"Relaxing with a Mental PDA" Your
5 minutes daily program to Stress management
We all have this favorite expression
when
it comes to being stressed out,
and I wouldn't
bother naming all of them since
it may also
vary in different languages.
But when it
comes down to it, I think that
it is how
we work or even relax, for that
matter that
triggers stress. Ever been stressed
even
when you're well relaxed and
bored? I know
I have.
Since stress is unavoidable in life, it is
important to find ways to decrease and prevent
stressful incidents and decrease negative
reactions to stress. Here are some of the
things that can be done by just remembering
it, since life is basically a routine to
follow like brushing your teeth or eating
breakfast. You can do a few of them in a
longer span of time, but as they say-- every
minute counts.
Managing time
Time management skills can allow
you more
time with your family and friends
and possibly
increase your performance and
productivity.
This will help reduce your stress.
To improve your time management:
· Save time by focusing and concentrating,
delegating, and scheduling time
for yourself.
· Keep a record of how you spend
your time,
including work, family, and leisure
time.
· Prioritize your time by rating
tasks by
importance and urgency. Redirect
your time
to those activities that are
important and
meaningful to you.
· Manage your commitments by
not over- or
undercommitting. Don't commit
to what is
not important to you.
· Deal with procrastination by
using a day
planner, breaking large projects
into smaller
ones, and setting short-term
deadlines.
· Examine your beliefs to reduce
conflict
between what you believe and
what your life
is like.
Build healthy coping strategies
It is important that you identify
your coping
strategies. One way to do this
is by recording
the stressful event, your reaction,
and how
you cope in a stress journal.
With this information,
you can work to change unhealthy
coping strategies
into healthy ones-those that
help you focus
on the positive and what you
can change or
control in your life.
Lifestyle
Some behaviors and lifestyle
choices affect
your stress level. They may not
cause stress
directly, but they can interfere
with the
ways your body seeks relief from
stress.
Try to:
· Balance personal, work, and
family needs
and obligations.
· Have a sense of purpose in
life.
· Get enough sleep, since your
body recovers
from the stresses of the day
while you are
sleeping.
· Eat a balanced diet for a nutritional
defense
against stress.
· Get moderate exercise throughout
the week.
· Limit your consumption of alcohol.
· Don't smoke.
Social support
Social support is a major factor
in how we
experience stress. Social support
is the
positive support you receive
from family,
friends, and the community. It
is the knowledge
that you are cared for, loved,
esteemed,
and valued. More and more research
indicates
a strong relationship between
social support
and better mental and physical
health.
Changing thinking
When an event triggers negative
thoughts,
you may experience fear, insecurity,
anxiety,
depression, rage, guilt, and
a sense of worthlessness
or powerlessness. These emotions
trigger
the body's stress, just as an
actual threat
does. Dealing with your negative
thoughts
and how you see things can help
reduce stress.
· Thought-stopping helps you
stop a negative
thought to help eliminate stress.
· Disproving irrational thoughts
helps you
to avoid exaggerating the negative
thought,
anticipating the worst, and interpreting
an event incorrectly.
· Problem solving helps you identify
all
aspects of a stressful event
and find ways
to deal with it.
· Changing your communication
style helps
you communicate in a way that
makes your
views known without making others
feel put
down, hostile, or intimidated.
This reduces
the stress that comes from poor
communication.
Use the assertiveness ladder
to improve your
communication style.
Even writers like me can get
stressed even
though we're just using our hands
to do the
talking, but having to sit for
7 or 8 hours
is already stressful enough and
have our
own way to relieve stress. Whether
you're
the mail guy, the CEO, or probably
the average
working parent, stress is one
unwanted visitor
you would love to boot out of
your homes,
especially your life. |
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