I am going to do a series of articles on stress because stress can have an enormous impact on health, productivity, happiness, and everything to do with managing.  Now I can’t say I was always the perfect example but in almost 20 years I rarely got sick and managed to stay a size 4 or 6.  I didn’t exercise everyday but I did it a few times a week and I ate whatever I wanted……..  Okay, within reason.  More on that to come.

Also, the impact on our personal lives is HUGE!

So this will be a series of subjects relating to stress.  Be sure to submit your comment by clicking on “comments”, or even emailing me or filling out the contact form to let me know any concerns, topics, stories, etc.

Stress Management 101: Learn To Take Care Of Yourself

Stress can really harm our body’s normal function; especially if we don’t pay attention to the warning signs.  Often  even when we deny the sensations we are feeling on our bodies, we can surely feel that our physical and mental state is in an alarm state.  It’s very important for an individual to learn to watch out for the warning signs that stress is already taking control of your system.  You need to learn the ways to take care of your body to avoid a total breakdown.

I know first hand this sounds like common sense but often people dealing with overwhelming stress often don’t know what to do to get out of it.  Not managing stress can lead to a series of diseases and destructive behaviour.

Look Out For The Danger Signs

Stress often starts out in our minds before it starts to show some signs on our bodies.  Keep in mind that both are connected and one will show some effects of the other.  A stress-free mind is often linked to an active and healthy body, but a mind riddled with problems will surely result to a deteriorating health.

It is very important for a person to watch out for danger signs your body is nearing the limits of its tolerance to stress.  Often times, we will feel some minor aches and pains in various parts of our body when your mind is getting burdened with all the stress and problems it is subjected to.  If left unchecked, it might result to sleeping and behavioral problems, lack of breath, or even a potential heart attack when it is already above the danger level.

Mentally Cope With Stress

The mind shows the first signs of stress and will later reveal itself to your emotional and physical state when left unchecked.  It is extremely important that we learn how to calm our minds when under the throes of stress and learn to focus our thoughts in order to push the problems further back in our minds and learn to relax when you need to.

This might take some effort if it’s your first time trying to manage your stress.  But there are some techniques you can use to simplify the process and help you learn it bit by bit.  You can start by listening to your favorite music to help focus your thoughts.  Try singing along with the lyrics or hum the tune to yourself to divert your attention away from your problems.

Breathing Exercise

Another method is to focus on your breathing.  You can start some exercises which involves breathing in and out in specific intervals.  This might take some getting used to on your first try but you will be able to focus on your breathing immediately after some practice.

Also, this exercise will ensure that your body, as well as your mind will get enough oxygen for it to function properly. We usually hyper-ventilate or suffer short breathing when stressed so it’s best to practice some breathing exercise to help you cope with it.

Eat The Right Food To Fight Stress

You need to take care of what we eat if you plan to fight stress head-on.  It is essential that our body gets enough nutrients for it to function properly and avoid a breakdown when our mind is getting bombarded with problems.  The bad thing is this is often where people go off the tracks.

All of this is easier said than done of course, often when people are under extreme stress they reach for food to make themselves feel better.  For me that usually meant chocolate…….  Almost every manager that’s worked for me would list chocolate as my main food group, but it wasn’t.  I ate it in moderation most of the time. 

Avoid eating foods that are high in cholesterol and try to focus more on integrating a healthy lifestyle of fruits and vegetables.  You might not know it, but healthy foods can also help you in dealing with stress.  After all, if you’re not burdened with body pains then you can focus more in helping your mind cope with it.   Mix healthy foods with something that comforts you (that is my opinion really), I was always working long days so when I did cook it needed to be simple. 

One of my favorite dinners when I was stressed was a healthy salad, baked salmon and penne noodles with my “special” fettucine sauce.  I know purists will disagree with me on this but I think butter is a natural ingredient, so I use real butter because I prefer eating natural ingredients over others.  So I would saute a little garlic, then add it to another pan.  In the other pan I would melt half a stick of butter, add some non-fat milk, basil, oregano, dash of pepper, and fresh shredded parmesan (okay, I buy my parmesan PRE shredded, but hey, I was busy!).  I would put a half the sauce on my noodles, put the salmon fillet on the noodles and pour the rest of my sauce on the top.  This meal would satisfy me AND my soul!!!

There is more to come with this article series.