What is Stress? Stress is a physical response of the body to a situation in which the body releases various hormones like adrenaline, cortisol, nor-epinephrine to be ready for any physical action.

Stress causes reactions like blood diversions to muscles and affecting digestion. Heart pounding, fast breathings is adrenaline. The challenge is when the body gets stressed and the blood flows to the muscles where it is needed to fight or flee, the brain function is minimized, leading to lack of ability to think clearly.

Fight or flee or freeze mode

The fight, flight or freeze mode helps us to survive and face various situations.

Fight Mode: In stress we feel agitated and get aggressive towards others. In some unnecessary situations it affects relationships.

Flight Mode: avoiding our stressors. In long run it increases the stress level  when we realize that the stressor is not going and we need to face it.

Freeze Mode: the flow of energy gets blocked into the nervous system. This response reveals when we breathe. Holding breath or shallow breathing are forms of freeze.

Is stress bad…

Stress is not necessarily always bad. Human kind survival is initiated with this gleaming ability to take stress.

Understanding stress

Excess of challenges and demand placed on mind causes stress. Everyone experience stress differently. As stress has negative effect, it manifests in anyway. The weakest part of us is targeted and gets affected.

Stress can be managed but is unavoidable. But to manage stress, it is important to make out stress related problems and work over before stress illness occurs.

Stress may affect one emotionally, physically or change in behavior or a combination of any or all. It even affects the work performance. Extended stress can be the base for heart disease, high blood pressure, hypertension. It may even affect the immune system.

Dealing with stress

Give your health priority – Stress and body are in intimately linked to each other. Stress affects our body. When our mind is snowed under negative thoughts and vibrations the body suffers. It is important to de-stress our body with pranayama, yoga, meditation, reiki or exercise or any positive activity.

Sleep well – Eight hours sleep is the basic necessity of our body to function well and for best working of our natural defenses. Sleep helps up in cope with daily pressures. Deep sleep even repairs our muscles and tone them up. To make sure you sleep well, develop a routine to either take a hot water bath, read book, meditate or a glass of warm milk before sleep.

Practice Deep Breathing – Oxygen energizes our body, gives a clear view point to our mind and revitalizes our skin. A correct and deep breathe even purifies blood, increases our life force energy, and helps in relaxing body and mind. Our feelings and thoughts can be controlled and changed efficiently just by practicing breathing and using our capacity of our lungs fully. Practice Pranayama 

Drink Water – Tiredness causes stress. Drinking water increases and maintains your energy level. Our body like earth is 70% water. Drinking water balances the stress releasing chemicals of our brain. And helps in coping with stressful situations easily.

These are very basic follow up routine to be followed in priority for a stress free, healthy and happy life…