Posts Tagged ‘stress management’
InLaughter slogan trademark does not make me smile
November 13th, 2008 | 
Author: I read in my local newspaper recently about this guy who is a ‘Laughterologist’. He offered some workshops in the area to introduce locals to the benefit of aerobic laughter.
Apparently you can get an excellent cardio and aerobic workout by rediscovering your natural laughing capabilities. Kids laugh a lot when they are small and we all tend to laugh a lot less when we grow up (yeah, don’t we just know it!) but laughter is an excellent way to combat stress. Aerobic laughter triggers the body’s natural de-stressing mechanisms. This sounded great so I checked out their website. What a disappointment.
For people that are supposed to be all about laughter and de-stressing, they are pretty serious about their copyright and trademarks!
In fact, no further information available on their site except a lot of links leading off to dire warnings about their copyright and trademark. Urk… I mean - can they really take out a trademark on the words MAKE THEM LAUGH?
On one of their sites they state:
“Make them Laugh is a new slogan used worldwide to market laughter services provided by individuals or legal persons licensed by International Laughter Institute.”
Frankly, things like this make my blood boil and increases my stress levels instead of decreasing it.
Who gives them the right to trademark the words “MAKE THEM LAUGH” ???? My understanding was always that you can only trademark a really unique term, not something that is in ubiquitous use?
See http://www.inlaughter.org…
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Yoga for Stress Management
A lot of people turn to Yoga for several reasons, whether to cope with life’s ups and downs, enjoyment, or stress management. Yoga is a very good practice to relieve your stress. It offers relaxation, proper breathing exercises, and different kinds of positions for flexibility.
The techniques and practices of Yoga can help in relieving the physical and psychological negative effects from stress. Yoga can cause positive effect to the nervous system and aid in lowering blood pressure and heartbeat.
Knowing The Enemy And Understanding The Body
Before starting to practice Yoga, you must first be aware of the stressful stimuli to determine what you are fighting. Understanding the enemy is a vital factor in combat and in understanding the factors that caused your stress can aid you decide on how it needs to be engaged.
Yoga enables and allows you to control the natural and instant reactions to the cause of stress. This will soon lead to a situation wherein no matter what challenges you encounter; you will be able to remain calm, composed and be capable of battling the situation with a level head.
The practice of yoga includes different body postures, slow stretching movements, and breathing exercises that can lead to relaxation and deep contemplation. These techniques are designed for the purpose of higher awareness of what is happening to you when you are stressed. You can develop a deeper understanding of the body by paying attention to each and every part.
Who, Where, What And How
Even children experience stress but it is not advisable to introduce children younger than 7 or 8 to yoga. Bodies of young children are still developing and they should never be forced to yoga as it can damage their spine and other joints. There is also no upper age limit and you can never be too old to learn yoga.
Yoga practices can be done anywhere. Beginners are advised to attend as much classes as possible to benefit advice from teachers. There are several gyms that offer yoga practices. Although if you think you are ready to do basic yoga practices at home, you must first gather some of the basic equipments to do so.
Yoga mats provide cushioning and traction. Many of these mats are made from synthetic materials, although there are natural rubber mats available. Yoga mats can cost as little as $20 and it is nice to have one since mats offered from some yoga studios can get a bit dirty.
Another versatile yoga prop is the yoga blanket, which can be sat upon to elevate hips above the knees in seated positions and can keep you warm during last relaxation. The yoga blocks are great for standing poses in which one hand is on the floor.
The yoga straps, also called yoga belts are helpful for bound postures if your hands cannot reach each other. They are also useful for positions that require you to cling onto your feet but cannot grasp them.
Additionally, you can learn yoga poses from videos and DVDs available for purchase.
Yoga Compared With Other Stress Reduction Methods
Compared to other stress reduction methods, like taking pills or herbs, yoga requires commitment and effort. Yoga combines several techniques used for stress reduction. The practice of yoga can be said to give the combined benefits of breathing and stretching exercises, fitness regimen, meditation, and directed imagery in a single technique.
But if you think you are one of those with great physical restrictions, simple meditation, breathing work outs and directed imagery might be a more preferable alternative but can still provide the same benefits.
Yoga techniques work at an individual and collective level to endure that there is significant relief from the condition of extreme stress.
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Workplace Stress Management Tips And Tricks
The source of all stress for a career person’s life is their workplace. The deadlines, paper works, irate clients and bosses, the details, and so on will all add up to give you the worst problems that you can possibly experience in your entire life. These problems will all add up and will affect the productivity of your work ? your emotional, mental and physical factor will be put to the test.
Stress management in your workplace involves a lot of factors, particularly in dealing with these minute problems that tends to blow your mind off when put all together. Here are some tips that will help you out to keep your work from ruining your health, and your sanity.
Start small
The key to keeping a balanced career is not turn an anthill of a problem into a mountain. If you keep attention to details, you can solve these problems one-by-one before they pile up. Try to get rid of the habit of postponing your problems for later since you won’t know what will arrive on your desk tomorrow.
Irate and demanding clients can give you more problems than anything put together. Since your life and career revolves around them, you need to tread carefully in handling their problems. One tip in dealing with these people is to keep your cool while listening to their rants and raves. Don’t let their anger affect you.
Take a break once in a while
It is important to know your limits while working. Human aren’t built to work 24 hours a day so its best if you keep a close eye on your body before your tiredness gets out of hand. If you think that work is starting to affect your thinking or when you start to get irritable, try to take some time off and listen to music or get a cup of coffee to help you relax.
If you have your own cubicle at work then it’s advisable to customize it to make your workplace as comfortable as possible. A cushion on your chair to prop your back, a foot stool to help your legs relax, or even some pictures that will remind you of fun times to take your mind off your problems for a short period of time.
Some techniques like breathing exercises will help you relax by keeping your body rhythm at normal. If you start to feel some aches and pains, then you better walk around or do a little stretching? loosen all those muscles first before proceeding with your workload.
Pamper, pamper, pamper
Sometimes work can be so demanding that it’s almost impossible to get a vacation; or if you do, you get turned down flat. You need to find ways to take some time off and pamper yourself before you continue with your work. If you have some free time, try to hook up with some health clinics around the area and get a massage.
Some massage techniques can help you relax and will leave you energize for work afterwards; while some can relieve you of your aches and pains so that you can proceed with your work without worries of annoying muscle cramps.
Stress management at your workplace will not only help your body cope with the problems at work, but will also help you in maintaining the productivity that your career needs.
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Managing Stress Tips
Not all stress is bad. Stress can start change, aid you in focusing the task at hand, and in some cases can even save your life. Although a build up of stress can result in major risks. Do not let stress accumulate otherwise the result can be fatal.
There are tips and steps in managing your stress. The first thing you need to do is determine and understand the cause of your stress or the stressors. By recognizing the stressors, you can put each of them in place and deal with them one by one.
Breathing And Relaxing
Oxygen is very important to the body. Taking a deep breath adds oxygen to the system, which can help you relax. Learning how to breathe can help you maintain your self-control in a stressful situation.
You can start by taking a deep breath. Stand up and stretch. Always remember that the opposite of stress is relaxation. Take a short walk, get a glass a glass of water and do something that can change your focus. Try smiling and take a short moment focusing on something else other than your problem. By the time you get back to your problem, it would not seem nearly as undefeatable.
Enjoy The Good Things Of Life And Be Positive
Sometimes you can forget to enjoy the good things of life if you let stressful events build up. Remember that life offers more things other than work. Reserve some time to actually recognize the good things in your life.
Every situation has both pros and cons. List them both, put them away and take a second look tomorrow. Sleeping on a situation can sometimes changes disadvantages to advantages.
Everything in this world exists in a balance. Negative can never occur without the positive. Learn to find good in your stressful situation and try to change every negative events into positive.
Know Yourself And Your Limitations
To manage stress effectively, it is very important to know yourself and your limitations. Sometimes, learning to say “No” can spare you from stress build up. If you are in a working environment, do not just accept work loads if you think you cannot manage them easily. By recognizing your limitations, you can evade situations that can usually lead to the piling of work.
Most situations can be out of control. Always be positive and refrain from blaming yourself. If you continuously beat yourself with guilt, not only will you not be able to manage your stress but worsen the situation.
People who unsuccessfully use and resort in drugs and alcohol to avoid facing their problems usually find themselves in a twelve-step rehabilitation program. A major stress management tip is asking for help from friends, family or workmates. You are never alone and there are always people around you willing to lend a helping hand. There are professionals and self-help books that can aid you in relieving stress by giving you useful advice.
There are other several ways to help you manage your stress. If you are into books, sometimes taking time by reading your favorite book can help you in putting the problem away from your mind. Taking a warm bath and watching your favorite show on TV can also help you.
By managing and planning your time and prioritizing the most important things first can prevent stress from building up. Always remember that the keyword in better stress management is Relaxation.
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Teenage Stress Management
Stress can affect anyone from children to adults. In between this age gap are the adolescents or teenagers. The cause of teenage stress is different from adult stress but the symptoms remain the same. Due to the difference of teen stress from adult stress, a different approach in tackling their stress is important.
The total population consists of an estimation of 20% teens. Yet teens are sometimes that neglected group of the population. Teenage or adolescent is the intermediate group between dependent childhood to independent adulthood and this transition is never easy. The teenage group is very vulnerable to physical and emotional stress.
Their stress may come from everywhere around them from their families, peers to their education. They may be compelled to follow the footsteps of an elder sibling to avoid comparison from their parents, or teens can be stressed from determining their role and image to the society.
Molding And Stress
The teenage or adolescent stage of life can cause major changes both in the physical and mental aspect of a person. These changes are significant in molding and shaping a person.
Physical changes in a person during adolescence include; increase in weight and height, change in voice, the development of secondary sexual characteristics, and for girls the menarche or the beginning of menstruation. On the other hand mental changes may involve; attraction towards the opposite sex, the feeling of independence, aggressiveness, experimentation.
All of these changes can cause stress to teenagers. It was surveyed that one third of teenagers undergo at least one episode of stress every week. The stress factor or stressors are different for teens and it may be due to; puberty, peer pressure, school demands, safety issues within the community, family responsibilities, negative feelings or thoughts, divorce or separation of parents, holidays, financial problems, or a death of a loved one.
The fact is that teenage girls are more affected or prone to stress than boys. Teenage girls tends to seek help from others for help with their stress while boys respond to stress by dealing with it alone and refuse help from others or by engaging themselves in activities that would help them focus on things other than the stressor.
The family members and friends are usually both the cause and support for teens. Without proper guidance, teenagers use healthy and unhealthy ways to cope with their stress.
Tackling Teenage Stress
Teenage stress can be handled both inside and outside of house. The first step in tackling teenage stress is to identify what caused their stress. The notion that there is no earthly reason for teenage stress should be avoided.
The teens should be allows to talk freely about their problems and they should be supported. Older people around them should help and teach the teens by teaching them stress relief methods and setting realistic goals for them in both curricular and extra curricular activities.
Parents or teachers must ask the teenager to define stress taking an example of an incident and ask them for their natural response to that stressful event. Advice about normal stress response and ways of tackling stress must be explained to the teens. Teach them that different stress can have different responses to different persons. Also, advise the teens to avoid unhealthy methods of relieving stress like aggression, alcohol or drug use.
During the time that a teenager feel stressed, full support must be given by the people around them. Teenagers, like children and some adults, are not ready to face major problems by themselves.
Tags: adolescent stage, death of a loved one, physical changes, school demands, stage of life, stress factor, stress management, teen stress, teenage girls, teenage group, teenage stressRelated posts
Stress Management And Health
Stress always goes hand in hand with health. Depending to the stress level of a person, the impact of stress in the body can range from minor sweaty palms to death. Letting stress build can slowly deteriorate health and can cause major health risks. Managing stress and health are important ways to avoid health risks in the future. In order to manage stress and health better, a person must first be acquainted to the severe effects of stress in the body.
Physical And Behavioral Signs Of Stress
Stressors can be either external or internal. External stressors involve situations in the workplace, death or illness in the family, or by simply becoming angry. On the other hand, most of the stress that people experience is self-generated or internal. A person usually creates his or her own stress but this indicates that the person has the choice or doing nothing or something about it.
Stress can affect major body systems. When a person feels stressed, there is an increase in heart rate, elevation in the blood pressure. The continuous pressure in the heart can make a person susceptible to cardiac arrest and other heart-related problems.
The digestive system is also affected during stress. Some people can experience diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, dryness of the mouth and the throat. Almost every time stress can also cause sleeping disturbances, nausea, and in serious cases tightness of the chest, neck, jaw and the back muscles.
Changes in behavioral patterns are also noticeable in a person experiencing the duress of stress. Smokers experience increase in smoking pattern. Aggressive behaviors and hostility towards others and even inanimate objects are sometimes linked to a person being easily startled. A person’s diet can also be affected by the irregular eating habits caused by stress.
Some people who cannot handle stress usually resort to alcohol and drug use. Additionally, compulsive behavior, impatience and carelessness are also the behavioral effects of stress.
Long Term Implications
Exposure to stress in the long term can surely deteriorate a person's well-being. During stress the body produces hormones that enable the body to cope with the current situation. Short term effects of adrenaline, noradrenaline, and corticosteroids include tense muscles, queasiness and an in increase in breathing and heart rates.
The long term implications of these hormones include allergic reactions, digestive disorder, heart disease, fatigue headaches and migraine. Impotence and premature ejaculation can occur in men while erratic menstrual cycle for women.
When the body continuously releases the hormones, sleeping patterns can also be affected and can sometimes lead to insomnia. In severe cases, stress, in the long run, can cause eczema, ulcerative colitis, mouth and peptic ulcers and recurring muscular aches and pains.
Living Healthy
How a person identifies stress is important to overall health. When stress becomes too huge to handle, the damage to a person's physical and mental well-being can be irreversible. Living a healthy life can help a person cope with stress easily.
Exercise is very important in stress and health management. Along with a healthy diet, exercise is the most effective way to lower stress levels. It improves sugar metabolism through efficient use of insulin. Exercise also aids in putting a stop in the nasty cycles of stress-eating, indulgence to alcohol, cigarettes and drugs.
A person can also consider taking herbs, and anti-stress supplements. Taking vitamins and avoiding alcohol are successful methods in improving health and help a person cope with stress better.
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Stress? Deal With It!
Considering that we are living in a fast-paced world, stress is as common as the air we breathe. We have to learn to manage our everyday routines and fight off these problems that will eventually stress us out. But before we can cope with it, we have to understand what stress really is and identify how it can appear in our life.
What in the world is stress?
Stress can be easily defined as the imbalance in our physiological, biological and social aspect in our life. There are many reasons why a person gets stressed - either family problems, financial difficulties, career obligations, or quarrel between friends. Though how minor it may seems, these problems all add up to turn into an inconvenience, and a big one at that.
Incidentally, stress can start from anywhere and can also end in yet another way. Some may start from your body due to overwork or, build up mentally which can affect that way you think which can practicallylead to negative results. The first way to deal with stress is find out the cause and determine ways to get rid of it.
Stress Management 101
When you already have an idea on how stress worked your way into your life, there are plenty of solutions to make it go away. Just keep in mind that the simplest solutions to your problems are always the best way in dealing with it.
When suffering from stress due to overwork then you can easily take some time off and let your body rejuvenate. Treat yourself to a massage, or visit your local spa and start pampering yourself. Another method in getting the stress out of your system is to take some time off from your daily routine and take a vacation. Visit friends and relative and have fun shopping or taking some leisure walks around the mall.
A vacation with nature can be a great relief to stress; the serenity and relaxing scenery can do wonders to your mental and emotional state. Camp out and leave your thoughts about work at home, give yourself a break from all those burdens.
Get in touch with your inner child
Indulging yourself with games and sports is a great way to dispel stress from your system. When indulging in sports, you have to concentrate on what you are doing in order to win. This is a great way to divert your mind from your mental burdens and concentrate on the task at hand.
If you don't plan to go for sports then go for games. Visit your local game shop and buy some game CDs to your liking, install it on your computer and annihilate alien invaders as if it were your stress. If you have some financial troubles and can't spare an extra buck on games CDs, then you can browse around the Internet and play Flash games if you wish.
Traditional Stress Reliever
The ancients practices do provide solutions to your stress problems. You can enroll for yoga classes and stretch those problems away, or go for meditation classes that will train you in freeing your mind from the problems at hand, and allowing you to focus on relaxation and peace of mind.
Other methods to help you relax and keep your mind at peace is through aromatherapy. Inquire around shops for various scents that can help you relax. You can go for scented candles or assorted incense that will help you in your stress management.
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