Saturday January 28, 2012
According to a survey from the
American Psychological Association, over half of Americans are experiencing stress due to health problems of family members--53%, which is up 6 percentage points from the numbers of the past two years.
While sad, this statistic is not surprising. The rising number of older adults in America has meant that many middle-aged Americans (particularly women) are finding themselves taking care of their parents, many of whom are experiencing health issues. This comes on top of the regular health issues that can impact every member of a young family. All of these issues can contribute heavily to caregiver stress, which is a particularly taxing form of chronic stress for those who experience it. On top of the worry and concern for a family member's health and comfort, as well as the uncertainty of what the future may hold, caring for an ill family member can mean a hectic schedule and not enough down-time. All of these things can bring stress.
While there is often little one can do to influence the health of a parent, and many health issues may not be prevented in ways that we know of, there are still many things we can do to impact our own health and the health of our family and friends, and increase our own longevity, wellness, and quality of life. Additionally, because stress and health are connected, learning effective stress management techniques can contribute to overall wellness and help relieve the stress of a family member's illness at the same time.
The following resources can help with creating a healthy lifestyle and building stress management into your routine. Feel free to share your own suggestions in the comments section.
Additional Resources For Stress Management:
Relieve Caregiver Stress
Stay Healthier With Positive Peer Pressure
Stay Healthy With Your Family
Get Healthier With Healthy Monday
Ongoing Stress Management Resources
Bio - Newsletter - Facebook - Twitter - Quizzes - Ongoing Resources
Friday January 27, 2012
Research has shown that exercise can be an effective stress reliever.
(Read about some of those benefits here.) I experienced this very clearly when I practiced martial arts in the midst of a very stressful period of my life; I'd be a bundle of nerves when I'd arrive at the dojo, and the stress would just melt away after a while--I could never quite tell how long it took, because I was so focused on what I was doing--and I'd be peaceful and sweaty after a hard 40 minutes of kicks and punches.
For those who don't have the time or money to visit the gym as much as they'd like, can less intense workouts bring stress relief? What about just a few minutes? How short of an exercise session can one practice and still enjoy stress relief benefits? These were all questions that came up for me.
And these questions were largely answered in a recent study I was pleased to come across. College students were exposed to stress, asked to perform a very short-duration workout, and measured for stress relief effects afterward. The results made me want to jump for joy--for about three minutes. Here are the specifics of the study:
-
This quantitative and impirical study examined 102 male and female UCSD undergraduates who participated for course credit, and who completed a challenging math assignment and endured some harassment, and then either performed three minutes of cardiovascular exercise, or sat for three minutes, to measure the potential physiological effects of the exercise against a control group. Continuous blood pressure and heart rate monitoring was done throughout the study, and changes from an initial resting baseline were calculated. During the manipulation, blood pressure for exercisers was higher than for controls, but soon after the tasks were completed the participants who had exercised had significantly lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure than those who had not exercised.
This research is encouraging because it shows just how effective exercise can be in relieving stress, by demonstrating the effect of quick exercise
after a stressor. It's significant in that it shows how a quick (3 minutes) and convenient (after a stressor, rather than before) stress relief technique can be effective, not just regular and lengthy exercise sessions. We can truly grab a quick burst of exercise and feel less stressed after three minutes--talk about effective and convenient!
If this inspires you to get started with exercise, here are some resources to help you do so:
I used to think of exercise as something that needed to be practiced for at least 10 to 15 minutes before it made an impact. However, when I read the results of this research, I added 'exercise' to my short list of quick ways to relieve stress. Does it make you change the way you think about exercise? If so, how? Share your thoughts in the comments section, if you'd like, and feel free to visit the Facebook Page About Stress Management for more discussions and regular information on stress management.
Source:
Chafin, Sky; Gerin, William. (Jan. 2008). Improving cardiovascular recovery from
stress with brief poststress exercise. Health Psychology, 27(1, Suppl.), S64-S72.
Friday January 27, 2012
I always get inspired when I go to furniture stores or look in decorating magazines (which isn't often, but is fun every time). I love how many different ways serene surroundings can be created, even in the smallest of spaces. Relaxing in a peaceful atmosphere can be a great stress reliever--when your home is a peaceful space, you can feel a significant reduction in stress.
When you're at home, do you feel soothed or stressed? Many of us surround ourselves with clutter and don't realize the toll it takes on our energy levels, but the truth is that clutter can be draining, and can cause stress in unexpected ways. Decluttering your home--and the rest of your life--and surrounding yourself with 'positive energy' is a great way to relieve stress now and into the future. Here's what you need to create more serenity in your surroundings.
The Hidden Costs of Clutter
Learn about the subtle (and not-so-subtle) ways that clutter can stress you, and find resources for putting a stop to it.
Make Your Home Your Sanctuary From Stress
Here are some low-stress tips for transforming your home a little or a lot. Create soothing order, and have fun while doing it!
How To Create a Home Spa
With a few minutes and the right setup, you can feel spa luxury in your own home. Here are some tips to get inspired.
How To Create A Peaceful Home
If your home isn't a peaceful place to be, fear not--it can be! Learn effective ways to transform your space into the space you'd like it to be.
Use Aromatherapy To Soothe Your Surroundings
Aromatherapy is a great tool for stress relief--you can passively relieve stress in yourself and everyone with you this way. Learn more about how aromatherapy works, and how it can work for you.
How To Surround Yourself With Positive Energy
Here are some general tips for creating serenity in your life.
©iStockphoto.com
Tuesday January 24, 2012
National 'Take Back Your Time' Week is January 25-29 this year. I'm keeping you up on some of the observances and holidays that you might otherwise miss, as they relate to stress management. You can read more about my philosophy behind it in this blog post about Emotional Awareness Month.
Do you find yourself spending most of your life doing things you must do: things for other people, things for your job, things to keep your life running, things, things, things? How many of these things are done to bring a smile to your face and enjoyment to your life? Or, put another way, how much of your daily life is actually fun?
If you're like most people these days, you're overworked and overly stressed. People are working longer hours, and are needing to remain more focused as they deal with downsizing and an economic crunch that's being tangibly felt. And feeling overworked can take a heavy toll and lead to burnout. (Burnout can be brought on by a combination of long work hours, unpredictable job requirements, and a few other burnout risk factors that many people are experiencing with increasing frequency these days.)
Partially as a way to stave off burnout, and partially as a means to relieve general stress and make life more enjoyable and meaningful, I recommend that we all celebrate 'National Take Back Your Time Week' by culling our schedules, cutting out some unnecessary drudgery, and replacing it not with more unnecessary drudgery or reruns on t.v., but with revitalizing, life-affirming, or just plain fun activities that will soothe our souls and bring us more smiles. (See this related post for fun ideas.)
"That sounds great, Elizabeth, but where do we begin?" you may ask. This is the difficult part of the equation, of course, which often keeps people from making changes in their lives. Don't let this hurdle discourage you! Sometimes it's easy to see what time drains can be plugged--if you're watching several hours of television per night and getting no exercise, an obvious change can be made there. Sometimes time can be created by being more efficient in your everyday activities--taking shortcuts while fixing meals, or multi-tasking (but not too much).
Other times, difficult decisions must be made and certain activities must be dropped to make enough space for you to have a life-affirming hobby or maintain a healthy habit--ingredients for a stress relieving lifestyle. This can be a challenge, akin to de-cluttering your lifestyle; however, it's important to realize that when you don't make time for self-nurturing and just plain fun in your life, you're trading away the enjoyable life that you could have for a life that drains you without replenishing your emotional energy. You're choosing more stress, and perhaps the negative effects that come with chronic stress. When you think of it that way, it may be easier to cut out enough 'have to' activities in your schedule to add a few 'want to' activities.
The following articles can help you carve out some space in your schedule--to 'Take Back Your Time'!--so you can have more room for fun and stress relief in your life:
What are your best time management tips? How might you free up 30 minutes or two hours? Put your best ideas here in the comments!
