Yes, I admit, I am a stress addict.  They say some stress is a good thing because it sharpens your mind and your senses.  We always need to be challenging ourselves.  We are meant to set goals and take steps to achieve them.  That is what life is all about.  We have a natural need to keep our stress system, otherwise known as the sympathetic nerve system, activated and functioning.  This system is responsible for our “flight or fight” response, that increases our heart rate, tenses muscles and heightens our reflexes.  This is the system we want to have functioning in top condition for survival situations, defending our lives or running from danger.

So what is the problem then, if we are all over stressed?  Just like in a training plan you need time for relaxation, for your muscles to relax and recover, stress to be reduced on your organs and functions and fatigue to be decreased on your body and mind.  It is our parasympathetic system, known as “rest and recovery” that helps all of this happen.  If we are in stress mode the majority of the time, this system is rarely activating.  The results will only be bad for your mental and physical health. 

The trick with stress is that the more we are exposed to it without a balance of rest, the more our body becomes used to it.  When your body becomes conditioned to anything, it is uncomfortable without that condition.  So when you are used to operating under stress, you soon learn that you can only operate when stressed.  At that point you are dependant on stress for motivation and energy.  Which may work well for you until….

• 1) You run out of energy and feel like you are never rested
• 2) Cannot seem to lose weight no matter how much you workout
• 3) Only want to eat foods that are bad for you and provide little nutrition
• 4) Cannot focus or function at work
• 5) Feel depressed or bitter a lot of the time
  

A lot of these symptoms are representative of “Burn Out” which I found out the hard way, is not just a slang term.  It is a physiological reaction that happens after we have been under stress, too often, too long or too much and have completely depleted the contents our adrenal system, which feeds our stress response.  This is not something that is easily reversed and can take lots of time and sometimes require minerals and vitamins to kick start it. 

If you are a stress addict, you are often motivated by goals and achieving them.  So, I can tell you there is nothing more frustrating than to loose control over your ability to work towards those goals or achieve them.   Because when you are stressed your body hangs on to calories, it craves false energy, reduces it nutrient absorption and stores any excess energy, so it is not available for you to use to concentrate, think positively or work towards your goals. 

The key to not letting stress get the best of you, is finding the proper balance between rest and stress.  You will get more from your exercise regime, more from good nutrition habits and most of all you will start to realize more success in everything you do.   Everything will seem a lot easier to do.  In other words, reducing stress, reduces what causes stress. 

Exercise can be a great tool for reducing stress for more reasons than people think of.  Exercise releases endorphins, which can stimulate that “feel good feeling” that we sometimes need to give us a boost.  It is a natural high that feeds our system and gives us real energy. 

You don’t need to meditate to realize its benefits.  You can go for a walk, hike, stretch or any repetitive action that keeps you in the present, to help you reduce stress. The key is that every time you start thinking of responsibilities or things you have to do, you bring your mind back to what you are doing at that time.  If you find that difficult take a look at the leaves on the trees, flowers on the ground or anything around you that makes you smile.  When you keep your mind on the present, stress has to take a back seat.

If you take nothing from this message, please take this with you.  You can break a stress habit by simply breathing.  That may sound simple, but stress causes uptight, shallow breathing.  When our body is getting substantial amounts of oxygen, it works more effectively and calms our body because it knows that it is getting a vital component and feels assured that the oxygen will keep coming.  To do this effectively you may find that you need to breath out a long breath before you can take in a good, long breath.  Repeating this just a few times can completely change the condition and situation you are in.  Practice makes perfect for this one.  

So for those stress addicts our there like me, who like a good challenge, I challenge you.  I challenge you to find that proper balance.  To take time now and then to tell stress “not right now, I am busy in rest mode”.

Happy balancing!