Yoga, meditation, and visualization are all excellent ways to learn to manage your stress levels. Reducing stress, and the stress hormones, in your system is critical to your brain and overall fitness.
Why is this so? Its clear that our society has changed faster than our genes. Instead of being faced with physical, immediately life-threatening crises that demand instant action, these days we deal with events and illnesses that gnaw away at us slowly, without any stress release.
Dr. Robert Sapolsky, in an interview about his book Why Zebras Dont Get Ulcers, points out that humans uniquely can get stressed simply with thought, turning on the same stress response as does the zebra. But, the zebra releases the stress hormones through life-preserving action, while we usually just keep muddling along, getting more anxious by the moment.
Prolonged exposure to the adrenal steroid hormones like cortisol, released during the stress response, can damage the brain and block the formation of new neurons in the hippocampus, which is the key player in encoding new memories in your brain. Recent studies have shown these neurons can be regenerated with learning and environmental stimulation, but while short-term stress may improve attention and memory, chronic stress leads indirectly to cell death and hampers our ability to make changes and be creative enough to even think of possible changes to reduce the stress.
What are the best defenses against chronic stress?
- Exercise strengthens the body and can reduce the experience of stress, depression, and anxiety.
- Relaxation through meditation, tai chi, yoga, or other techniques to lower blood pressure, slow respiration, slow metabolism, and release muscle tension.
- Biofeedback programs that provide real-time information, allowing you to learn effective techniques for reducing stress levels.
- Empowerment, because attitudes of personal confidence and control of your environment resolve the stress response.
- Social network of friends, family, and even pets help foster trust, support, and relaxation.
If you want to learn more about the science behind these recommendations, you can enjoy these scientific papers:
- Bedard M, Felteau M, Mazmanian D, Fedyk K, Klein R, Richardson J, Parkinson W, Minthorn-Biggs MB. Pilot evaluation of a mindfulness-based intervention to improve quality of life among individuals who sustained traumatic brain injuries. Disabil Rehabil. 2003;25:722-31.
- Bremner JD. Traumatic stress: effects on the brain. Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2006;8:445-61.
- Czeh B, Muller-Keuker JI, Rygula R, Abumaria N, Hiemke C, Domenici E, Fuchs E. Chronic Social Stress Inhibits Cell Proliferation in the Adult Medial Prefrontal Cortex: Hemispheric Asymmetry and Reversal by Fluoxetine Treatment. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2006 Dec 13; [Epub ahead of print].
- Warner-Schmidt JL, Duman RS. Hippocampal neurogenesis: opposing effects of stress and antidepressant treatment. Hippocampus. 2006;16:239-49.
Since we've all come to realize that stress is a part of our lives, finding techniques to manage and regulate it is very important to stay healthy in both mind and body. There are plenty of ways to minimize and manage stress levels, but the important thing to realize is that there isn't a perfect technique and that stress is unavoidable. Finding the best ways to keep yours at a level you can manage is important.
Your time, budget, lifestyle, personality type, and many other factors will play a part in determining what stress management techniques are best for you. Many physicians recommend exercise as an excellent way to relieve it. The exercise does not have to be intense or grueling to be a good stress relief, as long as you do something physical to burn some energy.
This can be something as simple as going for a walk, although many people enjoy running, weight lifting, and various team sports like softball or basketball. Many people enjoy team sports because of the interaction team sports provide. Aerobics clubs and other workout groups can also be very rewarding.
Not only do you get to be around other people who are trying to be healthy, you get to see people with at least one similar interest. The group aspect of these activities also motivates some people to continue to participate on days they might skip if it were an individual activity.
However, exercise is not the only activity for managing it. Anything you enjoy and find rewarding can be a great stress relief. Again, you will want to find different non-physical stress management techniques depending on your personality, lifestyle, and budget.
Of course, if we were all independently wealthy, it would be much easier to maintain a low stress level, since we would have all the time and money you need to relax properly. However, for us in the real world, we have to find reasonable ways to relax when we get a chance.
It's necessary to give your brain a rest too, so while being physical is a good thing, having a mental distraction will bring you to a balance of combined stress relief techniques. Reading is a popular activity and doesn't need to take up a lot of time or cost much money. Finally trying out that hobby you've always been attracted to, such as painting, learning an instrument, or building model trains is another way to relax.
Many people enjoy crafts or woodworking and some prefer getting outdoors, taking up fishing. Having a companion or a friend with the same interest can be good, as two people tend to relax more together than one person alone.
Finding activities you can do on a regular basis is important and the best way to have a continual outlet for the pressures that build up inside you. What you choose to do for those activities is up to you, but there are tons of things to do that don't cost a lot or that are close to home. Experimentation and trying different things out can also end up being a lot of fun.
Both Alvaro Fernandez & Nbisea are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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