Stress Management

The increasing incidence of stress has become a stumbling block in the successful
functioning of financial institutions and realization of their sales targets before the
deadlines. The creativity and the resultant productivity are on the decline which is a kind
of red alert for the human resource managers.

Ego –the Root Cause of Stress

Researchers in the management institutioe k ns have discovered what brings out the most
creative performance in the employees. It hardly needs to be mentioned that the best
performance can be delivered only when you pay undivided attention to your job; when
you can work without any distraction and focus all your energy to the job at hand. When
you attain this state of mind, it means you are working at a spiritual plane. Your ego
which is the root cause of your ambitions and stress falls away.

Creative Flow

You enter, what Professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi of Chicago University describes, a

state of creative ‘flow’. You get completely involved in your work. You do the work for
its own sake. You enjoy doing it without expecting any monetary or other rewards. The
work becomes worship. You lose your sense of time. It just flies away. To quote the
Professor,” Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous
one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you're using your skills to the
utmost". This, according to Osho Rajneesh, is a state of yoga, the mental alignment that
brings out your abilities at their creative best.

Best Performance through Focus

You deliver the best performance because you are able to focus all your efforts,
intellectual resources and abilities on the task you have taken up. The ego which is the
cause of competing temptations vanishes. You are not stressed with your obsessions and
distractions that interfere with your clear thinking.

The Joy of Creative Flow

You are egged on by the sheer joy of doing your work. This, according to Professor
Csikszentmihalyi is “an intensely creative, efficient and satisfying state of mind. This is
the state of mind when the best speeches are made, the best software is developed, and
the most impressive athletic or artistic performances are delivered.”

What is Stress?
Stress defies a single comprehensive definition. It is a universal syndrome comprised of
various characteristics and symptoms affecting different human beings differently.
Therefore stress has been defined variously by various professionals - psychologists,
medics, management consultants and others. Whatever the definition, we all have
experienced stress, and are possibly experiencing it at this moment. Each one of us
therefore intuitively knows what stress is and can define it according to one’s own
perspective.

The Positive Side of Stress

Strangely enough stress, though invariably associated with negative connotations, has its
positive side also. Any creative process can be happily stressful. Participation in sports
can be stressful for the competitors and theatrical performance can be stressful for the
actors. It can be stressful for magicians enthralling the audiences with their tricks,
creative designers and copy writers in advertisement campaigns, or clowns in the circus
who send spectators in peals of laughter. The delivery of a baby may be a stressful yet a
beautiful experience for a mother.

Stress - an Individual Response

While one activity may be a source of enjoyment for one individual, the same activity
becomes a cause of stress for another. The fear of stepping upon the stage of a theatre, a
sports arena or even delivering a baby can force a person to spend sleepless nights.

The same situation becomes a painful obsession and acquires the characteristics of what
is popularly known as stress. The fear of failure even in the so-called happy activities of
sports and theatre may generate stress of detrimental nature. It therefore follows that the
same project may not evoke the same response from all the persons engaged in it. Some
people may take the project sportingly and creatively, while others feel stressed and
worried. This therefore establishes that stress is only an individual response to a given
situation. It is not generated by the situation itself. Everyone is different - some people
plunge straightaway into the tempestuous and turbulent tides of a raging ocean, while
others keep mulling anxiously whether or not to jump across a one foot wide drain near
their house!

Understanding Stress
A consensual yet approximate view of stress is that it is a depressing experience
involving painful mental pressure. It occurs when a person perceives that the expected
demands of a project or a situation exceed their existing physical and mental resources.
Both employers and employees, especially in the financial sector, can become stressed
because of ever-expanding financial targets and competition in achieving them before the
deadline. It is human nature to become stressed when people cannot cope with the
demands put upon them.
Our Biological Response to Stress

Our stress response depends partly on our instincts and partly on the way we
intellectually perceive them. Our instinctive stress response can be of two types. One is
the short term ‘fight or flight’ response. The second type is the long term ‘general
adoption syndrome’. While the short term response is generated by the immediate
survival instinct, the long term response exposes us to stress. Both these response
mechanisms are affected by the way we think and interpret the situation.

Fight or Flight Response

The fight or flight response is generated in the form of shock from the situations
occurring suddenly. In such situations, the biological system releases neural and
hormonal messages that initiate a chain of changes in the body. The heart beats faster and
with more force. Blood pressure and breathing rates rise. Fat and sugar levels in the blood
increase. Fortunately all these changes are adaptive in the short term, in that they occur
only to provide fuel and oxygen to empower the muscles to either fight the danger or take
flight from the situation. They thus prepare the body for physical action. The process may
increase sweating in an effort to cool the muscles so that they can work efficiently. The
hormones divert blood supply from the skin to the core of our body to recoup the blood if
it is lost due to some accidental damage. These hormones help us focus our attention to
the cause of the threat to the complete exclusion of everything else. These actions spend
out the energy from the stress response and the body returns to its normal state.

How to Manage Stress

The best way to manage your stress is to somehow disengage your mind from the cause
of stress by indulging in some physical activity such as playing games, outings, shopping,
picnics or mental activity such as solving cross word puzzles, watching TV, solving
mathematical problems, meditation and so on.

Meditation

Meditation can take several forms. One such form is Karate meditation. It is a simple,
fast, powerful and efficacious technique. It involves simple breathing exercises with
meditation. Breathing has been proved to have significant effect on the mind, body and
moods. It helps you become physically and mentally more relaxed, alert and focused. So
whether you are stressed out due to a taxing day at your office, or, had a tiring day in
your business dealings, this quick and proven exercise can refresh you for the next day.
Moreover this exercise does not take more than ten minutes.

Sit in a comfortable position preferably in a lotus posture, that is, sit comfortably erect
with your legs crossed. A still better position is to sit with your legs beneath your
buttocks with your knees resting on the ground directly in front of you. If both these
positions are not easy sit anyway you like.

Breathing in Meditation

Close your eyes but keep your head and back straight. Keep your shoulders relaxed. Take
a deep breath expanding your belly and hold it till you count 6 or as you feel comfortable.
Exhale and repeat the exercise two or three times. Now breathe normally for a short while
and start the exercise again this time breathing through your nose and releasing the breath
through your mouth and expanding your belly as you did before. Focus your attention on
your breathing all the while.

If your thoughts drift away to the taxing problems ahead of the day or the day behind
you, gently refocus on your breathing and try to remain in the present rather than in the
past or the future. Keep feeling the air moving in and moving out. That is it. Continue
doing this practice daily and you will be able to manage your stress quite easily and
successfully.

Long Term Exposure to Stress

Long term exposure to stress takes the form of general adoption syndrome. It occurs in
response to long term exposure to the causes of stress. This phenomenon is commonly
visible, both in employers and employees of the corporate sector, where new challenges
emerge on a daily basis. Projects have to be executed in time. Sales targets have to be
met. Statistics have to be presented in board meetings. This results in continuous arousal
of the body. When this arousal becomes chronic, stress related problems appear.

Biological Response to Long term Stress

Stress hormones that remain in an elevated state in the blood for long time can become
toxic and affect the cells of the body. The level of fat also increases, causing
cardiovascular problems. The immune system is emaciated and the body becomes prone
to infectious diseases, including cancer. The moods go down steeply and physical and
mental exhaustion takes over.

Vicious Circle

Another negative development results in the form of the brain getting sensitized. This
leads to the change in the structure and function of the nervous system. The situation
sometimes worsens to the extent that even small irritants may blow up into a dangerous
stress and anger response. A continued state of arousal creates different breathing
patterns. Muscles around the abdomen, chest, throat and jaw are affected. This results in
rapid shallow breathing or hyperventilation which in turn changes the blood chemistry
and makes the heart work harder. A vicious circle is created with the hyperventilation
keeping the nervous system sensitized. The outcome is continued exhaustion, mental and
physical health problems and loss of efficiency.

Business Implications

In business terms, this exhaustion is called ‘burnout’. When major decisions are taken
by both the employer and the employees in such a state of exhaustion, the outcome may
be financially damaging. The top brass of the company tends to lose their motivation to
succeed. The stress arising out of work overload leads to inefficient prioritization and
inconsistent valuation. These negative consequences make us excitable, anxious, jumpy
and irritable, resulting in the loss of efficacy in work culture.

Practical Implications of Stress

Mental Effects of Stress

Stress occurs when a person finds that they are incapable of mobilizing their intellectual,
physical and social resources to meet the demands of a situation. Most stress is generated
from:

• work overload,
• competing priorities,
• conflict with colleagues,
• an unhappy work environment,
• anomalous values and
• overdemanding deadlines.

Stress at the Initial Stage

Stress initially acts in a subtle manner in our normal working life without threatening our
survival. The impact of stress does not manifest itself dramatically. Its intensity is so low
that we do not notice it. Usually a person experiences stress when he/she is frustrated or
interrupted, more so when he/she encounters new and challenging situations. The amount
of stress that a person suffers from depends upon the imagined damage a person thinks a
situation can do to them. The sense of threat is seldom physical - in fact, it can be a
perceived threat to personal standing in society. Just as the real threat is in life, a person's
response to the imagined threats trigger hormonal responses with negative consequences.

Inferiority Complex

When this feeling deepens, it takes the form of an inferiority complex, resulting in the
loss of self esteem and self confidence. Stress acts like a slow poison. The person
becomes so diffident about their abilities that they stumble while walking on a smooth
path. They fumble for obvious words and stammer while they talk. They yearn for
sympathy and understanding, but gets reprimanded from their superiors and ridicule from
their friends. The more they expose themselves to new situations, the more mistakes they
commit, resulting in further aggravation of their physical and psychological problems.
They feel threatened by challenges.

Corporate Scenario

In the corporate scenario, a stressed person cannot execute business decisions precisely.
Their heart starts pounding. They start trembling and sweating whenever they is
confronted with new challenges requiring bold and innovative decisions. Their obsession
with their own weaknesses and their focus on survival interfere with their ability to take
initiatives and make sound judgments. They cannot draw the right conclusions from the
available resources. They cannot take the right financial decisions.

The Physical Effects of Stress

The stress response occurs in form of neuro-endocrine activity in which the brain acts
like an orchestra conductor and directs a barrage of neural and endocrine hormones to
target various organs of the body. The cardiac output increases in form of heart rate and
stroke volume. The digestive system is impaired. The blood pressure rises. The pupils
dilate. There is an increased activity in the metabolism, sweat glands, brain and
respiratory system. The arteries and blood vessels may become thick reducing the flow of
blood and oxygen to the heart. The result is heart attack.

The immune system becomes very weak. The subject becomes susceptible to colds,
rheumatoid arthritis, headaches, irritable bowel syndrome and many other health
problems.

Changes in Behavioural Patterns

Over-stressed people take to alcoholic drinks or smoking to gain immediate chemical

relief from the stress. Some persons develop insomnia while others sleep fitfully.
Overstrain leads to negligence towards health problems.

The Effects on Performance

The impaired state of physical and mental health affects the subject’s efficient and
productive performance of duties. The nature of the competitive work culture calls for a
rational, calm, controlled and sensitive approach to deal with the difficult problems at
work. An overstressed person can become over or under aggressive in the complex
matrix of inter personal relationships which may adversely affect the quantity and quality
his work.

A stressed person gets easily distracted from his work because of persistent anxieties,
doubts and negative thoughts. These negative associations compete with the creative
energy required for the efficient performance of the tasks. The attention capacity, active
memory, and concentration of the subjects suffer badly. The focus narrows as our brain
becomes crowded with unhealthy obsessions. The stress reduces a person’s ability to deal
with huge amount of data that has to be processed and analyzed. A stressed person
persists on the old track and ignores the better options.

69 Stress Management Tips to help you

manage your stress
1. Seek professional help
2. Change your diet
3. Increase exercise
4. Drink more water
5. Learn to meditate
6. Read a positive thinking book
7. Start a new hobby
8. See a psychologist
9. See a psychiatrist
10. Consult your doctor
11. See a naturopath
12. Try an alternative therapy
13. See an acupuncturist
14. Try light therapy
15. Spend at least 10 minutes in the early morning or late afternoon sunshine
16. Go for a walk
17. Talk to your parents
18. Talk to your friends
19. Talk to work colleagues
20. Do online course
21. Find time for yourself
22. Pamper yourself with a massage
23. Learn positive affirmations
24. Creative visualisations
25. Do a positive thinking course or buy a book
26. Concentrate on your breathing
27. Stay calm
28. Find a healthy way to release your energy
29. Join a sporting team
30. Join a church group
31. Do some volunteer work
32. Jjoin a book club
33. Talk about your feelings
34. Don’t be afraid of failure
35. Practise managing your stress
36. Learn ways to relax
 37. Spend quality time with your family
38. Spend quality time with your friends
39. Believe in yourself
40. Give yourself another chance
41. Learn to just stop
42. Approach something new with a positive mind
43. Reward yourself for your attempts
44. Acknowledge the good in yourself
45. Get organised
46. Write to-do lists (achievable)
47. Set yourself realistic goals and reward yourself when you reach them
48. Cut back on alcohol
49. Avoid too much coffee
50. Avoid non prescription drugs
51. Play with your kids
52. Spend time with your partner
53. Have more early nights
54. Take the tv out of the bedroom or at least don’t have it on at bedtime
55. Stay positive
56. Stretch
57. Learn about breathing techniques
58. Try assertiveness training
59. Try to stop negative thoughts
60. Listen to your body
61. Rehearse situations
62. Learn to say no
63. Accept other people’s failures
64. Tell someone
65. Ask for help
66. Accept what you can’t change
67. Get a pet
68. Write down how your feeling and then rip it up
69. Learn from your mistakes

DEPRESSION
Regarded as one of the most dangerous and common psychological disorders.
Depression is a malady that takes diverse forms and grips people strongly, giving rise to
serious repercussions until it is effectively treated. Depression is a psychological disorder
which causes emotional trauma in the lives of individuals.

Ranging from mild to severe forms, depression can cause numerous problems in the
social and personal lives of individuals. While mild depression may crop up as a reaction
to any stressful event, severe or major depression usually lingers, causing great
destruction in the lives of concerned individuals.
Depression can grip all, regardless of age, sex, socioeconomic status, and other factors.
However, research indicates that the usual roots of depression can be traced to the early
20s of depressed individuals.

Here at Stress Management we offer online depression counselling, that is available to

you at any time. For more information simply click on Online Depression Counseling.

Symptoms of Depression

Symptoms of depression usually depend upon the age of the individuals. With small
children and youngsters, depression usually exhibits itself in emotional and behaviour
abnormalities such as withdrawal symptoms, irritability, lack of interest in everything,
and many more. With elders, the symptoms are more physical than emotional.

Typical symptoms of depression include psychotic, appetite, sleep, and behaviour

disorders. Please click Depression Symptoms to find out more about what to look for in a
person suffering from depression.

The causal factors of depression include genetic as well as environmental factors. Studies
show that depression can be hereditary and passed on from one generation to the other.
Environmental causal factors include discord in marital life and other such stressful
situations and incidents.

Symptoms of depression, such as feelings of loneliness, helplessness, anxiety,

restlessness, and bouts of sadness, can occur when an individual suffers a major loss in
his or her life, like the death of a close one, or undergoes tensions in their marriage or at
their workplace. When such symptoms persist for a prolonged period of time without any
reduction in their degree or intensity, it is time to seek professional help or treatment.

Treatment for depression includes a complete diagnosis by a psychotherapist, and

appropriate therapy treatment which can provide relief from mild as well as severe
depression. Other treatment procedures include taking antidepressant drugs.

Depression is often ignored as periods of sadness and loneliness are seen as passing
phases in lives of individuals. However, depression is a serious disorder and should be
diagnosed and treated before it takes the reins of life and impairs it forever.

MYTHS about Depression

FACTS about Depression : Symptoms

Depression is always a response to a bad life situation like divorce, the death of a loved
one, or a job loss.Sometimes, depression occurs even when life is going well. Depression
can be triggered by things going wrong in your life, but it isn't always. Depression may
be associated with a chemical imbalance in your brain.If you can't snap out of your
depression, it means you're weak.Depression doesn't mean you have a flawed character or
aren't strong enough emotionally. It is actually a medical condition like diabetes or
arthritis.If you wait it out, your depression will always go awayIf you are suffering from
depression, it may not just go away. For some people, depression left untreated can last
months or even years.Only suicidal people need antidepressant
medicines.Antidepressants are not just for people who think about suicide.
Antidepressants may help people who are depressed feel better, even if they do not have
thoughts of suicide.Antidepressant medicines are habit-forming, and they change your
personality.Antidepressants are not habit-forming. They do not turn you into a different
person - they simply make you feel more like yourself again.

DEPRESSION
SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION

There are many reasons why people will develop depression. It can be caused by internal
factors (originating from a biochemical change in the body and brain) or from external
factors such as the loss of a loved one or personal tragedy.

Common Symptoms of Depression:

• Frequent crying spells for no apparent reason

• Disliking the self
• Thoughts of suicide
• Sleep disturbances, unable to sleep
• Dramatic change in eating patterns i.e. loss of appetite
• Persistent fatigue
• Speech slowed, reduced not spontaneous
• Distorted self image
• Constant criticism of the self and/or others
• Loss of enjoyment from pleasurable activities

PHOBIA
What exactly is phobia? Are you afraid to be left alone at night in the dark, do you get
really frightened when you look down from a 20th floor window, or do you scream when
you see any kind of insect? Well, if you answered yes to any of the above, it is most
likely that you are suffering from phobia.

Phobia is present when you are frightened beyond more than the situation or object would
cause. And for these situations, there may be absolutely no reason whatsoever for you to
be afraid about.
Your mind exaggerates the situation that you are in and portrays it in such a way that
causes you to think about it differently. This creates fear within yourself, hence
developing the phobia for that particular person, situation or object.

Research has shown that phobia is most commonly found in the female population. At
the top of the list of phobias suffered by women is agoraphobia and zoophobia.
Agoraphobia, the fear of open spaces, occurs three times as much in female than in
males. Zoophobia is the fear of animals. 95% of zoophobias occur in females

Worry and Anxiety

The two most common and basic negative emotions in human beings, worry and anxiety,
play an important part in our lives. Present in varying degrees in different people, worry
and anxiety build up pressure in our lives and enable us to perform better in our different
activities and work, be it in our social, professional, or personal lives. However, when
worry and anxiety become ingrained elements of our existence, they disrupt and destroy
our lives completely.

At present, statistics show that worry and anxiety, leading to anxiety disorders, remain
among the leading mental diseases and problems among people in Australia as well as in
other parts of the world.

Research reveals that irrational and generalised worry and anxiety has been found at the
root as well as symptoms of many psychological disorders in human beings. Many
anxiety disorders such as

• Generalised Anxiety Disorder

• Panic Disorder
• Social Phobia
• Common Phobia, and even
• Obsessive Compulsive Disorders

among others, are characterised by a profound and severe generalised worry and anxiety
symptoms.

The presence of severe worry and anxiety in a person can be attributed to several factors
which include genetic, environmental, and even psychological factors.

Severe worry and anxiety can be diagnosed by several symptoms such as the following:

• Physical symptoms such as sleep problems, headaches, muscle and joint stiffness,
cold sweat, trembling, nausea, palpitations, choking sensation, and more;
• Psychological symptoms such as false sensations, dizziness, illusions, and more;
 • Behavioural symptoms which include irritability, withdrawal, isolation, reduced
performance level, or sometimes increased dependence upon others, and others.

Worry and anxiety can be treated in many ways.

The first step remains in identifying the cause or main triggers of worry and anxiety.
Talking with counsellors, taking up relaxation and behavioural and even stress
management therapies, besides meditation also helps in getting rid of unnecessary and
severe worry and anxiety. Antidepressant drugs and cognitive-behaviour therapy also
help in reducing the intensity of worry and anxiety.

Curtailing our normal activities and damaging lives by bringing in

different anxiety disorders, severe worry and anxiety should be
properly diagnosed and treated from its onset, before it takeWhat is
anorexia?

Anorexia nervosa, typically called anorexia, is a type of eating disorder that mainly
affects girls and young women. A person with this disorder has an intense fear of gaining
weight and limits the food they eat. They:

• refuse to keep a normal body weight

• have a low body weight, compared to the healthy weight range for their height
and age
• are terrified of becoming fat
• believe that they are fat even when they are extremely thin
• miss three menstrual periods in a row (for girls/women who have started having
their periods)

A person with anorexia will have many of these signs:

• Looks very thin

• Tends to use extreme measures to lose weight
• Will intentionally make herself throw up
• Will take pills to urinate or to have a bowel movement
• Will consume diet pills
• Often follows a strict diet or doesn’t eat
• Tends to exercises excessively
• Counts calories or weighs food
• Will have a distorted body/self image
• May wear baggy clothes to hide appearance
• Is often afraid or paranoid about gaining weight
• Tends to weigh herself many times
• May act differently
• Often talks about weight and food
• Will not eat in front of others
• May be depressed or acts moody
 • May limit socializing

What can I do to help someone I know that has anorexia:

• Set a time and place to talk

Talk privately about your concerns with your friend. Be open and be honest. Talk in a
place where there are no distractions around.

• Tell your friend about your concerns

Talk to your friend about the specific times when you were concerned about her eating or
exercise behaviours. Explain in a sensitive and caring manner that you think these things
may show a problem that needs professional help.

• Ask your friend to talk about these concerns

Explain to her that she could go and talk to a counsellor or a doctor who is familiar with
eating issues. If the atmosphere or conversation remains comfortable, offer to help your
friend, perhaps by making an appointment or going with her to her appointment.

• Avoid any conflicts with your friend

If your friend doesn’t admit to a problem, try to explain again how you feel and the
reasons for your concerns. Be very supportive and be a good listener.

• Don’t place shame, blame, or guilt on your friend

Do not use harsh accusatory statements like, “You just need to eat.” Or, “You are acting
irresponsibly.” Instead, use “I” statements like, “I’m concerned about you because you
refuse to eat breakfast or lunch.” Or, “It makes me afraid to hear you vomiting.”

• Avoid giving simple solutions

Don’t say, "If you'd just stop, then everything would be fine!" Recovering may be a long
and difficult process, try to be supportive and optimistic all the way, but do not give her
false hopes.

• Express your continued support

Always remember to remind your friend that you care and that you want her to be healthy
and happy. Be there for her always.

Can medication help victims of Anorexia?

New evidence indicates that there is currently no medication that effectively helps in the
treatment of Anorexia Nevosa. The US Department of Health & Human Services
released a report on the 17th of April 2006 that discusses findings regarding the tretment
of Anorexia Nervosa. Please read an abstract of this report by clicking the following link:
No Effective Medications for Anorexia Nervosa.

s the reigns of our lives.

HOW TO LIVE LONGER

Do you want to live a longer, happier, healthier life? Well, get involved! Be it the local
book club, spiritual work, volunteering or even reading a newspaper, interacting with the
world around us increases our chances of having a better fulfilled life

Research has shown that people who are involved in their community have a better
chance of living longer and better.

The Okinawans who stay in the cluster of islands that are between Japan and Taiwan are
living examples to this theory. They are reported to be the longest living and healthiest
people in the world. The Okinawans surround themselves with a tight knit community of
family, neighbours and friends, developing their spiritual lifestyle and carrying out
volunteering work. This may be the reasons why they enjoy and live life to a ripe old age.

Our emotional existence is built on creating relationships with people. To do this, we

must first get involved in the community so that we can get to know more people. This
will lead to us experiencing a longer and better life.

WHY BOND?

To enhance the quality of our life

As human beings, we are all social creatures. Experts have stated that without interaction,
people usually suffer from boredom, low self esteem, low motivation and even poor job
performance. They would have a negative outlook on life. People who are connected
however find that the quality of their lives improving and also find it easier to cope with
hardships that may come along.

Stave off Depression

Mental health is directly protected by optimism. Better mental health can lead to better
physical health.

Increased Safety

Research has also shown that people who are more involved in their community have less
possibility of experiencing violence in their life. It also reduces the rates of serious crimes
in the community.

Giving a little of your time and putting in some effort in getting involved in your
community would give you rewards. It would save you time, reduce your stress level and
in the process your health would be improved.

Stress Management Training

Training how to manage stress, or the bodily reactions to unwanted pressures or
pressurising circumstances, is a prerequisite for everyone in our world. Unending
pressures at work, home, and elsewhere causes much disturbance in our lives, tending to
lower our potential. This brings negative results such as reduced efficiency, irritability,
health problems, and even changes in our personal attitudes towards life.

In short, stress can disrupt both our professional as well as our personal lives. Research
reveals that stress creates havoc in people’s lives when it is unheeded and not taken care
of. Hence, stress management training or the training to manage stress has become a
part of every person’s life.

Stress management training not only teaches us to cope up with stressful situations and its
negative consequences, but also equips us to learn the triggering factors behind our stress
and ways in which we can avoid them.

To cope with the negative causes and consequences of stress, different stress
management tools exist. Such stress management tools are meted out to stressed people
as a part of stress management training. Some of the topics covered include gaining
control over our negative feelings and reactions, techniques to stay calm and focussed,
identifying stress triggering factors, and many more.

Effective coaching and counselling is also an important part of stress management

training. Such training courses also offer diplomas, certificates, and other programmes for
professionals. This program is suited both to individuals who want to practise and teach
stress management training as well as for stressed out individuals.

Being a part of and undertaking stress management training courses improves work
efficiency, interpersonal relations, and brings about other positive results in due course of
time. It helps in reducing stress and helps us in attacking and preventing the triggering
factors and consequences of stress.

Today in our competitive and fast-flowing life, stress has ingrained itself in our lives.
Capable of causing great disaster, stress should always be curtailed and checked before it
ruins our lives completely.
Stress Management Therapy
Stress, or the bodily reactions and response to emergency or difficult situations, is a
natural instinct that is embedded within all individuals in this world. A small dose of
stress not only helps the body in functioning perfectly, but also enables an individual to
be most creative and efficient at work when in stress. However, when stress becomes too
much, the body reacts in an extremely negative manner, leading to numerous disorders
and diseases, besides disrupting normal functioning and activities of life.

Stress Management Therapy exists to help counter such effects of stress. It refers to the
techniques employed by psychiatrists, doctors, and therapists, besides others, who help
stressed individuals to relieve their stress, tensions, and resume their lives in a normal,
stress-free way.

Extreme bodily reactions to extreme levels of stress can not only hamper one’s
professional life, but also disrupt the social and personal life of an individual. Besides
personal problems, extreme stress also causes different physiological and psychological
disorders in the body such as anxiety, chronic headaches, depression, withdrawal
symptoms, nausea, phobias, blood pressure, heart impairments, and many more. This is
where Stress Management Therapy comes in.

The various techniques that can be employed in a Stress Management Therapy session
include relaxation, interaction, biofeedback, cognitive behaviour therapy, exercises, such
as muscle stretching exercises, yoga, meditation, time management techniques, and many
more.

However, the most important feature of Stress Management Therapy is identification of

the cause or particular stress triggers and investigation of the appropriate stress
management remedy for them.

In Stress Management Therapy, counsellors, psychiatrists, and others analyse the causal
factors or roots of the stress, understand fears, interact with individuals, and finally, treat
the individual with some Stress Management Therapy techniques. By gaining an insight
into the root or core of the problem, counsellors help in either removing the stressful
situation or cause, or assist the individual to explore ways to adapt to the stressful
situation in a much more relaxed manner.

Reducing household chores is a form of Stress Management Therapy that can also help to
reducing some work pressures and burdens. Allotting work at home among members and
sticking to a strict timetable can make work enjoyable, relaxed, and stress-free.

Stress Management Therapy is today an important part of our lives. In a world of stiff
competition and increased work loads, Stress Management Therapy is a boon that helps
to ease our tensions and let us live comfortably and happily.
Teen Stress Management
Stress, or the bodily reactions and response to emergency or difficult situations, is a
natural instinct that is embedded within all individuals in this world. A small dose of
stress not only helps the body in functioning perfectly, but also enables an individual to
be most creative and efficient at work when in stress. However, when stress becomes too
much, the body reacts in an extremely negative manner, leading to numerous disorders
and diseases, besides disrupting normal functioning and activities of life.

To help counter such effects of stress, Stress Management Therapy exists.

Stress Management Therapy refers to the techniques employed by psychiatrists, doctors,

and therapists, besides others, who help stressed individuals to relieve their stress,
tensions, and resume their lives in a normal, stress-free way.

Extreme bodily reactions to extreme levels of stress can not only hamper one’s
professional life, but also disrupt the social and personal life of an individual. Besides,
personal problems, extreme stress also different physiological and psychological
disorders in the body such as anxiety, chronic headaches, depression, withdrawal
symptoms, nausea, phobias, blood pressure, heart impairments, and many more.

The various techniques that can be employed in a Stress Management Therapy include
relaxation, interaction, biofeedback, cognitive behaviour therapy, exercises, such as
muscle stretching exercises, yoga, meditation, time management techniques, and many
more.

However, the most important feature of Stress Management Therapy is identification of

the cause or particular stress triggers and investigation of the appropriate stress
management remedy for them.

In Stress Management Therapy, counsellors, psychiatrists, and others analyse the causal
factors or roots of the stress, understand fears, interact with individuals, and finally, treat
the individual with some Stress Management Therapy techniques. By gaining an insight
into the root or core of the problem, counsellors help in either removing the stressful
situation or cause, or assist the individual to explore ways and adapt to the stressful
situation in a much more relaxed manner.

Reducing household chores can also help in reducing some work pressures and burdens.
Allotting work at home among members and sticking to a strict time-table can make work
enjoyable, relaxed, and stress-free.

Stress Management Therapy is today an important part of our lives. In a world of stiff
competition, increased work loads, responsibility of balancing our professional and
personal lives, besides many more, Stress Management Therapy is a boon that helps to
ease our tensions and let us live comfortably and happily.
Stress Management in the Workplace
The obsession with meeting targets and deadlines not only stresses out the top echelons
of management, but also all the cadres of the workforce. If stress management issues are
not adequately addressed in time, the productivity of the workers and executives suffers
and pressures on the management mount. People begin to suffer from various types of
mental and physical ailments which affect the performance of the brain’s activities such
as memory, concentration and learning.

We offer the following Stress Management services for your Workplace

• Stress Management Seminars

• Stress Management Therapy
• Stress Management Training
• One-to-one Stress Manegement Counselling

In the UK alone, over 13 million working days are lost every year due to the stress and
strain of every day work. Stress induces 70% of visits to the doctor and 85% of serious
illnesses, sometimes resulting in serious litigation among employees and management.

In one US study as many as 40% of workers described their jobs as very stressful. People
in their mid forties suffer more than young people. The study also reveals that young
adults, women, working mothers, people with a lower level of education, divorced or
widowed people, the unemployed, isolated people, people without health insurance and
city dwellers are more prone to stress.

All this leads to significant damage, bad publicity and loss of goodwill and time of both
employees and employers. Stress management is essential, not only for economic and
financial reasons, but also on humanitarian and ethical considerations.

The best course to treat stress management in the workplace is to arrange in-house
recreation events such as plays and dramas, enactments of humorous anecdotes, games
and sports and so on. Laughter and humour are the greatest stress busters. They create a
different form of thinking and working in the brain. Research has established that humour
dramatically changes the mindset of a person.

Another easy way to reduce stress is for an employee to go for a daily morning walk or
jog. If this isn't possible, take some time out of your office and go out for a walk in the
market or the park nearby. Leave the building and change your environment. Inhale some
fresh air and enjoy the elements of the outside atmosphere—rain, wind, a bright or
clouded sky, trees, flowers. These elementary changes will reinvigorate your body and
mind.

Keep yourself active in some simple activity while you are outside. Do something that is
energetic to shake the lethargy and boredom off your mind and body.
When back inside the office, take a glass of water and start sipping it. Water has not been
called the elixir of life for nothing. No other liquid - fruit juice, coke, sports drink or Red
Bull - howsoever nourishing and filling it may be, can become a perfect substitute for
water. All the vital organs of our body, our brain, heart, blood require water to function
properly. Its short supply may cause your body and mind to work at less than its full
potential. Its shortage may cause dullness and stress at both physical and mental level.

The air conditioning and heating systems installed in offices may cause dehydration in
the body. Keep a bottle of water on your desk. You may even find yourself drinking it
unconsciously! Just a sip may cause a welcome break, howsoever short, in your work
pattern. Having a power nap during your lunch hour is another idea that you can use to
recharge your spent out battery.

Remember, by reducing your stress levels, you are doing not only yourself good, but the
organisation you work for too. Who knows, perhaps other workers will follow your
example and you will start a stress-free revolution!

PERSONAL STRESS
MANAGEMENTPositive thinking.
Positive results
When you are nearing an exam or a competition that is important yet stressful, always
think positive! Research has shown that negative visual images held in the mind greatly
decrease performance. Getting stressed out about something isn’t going to make the
situation any better; it can only make it worse. Hence, faced with competition of any
kind or even when things are going downhill, try to think positively and things may just
turn for the better.

Another advantage of thinking positive would be that you tend to live longer and retain
youthfulness, both physically and mentally. Stress lines are so named for a reason!
Research has shown that people who think positively actually live about 19% longer than
those who are pessimistic about life. This would be probably due to the fact that they
were more likely to look after themselves and not have a fatalistic attitude about their
health as they grow older.

Even though a positive outlook towards life would be the best, we are after all human
and would definitely have times in our lives where everything just tends to go downhill.
It’s alright to feel depressed, everyone does sometimes, but don’t let it affect you too
much. Just remember there is always light at the end of a dark tunnel. Instead, ponder on
the things that you feel that you should be grateful for - for example a healthy body, good
food, shelter and clothes on your backs. Look into the little blessings that go unnoticed,
and focus on them. Always know that there are others that are suffering to. Also
remember that, no matter which situations you are in, whether it is good or bad, happy or
sad, all of those experiences are giving us precious lessons on life.

"No matter what happened to you yesterday, your attitude is your choice today."

Some Activities to Stir Up Your Positivity & Alleviate Stress

1. Live life as it comes, enjoy it to the fullest.

2. Write positive notes to yourself and put them around places that you frequent at
home.
3. Set daily goals for yourself and when you achieve them, you will feel more
accomplished, and thus your level of positivism will increase.

YOUNG WOMEN IN STRESS

Young women, especially those in their twenties, are among those most likely to be hit
hard by stress. At this age, young women often feel the pressure of building a rewarding
life, with demands emanating from their careers. At the same time they may be feeling
the strain from their relationships. These two signals, often confusing from within
themselves, may conflict with each other, causing further stress on the part of the young
woman.themselves. Another study involving 40,000 women revealed that most 25 year
olds are living close to the edge of a nervous breakdown.

The stress levels occurring within this particular group are especially relevant today, as
the rights won by women over the past few decades - independence, education, career
opportunities – are increasingly prevalent in all spheres of human life.

Studies carried out on women aged 22 to 27 showed that up to 32 per cent binge drink at
least once a month and 22 per cent smoke tobacco at least weekly. A further 7 per cent
felt that life was not worth living and moreover 3 per cent of women at that age tend to
deliberately hurt others or themselves. Another study involving 40,000 women revealed
that most 25 year olds are living close to the edge of a nervous breakdown.

Friends and family are often a stress factor, with major pressure points being
relationships, money and work - everyone wants the best for their family and spouses, but
this is not always easy to achieve.

What many women find to be the most difficult is striking a balance between getting
ahead at work, managing life and getting things organized. However, if this is able to be
achieved, the life of a young woman is much easier.

More information is available on new and expecting mothers.

SUICIDE IN YOUNG MEN

The rate of depression in males has dramatically increased over the past few years. One
lamentable effect of this rise is the increase of suicide rates, particularly among younger
men.

Men are more vulnerable to committing suicide than women because men, in an effort to
uphold their image, supress their feelings and ignore the fact that depression is slowly
eating away at their mind.

Governments have started to look into this so called "generational phenomenon". They
have also started to plan some initiatives, including the different support that these young
men can access to prevent or reduce the suicide rate.

CAN DEPRESSION BE TREATED?

Fortunately, depression can be treated. However, in order for it to be treated in time,

people must not remain ignorant about it. Instead, they should be aware of the
consequences that follow should nothing be done. Care should also be taken with other
substances ingested, as research has shown that in many depression cases, alcohol and
drug abuse have been the cause of further complications.

Don't wait to become a statistic of suicide - talk to someone now.

Quotes from the Team at Stress Management

~ to help you relieve stress in your life ~

Blame is a senseless action. You are the master of your own destiny, you can achieve
whatever you desire and the only force that stands in your way is your own fear. So
utilise your power to decide and do it!

SPIRITUAL PROCESS IN THE FACE OF CRITICISM

There is benefit for you in every situation. If, that is, you know how to look for it.

The idea behind steady spiritual progress is to see every circumstance and situation
(particularly those that challenge you) as a tailor-made lesson in your personal plan for
self-development.
For example, in a situation where hurtful or angry words were exchanged, why not see it
as a chance either to perceive things about your own character which need changing or to
rehearse some virtue or quality that you need to put into practice more often? Actually,
we should be grateful for the opportunity to evaluate ourselves.

In this way you can transform anything into a constructive lesson. Never think that you've
learned enough and now can stop. You should love it when people try to correct you or
give you advice.

It keeps you alert and gives you plenty of opportunity to put your truth into practice. It's a
sign of great danger to be unable to accept criticism and instead use your understanding
to criticize others.

Realize deeply the significance of every moment, and your spiritual progress will be
assured.

What is Psychoanalysis?

Psychoanalysis is a system of psychotherapy that seeks to alleviate neuroses and other

mental disorders by the analysis of unconscious factors as revealed in dreams, free
association, lapses of memory, etc.

POSITIVE INSPIRATIONS

Positive Affirmations to remain ever stress free and happy

I am a spiritual sun, I radiate light and power.

My stress is like a passing cloud which I have created due to my incorrect thinking.

I forgive those that have brought me sorrow and I forget the past misdeeds that they have
done against me.

I march into the future as the dawn of my own positive change envelopes my mind with
unlimited rays of love and power.

I see others as actors in a play and the world around me as a stage.

Recommendations for stress reduction:

1. Make a list of stress triggers and learn how to recognize them. Consciously try to
recognize them and learn to relax in these situations.
2. When feeling stressed try to relax by slowing down the thoughts - breathe in
peace, breathe out stress.
 3. Limit your intake of meat products and your intake of refined foods such as
refined sugar and white bread. Try to eat lots of fruit and vegetables as they are
good for the mind, body and the environment.
4. Talk politely and be open and honest.
5. Respect other viewpoints.
6. Do not gossip or criticise others.
7. Be around cheerful and optimistic friends who think positively about life. This
environment will encourage you to see life in a positive manner and it will be
easier to cope with stress. It is best to avoid being around people who are always
angry, who tend to always have a negative outlook on life and who often criticize
others.
8. Remember you can do whatever you wish if you have a benevolent attitude.
9. Treat yourself regularly: have a massage, try yoga, meditation, aromatherapy or
any alternative therapy.
10. Remove obstacles by seeing problems as an opportunity of improving the self.

FAMOUS QUOTES
These famous quotes are presented to you to inspire and motivate you towards peace and
happiness.

"Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln

"If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it." -
William Arthur Ward

"Nothing attracts success like success." - John Kehoe

We must have faith in ourselves and what we can accomplish.
Then we can pass on this feeling of empowerment, enriching our lives and the lives of
others as well.

"There is no end. There is no beginning. There is only the infinite passion of life." -
Federico Fellini

"Know the true value of time; snatch, seize, and enjoy every moment of it." - Lord
Chesterfield

"I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to
take, all the books I want to read, and all the friends I want to see.The longer I live, the
more my mind dwells upon the beauty and the wonder of the world." - John Burroughs

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The
other is as though everything is a miracle. - Albert Einstein

Act as if you were already happy and that will tend to make you happy. - Dale Carnegie

"People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in
circumstances.
The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the
circumstances they
want, and, if they can't find them, make them." - George Bernard Shaw

"The time is always right to do what is right." - Martin Luther King Jr.

"I learned this, at least, by my experiment;

that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams,
and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined,
he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours."
- Henry David Thoreau

"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." - Neil A. Armstrong

"Change is always powerful. Let your hook be always cast.

In the pool where you least expect it, will be a fish." - Ovid

"If you think you can, you can. And if you think you can't, you're right." - Mary Kay Ash
"I think that if you shake the tree, you ought to be around when the fruit falls to pick it
up."
- Mary Cassatt

Don't look at the past with anger, nor the future with fear, only around in awareness.

"Nothing is so contagious as enthusiasm." - Edward George Bulwar-Lytton

"When one door is shut, another opens." - Miguel De Cervantes

"One of the things I learned the hard way was it does not pay to get discouraged. Keeping
busy and
making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself." - Lucille Ball

"I do the very best I know how - the very best I can;
and mean to keep doing so until the end.
If the end brings me out all right, what is said
against me won't amount to anything.
If the end brings me out wrong, ten angels
swearing I was right would make no difference."
- Abraham Lincoln

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, Begin it.

Live each day as if your life had just begun."
- Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

"Even if you're on the right track you'll get run over if you just sit there." - Will Rogers

"Keep on going and the chances are that you will stumble on something, perhaps when
you are least expecting it. I have never heard of anyone stumbling on something sitting
down."
- Charles F. Kettering

FOOTPRINTS
One night a man had a dream.
He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord.
Across the sky flashed scenes from his life.
For each scene he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand:
one belonging to him, and the other to the Lord.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him,

he looked back at the footprints in the sand.
He noticed that many times along the path of his life ,
there was only one set of footprints.
He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it:
"Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way
But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life,
there is only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why when I needed you most you would leave me."

The Lord replied:

"My son, my precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times
of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried
you."
Written in 1964 by Margaret Fishback.

DETERMINATION
Determination is an unbroken line, a backbone. It is when every situation is anchored to
an unseen aim that keeps everything together. Without determination, life becomes
scattered.

Determination makes you sit up straight and love everything, because it's all part of
moving forward. Day and night you have the feeling that you only have to seek and you
can touch the hard core of wisdom that rests inside each moment. You can focus on that,
and then action is automatically as it should be. Gently right. Battering at life from the
outside, trying to change what's visible is inverted determination. It makes your face hard
and unyielding and though it may bring visible success, there can be a floundering inside.

Determination is not, therefore, a matter so much of action as of stillness. When a

quality of mind-peace, happiness, depth, purity-can remain still and uninterrupted
by the bumps of life, that is true determination.

Such stability, maintained for long enough penetrates the surface of life anyway and it
changes. The bumps go. You have to feed determination, to nourish the qualities you
wish to keep with you constantly.

How?

By understanding adversity, we can learn and grow. They are a part of your nature
anyway, but it's been winter for so long that they've gone underground. Sometimes you
have to burrow to find them and coax them to the surface. Silence can be the best
antidote. Silence brings the strength to go on, the steadiness to succeed, the softness to
slip past difficulties unnoticed. If determination breaks, it's best stop for a few moments,
be silent and find value again, or else what you do will be spineless. Feel the bones of the
situation, then fall in love with the task.
Taken from Inner Beauty A Book of Virtues by Anthea Church, available from
www.bkpublications.com