STRESS & RELAXATION

Good and Bad Stress- 3 kinds of Stress

1. Physical Stress


2. Mental Stress


3. Nutritional Stress






 Physical Stress in the form of movement or exercise is beneficial.


 Helps us maintain weight by regulating our metabolic rate.


 Stress from loading muscles and bones helps build and maintain muscle and bone mass


 Physical Stress in the way of over exercising can cause immune system suppression and increase illness or injury.


 Negative physical stress can cause poor posture which, can also result in poor breathing, muscle function, joint health and circulation.






 Mental Stress is a positive thing when thinking and using your mind productively


 Setting goals and having achievable personal challenges can be positive stressors.


 Overworking, taking on more then one can manage, and negative thinking are all forms of negative mental stressors.






 Nutritional Stress is necessary and controllable


 Nutritional stress can be referred to as the stress our bodies go thru to breakdown, digest, and metabolize food.


 Negative Nutritional stress can be eating too much or wrong types of food.






How do we acknowledge and create positive stress?




Breathe, Stretch, Exercise, & Sleep


When done hand in hand you will feel Stress melt away!




Breathe using your diaphragm


• Diaphragmatic breathing is the healthiest way of breathing and is a first step in normalizing your breathing in order to manage anxiety or panic symptoms.


• Diaphragmatic breathing is also the most natural way of breathing. Observe how a very young baby breathes - they will use their diaphragm/belly with each breath.


• Years of poor posture, anxious thinking, tension and pressure will usually result in breathing patterns which are less-than-ideal and which will commonly involve


• 1. Rapid, upper chest breathing... leading to


• 2. Overbreathing... leading to


• 3. Depletion of carbon dioxide stores


• Relearning to use your diaphragm in breathing and to reduce your rate of breathing is an important first step in managing the symptoms of anxiety, anger, panic, etc.


• The principle role of breathing is, of course, to stay alive! One of the ways in which breathing does this is through seeking to maintain an optimum internal oxygen-carbon dioxide balance.


• The important thing is not how much oxygen or how much carbon dioxide you have in your system but rather the relationship between the two gases - between carbon dioxide and oxygen.


• Too much oxygen (relative to the level of carbon dioxide) and we feel agitated and jumpy. Too much carbon dioxide (again, relative to the level of oxygen) and we feel sluggish and sleepy and tired.






 Examples of Breathing and Stretches


 Crocodile Breathing


 Bikram Standing stretching


 Chair Stretches


 Back and leg stretches


 Stretches with Bands






Exercise!


Eat and Drink Right!


• Drink water! Reduce amount of coffee, soda, and alcohol intake. Dehydration is common cause of internal stress


• Avoid Stimulants- Coffee, sugar, cigarettes


• All trigger cortisol, which is a hormone that that tells your brain its time to get up and be ready for action. This occurs naturally in the morning.


• An 8 oz cup of coffee contains about 300mg of caffeine which can stay in your system up to 9 hours. Ideally you should not drink anything containing caffeine after lunch time. This way your natural cortisol production will not be affected.


• Plan and eat regular meals 4- 5 times a day.


• Pay attention to choices…you have a choice! www.Calorieking.com


• Surround yourself with positive people and activities!




Sleep!


• Be in bed by 10:30, or whatever time allows you for 8 hours of sleep!


• Sleep in a completely dark room


• Our bodies go thru a physical repair cycle during an 8 hour sleep cycle. When disrupted can lead to elevated stress levels and muscular and neurological disorders












We create the world we live in and thinking positively about what we Do want vs. what we Don’t want affecting our daily lives makes all the difference.