How does stress enable you to perform to your maximum
without burning out prematurely from too much?
Balance is rising above the panic of survival.
Serenity is being aware of your balance and maintaining it.
Tips for stress relief
Have a daily lifestyle routine
When the body adjusts to a daily routine and learns to count on it, the nervous system can relax. This includes meal times, exercise, bedtime and elimination schedules as well as stress management rituals.
Breathe deeply
It’s free and you can do it all day long!
Breathing deeply all day long is one of the best ways to manage the effects of stress. When breathing deeply into the abdomen, the diaphragm stimulates the largest parasympathetic nerve in the body, the vagus nerve to reverse the effects of stress by resetting the nervous system.
When people are stressed, they tend to take shallow breaths.
Shallow upper chest breathing is a byproduct of stress and deprives us of our maximal capacity for oxygen and energy.
Eat consciously
Digestion is a mind body affair.
When stress occupies the mind, the body loses its partner in digestion and symptoms of poor digestion often surface. If you experience gas and bloating, heartburn, diarrhea or constipation, your body is expressing its difficulty in digesting the foods you are consuming.
Digestion is one job that we cannot do without. Everyone needs fuel to function. The better the digestion, the better the nutrients are converted into good quality fuel.
Taking ‘time out’ to eat with focus enables our brain to register that digestion is taking place and secrete the digestive enzymes necessary to stimulate and promote the digestive process through all its stages.
Eat with your eyes first before digging into a meal.
Look at your food; notice the colors, textures and smells and concentrate on your food until you begin to feel your mouth water.
When this occurs, it means that your body has responded to the visual cue your mind just received and is initiating the first stage of digestion by flooding your mouth with digestive juices!
When the brain is focused on eating alone, it sends us a variety of information about food choices, quantities and satiation points.
Healthy cravings occur when the body requisitions the mind to bolster its inventory of the nutrients it is low in.
Healthy cravings go away once they are satisfied.
Stress induced cravings are often related to an urgent need for an energy boost because sugar levels in the brain are low.
When satisfied with quick fixes such as caffeine and refined sugar, they often have a rebound effect and leave you more fatigued than before.
Try slower burning energizers like nuts and dried fruit with a cup of herbal tea instead of coffee and a chocolate bar.
If you feel stressed, add some cardamom to your tea. This common herb widely used in eastern recipes is nature’s sedative! It is very calming and also promotes digestion.
Exercise to induce stress relief
Do stress management practices daily
"Meditation is not a way of making your mind quiet. It’s a way of entering into the quiet that’s already there- buried under the 50,000 thoughts the average person thinks every day"
Deepak Chopra, M.D.
Sleep Fitfully
Tips for a good nights sleep
Eliminate each morning
Eliminate each morning to remove any toxins you may have accumulated and you will feel better for it!
To train your bowels:
Don’t hurry
If you find yourself rushing all day long, take a moment to think about how it feels and what it’s doing to your physiology. Rushing can be a habit, a lifestyle choice or poor time management. Whatever your reason rushing is stress producing and doesn’t feel good in the long run.
Watch an excerpt from one of Lynn's Stress Management Workshops