Knowing ways to manage stress and protect your health during times of extreme stress and burnout can pay big dividends in regards to your well-being.
Make protecting your health and handling stress consistently a top priority during difficult times.
This can prove challenging because you may have learned ways to manage stress that provide temporary relief, but actually add more stress to the body.
You may also lapse into bad habits and make excuses when under pressure.
When stress is chronic and extreme it can lead to 'burnout'. Dis-stress depletes your mind and body reserves, leaving you vulnerable to faster aging, illness and exhaustion.
Have you ever noticed how you catch the cold or flu right after a stressful event? Stress burns up a lot of energy when flight or fight is priority. All other systems not needed for immediate survival have to wait.
That is why it is so important to implement stress coping strategies when in dis-stress. In more relaxed times, shore up your mental and physical reserves. As the old saying goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
Ways to Manage Stress: The Strategies
If you like to 'multi-task' you will appreciate the fact that you can support your general health while handling stress. This does not mean you can 'fool Mother Nature' and stay steeped in stress and burnout. Humans are not built to live that way. It is true that you can soften the effects, but it just takes too big a mental and physical toll to let dis-stress go unchecked.
Follow the principles of healthy eating and living for good health in general and especially to help protect your health from the effects of stress. In addition to stress reduction techniques, the best ways to manage stress and its health harming effects are to eat well, drink plenty of pure water, exercise regularly and get a good quality sleep.
Generating all that fright/flight energy uses up a lot of nutrients. To make matters worse, we also tend to grab carbohydrate-rich goodies. Carbohydrates break down quickly into glucose - the body's preferred source of fuel. Unless you really are physically running and fighting, reach for foods that support you in the long and short-term instead.
Just like with junk food, some people make a habit of handling stress by drinking alcohol. Alcohol is dehydrating and toxic to your system. It can interfere with quality sleep and negatively affect your mood.
When trying to overcome feelings of stress and burnout, you may be tempted to reach for stimulating drinks. Caffeine does temporarily boost your energy, but this is definitely a case of 'robbing Peter to pay Paul'. The energy has to come from somewhere. It comes from systems that are already taxed and exhausted, thus increasing your energy deficit.
Magnesium is the mineral that relaxes tension and spasms. It is vitally important in many biological processes. It's estimated that up to 75% of people in the modern world have a magnesium deficiency. Not only is our food supply deficient in this mineral, but stress causes us to use it up quickly.
Almonds, cashews, whole grains, artichokes, spinach, beans, pumpkin seeds and dark chocolate are some good sources. So are strong herbal infusions and dark leafy greens. Some people prefer to add magnesium chloride salts to the bath or rub the oil on the skin before showering. A swim in the ocean is great too! In the following video Dr. Mark Hyman explains the benefits of magnesium and signs of magnesium deficiency.
Exercise is a number one stress coping strategy. Here's why. Remember that there is a change in body chemistry when the stress response is activated. Cortisol levels rise. The body is ready to use a big burst of energy running or fighting. Yelling and arguing do nt count.
Moderate or vigorous exercise will cause your brain to release endorphins while 'burning off' those stress hormones. My trick is to use stress induced bursts of energy to clean my house with gusto. I feel better and the house looks great!
To make your regular exercise routine do double-duty for stressrelief, practice mindfulness as you exercise. Focus on the movements and form. Focus on your breath and how your body feels.Now your house cleaning, walking and other exercise routines become body mind exercises.
Make 'me-time' a daily priority. Check in with yourself. What ways to manage stress will be most helpful to you right now? Listen to your intuition.
Find ways to pamper yourself and do something for yourself every day. Schedule in a twenty minute nap or meditation time. Get a massage or a manicure. Read a book. Laugh at your favorite comedy. Take a hot bath. When you take care of yourself, you have more capacity for handling stress.
Members Download your Ultimate Stress Relief Bath Book. The bath and techniques are most restorative for stress and burnout.
Conscious breathing is one of the quickest ways to manage stress. Just stop everything for a few seconds and take a deep focused breath. Let it whooosh out. Take mini breathing breaks often throughout the day in addition to your scheduled me-time.
Have a support network. Research shows that people who attend regular religious worship and/or have a strong support system live longer, healthier lives. We all need someone to talk to once in a while, and we all need help sometimes.
Another person can give you a fresh perspective and help you figure out ways to manage stress when you feel overwhelmed. It is difficult to think clearly about yourselves or your situations, especially when dis-stressed. Trying to do everything for yourself and by yourself gives you a free ticket to stress and anxious feelings. Give yourself the gift of partnering with a therapist, minister, trusted friend, or health and wellness coach.
As you learn ways to manage stress in the short and long-term, you will find yourself becoming less reactive and feeling healthier. Replace less effective and harmful ways of handling stress with more effective ones. Handling stress using mind body solutions empowers you to take control over what many experts consider to be the most important aspect of health care.
Visit the Natural Stress Relief Primer for a wealth of information about dealing with stress. Learn about how chronic stress affects your mind and body. Learn about stress coping strategies and calming herbs to support you during times of stress and burnout.
Check out the Meridian Tapping and Energy Flow Techniques resources in the Members Area. They are designed to help shift negative and stressful thoughts and feelings to more positive states.
