Three Stress Relief Techniques

By David Leonhardt
There is good stress, and there is bad stress. Good stress is the type that propels a person to excel, to
reach new heights or to complete a big project on time. And there is bad stress. Stress that comes from
conflict or worries. Stress that keeps a person from sleeping and happiness. Stress that calls for relief.
Here are three stress-relief tips you can follow...

Meditation for stress relief

Can there be a more obvious stress relief strategy than to bring your entire physical being to a calm?
Meditation techniques often involve visualization of something calm, like a blank screen or clouds. Or it
can mean clearing your mind entirely.
If stress is caused by how we allow our minds to captured by worries and fears, then replacing those
worries and fears with calmer images is the obvious way to reduce stress. You can sign up for a free
meditation techniques course at my website here.

Exercise to reduce stress

If relaxing to a state where even your blood vessels are almost still is the ultimate in stress relief, surely
exercise, which gets even your blood pumping at breakneck speed, must be the ultimate stress demon.
Not so. Exercise is a big stress reliever. In fact, the bigger the muscles you exercise, the more less stress
you will bear. That's because exercise releases physical tension in the muscles.

Here's another tip: exercise in water to reduce stress even more. Why? Because you are more buoyant
on water; gravity takes a much gentler toll on your body, so the tension created in your muscles just by
holding you up gets released. For the ultimate stress release, exercise in water. Or meditate in water. Or
laugh in water.

Laughter reduces stress, too

Yes, laughter also relieves stress. The muscles we use to laugh are those tense ones in our faces. When
we loosen them, we release tension from our faces. We also allow more blood to flow to the pleasure
centers of the brain (which might be why someone with a 'good sense of humor' is considered more
attractive).

I think I will close with this excerpt from my newsletter, A Daily Dose of Happiness, which shows the
value of a little creative humor:

Little Lady was guarding the space between the trees, as I tried to kick her little ball past her. Then an
idea struck me. Off to the side lay a large, purple fit ball that the kids like to be bounced on. I rushed over,
rolled it into the clearing and kicked it toward Little Lady. "Giant Blueberry Soccer!" I shouted. She
laughed.

For the next ten or fifteen minutes, we rolled and kicked and laughed and shouted, "Giant Blueberry
Soccer!" What a great family moment, stress relief, joy-injector, fun and more. My formula was simple,
and you can do it too. Look around and find something that just would not belong, like a too-big ball. Then
imagine what it might be, like a blueberry. Then thrust it into your situation with all the gusto you can
apply.
SIGNS Of STRESS

PHYSICAL PSYCHOLOGICAL SIGNS BEHAVIORAL

SIGNS SIGNS
TENSION HEADACHE OR NERVOUSNESS REDUCED
MIGRAINE QUALITY OF
WORK
PERFORMANCE
DIFFICULTY IN FALLING ANXIETY LOWER
OR STAYING ASLEEP PRODUCTIVITY
AT WORK
MISTRUST OR
FATIGUE IRRITABILITY HOSTILITY
TOWARDS
ASSOCIATES
MISSING
OVEREATING DEPRESSION APPOINTMENT
S OR
DEADLINES
ABSENTEEISM
LOSS OF APPETITE ANGER OR SHIRKING
RESPONSIBILIT
IES
CONSTIPATION OR FEELING WITHDRAWN MINOR
DIARRHEA ACCIDENTS,
INCREASED
ERRORS
FEELING THAT YOU DONOT
LOWER BACK PAIN WANT TO DO THE THINGS YOU INDECISIVENES
HAVE TO DO S
ALLERGIES FEELING EMOTIONALLY DRAINED MARITAL
DISCORDS
HIVES SUFFERING FROM NIGHTMARES USING DRUGS
SKIN RASHES FINDING DIFFICULTY IN EXCESSIVE
REMEMBERING THINGS USE OF
ALCOHOL OR
TOBACCO
INDIGESTION LOSING YOUR SENSE OF --
HUMOUR
ACHING NECK AND -- --
SHOULDERS
TWITCHES -- --
ULCERS -- --
 QUESTIONNAIRE

IS YOUR LIFESTYLE STRESSFUL ?

Please respond to these questions honestly.

In case You are not sure of your response to a particular question, please consult a friend of
yours. Sometimes, friends have a better observation of our behavior.

S.N QUESTION RESPONSE SCORE

. ( YES / NO )
1. ARE YOU UNHAPPY IN YOUR WORK
2. DO YOU BRING HOME WORK FROM YOUR JOB
3. DOES YR WORK INCLUDE FREQUENT DEADLINES THAT ARE
DIFFICULT TO MEET
4. DO YOU THINK ABOUT YR WORK IN THE EVENINGS & ON WEEKENDS
5. DO YOU FIND IT HARD TO FIT INTO THE DAY EVERYTHING THAT YOU
HAVE TO DO OR WANT TO DO
6. DO YOU FEEL SHORTAGE OF TIME TO PREPARE FOR
CONTINGENCIES - TO THINK AHEAD ABOUT WHAT YOU WILL DO
WHEN A PLAN DOES NOT WORK AS EXPECTED
7. DO YOU FIND YRSELF HURRYING AND WRITING UNCLEARLY AS YOU
FILL IN CHEQUES OR OTHER ROUTINE PAPERS
8. DO YOU DISLIKE TAKING THE TIME TO DO JOBS IN THE HOME
9. DO YOU HURRY WHEN YOU ARE READING
10. DO YOU FEEL GUILTY ABOUT RESTING IF THERE IS WORK TO DO
11. DO YOU EAT QUICKLY
12. DO YOU OFTEN FEEL IMPATIENT
13. DO YOU FIND IT ALMOST UNBEARABLE TO HAVE TO WAIT IN LINE OR
TO TRAVEL BEHIND A SLOW VEHICLE
14. DO YOU FIND IT IRRITATING TO WATCH PEOPLE TO DO THINGS LESS
QUICKLY THAN YOU CAN
15. DO YOU CLENCH YOUR JAW OR GRIND YOUR TEETH
16. DO YOU OFTEN TRY TO DO TWO THINGS AT ONCE e.g. LISTENING TO
SOMEONE WHILE THINKING ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE
17. DO YOU TEND TO EVALUATE PERFORMANCE INVARIABLY IN TERMS
OF NUMBERS OR INDICES
18. DO YOU GESTURE EMPHATICALLY IN CONVERSATION e.g.
CLENCHING YOUR FIST,BRINGING IT DOWN ON THE TABLE OR
POUNDING IT ON THE PALM OF YR OTHER HAND
19. DO YOU HAVE A TENDENCY TO FINISH THE SENTENCES OF OTHERS
FOR THEM
20. DO YOU FREQUENTLY INTERRUPT IN A CONVERSATION AND HURRY
OTHERS TO FINISH WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
21. DO YOU ACCENTUATE KEY WORDS EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO NEED
FOR EMPHASIS
22. DO YOU SPEAK MORE RAPIDLY AT THE END OF SENTENCES
23. DO YOU FIND YRSELF REPEATEDLY BRINGING CONVERSATIONS
AROUND YRSELF OR SUBJECTS THAT INTEREST YOU DIRECTLY
24. DO YOU PRETEND TO LISTEN TO OTHERS WHILE REMAINING
PREOCCUPIED WITH YOUR OWN THOUGHTS

Having completed the questionnaire, please assign “1” point to all “yes” responses and
“0” point to every “no” response.

Make a total of your score

Score Interpretation – If you score 16 points and above, you are running a significant
risk of heart attack.
DOZEN STRESS BUSTERS
by Dan Stamp

1 The Gift of Trust : A lack of control over one's work is the number
one source of workplace stress. Trust yourself and others to achieve
goals.

2 Think Inclusion : Isolation at work – not getting information, not

being invited to meetings, feeling shelved – is number two on the
list of workplace stresses.

3 Time and Space : Get off the work, work, spend, spend, treadmill,
and look for more balance

4 Know what is Expected : Have a clear picture of what is expected of

you and do the same for your staff.

5 Acknowledge Contributions: Money is not the only reward people work

for. Give your team/family something just as valuable - appreciation.

6 Share Successes at Work : Share the credit, just as we share the

workload.

7 E-mail Ceasefires : Liberate yourself from the enslavement of e-

mail: open e-mail 2-4 times a day at most. Don't open work e-mail at
home or on weekends.

8 Call-Forward – only when someone's really there : Not doing so is a

real tooth-grinder for hurried callers trying to make human contact.

9 Leadership and Good Health : Top performance required that you stay
healthy.

10 Job Fulfillment: It means matching your skills with the right job.

11 Listen to Others at Work : We can't read body language by e-mail.

12. Redistribute Workloads Wisely : Delegate whenever possible.

ARE YOU STRESSED OUT?

- DAN STAMP

Although it was once vital to your survival – a response to immediate danger – it has now become a
health wrecker.

Researchers use this widely respected test to gauge stress levels. Questions apply to the last month
only. Print this page out and put your answers/scores along side each question. After completing, total
your scores. There’s a key below, for scoring.

1) How often have you been upset because of something that happened unexpectedly?
0=never, 1=almost never, 2=sometimes, 3=fairly often, 4=very often

2) How often have you felt that you were unable to control the important things in your life?
0=never, 1=almost never, 2=sometimes, 3=fairly often, 4=very often

3) How often have you felt nervous and “stressed”?

0=never, 1=almost never, 2=sometimes, 3=fairly often, 4=very often

4) How often have you felt confident about your ability to handle your personal problems?
4=never, 3=almost never, 2=sometimes, 1=fairly often, 0=very often

5) How often have you felt that things were going your way?
4=never, 3=almost never, 2=sometimes, 1=fairly often, 0=very often

6) How often have you been able to control irritations in your life?
4=never, 3=almost never, 2=sometimes, 1=fairly often, 0=very often

7) How often have you found that you could not cope with all the things that you had to do?
0=never, 1=almost never, 2=sometimes, 3=fairly often, 4=very often

8) How often have you felt that you were on top of things?
4=never, 3=almost never, 2=sometimes, 1=fairly often, 0=very often

9) How often have you been angered because of things that were outside your control?
0=never, 1=almost never, 2=sometimes, 3=fairly often, 4=very often

10) How often have you felt difficulties were piling up so high that you could not overcome
them?
0=never, 1=almost never, 2=sometimes, 3=fairly often, 4=very often

HOW YOU MEASURE UP

Stress levels vary among individuals – compare your total score to the averages below:

Age Gender Marital Status

18-29 14.2 Men 12.1 Widowed 12.6

30-44 13.0 Women 13.7 Married or living with 12.4

45-54 12.6 Single or never wed 14.1

55-64 11.9 Divorced 14.7

65 & over 12.0 Separated 16.6

Start today to develop the skills that will help prevent harmful stress. By developing essential
skills such as setting priorities, personal organization, life/work balance and workload
management you will improve every aspect of your life.