How to Reduce Stress & Live Your Dreams!
Vitamins, herbs and antioxidant health supplements, along with healthy diets of natural, organic foods, exercise and fitness are necessary for optimal mental health, anti-aging and weight loss. But spiritual healing and alternative medicine go much further than that.
Stress may be the number one killer of modern times. Everywhere you go, you hear people saying how stressed they are. This is due to the fact that life is changing and progressing at an exponential rate. People are losing their jobs or changing careers and relationships faster than ever before. Debt is at record levels, at least in America.
Of course, this change is both good and bad. It is good because it means knowledge and technology are increasing exponentially, increasing our life-expectancy and standard of living. It is bad if we do not learn to cope with this change.
Statistically, about 12% or 13% of all Americans ages 18 to 54 suffer from an anxiety disorder at some time in their life. That’s about 20 million people. This is the number one health problem among women, and the number two health problem among men second to alcohol and drug abuse.
More people suffer from anxiety than any other mental health disorder. Women suffer from anxiety at twice the rate of men. The cost to society approaches $50 billion a year. This anxiety is produced by what? Very often it is triggered by stress.
Stress does not just cause anxiety, it also leads to depression, another scourge of modern society. Stress is a killer, which can cause many horrible diseases from high blood pressure, strokes and cardiovascular illness to autoimmune disorders and cancer.
We know that stress weakens the immune system, which is responsible for fighting nearly all disease. One of the secrets to anti aging is reducing stress.
During stress, the body releases hormones that can be useful against short-term threats or for intense physical activity, but when released for an extended period of time lead to the break down of the body and disease. In addition, stress leads people to unhealthy habits such as poor diets, drinking, smoking, lack of exercise and drugs.
So how do we fight stress and become more relaxed? There are many ways, and each person must find what works best for them. Here are a few suggestions that seem to work well for most people.
It is important to understand that most stress is not caused by events in your environment, but your reaction to those events. Stress is produced by the thoughts in your own mind which you are responsible for creating.
One of my favorite techniques for reducing stress is listening to music. When you are feeling stressed, your body is vibrating at a low level of energy. Beautiful music vibrates at a higher energy frequency.
So by listening to music, the higher levels of vibrational energy will lift and increase the energy levels in your own body and naturally decrease your stress levels. Music will help your body to vibrate at a higher frequency, and has been shown in scientific studies to reduce stress levels for optimal anti aging.
Meditation has also been proven to reduce stress levels. If you have not learned how to meditate, now is a great time. Meditation is a great way to reduce stress and gain control over your life. Everyone I know who meditates appears more calm, relaxed and in control of their emotions and their life.
Meditation clears your mind of the negative thoughts that produce stress and draw negative experiences into your life. Remember, stress is produced by the thoughts in your mind. By learning to meditate, you are taking control of your thought process which produces your reality.
Exercise has also been proven to reduce stress. When you are feeling anxious, stop what you are doing, get up and move your body. This can be as simple as going for a walk, or just doing some stretching exercises. You will be surprised at how effective this can be at reducing stress in your body and mind, as simply moving will help you feel better.
I find for myself that a good exercise workout in the gym lifting weights is a tremendous stress reducer. I never feel better than after a strenuous workout at the gym. Exercise releases endorphins in the brain which are responsible for elevated mood and feeling good.
Most people spend their entire day inside. They go from their house to their car to the office, back to the car and back home again. They get no direct sunlight on their skin, which is necessary for creating vitamin D, serotonin, melatonin and other hormones that help you to feel good and get adequate sleep.
If you are feeling stressed, go out and get some natural sunlight on your skin, and even better, exercise in the
By Paul on 21/11/2009
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