Healthy Habits

One of the biggest problems I have seen throughout my medical career to date is that many people suffer with stress. I noticed that they do not even fully realize that stress is a major factor in their overall health. Here are my five best suggestions as to how you can relieve any level of stress.

1) Eat Healthy Organic Foods
Although this may seem like one of those basic suggestions, people do not fully realize the power of good food. Back when I was in college, I would regularly eat deep fried foods. I always remembered feeling full and disgusted. This in effect, made me feel very uneasy when I would participate in activities with my friends, or even when I was to give presentations. Those foods were not only bad for my physical health, but they also hurt my mental health as well.
Organic raw vegetables and fruits are what I began to eat after I graduated. I noticed that I felt ten times better than I ever felt before. Not only was my physical well being improved, but I felt more enthusiastic and outgoing. The fatty fried foods of the past made me feel ill and I always wanted to lounge around like a couch potato. I have found that I really love to eat fruits and certain vegetables like celery and lettuce. Aside from helping to relieve stress, there are many other benefits to eating raw organic foods.
2) Create a To-Do List
By far, this is one of my favorite tips to give anyone. When I used to create to-do lists in college, I noticed that I got things done faster and more efficiently. Not only were my tasks being completed, I also felt more relaxed knowing that these things were being crossed off my list and I did not have to worry about them. I highly suggest this tactic because it will help you in the long run with stress relief. Many people I have dealt with tend to worry about the little things. They do not realize that those "little" things will add up and contribute to their overall stress.
3) Engage in Enjoyable Physical Exercises
When I used to get stressed out, I would always love to go for a relaxing swim or a jog with my friends. This played a tremendous part in my stress relief. I found out that after I completed these activities, I was less tense and more relaxed. It is almost like venting your frustrations in a constructive and safe way. Give it a try and you will notice a huge difference.
4) Try Aromatherapy and Meditation
I recently started to get into aromatherapy and meditation. I have sometimes taken for granted certain smells and their affect on the human mind. Aromatherapy is a form of alternative medicine that uses essential oils from plants for the purpose of affecting a person in terms of their mood and health. My favorite scent by far is vanilla. I always buy vanilla scented oils and candles for my home. I am not going to lie, but I feel so relaxed that I doubt anything can bother me when I am at home burning these scents.
Meditation is relatively new to me and I have spent the past few months really getting into it. For example, just the other day I felt really stressed after work and decided to meditate in my bedroom. When I was finished, I felt much better and less tense than before. Do your own research into the different methods of meditation and give it a try.
5) Enjoy Yourself and Laugh
I have often heard the phrase, "laughter is the best medicine" and discarded it as some poetic form of guidance. From my personal perspective, laughter is the ultimate form of stress relief. I do not mean snickering; I mean a nice full body jolting laugh. I have seen many people who love to use laughter as their "medicine" to de-stressing. The beautiful thing is that all laughs are free of charge and anyone can use them.
Overall, stress plays a bigger factor in your health than you can image. Over my years dealing with it, both in my profession and personal life, I can honestly say that stress needs to be checked at all times. Whether it is just a small amount or a large amount that causes your head to hurt, you really need to be sure that your stress levels are kept to a minimum. I really hope this information has helped you and good luck to your health.

articles by : Dr. Davon Jacobson

5 Natural Ways Reduce Your Stress

Stress is an issue for most people at some point in their lives. Many people experience the negative emotional and physical effects of stress on a daily basis. It costs us as stressed individuals in terms of peace of mind, physical ailments, and less productivity. There are several approaches to stress management that can alleviate the effects of excessive stress. Here are 5 natural ways to reduce your stress levels:
1. Assess your diet.

The mind and body are closely connected, and improving the health of one will support improvement in the other. Concentrate on eating fresh vegetables and fruits, lean proteins, and whole grains. Reduce your intake of processed foods, especially sugars, fats and empty carbohydrates, as much as possible. If you have problems with your appetite as a result of stress, try carrying around healthy snack foods that you can eat throughout the day. If you tend to overeat when stressed, be sure you are not eating while distracted, i.e. in front of the television. Try setting a time in the evening where you cut off your eating altogether.

2. Try supplements.
Start with a good food based multivitamin, and add a calcium supplement if you are not consuming a lot of calcium rich foods. Fish oil has a multitude of physical benefits, including improvement of brain function. If you are struggling with any feelings of depression, you can try 5 HTP (hydroxytryptophan), a natural antidepressant. You can also take L-Theanine if you are experiencing anxiety.
3. Talk things out.

If you are feeling overwhelmed by your stressful life, it can be helpful to speak with a counselor or life coach to determine how to get your life into better balance. A professional can offer you a trained, unbiased perspective on your troubles and help guide you to find solutions. It can also be very helpful to talk things over with a trusted friend or family member. Emotional support can help alleviate feelings of stress.
4. Initiate a doctor approved exercise program.
This is an excellent technique for managing stress. Your body may be reacting with some fight or flight responses in reaction to stress, and getting physical will help to dissipate the hormones that your stressed body is releasing. Sustained cardiovascular exercise is ideal for mood regulation. What you want is an activity that raises your heart rate long enough to obtain the release of endorphins, the feel good chemicals that are released during exercise.
5. Stop and do one thing that is just for you each day.
Make a list of small activities or pleasures you enjoy. Each day, take the time to do one thing off your list. When you have exhausted your list, make a new one.


Article Source by : shanon E cook

"Taking it Easy"

"Taking It Easy" is one more of the several rules to beat stress in its own game.
As they say, the key to reducing stress is to prevent it. And the key to prevent it is to take stock of how we feel about things, and how we react to external stressors.
"Taking It Easy" is probably the easier of the stress management tips; yet not many people take full advantage of all the stress tips provided here. Too many people get stressed out unnecessarily, by not taking things easily enough. Here are a few stress tips that help you get into the "easy mode" of life, by focusing on taking things just a bit easy:
Don't set rigid rules for yourself. Be flexible. Compromise. Don't be a perfectionist, if it means tying your self esteem to all those rules, or stressing out on little itsy bitsy things.
Let each day and each moment come by in its own pace. Learn to take things as they come by. As Mahatma Gandhi said, "There is more to life than increasing its speed."
Things didn't go as planned? Make a new plan. Realize that nothing in this world is written in stone. Remember the old adage "If anything can go wrong, it will"? Don't be too shocked when that happens.
Don't resist change when it comes knocking your door. Instead, welcome it, and embrace it. Change is the way of nature. By not adapting to change, you are naturally not adapting to life.
Don't be overly concerned about affairs of other people. If they haven't told you about it, chances are they didn't think it concerns you. This is one stress contributing factor we all can do without easily.
And don't be too hard on their mistakes either. Realize that a mistake just makes them as much a human as you are.
Feel like things are moving too fast, or you are working too hard? Slow down, take a step back, and try looking at the big picture. The big picture being what is ultimately important to you in your life.
How much does what you are doing right now, matter in the long run? How much would it benefit the big picture? At what cost are you doing it? Is the effort you are putting in right now, worth the price you are paying or may pay for it later? Would it hurt the big picture if you slow down a bit? What's the worst that can happen if you did slow down? You can and must work hard at times to get to your goals, of course, but never lose sight of the big picture.
Feel like there are too many things to handle? Don't multitask in an effort to finish everything at once. Instead, prioritize. And do only ONE thing at a time, based on the priority.
Alternatively, delegate a task or a portion of the task to someone else. Focus on only ONE thing at a time, and prioritizing, delegation and communication as a substitute to multitasking.
"The time to relax is when you don't have time for it. -Jim Goodwin

Article Source: Prashant Mangalampalli