InTouch Magazine - Spring/Summer 2002

Stress Less!... By Managing Your Unhealthy Tension

Stress is something everyone experiences from time to time. It is quite a normal phenomenon and can even be helpful in accomplishing your goals. Unfortunately, stress can also push you into poor health if it is not kept in check. A recent survey found that 90% of all Americans experienced some stress-related symptoms after the September 11th events.¹

There are two key terms in understanding stress. Stressors are the demands/pressures put upon you (like job tasks). Stress is what you do in response to those stressors. Your stress response includes physiological, emotional, and behavioral changes that may include:

Physiological	Emotional	Behavioral
Racing pulse	Helpless	Tense muscles
Fast breathing	Anxious	Grinding teeth
Upset stomach	Impatient	Aggression
Sweaty hands	Irritable	Your "vice"

The kind of stress that affects your health usually involves day-to-day chronic hassles. Why? Mainly because stress makes you engage in unhealthy "vice," or coping, behaviors. In other words, people under high stress tend to smoke more, drink more, exercise less, and eat poorly compared to people under low stress. These behaviors are clearly linked to many chronic diseases, including heart disease! That is why the American Heart Association labels stress a secondary risk factor for heart disease.

The good news is that you can easily manage your stress. All you have to do is make some simple changes in your environment and your lifestyle. The best tool to start with is a stress log. Filling out a stress log for two weeks will tell you what your stressors are and how you react to them. Then you will know what to key on when setting up your plan.

Start out by trying to prevent stress. Eliminate as many "easy" stressors in your life as possible. Get creative! Schedule stressful appointments for times when you are best apt to handle things. If you’re tired all the time, go to bed earlier. If you find your commute is hectic, try a different route. The idea is to head off situations before they become stressors.

Unfortunately you can’t prevent all of the stress in your life, so the next step is to relieve it. The idea here is to plug something in place of those unhealthy "vice" behaviors you may currently be using. The best natural stress buster is exercise. Exercise stabilizes your mood and allows you to naturally relax during recovery. Pick something fun you can do for at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week. Another great trick is learning a quick relaxation technique like diaphragmatic breathing. Relaxation techniques require a little practice to become proficient, but work great in almost any situation. Check out these web sites for a guide:

www.timeforfitness.com/

www.psybersquare.com/anxiety/panic_relax_I.html

You can also try some simpler things. Incorporate more laughter into your life. Reframe stressful thoughts by thinking of them as challenges (not stressors). Schedule more time with people that are supportive and get connected to like-minded groups in your community. If you find it especially difficult to follow any of these suggestions, check out the behavior change article in last season’s InTouch for some extra help.²

The antidote to stress is always its antithesis, relaxation. Use as many strategies as you can to insure you are spending the maximum amount of time in a relaxed (or non-stressful) condition each day. The best way to manage stress is to prevent it before it starts. But you can also relieve stress after it happens. Scheduling such practices into your daily routine will enable you to enjoy more out of life and give you another leg up on heart health!

For more information on stress management, contact the MHIF Education Services Department at 612/863-3979 or out-state toll free at 1-877-800-2729.