Stress
The Problem
Stress is a normal part of life. In a biological or physiological sense you have the built-in ability to deal with stress, or the reaction to events. There are two ways your body can react to stress:
Acute Alarm Reaction: This is the fight or flight mode of thought. It can help you in a time of extreme emergency, when you are physically threatened. This is a healthy function of the body. It can save your life. Your heart pumps faster, blood gets to all parts of the body faster and with greater force, your blood pressure elevates, your lungs respond by delivering more oxygen to your muscle tissues (your breathing is more rapid), you become prepared for the need to move. Simultaneously your brain begins to stimulate powerful adrenaline-like chemicals, so you have the option of confronting the danger (fighting back) or taking off like the Road Runner. Whether it was confronting a large animal in the jungle or avoiding a speeding car, this ability to fight or flee has been the backbone of our ability to survive as a species. So, needless to say, it is quite natural and quite needed.
Sustained Vigilance: This is the way the body prepares for a long-term challenge. In ancient times our ancestors needed to cope with some very extreme circumstances. Among them were climatic catastrophes (long, cold winters, extreme heat), depletion of resources (drought, food) or any type of long term struggle (illness, long term fatigue) or displacement. Life was hard. Vigilance is the biological response to loss of control. In our modern world, sustained vigilance is the most destructive physiological condition we can put our body through. During this condition of vigilance your brain stimulates the release of another powerful chemical, cortisol. This allows your blood pressure to rise slowly and steadily, you retain vital chemicals such as sodium (salt), your metabolism slows down, gastric acid increases to maximise the calories you get from food, high energy fats and blood clotting agents are released into your bloodstream (in case they are needed), energy is diverted from your immune system and "nonessentials" such as sex hormones, are dramatically suppressed. Your body is prepared for the long haul.
For the majority of our civilisation, we are usually not facing the kind of peril that our ancestors faced throughout their lives. Facing a 2-year drought or widespread starvation has been replaced with getting a pay rise, fighting with our spouse, raising the kids. Many of us live in sustained vigilance throughout most of our adult lives. It is estimated that 75% of all medical complaints are stress related. According to the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) 60% of all diseases are related to an individual's lifestyle. High Stress levels are linked to heart disease, heart attacks, strokes and suicides.
Stress Facts:
- Stress is closely connected with anxiety, fear and panic attacks.
- The relationship between stress and illness is a real medical threat.
- Stress causes cholesterol to rise as much or more than diet.
- Coronary obstruction can be reversed by diet, minimal exercise and mind (stress) control.
- Studies show a strong link between stress and increases in immune system disorders and cancer.
- Metabolic fluctuations and a person's ability to control weight are greatly influenced by stress.
- Stress is a learned behavioural response and can be reduced through meditation, NLP, self-hypnosis, hypnosis, yoga and other types of mental exercises.
The Solution
Stress is a learned behavioural response and can be reduced through NLP, self-hypnosis, hypnosis, meditation, yoga and other types of mental exercises. Hypnotherapy has a role to play in reducing stress and making significant changes to our body chemistry.
Life in the fast lane... Stress is all around, how do I get out of this mess ? The first thing to realise is the problem is not the issues in your life, rather your response to them. Reducing your stress levels means that you learn to respond to situations in an appropriate manner.
Let's imagine you are watching a movie in which a character climbs out the window of a 40-story building to escape the bad guy. He does not realise quite yet where he is, however he is at least safe for the moment. As you watch, you notice how free and easy he is with his movement, and you wonder, does he realise how HIGH up he is…? Then suddenly, someone in the movie sees him and yells "don't look down!". What does he do? Right, he looks down. What happens to this imaginary man? You guessed it, he becomes scared and he clings to the wall. The more he looks down, the more scared he gets. If you were to try and help this man, what would you do? Would you tell him how far down the fall would be? Would you explain to him that he would be landing on parked cars and most certainly would die? No, not if you wanted to save him. What would you say to help this man? Well, for starters you would more than likely go to the window. You would encourage him to look at you. To keep his eyes on you would be the way to save this scared man. Focusing on what he wants, NOT on what he does not want is the way to get this man off the ledge. One step at a time, focusing on the window and he is saved.
That is how you must save yourself from stress. To first imagine what it is that you want, then to focus on it…that is how you come down off your own ledge. Imagine, focus, one step at a time. This is where NLP, TFT and hypnosis help to re-pattern the unconscious mind to re-newed focus, lowering cortisol levels and returning you to health & well-being.
10 Tips for lowering your stress levels…Immediately
1. You: Start by taking time out for yourself. Get a massage, go for a walk, get your nails done or take a tennis lesson. Start taking care of yourself. Begin to remember what it was like to care about YOU.
2. List: Make a list of the things that make you happy. Try to find 10 things that you enjoy and begin at once to remember the feeling of doing them. Close your eyes and imagine doing them. Do this one time each day.
3. Learn: Learn relaxation techniques such as Self-Hypnosis, Hypnosis, NLP Meditation, Yoga or Tai Chi. Go to a class, read a book, find someone who teaches one on one or watch a video. Learn to breathe properly again, deep diaphragm breathing, or go to prananyama yoga classes. www.yoga-alchemy.co.uk
4. Love: Surround yourself with loved ones. Visit friends, family or other people that care about you. Enjoy the time you have with people who are concerned about you.
5. Exercise: Start some type of realistic exercise routine. Whether it is 15 minutes a day, or an hour of aerobics. Just make sure it is something you can do everyday. Stick with it. Build up over time, but get moving! This is a natural serotonin release - the body's own opiate.
6. Food: Stay away from caffeine and chocolate. Eat healthy well-balanced nutrient rich foods. Junk food and coffee will add to your stress levels.
7. Wish: Start a wish list of things you want to accomplish, places you want to go, things you want to do, people you want to meet and be with. Take time to carefully imagine what will make you life complete. Study this list one time each day.
8. Spirit: Whether it is organised religion or a simple prayer. Become aligned with your own spirit or higher self. This will help you balance and become aligned with your higher purpose.
9. Help: Be of service to someone. Call a sick friend or relative. Make contact with someone you have not had the time for. Put a smile on someone's face.
10. Reframe: Stop complaining and reframe your situation to see what you have learned from it. What's the bigger picture? Be the person you used to be. Remember, the past does not equal the future. Get help if necessary, NLP, TFT & hypnotherapy are very effective, see clergyman, but don't give in to stress. Let it go.
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Are you stressed? Try the stress test:
I'm not sure exactly how it works, but this is amazingly accurate. The attached photo has 2 almost identical dolphins in it. It was used in a case study on stress level at St. Mary's Hospital. Look at both dolphins jumping out of the water. The dolphins are identical. A closely monitored, scientific study of a group revealed that in spite of the fact that the dolphins are identical; a person under stress would find differences in the two dolphins. If there are many differences found between both dolphins, it means that the person is experiencing a great amount of stress. Look at the photograph and if you find more than one or two differences you may want to make an appt with brain-train.