Stress Management:
Stress Management Technique II
Managing
Stress II Stress Management Education II Stress Management Training II
Stress
Management Tips II Stress Management Course II
Stress Management Activity II Time and Stress Management II
Stress
Management Program II
Exercise and
Stress Management II
Anger Stress Management II Stress Management Workshop
This article, written by Coty D. Miranda, outlines the need for
developing a clear stress management program, and offers proven
tips for components of a successful stress management program. A
stress management program incorporating diet, exercise, calming
techniques, and other techniques can be a highly effective stress
management program. Flexibility to cater components to
individual needs is also an important aspect of a successful
stress management program.
Developing a Stress Management Program
Karen G. lives in an urban area of Southern California. She begins
her day getting her 13-year old daughter up and ready for school.
After dropping her not always cheery child off at middle school,
she faces a 35-minute drive to work – a relatively short commute
by local standards – but on a crowded freeway with the customary
and stressful morning stop-and-go traffic.
“I am stressed out by the time I get to work, and then there are
eight hours of stress ahead of me,” she said during a lunch hour
interview (she was on the phone at her desk where she usually eats
her lunch). “I don’t know how I can possibly begin to manage the
stress in my life. Is there any hope at all?”
Yes, there is – for Karen and for you. Though your life’s stresses
may be different, it is a given just about all of us suffer with
stress in the 21st century. We can’t totally rid ourselves of our
stressful situations or environments, but we can, and must, learn
how to best manage it so that our lives will be more enjoyable.
And life should be enjoyable, shouldn’t it?
Let’s start with managing stress on the job – whether you work in
or out of the home.
Your stress management program should include exercise. Like
Karen, finding time during your workweek for exercise may appear
difficult or even impossible, but it can be done.
Let’s take Karen who has a semi-private cubicle in a busy office.
We suggest she take time at her desk to do some of the following
exercises and stress management relievers.
When she arrives at work, following a morning with her young teen
and the traffic woes, Karen says she is often extremely tense,
especially in her neck and shoulders.
To help get her started on her day, Karen was advised to minimize
these tense muscles by performing this stress management program
exercise.
Sit straight up in your chair. Drop your chin slowly to your chest
and hold a moment. Lift your head back up, staring straight ahead.
Now, slowly –and a key word in this relaxation technique is slowly
– turn your head toward your left shoulder (keeping your torso
facing straight ahead) and hold to a count of five. Return your
head to front and center, drop it to your chest again and raise it
up, now slowly turn your head all the way to the right, looking
off into the distance (even if it’s in your mind). Hold for a five
count and return your head to center. That’s a good one to do
several times during your busy day. Karen says now when she’s
stuck in traffic (not moving) she will often do this.)
The next stress management program component is so simple you may
wonder about its effectiveness. But try it, especially when you’re
tethered to a desk and/or computer all day.
Sit up straight (as a mom, I often say this, but it does work
wonders). Inhale through your nose, counting to five. Exhale
slowly through your mouth to a count of eight – feeling your neck
and shoulders muscles relax as you do so. Something so simple, and
yet this stress reducing exercise helps to cleanse and refresh
your body. You can augment this by mentally cheering yourself
along as you exhale by saying, “I am helping my body reduce its
stress load and that improves my day ”.
Here’s another stress management program exercise that may require
a little more privacy or at the least understanding co-workers:
while standing, put out your left arm and give it a good shake,
then do the other one. Lift a leg and shake it, repeat with the
other one. Give your whole body a good shake. Feels good doesn’t
it? (And unlike the hokey pokey, you needn’t turn yourself about.)
If you’re not comfortable shaking your body at work, at least make
a point of getting out of your chair and stretching at least once
each hour.)
Using visualization can also help you manage stressful times. In
this part of the stress management program, take a moment and
picture a favorite place and time; let’s use the beach as an
example though you may visualize yourself in a country meadow
surrounded by twittering birds or beside a mountain stream with
the sweet smell of pine trees. Or, go for each one – it’s your
time to relax.
As you close your eyes and breathe in slowly, focus on the beauty
you see in your mind’s eye. Feel the sand in your toes, listen to
the crashing surf, hear the seagulls cry. Relax and refresh as you
allow your senses to take in the scene around you. Be there. See
the colors and the tiny details. Unwind, smile, enjoy and recharge
those stress-strained batteries.
Karen has now added a regular stress management program component
to her jam-packed schedule. Instead of that 30 to 45 minute
working lunch at her desk, she and a co-worker take walking shoes
to work and go outside for a brisk stroll.
“Not only does the exercise do me good, but I’ve found I feel more
energized during the afternoon,” said Karen. “I’m also walking
regularly on weekend mornings, and sometimes my daughter comes
along which has been a lot of fun for both of us.”
No stress management program is complete
without addressing nutrtion, or a nutritional supplement if your
daily diet is lacking quality foods. We recommend
Extress,
a homeopathic and nutrition supplement that is exceptionally
effective in providing the body with the nutritional requirements
to reduce stress, tension, anxiety and complaints of generalized
patterns of anxious discomfort.
The natural ingredients in Extress complement the body's natural powers
to reduce stress and anxiety. The specific doctor-formulated Extress
formula naturally diminishes emotional sensitivity and mood
swings, calms and focuses attention, relaxes muscles and reduces the possibility of stress-induced head pain and muscle aches.
Extress also helps diminish hyperactivity, aggression and anger
outbursts.
There are, of course, many other stress management program
activities and exercises you can do to help alleviate stress and
get your blood pumping: yoga, bicycling (regular or stationary),
tennis, swimming, weightlifting. Pick at least one and incorporate
it into your lifestyle. Do it regularly. A Boston University study
(and countless others) has shown that regular daily exercise helps
cut stress.
And that’s something we can all use.
