If you ask what the single most important key to longevity is, I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress and tension. And if you didn’t ask me, I’d still have to say it. Saying this George Burns emphasised upon the fact that with increasing job pressure, media overload, competition, sleep deprivation and decreasing general health, relationship and nutrition status, stress is bound to occur. As symptoms such as headaches, palpitations, stomach problems and hair fall are become more prevalent; the need to act against this juggernaut of stress is becoming important. However to act on it, one must know what stress unambiguously is. To beat the negative side of stress, you have two choices: Reduce the strain or boost your ability to weather its effects.
Stress is one’s mind and body response to a real or imagined threat. Internal or external stressors cause this stress. Here is a list of what actually causes stress:
Internal stressors include-
- Negative thoughts accompanied by false beliefs or irrational thinking
- Inability to accept present situations
- Fostering a negative attitude towards an undesirable event
External stressors include-
- Physical pain or discomfort
- Formidable events such as death of a loved one or breaking of ties.
- Setbacks in profession, vocation or education.
Signs of Stress
Everyone reacts to stress differently. However, some common signs and symptoms of the fight or flight response include:
- Frequent headaches.
- Cold or sweaty hands and feet.
- Frequent heartburn, stomach pain, or nausea.
- Panic attacks.
- Excessive sleeping, or insomnia.
- Persistent difficulty concentrating.
- Obsessive or compulsive behaviors.
- Social withdrawal or isolation.
- Constant fatigue.
- Irritability and angry episodes.
- Significant weight gain or loss.
- Consistent feelings of being overwhelmed or overloaded.
How to Manage Stress
Take away the cause and the effect ceases because it is not the load that breaks you down, it is the way you carry it. Just knowing what stress is and realising that it is present will not help one overcome stress.
- Procrastination and delay breed more stress. Eliminate items that can’t/won’t get done and do those that are most important first.
- Getting stress out of your life takes more than prayer alone. You must take action to make changes and stop doing whatever is causing the stress.
- Your workload can cause stress, if you don’t manage your time well. This can be a key source of stress for very many people.
- Few techniques for the fast track management of our daily stress which can get you moving along higher in life with a balanced state of heart, body and mind are listed below:
- Medications advised by your doctor or psychiatrist
- FMT(functional manual therapy)
- Spinal decompression therapy
- Reiki
- A “detox” diet
- ALPHA TRAINING USING BIOFEEDBACK
- Craniosacral Therapy
Out of all the given techniques, biofeedback is the most scientifically reliable one.
BIOFEEDBACK at PHYWorld
How do we define protocol?
There are four kinds of brain wave frequencies, beta, alpha, theta and delta, each having different state of consciousness. We train patients to increase alpha level with graphs or any feedback response. We train the client to shift his energy level from beta (fully awake state) to alpha (deeply relaxed or composed state), and help them to maintain as long as they wish to be there through graph or feedback (visual or auditory) on the computer.
What do we expect from the protocol?
- Better focus
- Better concentration
- Improved reaction time
- Increased power
- Improved mind and body balance
- Quick rehab from pain
Alpha wave feedback training could be a promising method for treating the escalating epidemic of stress. Training gives us an outlet for suppressed energies created by stress and thus tones the spirit just as exercise conditions the body. Hence, Stress is an important dragon to slay – or at least tame – in your life because a diamond is just a piece of charcoal that handled stress extremely well.