The Dangers of Stress
Stress is a well-known trigger for depression and it can also affect your physical health. So it's important to identify the causes of stress in your life and try to minimise them. Meditation and Reiki both work wonders in dealing with stress related problems.
Any sort of loss, from bereavement, divorce and separation to a child leaving home, causes stress, as do long-term illness and disability. But things such as marriage, moving house, a new job and holidays have quite high stress ratings too.
In work, worrying about deadlines or about not being up to the challenges of a particular task can cause stress.
Symptoms of stress
Some common signs of too much stress include:
Increased irritability
Heightened sensitivity to criticism
Signs of tension, such as nail-biting
Difficulty getting to sleep and early morning waking
Drinking and smoking more
Indigestion
Loss of concentration
Relaxation difficulties
Numerous studies have shown that using relaxation techniques regularly can:
Decrease the likelihood of heart attack and stroke, and can significantly reduce the incidence of a 2nd heart attack
Protects you from mental health problems
Improves your immune system function
Aids memory and learning
Improves your coping skills and makes you feel better!
If there's one truth about the way we live today, it's that our stress levels are higher than they were a century ago. A lot higher. And that's not because life is 'harder', but because of the type of stressors we have to cope with.
Today, so much of what we rely on is in the hands of other people, like job security (our employer), food for our family (our employer), our security (the police) and so on. Added to a decrease in the feeling of community and extended family support and you have a great recipe for stress.
With increased stress and the accompanying decrease in relaxation time, comes raised levels of stress hormones within your body - hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. Blood pressure rises. Your brain behaves differently affecting memory and healing.
Stress hormones are extremely useful in the short-term - say if you are attacked, but they are toxic in the long-term. They suppress your immune system function and interfere with sleep quality.
So to maximise your health, minimise your stress!!
Stress is a well-known trigger for depression and it can also affect your physical health. So it's important to identify the causes of stress in your life and try to minimise them. Meditation and Reiki both work wonders in dealing with stress related problems.
Any sort of loss, from bereavement, divorce and separation to a child leaving home, causes stress, as do long-term illness and disability. But things such as marriage, moving house, a new job and holidays have quite high stress ratings too.
In work, worrying about deadlines or about not being up to the challenges of a particular task can cause stress.
Symptoms of stress
Some common signs of too much stress include:
Increased irritability
Heightened sensitivity to criticism
Signs of tension, such as nail-biting
Difficulty getting to sleep and early morning waking
Drinking and smoking more
Indigestion
Loss of concentration
Relaxation difficulties
Numerous studies have shown that using relaxation techniques regularly can:
Decrease the likelihood of heart attack and stroke, and can significantly reduce the incidence of a 2nd heart attack
Protects you from mental health problems
Improves your immune system function
Aids memory and learning
Improves your coping skills and makes you feel better!
If there's one truth about the way we live today, it's that our stress levels are higher than they were a century ago. A lot higher. And that's not because life is 'harder', but because of the type of stressors we have to cope with.
Today, so much of what we rely on is in the hands of other people, like job security (our employer), food for our family (our employer), our security (the police) and so on. Added to a decrease in the feeling of community and extended family support and you have a great recipe for stress.
With increased stress and the accompanying decrease in relaxation time, comes raised levels of stress hormones within your body - hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol. Blood pressure rises. Your brain behaves differently affecting memory and healing.
Stress hormones are extremely useful in the short-term - say if you are attacked, but they are toxic in the long-term. They suppress your immune system function and interfere with sleep quality.
So to maximise your health, minimise your stress!!
