Action4Balance

Daily traffic. Work deadlines. Family squabbles. Rebellious teenagers. Illness. Injury.

All of these life experiences add up to big-time stress that can knock you off your feet, spin you around, and keep you dazed.

Without some relief, you may feel as if each morning is the beginning of a new melodrama.

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Stress is no laughing matter. Whenever you’re filled with tension and anxiety, your adrenal glands, located above your kidneys, pump out stress hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, which give your body that burst of energy it needs to escape danger. 

Long-term stress causes chronically high levels of stress hormones, which can weaken your immune system and damage your overall health. Tax your heart and blood vessels, tire you out, and make you more susceptible to illness.

Fortunately, certain dietary and lifestyle changes can help relieve stress and release tension.

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We are, by nature, social creatures, and the company we keep can have a huge impact on quality of life. Good friends and close family can celebrate with us during our best times and support us through our worst. A social network of healthy relationships can be a buffer against stress and provide many other benefits.

When under stress it is very natural to withdraw from the world and concentrate exclusively on solving that problem that causes the stress. Sometimes this is appropriate and useful reaction.

But most often it not. Many times one person working on her own simply cannot achieve the tasks beyond a certain size. It is very similar with stress in our lives – many stressful situations cannot be resolved without the help of other people.

People can help and support you in many ways:

- Physical assistance – financial or direct help, or provision of useful resources.

- Information – they may have information that helps in the situation or solves the problem, or may have some personal experience that also can help you.

- Problem solving – explaining your problem clearly to someone else can bring a problem into focus so that a solution is obvious. Or others could have a problem solving skills you don’t and are not directly involved with your problem can bring fresh alternatives.

- Emotional support when you start to doubt yourself or cheer you up when you are feeling down.

N.B. Don’t forget to keep talking to people and building your relationship even if you are stressed.

Take Action:

I would like to encourage you especially those of you in home based businesses to explore Web 2.0 – social networking possibilities to communicate, make new friends and who knows also business partners and surround you with like minded people. It will help you through good and stressful times.

Please join me on Twitter ,Facebook, Squidoo and LinkedIn.

Interested to manage stress permanently, learm more about the benefits of   Stress Management Coaching.

If you have any questions you are welcome just drop me a line on info@action4balance.com and I will be glad to help with your stress reduction goals.

There are many ways to reduce stress, tension and relax. I would like to give you the seven stress relievers I believe are not only most effective but are also easy to learn and practice (remember practice=action is the Master :).

1. Breathing Exercises

Deep breathing is an easy stress reliever that has numerous benefits for the body, including oxygenating the blood, which ‘wakes up’ the brain, relaxing muscles and quieting the mind. Breathing exercise are especially helpful because they can be done anywhere, and they work quickly so you can de-stress in an instant.

2. Meditation

Meditation builds on deep breathing, and takes it a step further. When you meditate, your brain enters an area of functioning that’s similar to sleep, but carries some added benefits you can’t achieve as well in any other state, including the release of certain hormones that promote health.

3. Visualization

You can use visualization for relaxation and visualization goal setting. You can imagine yourself achieving goals like becoming healthier and more relaxed, doing well at tasks, and handling conflict in better ways and obtain optimum performance.

5. Exercise

Many people exercise to control weight and get in better physical condition to become more healthy or physically attractive, but exercise and stress management are also closely linked. Exercise provides a distraction from stressful situations, as well as an outlet for frustrations, and gives you a lift via endorphins as well. Learn more about benefits of exercise, and help you get more active in your daily life.

6. Music

Music therapy has shown numerous health benefits for people with conditions ranging from mild (like stress) to severe (like cancer). When dealing with stress, the right music can actually lower your blood pressure, relax your body and calm your mind. Check out for great music.

7. Yoga

Yoga is one of the oldest self-improvement practices around, dating back over 5 thousand years! It combines the practices of several other stress management techniques such as breathing, meditation, visualization and movement, giving you a lot of benefit for the amount of time and energy required. Learn more about how use Yoga for Stress Relief.

8. Reading  (Find out my recommendations) 

The right magazine subscription can be great for stress relief! Whether or not you practice regular stress management techniques, the monthly magazine delivery can bring with it enough great ideas to last until the next issue.

What magazines carry the best stress relief benefits?

From Reader's Digest to O, The Oprah Magazine, this list contains my top picks!

Consider a magazine subscription a great Holiday gift!

1. O, The Oprah Magazine

I had to put Oprah's magazine at the top of the list because it contains so many wonderful articles each month, I truly find it to be one of my favorite stress relievers. Aside from covering stress management on a regular basis, this magazine has an eye toward total self improvement and personal growth, with regular sections on finances, relationships, fashion, beauty, wisdom and the latest little treats for you, like the best chocolates or gifts for friends. I'm never disappointed with this magazine, so I recommend it highly (particularly to other women).

2. Readers Digest

This is a great choice for men and women alike While they almost always have something on stress or health, I also love this magazine as a stress reliever because of the jokes (laughter is a great stress reliever!) and the fact that there are so many interesting and quality articles--usually on inspirational and informative topics--in such a compact magazine, you can really experience the escape of a good read when you're on a busy schedule and can't get immersed in a book.

3. Body + Soul

This magazine is a great resource for healthy living, which can lead to lowered stress levels. It has great information on healthy meals, alternative and complimentary medicine, and more.

4. Yoga Journal

Whether you practice yoga on a regular basis, have a casual yoga habit, or are just wondering about how to get started with a healthier lifestyle, this magazine is great because it covers yoga topics for beginners to old pros, as well as other topics that can help relieve stress.

5. Natural Health

Along the lines of healthy living, this magazine contains information on natural food and nutrition, exercise, simplicity and the mind/body connection. All of this can help lower your stress levels and enable you to live a healthier lifestyle.

Happy stress-free reading !

Related Resources:

Self Help Books on Stress Management  (sneak peek into my virtual library :)

Best Books For Women Blog

Nutrition, Weight Loss, Detox Books

Brain Fitness Books

Exercise is one of simplest and most effective means of stress reduction. Whether you prefer jogging or a gentle swim, yoga, golf or a brisk walk in the park, we all feel better after some exercise.

Exercise not only improves your health and reduces stress caused by unfitness; it also relaxes tense muscles and helps you to sleep.

Benefits of exercise:

A small amount of exercise every day brings on “relaxation response”. According to Dr. Benson, “by repeating a muscular activity for 10-20 minutes twice a day, you can reduce symptoms of stress, increase your sense of wellbeing and create a feeling of being in control.”  

Physical Benefits

-Increases general circulation
-Improves muscle strength and tone
-Improves cardiovascular function
-Elevates metabolism and helps to burn more calories; increases the oxidation of fat.
-Improves bone density
-Maintains normal function after an injury
-Improves level of fitness and stamina
improves " body composition "through muscle gain and fat loss
-Increases the amount of oxygen available to body tissues

 Psychological Benefits

 
-Lifts mood
-Improves self-awareness
-Reduces stress and anxiety
-Reduces mild/moderate depression
-Improves self esteem
-Increases confidence
-Reduces aggression

Take Action:

Get your personal trainer.

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Learn about Running for Health and Weight Loss Benefits