We all know that stress is at a very high level for the vast majority of people and most of us have our own ways of coping with this stress. However, for those who do not know how to cope with stress, it is doubtless first useful to appreciate what stress is and how it can manifest itself.
Stress is most easily defined as: “A mentally or emotionally disruptive or upsetting condition occurring in response to adverse external influences and capable of affecting physical health, usually characterized by increased heart rate, a rise in blood pressure, muscular tension, irritability, and depression” (TheFreeDictionary.com).
There are many reasons why stress can come about, but the most common types of stress come from finances, family, work, school, quarrels with friends and driving. The most stressful situations, however, are divorce, the death of a parent or spouse, moving house and swapping job or school.
Since the causes of stress are so diverse, it is beneficial to be able to determine where your stress is coming from, so that you know how to treat or prevent it. You need to get to know yourself to cope with your stress, because not all people react in the same way to stress.
For example, actors and top-flight business people often say that they have to have the buzz of stress to give their best performances. They have clearly learned how to harness stress to their own advantage whether intuitively or by other methods. People who suffer from stress need to get to that stage.
When you have worked out what is causing your stress, you have a chance of dealing with it. In fact, you have many chances of counteracting it. If the source of the stress is your employment, you may like to go for a drink with colleagues after work to talk things through once or twice a week, as long as you do not let it get out of hand and affect your family and your work.
Otherwise, you may go for a massage or a sauna or take regular weekend breaks either for pure relaxation or to follow a specific hobby such as hiking. In fact, a hobby of some kind is usually a good stress-reliever, even if the pastime itself is stressful. Just changing the routine seems to assist a lot of people. Some people turn to shopping and beauty salons.
A weekend picnic, communing with nature, or rambling are other key de-stressers. The point is that you have to find something that suits you. For instance, I work alone all day and hate shopping, so when I have done my bit, I seek out people to have a chat. My wife on the other hand spends all day with people, and likes to water the garden alone at the end of her working day.
Other major stress dispersers are sports – either watching them or playing them. Playing is obviously healthier than watching, but given that stress is a major killer in the West, the reduction of stress is the central concern. Yoga and meditation are a good compromise between being active and passive in your dealing with stress.
Owen Jones, the writer of this piece, writes on many subjects , but is currently concerned with the stress headache. If you are suffering from any kind of stress, please go over to our website now at Stress and Heart Disease