each other and deliberately did things to get each other in trouble with their parents.

Symptoms of family stress

Just as individuals can become overloaded and stressed-out, so can families. To understand how this can happen, we must remember that families such as Joe and Emily's are the basic building block of our society (like most societies).

Part 2: How empathy reduces family anger

Families consist of two or more people with shared goals and values and with a long term commitment to each other. Families are supposed to help children learn how to become responsible, successful, happy, and well-adjusted adults.
When this no longer happens due to stress, the family unit becomes dysfunctional —as the family no longer serves its purpose fully, easily or consistently.

Individual isolation

We can recognize the dysfunctional family by noting that parents and children no longer turn to each other for support, encouragement, guidance, or even love. Such family members may continue to live in the same house—but not feel
emotionally attached to each other. They fail to view their family as a warm place to retreat to from the stresses and demands of the outside world.

Stress-Guard your family

Tip #1- Teach your children "resiliency" —the ability to handle stress and respond more positively to difficult events. Help your children practice "bouncing back" by emphasizing the importance of having friends and being a friend; setting new goals and plans to reach them, and believing in themselves.

Tip #2– Commit to stable family rituals.

Have a way to leave each other in the morning, and to re-connect in the evening; have a Sunday morning ritual or a Friday night family pizza ritual. Rituals create a sense of security and predictability —both excellent stress buffers.

Tip #3- Model and teach your children conflict resolution skills.

Children learn how to handle conflict by watching their
parents. All couples have conflicts; better parents model good conflict resolution skills for their children. These skills include compromise, calm discussion, and focus on problem-solving. Encourage your children to find a way to
resolve their own conflicts rather than jumping in and punishing one or the other child whom you think (perhaps, wrongly) is the troublemaker.

Tip #4– Introduce a family "better health" plan.

This includes proper nutrition, exercise, and adequate sleep each night. The family may also want to look at time management—and explore how how better time management might reduce both personal and family stress.

Tip #5- Minimize criticism and take time to support each other each day.

Excessive criticism is extremely harmful to both children and parents. Emotional support by family members is an extremely important buffer to family stress.

by Johann Erickson

stress management ; 7 Solutions for Practical Stress Management

2006-06-13T01:55:00.000-07:00

Stress is amazingly persistent, even seductive. We get used to feeling tight and tense. Though positive thinking has its place, unless it is backed up by practical wisdom it tends to get overwhelmed and fade away.

Here are seven proven ways you can get a new handle on stress.

1. Control your REACTION with these 7 simple words.

The first step is to remain alert when people try to weigh you down with their nervous comments and attitudes.

The next step is to reply to the attempted attack: "I have nothing to say to that." This cuts off the contagious effect of the stressful assault. It blocks the tendency to accept and imitate depressing words from others. Your nature does not fall down to the level of the anxious remark, but remains high above it.

Negative people WANT to get you involved with their defeat, and this is a major method they use to do it. Your reply: 'I have nothing to say to that' prevents them from drawing you in as their victim.

Inner life author Vernon Howard writes, "An attitude of defeat in another person cannot touch you unless you carelessly accept it as yours. And there is no need at all for you to accept it. A quiet refusal to enter the battlefield is the perfect reply.'

2. Let go of painful grudges by living in the present moment.

Hating someone is like drinking poison yourself and hoping the offender will die from it. We must grant to others the same opportunity for change or we shut the door on our own development. Therefore, it is our responsibility to release those who have caused harm to the providence of a higher power, while simultaneously realizing they will be held accountable for their actions.

The secret to success without stress is to realize your newness in the present moment many times each day. NOW is so alive and energetic, so tangible and real, that painful grudges cannot "live" here. Grudges can only stay around when fueled by unaware and unproductive mental visits to the past.

3. Observe negative thoughts with the aim of understanding them, instead of trying to suppress them.

Self-Observation is a master key to stress-free living. Instead of claiming stressful thoughts and feelings as our own, we can observe and understand them. This understanding sets us free!

Self-observation is practical spirituality at its best. Marcus Aurelius, the ancient Roman Emperor said, "Those who do not observe the movement of their own minds must of necessity be unhappy." (Marcus Aurelius)

4. Pause often and enjoy a deep breath.

People are often so tense with stressful thinking they barely breathe!

We can do something highly beneficial and intelligent. We can take brief breaks many times a day, even if for only 30 seconds! We can pause, take a deep breathe, look around and relax.

Suppose you feel tempted to give in to someone when you know you should not. Instantly fall into internal relaxation. Breathe away your tensions. Your habitually anxious and resentful attitudes will fall away like leaves from a tree. They will be replaced by a clear mind that reveals what is best for you.

5. Realize you have far better things to think about!

The old way of thinking has its favorite grooves; for example, negative mental film clips that pull you away from the present moment. When you detect yourself involved in one of these internal movies, pause and say to yourself, 'There are better things to think about.' This instantly snaps the spell and moves you to higher ground.

You'll feel much less stress and an abundance of new vitality as you reclaim the energy once consumed by these negative mental film clips. Suddenly wake up and come home to yourself by enthusiastically declaring, "There are better things to think about!"

6. Stay clear of negative zones of influence.

Our society is rampant with negative influences. They come from so many places, like frantic people, advertising and untruthful politics. Never forget: Unaware people want you to vibrate on their stressful level.

It is your duty, your noble mission in life, to live in harmony with your Heart -- YOUR AUTHENTIC AND INTELLIGENT SELF. Though physically you may be in a stressful place, once you connect with your Heart you have the spiritual power to stay free inwardly. No law says you must fall under stressful zones of influence.

7. Refuse to make stressful or angry comments.

Stress spills out into the world. It is like a snowball rolling down a hill that starts small then gathers size and momentum. Therefore, we must stop stress in its infancy, and the best place to do so is BEFORE it leaves the mouth.

Here's a wonderful way to dissolve stress in your life:

This insight exercise is called SELF-SURPRISE.Here's how it works. You are about to say something angry or hurtful to another person. The statement has left the dock – it is traveling at the speed of light toward the mouth. Your AWARENESS steps in and a higher choice is made; a switch is thrown and you do not say what you were about to say. You say something helpful and cheerful instead!

You'll instantly feel the trueness of practicing this exercise. Anger or stress did not succeed in dictating your speech. Your power of choice lifted you above its arrows. This is not the practice of phony niceness. It is the expression of true strength and authentic self-command It can only occur when your awareness is active, like the presence of a lighted lodge in the dark forest.

Conclusion:

The one supreme power that guarantees personal happiness is personal right thinking. This "right thinking" is based on practical wisdom. Try these seven methods and you'll see a huge difference in your life. You'll have LOTS of energy!

by Tom Russell

stress management : Counseling Services

2006-06-09T02:13:00.000-07:00

Stress Management

Introduction
Stress is a part of day to day living. As college students you may experience stress meeting academic demands, adjusting to a new living environment, or developing friendships. The stress you experience is not necessarily harmful. Mild forms of stress can act as a motivator and energizer. However, if your stress level is too high, medical and social problems can result.

What is Stress?
Although we tend to think of stress as caused by external events, events in themselves are not stressful. Rather, it is the way in which we interpret and react to events that makes them stressful. People differ dramatically in the type of events they interpret as stressful and the way in which they respond to such stress. For example, speaking in public can be stressful for some people and relaxing for others.

Symptoms of Stress
There are several signs and symptoms that you may notice when you are experiencing stress. These signs and symptoms fall into four categories: Feelings, Thoughts, Behavior, and Physiology. When you are under stress, you may experience one or more of the following:

Feelings

Feeling anxious.
Feeling scared.
Feeling irritable.
Feeling moody.
Thoughts
Low self-esteem.
Fear of failure.
Inability to concentrate.
Embarrassing easily.
Worrying about the future.
Preoccupation with thoughts/tasks.
Forgetfulness.
Behavior
Stuttering and other speech difficulties.
Crying for no apparent reason.
Acting impulsively.
Startling easily.
Laughing in a high pitch and nervous tone of voice.
Grinding your teeth.
Increasing smoking.
Increasing use of drugs and alcohol.
Being accident prone.
Losing your appetite or overeating.
Physiology
Perspiration /sweaty hands.
Increased heart beat.
Trembling.
Nervous ticks.
Dryness of throat and mouth.
Tiring easily.
Urinating frequently.
Sleeping problems.
Diarrhea / indigestion / vomiting.
Butterflies in stomach.
Headaches.
Premenstrual tension.
Pain in the neck and or lower back.
Loss of appetite or overeating.
Susceptibility to illness.

© 2006, Student Affairs - University at Buffalo

stress management : Acknowledging a problem with work-related stress.

2006-06-09T02:04:00.000-07:00

Hard to drag yourself out of bed to your nine-to-five? Fantasies of throwing that laptop out the window still clogging up your mind? You may be suffering from work-related stress.

What is it?
Stress is the reaction people have to excessive demands or pressures. You may find it difficult to cope with tasks, responsibilities or other types of job related pressures or you might get anxious trying to meet such demands. It isn't just bad for your work, it could also be affecting your health.

What causes it?

Stress may be caused or amplified by a number of factors including:

* Bad relations with other work colleagues

* Long and/or irregular hours

* Too little work

* Repetitive work/boredom and lack of job satisfaction

* Working alone

* Job insecurity

* Job or organizational change

* Low pay

* Jobs with heavy emotional demands

* Poor working environments such as excessive noise, the presence of dangerous materials, over-crowding, poor facilities, or extremities of temperature or humidity

* Increased accessibility--the use of mobile phones, pagers and emails means the boss can always chase up work.

The situation can be made worse if there is bullying, conflict, harassment, and indifference to staff needs. Where the organization lacks leadership, work arrangements, deadlines and demands are set without consultation and seem to be inflexible, this leads to a high degree of uncertainty about direction, purpose, objective and job responsibilities amongst staff.

http://www.allbusiness.com/periodicals/article/867540-1.html

stress management ; An Article On Stress Management

2006-06-05T01:42:00.000-07:00

In this, an article on stress management I am going to give you a fast an easy technique for managing your everyday stress.

We are living in a world that is filled with stress and it doesn't appear that it's going to stop anytime soon. There is no longer a 40 hour work week. Parents are busier than ever keeping up with the wild schedules of their children, ferrying them from sports to music lessons and then playdates etc. If you have more than one child the pace you keep is staggering. That is why an article on stress management can be a life saver

Those of us who are either single or have children that are grown and gone don't have it much easier. Let's face it, keeping up with all the opportunities and information we are presented with can be overwhelming. We often don't want to miss a minute of it.

With the amount of stress we deal with on a daily level, most everyone would readily agree that a program of stress management is necessary for survival. It has been demonstrated that both regular exercise and a daily practice of meditation are greatly beneficial in reducing stress and improving health You certainly won't get any argument from me regarding making an effort to include both of these strategies into your life.

What I would like to address here is a stress management technique for those moments when you really need to take the stress down a notch immediately. When you are stuck in traffic and running late or you have just had an argument with a spouse or a child. Then of course there are just the everyday mini-meltdowns at the office and you could use some immediate relief.

The next time you are faced with this type of situation I encourage you to breathe. That's right breathing is one of the best stress management techniques there is. I am not talking about the normal in and out shallow breath we are familiar with. I am talking about a specific breathing technique.

Here is the basic technique:

1. Sit comfortably, on the floor or in a chair. (Or your car if needed).
You will be breathing in one nostril and then out the other

2. Using your index finger (either one) to hold the right nostril closed,
breathe in with your left nostril to a count of six. Hold the breath for
three counts.

3. Now, closing off the left nostril with your finger, release the right nostril
and breathe out to the count of six.

4. Still closing your left nostril, breathe in with your right nostril for six
counts. Hold for three counts.

5. Then, closing off the right nostril, release the left nostril and breathe out
to a count of six.

6. Repeat the entire sequence two to five times.

By alternating the flow of air through your nostrils you feel an incredible sense of
relaxation. It can be done virtually anywhere and is a wonderful stress management
technique that can bring relief in a matter of a few minutes.

An article on stress management, while seemingly too simple, can be just the handy
tool that helps you keep your stress in check. That, in turn helps you to be a better
husband, wife, employee, and parent. You will be able to cope with many of the small things that used to be great annoyances. All in all life gets a little easier. Your child or significant other will also reap the benefit of this easy technique. Give it a try and see for yourself.

by Maureen Staiano

stress management : Ways to Reduce Stress and Strengthen Your Immune System

2006-06-05T01:33:00.000-07:00

Stress seems to have become a constant factor in today's fast-paced society. If left unchecked, it can wreak havoc upon our health. Learning how to effectively manage stress can mean the difference between being robust and full of life, or becoming susceptible to illness and disease. Stress can weaken the immune system and accelerate the aging process. The ability to relax and rejuvenate promotes wellness, vitality and longevity.

A healthy immune system regulates our body's healing process and protects it against infections and diseases. When stress compromises our immune function, it can result in colds, flu, fatigue, cardiovascular disorders and premature aging. Stress increases heart rate, blood pressure, glucose levels, adrenaline, cortisol, free radicals and oxidative damage. This initiates the "fight or flight" response, places undue strain upon the heart, and can also increase the feelings of anxiety and depression.

Protecting the immune system is a vital part of living longer, feeling younger and being healthy. Here are ten natural healthy ways to reduce stress, boost your immune system and slow down the hands of time.

Walking and Physical Activity (dancing, gardening, cycling, swimming, weight-lifting, etc.). Regular exercise and physical activity strengthens your immune system, cardiovascular system, heart, muscles and bones. It also stimulates the release of endorphins, improves mental functioning, concentration/attention and cognitive performance, and lowers cholesterol, blood pressure, cortisol and other stress hormones. Three 10-minute workout sessions during the day are just as effective as one 30-minute workout, and a lot easier to fit into a busy schedule.

Yoga and Stretching. The slow movements and controlled postures of yoga improves muscle strength, flexibility, range of motion, balance, breathing, blood circulation and promotes mental focus, clarity and calmness. Stretching also reduces mental and physical stress, tension and anxiety, promotes good sleep, lowers blood pressure and slows down your heart rate.

Hand Hygiene. The most effective measure in preventing the spread of microorganisms that cause infections is good hand hygiene. Washing your hands with soap and water as soon as you come home, and always before you eat, greatly reduces your exposure to bacterial and viral infections. In case you cannot wash with soap and water when you are away from home, carry some alcohol-based hand wipes with you to control microbial exposure and transmission.

Laughter and Humor. There is truth to the saying that laughter is the best medicine. Laughing reduces stress hormones like adrenaline (epinephrine) and cortisol. It also benefits your immune system by increasing the number and activity of Natural Killer T-cells. These cells act as the first line of defense against viral attacks and damaged cells. Find the humor in things and engage in activities that make you laugh to increase your immune function and disease resistance.

High Nutrient Diet. Eat foods rich in antioxidants (like vitamins A, C, E and lycopene), omega-3 fatty acids, and folate. Antioxidants fight and neutralize free radicals, which are molecules that damage cells and cause heart disease, cancer and premature aging. Omega-3 fatty acids (a polyunsaturated fat) have anti-inflammatory, cardiovascular-enhancing and immune-regulating properties. It is helpful in preventing and controlling high cholesterol, hypertension, heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, depression, inflammatory and auto-immune disorders. Folate prevents age-related cognitive decline, damage to blood vessels and brain cells by lowering homocysteine levels. It also ensures DNA integrity (important as we age and when pregnant) and promotes healthy red blood cells. Excellent food sources for these nutrients are as follows.

Antioxidants - pumpkin, sweet potatoes, carrots, kale, grapefruit (red and pink), blueberries, strawberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, oranges, peppers (red and green), tomatoes, broccoli, sunflower seeds, almonds and olive oil.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids - ground flax seeds, walnuts, salmon, soybeans and pumpkin seeds.

Folate - dark green leafy vegetables (turnip greens, mustard greens, spinach, romaine lettuce, collard greens, etc.), beans, legumes, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, beets and okra.

Music. Listening to your favorite music is a great method of reducing stress and relieving anxiety. Your individual preference in music determines which types of soothing sounds will best reduce your tension, blood pressure, and promote feelings of tranquility. Pay attention to how you feel when you hear a particular song or genre of music, and keep listening to the ones that produce a relaxing effect.

Sleep. Getting enough sound sleep has a profound impact on your stress levels, immune function and disease resistance. A chronic lack of sleep can leave you feeling sluggish, irritable, forgetful, accident-prone, and have difficulty concentrating or coping with life's daily aggravations. Long-term sleep loss can also result in heart disease, stroke, hypertension, depression, and anxiety. Sleep time is when your body and immune system do most of its repairs and rejuvenation. Strive to get 7-8 hours of sleep each night. Remember rest and relaxation go hand in hand.

Positive Thinking. Optimism can counteract the negative impact stress, tension and anxiety has on your immune system and well-being. Often it is how you perceive things that determine if you get overwhelmed, both mentally and physically. Having a positive attitude, finding the good in what life throws your way and looking at the bright side of things enhances your ability to effectively manage stress.

Tea. Regularly drinking tea throughout the day can help strengthen your immune system and your body's ability to fight off germs and infections. Both green and black teas contain a beneficial amino acid called L-theanine, which can increase the infection fighting capacity of gamma delta T cells. L-theanine also promotes a sense of relaxation, calmness and well-being by influencing the release and concentration of neurotransmitters (like dopamine, serotonin and GABA) in the brain.

Hydrotherapy. Relaxing in a hot bath relieves sore muscles and joints, reduces stress and tension, and promotes a good night's sleep. Add some soothing music, soft lighting and naturally scented bath salts or bubble bath/bath foam to create an inexpensive and convenient spa experience in the privacy of your own home.

by Monique N. Gilbert, B.Sc.

stress management : What is Stress?

2006-06-02T03:58:00.000-07:00

Stress is the "wear and tear" our bodies experience as we adjust to our continually changing environment; it has physical and emotional effects on us and can create positive or negative feelings. As a positive influence, stress can help compel us to action; it can result in a new awareness and an exciting new perspective. As a negative influence, it can result in feelings of distrust, rejection, anger, and depression, which in turn can lead to health problems such as headaches, upset stomach, rashes, insomnia, ulcers, high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. With the death of a loved one, the birth of a child, a job promotion, or a new relationship, we experience stress as we readjust our lives. In so adjusting to different circumstances, stress will help or hinder us depending on how we react to it.

How Can I Eliminate Stress from My Life?
As we have seen, positive stress adds anticipation and excitement to life, and we all thrive under a certain amount of stress. Deadlines, competitions, confrontations, and even our frustrations and sorrows add depth and enrichment to our lives. Our goal is not to eliminate stress but to learn how to manage it and how to use it to help us. Insufficient stress acts as a depressant and may leave us feeling bored or dejected; on the other hand, excessive stress may leave us feeling "tied up in knots." What we need to do is find the optimal level of stress which will individually motivate but not overwhelm each of us.

How Can I Tell What is Optimal Stress for Me?
There is no single level of stress that is optimal for all people. We are all individual creatures with unique requirements. As such, what is distressing to one may be a joy to another. And even when we agree that a particular event is distressing, we are likely to differ in our physiological and psychological responses to it.

The person who loves to arbitrate disputes and moves from job site to job site would be stressed in a job which was stable and routine, whereas the person who thrives under stable conditions would very likely be stressed on a job where duties were highly varied. Also, our personal stress requirements and the amount which we can tolerate before we become distressed changes with our ages.

It has been found that most illness is related to unrelieved stress. If you are experiencing stress symptoms, you have gone beyond your optimal stress level; you need to reduce the stress in your life and/or improve your ability to manage it.

Copyright © 2005
by IVF.com, Atlanta, GA, USA.

stress management : Selye's work

2006-06-02T03:45:00.000-07:00

Selye was able to separate the physical effects of stress from other physical symptoms suffered by patients through his research. He observed that patients suffered physical effects not caused directly by their disease or by their medical condition.

Selye described the general adaptation syndrome as having three stages:

alarm reaction, where the body detects the external stimulus
adaptation, where the body engages defensive countermeasures against the stressor
exhaustion, where the body begins to run out of defenses
Stress includes distress, the result of negative events, and eustress, the result of positive events. Despite the type, stress is additive. If your dog dies and you win the lottery, one does not cancel the other — both are stressful events.

Stress can directly and indirectly contribute to general or specific disorders of body and mind. Stress can have a major impact on the physical functioning of the human body. Such stress raises the level of adrenaline and corticosterone in the body, which in turn increases the heart-rate, respiration, blood-pressure and puts more physical stress on bodily organs. Long-term stress can be a contributing factor in heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke and other illnesses.

The Japanese phenomenon of karoshi, or death from overwork, is believed to be due to heart attack and stroke caused by high levels of stress.

Serenity is a disposition free or mostly free from the effects of stress, and in some cultures it is considered a state which may be cultivated by various forms of training. See: meditation, T'ai Chi Ch'uan, yoga.

[Top]Neurochemistry and physiologyThe general neurochemistry of the general adaptation syndrome is now believed to be well understood, although much remains to be discovered about how this system interacts with others in the brain and elsewhere in the body.

The body reacts to stress first by releasing catecholamine hormones, adrenaline and norepinephrine, and glucocortisoid hormones, cortisol and cortisone.

The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is a major part of the neuroendocrine system, involving the interactions of the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland and the adrenal glands. The HPA axis is believed to play a primary role in the body's reactions to stress, by balancing hormone releases from the adrenaline-producing adrenal medulla and from the corticosteroid producing adrenal cortex.

[Top]Folklore of stressAbout the time of Selye's work, the gradual realization dawned that age-old if sometimes ill-defined concepts such as worry, conflict, tiredness, frustration, distress, overwork, pre-menstrual tension, over-focusing, confusion, mourning and fear could all come together in a general broadening of the meaning of the term stress. The popular use of the term in modern folklore expanded rapidly, spawning an industry of self-help, personal counselling, and sometimes quackery.

The use of the term stress in serious recognized cases such as those of post-traumatic stress disorder and psychosomatic illness has scarcely helped clear analysis of the generalized 'stress' phenomenon. Nonetheless, some varieties of stress from negative life events, or distress, and from positive life events, or eustress, can clearly have a serious physical impact distinct from the troubles of what psychotherapists call "the worried well".

This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License

stress management : Diagnosis and management of post-traumatic stress disorder

2006-05-29T20:15:00.000-07:00

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that occurs following exposure to a traumatic event. The disorder has not been extensively studied in primary care; however, the events of September 11, 2001, raised both public and professional awareness of PTSD. Many more cases may now be diagnosed in family practice patients, because they are more apt to disclose information to their physicians and because physicians are more aware of the diagnosis. One study (1) estimated that 11.8 percent of patients presenting to a primary care clinic met the diagnostic criteria for PTSD.

Patients with PTSD use health care resources more often than patients without PTSD, including those who have other anxiety disorders. (1,2) Because of frustrations in diagnosing and managing their patient's recurrent medical complaints, some physicians characterize patients with PTSD as "difficult" or "heart-sink" patients--that is, patients who evoke "an overwhelming mixture of exasperation, defeat, and sometimes plain dislike." (3) Prompt recognition and effective treatment of PTSD can greatly benefit these patients, their families, and those who work with them.

Background

The psychologic effects of trauma have been described throughout military history. Da Costa syndrome ("soldier's heart"), which is characterized by cardiac symptoms associated with irritability and increased arousal, was described in veterans of the American Civil War. During World War I, it was hypothesized that "shell shock" resulted from brain trauma caused by exploding shells. During World War II, terms such as "combat neurosis" and "operational fatigue" were used to describe combat-related symptoms.

The Vietnam War significantly influenced the current concept of PTSD. In 1980, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 3d ed. (DSM-III) (4) established criteria for the diagnosis of PTSD. Modifications were made in subsequent editions. (5,6) This article reviews the current diagnostic criteria for PTSD as contained in the 4th edition, text revision (DSM-IV-TR) (7) and focuses on diagnosis and management, including the detection and treatment of comorbidities.

A precipitating traumatic event is necessary, but not sufficient, to make the diagnosis of PTSD. The criteria for diagnosis specify factors concerning the victim's perception of the trauma as well as the duration and impact of associated symptoms, including persistent re-experiencing of the traumatic event, marked avoidance of usual activities, and symptoms of increased arousal (Table 1). (7)

Before a diagnosis of PTSD can be made, symptoms must last for at least one month and must significantly disrupt normal activities. In persons who have survived a traumatic event, an anxiety syndrome that lasts for less than one month is termed "acute stress disorder"; this condition requires three or more dissociative symptoms in addition to the persistent symptoms associated with PTSD. Symptoms of PTSD that last less than three months indicate an acute condition. A delayed picture occurs in patients who begin experiencing symptoms six months or more after the traumatic event. (7)

The diagnosis of PTSD may be difficult to make for many reasons. Patients may not recognize the link between their symptoms and an experienced traumatic event; patients may be unwilling to disclose the event; or the presentation may be obscured by depression, substance abuse, or other comorbidities. (8) Direct, empathic, and nonjudgmental questioning is recommended when physicians take a patient history. For example, the physician might ask, "Have you ever been attacked or threatened?" or, "Have you ever been in a severe accident or natural disaster?" (8)

Making a connection between a patient's symptoms and a trauma that occurred in childhood may be particularly difficult to establish. An appropriate question to establish this connection is, "Many people are troubled by frightening events that occurred in their childhood. Do you have this problem?" (9)

A screening questionnaire for PTSD reportedly has a sensitivity of 80 percent and a specificity of 97 percent for the diagnosis of PTSD. (10) Examples of the questions include: "Do you have diminished interest in activities"; "Do you have problems sleeping?"; and "Do you find it hard to feel or show affection for others?" (10)
American Family Physician, Dec 15, 2003 by Bradley D. Grinage

stress management: Instant stress relieve

2006-05-29T20:11:00.000-07:00

Instant stress relieve

TRY THIS TECHNIQUE ONCE A DAY, or whenever you feel stress mounting. It takes less than 15 minutes to relieve stress. Pick a focus word or phrase (such as "one" or "peace"), sit quietly in a comfortable position and close your eyes. Relax your muscles, progressing from your feet to your calves, thighs, abdomen, shoulders, neck and head. Breathe slowly, and say your focus word silently as you exhale. Continue for at least 10 minutes. Don't stand up right away; continue sitting quietly for a minute or so, then open your eyes and sit another minute before rising.--G.O.

RELATED ARTICLE: RELAXATION 101

* pick a focus word

* sit quietly

* close your eyes

* relax your muscles

* breathe slowly

* repeat your focus word

Shape, Dec, 2005
COPYRIGHT 2005 Weider Publications
COPYRIGHT 2005 Gale Group

stress management: managing stress is simple

2006-05-29T20:05:00.000-07:00

My kind of meditation: managing stress is simple—once you put your mind to it.

During a recent checkup, my blood pressure registered slightly high and my doctor blamed stress. Weeks later, my massage therapist got straight with me: "There's nothing physically wrong with you," she said. "You just need to learn to manage stress."

Manage stress. A simple phrase. A verb and an object. But such an oxymoron. If stress could be managed, it wouldn't be stressful, would it?

The realization that I wasn't managing stress very well immediately spiked my anxiety. I started reading up on stress, and each article ended with tidy bullet points: Meditate. Visualize. Repeat a mantra. Imagine your boss in a clown suit. The advice seemed helpful but somehow incomplete.

But I give the techniques a try anyway. I'm at the office and my eyes are closed. I'm breathing like a Lamaze instructor (puff, puff, puff) because I'm not quite sure how I'm supposed to be breathing. And I'm picturing the seashore. A wave comes in. Swish. A wave goes out. Swish.

Then a creature flutters next to my vital organs. It's my pager. Two seconds later, a head appears over my cubicle wall: My boss (code-named Dilbert, because of a striking physical resemblance) is following up on his page in case I missed it. The seashore vanishes, and my neck muscles make tiny fists.

I decide to consult the most reliable source I can reach before Dilbert opens his mouth: Microsoft Bookshelf Basics. Meditate: To reflect on; contemplate. To plan in the mind; intend. And so I learn meditating isn't about going blank or pretending to be somewhere else. It's about using your mind.

This appeals to me. I like my brain. It has served me well most of my life, and I feel more comfortable using it to fight stress rather than trying to shut stress out. My brain hits the "pause" button, and Dilbert's looming head is momentarily suspended in my mind.

"So what exactly are you feeling right now?" my brain asks me, as Dilbert lurks outside my cube.

"Hmmm, I'd says it's ... tremendous time pressure," I answer myself.

"What's he asking for? Something urgent? A defibrillator?"

"A report."

"A report. No wonder he's excited. And what are you going to do about it?"

I'm finding that often the answer to that question is "nothing." If, as Shakespeare wrote, sleep knits up the raveled sleeve of care, then meditation orders the cluttered closet of life. More often than not, just mentally picking up my raveled sleeve and hanging it somewhere is all I need to do to de-stress. For example, most of Dilbert's manufactured crises now go in a drawer labeled "Artificial Emergencies."

The process of meditation took conscious effort at first but now comes almost naturally. And although the seashore visualization technique didn't work, I did develop a mantra of sorts of my own. It's sbbbbbb.

In my mind it's the soothing sound a mother makes to hush her fretful baby. And, when stress levels rise and Dilbert's face pops into view, it's a reminder to be quiet and listen. The inner voice might have something to say.
SAMANTHA BALDWIN is growing more reflective in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Apple STEREO CONNECTION KIT

2006-05-16T21:42:00.000-07:00

Ever wish your music library and all of your playlists could be the star of your next party? The Apple Stereo Connection Kit with Monster Cable is the answer. Everything you need to connect your iPod to your home stereo is included. And to make sure you're getting the most out of your music, the kit even includes a Monster Cable.

Just place the iPod Dock in a convenient spot, plug in the iPod Power Adapter and connect it to the dock with the supplied iPod Dock Connector to FireWire Cable. Plug the Monster Cable into the mini-stereo line out connection on the back of the dock and then into any available audio input on your home stereo receiver. Dock your iPod and rock the house!

© 1999-2006 Super Warehouse All Rights Reserved.

The Receiver

2006-05-13T21:21:00.000-07:00

The audio/video (a/v) receiver and amplifier assembly in a home theater does the same job as the receiver and amplifier assembly in any stereo system: It receives signals from various input devices, like a VCR, DVD player or satellite dish. It interprets and amplifies those signals and then sends them to output devices -- your television and sound system. A home theater a/v receiver and amplifier assembly actually combines several different components. Some even have a DVD or other media player built in. You can generally assemble a superior home theater system by buying the components separately, but most people buy one unit that does all these jobs because it is more cost effective.

The receiver's components are:

Audio/video inputs for video sources (DVD player, DVR)
Preamplifier
Surround-sound decoder (aka signal processor)
Power amplifiers for each sound channel
Outputs for speakers and television
The path of the audio and video is pretty straightforward. The source component (DVD player, DVR, etc.) feeds a signal to the receiver unit. You choose which input component you want to feed to your output unit, and the preamplifier selects this signal and amplifies its line level a little bit.
The receiver sends the video on to your television and sends the audio to the decoder. The decoder sorts out the different sound channels from the video signal, and then sends the information to amplifiers for each sound-channel output. These amplifiers are connected to the appropriate speaker or speakers.

Digital decoders and analog decoders handle the job differently. Digital surround sound is quite simple: When a company is producing a Dolby Digital® program, for example, they encode six separate audio channels, specifically balanced for a Dolby Digital speaker setup. A Dolby Digital surround-sound decoder recognizes these different channels and sends them to the appropriate speakers.

Analog surround sound is something else altogether. The different analog surround-sound channels are actually extracted from the two standard audio channels that make up any ordinary stereo signal. This is commonly called 4-2-4 processing because the encoder essentially takes the rear and front channels and works them into the ordinary stereo channels, and a surround-sound decoder separates the four channels out again. See How Surround Sound Works for more information.

There are a wide range of audio/video receivers available. These receivers are often sold with all the speakers you need, as a complete home theater system. These systems run as low as $250 and as high as $2,500.

One of the most important differences between audio/video receiver models is what surround-sound formats they support.

by Tom Harris and Tracy V. Wilson

Little Differences Mean a Lot

2006-05-10T23:17:00.000-07:00

If you've been reading this column for long, you know that there are little differences within games, optional rules that make a difference in your shot to win.

You know that in blackjack you're better off if the dealer stands on all 17s rather than hitting soft 17, and you know to walk away from tables that pay 6-5 on blackjacks instead of 3-2. You know that a roulette wheel with just a single zero has a lower house edge than one with both a zero and double zero.

Throughout the table pits, there are subtle differences between games. Not all Let It Ride tables are created equal, nor are all craps tables or Three Card Poker tables. There are pitfalls to avoid, little things that might send a player in the know off to a different game, or even a different casino.

Let's check out a few:

AGGREGATE LIMITS: In table games with big jackpots, some casinos put an "aggregate limit" on winnings --- no matter how much you wager, and no matter how good the hand, the payoff can only be as high as the limit. That's most common in Let It Ride. You start with three bets in that game, and have the option during play of pulling the first two back. If you leave all three in play and hit a big hand --- well, that's where the aggregate limit sometimes comes in.

The big payoff comes on a royal flush, Ace through 10 of the same suit. That usually pays 1,000-1, although other pay tables are available. So if you make three $5 wagers and let them all ride, a royal flush brings you $15,000. With three $10 wagers, a royal is worth $30,000 --- unless you bump up against an aggregate limit.

I've seen casinos put a $15,000 aggregate limit on winnings. You'll get the full payoff if you bet $5 per spot, but not with $10 wagers.

What to do? Before you play Let It Ride, check to see if there's an aggregate limit on winnings. If there is, size your bets accordingly, so you don't have to settle for partial payoffs should that miracle hand appear.

ODDS-FOR-1 vs. ODDS-TO-1: You're at a craps table, get caught up in the excitement and just have to have that Yo-leven. (I never go with Yo myself; the house edge on the one-roll proposition on 11 is just too high.)

It's a low minimum table, with $1 propositions, so you toss out a buck. Sure enough, the next roll is 11. What do you get back?

At a casino that pays odds-to-1, you get $16 --- $15 in winnings, plus your $1 wager. But some houses pay odds-for-1, and will give you $15 instead --- your wager is included in the payoff on a table that says the 11 pays 15-for-1.

House edges on one-roll propositions are high anyway, but odds-for-1 send them soaring. On 3 or 11, payoffs of 15-to-1 leave a house edge of 11.1 percent. At 15-for-1, that edge zooms to 16.67 percent. On 2 or 12, a 30-to-1 payoff gives the house a 13.89 percent edge. At 30-for-1, the edge is, yes, 16.67 percent. Ouch.

PAY TABLES: Just as video poker players have had to learn to watch pay tables for the best deals, table players are faced with pay table variations on the stud poker-based games that have flooded the pits in recent years.

Take Three Card Poker as an example. In the Pair Plus portion of the game, the original pay table brings 40-1 on a straight flush, 30-1 on three of a kind, 6-1 on a straight, 4-1 on a flush and even money on a pair. The house edge is 2.32 percent --- one of the better deals you'll get on table games introduced in the last decade or so.

But casinos have several options on which pay table to offer. Worst for the player is one that is the same as the original on all hands but one: On flushes, it pays only 3-1 instead of 4-1. That one small change more than triples the house edge, to 7.28 percent.

Nearly every poker-based table game that includes a pay table has such variations. In Four Card Poker, which has been gaining popularity and floor space in the last year, the best pay table on the Aces Up bet returns 50-1 on four of a kind, 40-1 on a straight flush, 9-1 on three of a kind, 6-1 on a flush, 4-1 on a straight, 2-1 on two pair and even money on a pair of Aces. The house edge is just 1.98 percent.

The worst pay table actually gives you a little carrot by raising two pair to 3-1, but then hits you with the stick of dropping three of a kind to 7-1 and flushes to 5-1. As in Three Card Poker, the house edge more than triples, this time to 6.15 percent. In between, there are several other available pay tables.

What's a player to do? Learn the best pay tables. If you're not getting the top of the line game, think twice, or three times, before betting your money.

By John Grochowski

Why Asian Food Saves You Money

2006-05-07T23:28:00.001-07:00

Even though the economy is fairly strong, you still may want to save money and both Asian markets and Thai food can help. For a number of reasons, Asian markets are one of the cheapest places to buy groceries, even many of those groceries you normally buy in western supermarkets. Then, when you get home, you will find an average Thai meal with rice is significantly less expensive than a meat-centric western meal.

Asian Markets Are Almost Always Cheaper
Most Asian markets (except Japanese and Korean) are far less expensive item for item than western supermarkets, primarily because of a lack of branding or promotion and great economies of scale.

Unsophisticated Retail Tactics
Almost no Asian market owners spend money or time on such consumer spending optimizers as fliers, advertising, competitive pricing strategies, market research, information systems, shelf-space positioning strategies, frequent shopper club memberships, or interior decorating.

Western supermarket chains do not do these nice activities because they like you! Supermarkets do these things to bring you in the store and because they generate more revenue than they cost to perform. That extra profit comes from your pocket.

Market's Economies of Scale
Economies of scale kick in in major cities with a large concentration of Asian people. There are frequently one or two major Asian markets that have more shoppers per square feet than any western supermarkets I've ever seen. Visit the fresh fish counter in a major Asian stores in a city like Boston or San Jose just to see the massive volume sold. I remember from some market research a couple years ago, in the US, the average Asian and Hispanic shopper buys more groceries and cooks from scratch more frequently than the average western shopper. Volume drives down prices.

Weak Asian Brands
Frequently, foods made in Asia are sold very inexpensively in their home country due to weak branding, low labor costs and extreme price competition. This bruising competition is carried abroad at every stage in the wholesale chain keeping prices low.

Almost No Product Advertising
Asian branded products are not advertised internationally. When you buy TV and print advertised products, like those from General Mills or Kraft, you pay about 7% in direct advertising expenses and frequently far more for "brand value". If companies don't spend on ads, you donâ€™t learn the differences between brands without trying them yourself, but you also donâ€™t have to pay for their ads.

Overall Savings
When you visit an Asian market, you will find that these factors drive the price of many of the vegetables, fruit, fish and meat you normally buy to 10-30% below standard western supermarket prices. When you buy Asian products, you will frequently save even more than you would on a comparably produced western item.

Copyright 1999-2006 ThaiTable and it's principals All Rights Reserved

Can Gulf Coast refineries handle another Katrina?

2006-05-03T21:02:00.000-07:00

Ask any oil and gas industry analyst and they'll tell you the problem isn't getting oil out of the ground, it's all about refining it.

There hasn't been a refinery built in the United States since 1976, and 46 percent of the total barrels of oils refined daily in the country come from Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi.

In other words, there's a big hurricane bull's-eye on much of the lifeblood and livelihood of the nation.

Refineries have been welcomed for decades in the Gulf area, which explains the high concentration.

And when catastrophic events such as Hurricane Katrina occur, the country suffers strong economic effects.

Can Gulf Coast refineries handle another Katrina?

The industry may find out faster than it would've liked, as Hurricane Rita is on a path to test the coast of Texas.

Density in the Gulf is an issue, along with major ports, pipelines and crude supplies, said Ed Murphy of the American Petroleum Institute in Washington, D.C. The weather is a major factor, and another factor is that they haven't been able to expand refineries.

The addition of refineries probably won't happen anytime soon, Murphy said.

Building a refinery today is somewhere between difficult and impossible, he said. The regulations are unclear, and even companies that expand refineries often are fined. It's a big issue on the local, state and federal levels. You need a long series of events to happen.

Tom Price, vice president of investor relations at Chesapeake Energy, said refineries once sprouted where they were wanted, and that made for a heavy concentration of refineries in the Gulf area.

What happened was that people had an attitude to make sure to stay in an area that already had an appetite for refineries, Price said.

Some other areas want refineries, but it's a battle from the start.

Cushing, a town about 75 miles northeast of Oklahoma City, is a good example, Price said.

The area has had refineries for 50 years plus and they want to build one, he said. In looking at refineries, I see two types of people: the NIMBYs (Not In My Back Yard), and in towns like Cushing, you have what I call PIMBYs (Please, In My Back Yard). When you look at jobs, it's a no-brainer.

Price said that if towns such as Cushing got what they wanted, some of the emphasis would be taken off the Gulf states.

by Jerry Shottenkirk

Football - The King of Sports by Richard Wise

2006-04-28T22:28:00.000-07:00

It is over one hundred years since FIFA, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, was formed in Paris, France, in 1904. This was really the start of the organised international game, and they must have got it right, because the ever increasing interest, in world football, is truly amazing.

From humble beginnings, the game has increased in popularity, to become the sporting phenomenon it is today. If horse racing is the sport of kings, then football is the king of sports! Every four years a national team are crowned world champions to the delight of their loyal subjects.

Since its inception in 1930, the World Cup has been won, in almost equal measure, by European and South American countries. However, talented players are emerging from other continents, Australia, Africa, Asia, and even the United States, who hosted the major tournament in1994. Surely, it will not be long before a team from one of these other nations, comes out on top.

Football clubs, such as Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and many others, reflect their host cities and have become household names, far beyond their city confines. The most famous, of the many professional players, are instantly recognisable. The sport has attracted rich, and successful men as chairmen, and the best players and managers command earnings comparable with those of pop singers and movie stars.

Soccer's popularity has developed, not just from fanatical supporters flooding through turnstiles into enormous arenas. Vast sums of money are paid for live television and other rights. As a result, important games are watched by millions of armchair fans, many of whom subscribe to satellite, and related media services. Air travel has become less expensive and more accessible, so that supporters can fly to support their teams, wherever they are playing. International football stars, frequently sign for clubs outside their home countries, and command massive transfer fees.

There is no doubt that international football is a mammoth business. From gate money to mass media rights, sponsorships to replica team clothing, a sporting colossus has arisen. Children, and grownups as well, want to wear the colours of their preferred players or clubs. They kick balls around in sports fields, parks, wasteland and quiet streets. Young people practice and aspire to develop that extra bit of expertise, that would catapult them into a life of fame and riches. Most will go on to achieve other things but occasionally, a boy wonder will appear, to dazzle and entertain, with the world at his feet!

About the Author
Richard Wise writes articles on a number of subjects including: football, health, computing, and other topics. A sample is available online at my website which is at http://www.worldsoccer-online.com