Stress Relief Action Guide

I read with interest an online article published by the Chicago Tribune a week ago titled “Holdout smokers: Who they are and why they can’t quit”.  In this article, it states

“Beyond the physical addiction, smokers repeatedly pointed to the stress relief that smoking provides.  “Cigarettes are just adult pacifiers,” said three-pack-a-day smoker Deborah Israel, 56, of Chicago. “You stick ‘em in your mouth when you get stressed.”

I guess the same could be said of drinkers, who take a drink whenever they get stressed and need to “calm down”.  The alcoholic buzz and the warm glow helps to smooth the rough edges.

The problem with these  “stress relievers”, and other misused alternatives (pain pills, muscle relaxers, illegal drugs, etc.) is the danger to go too far with them.  In the case of the stressed out smoker above, evidently she is getting stressed 60 times a day.  (20 cigarettes to a pack and three packs a day).  That’s every day.  That’s way too much stress to deal with on a daily basis.

But I suspect her stress is not that often.  My guess is that she uses “stress relief” as her validation of why she can’t quit smoking.  And that’s probably true of the other alternatives to reducing stress.  All of these are highly addictive, and produce more bad effects on the body than good.

What do you take for your stress?  Have you stopped to think about it?  Do you subconsciously reach for something to calm you down?  It doesn’t have to be items that are considered bad by society.  How about candy?  Mints?  Snack food?  Sodas?  More coffee?

A bedrock of dealing with stress is to be aware of what is causing you stress and to consciously make decisions as to how to address these “activating events.”.  Remember our “ABC Model”?

Choose your stress relievers wisely!

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I just came across a report on a new study published by Daniel K. Mroczek, a professor of child development and family studies at Purdue University (West Lafayette, Indiana).  The study looked at personality traits and how they affected mortality rates.  They found

“that having worrying tendencies or being the kind of person who stresses easily is likely to lead to bad behaviors like smoking and, therefore, raise the mortality rate.”

The researchers followed 1,788 men over a 30 year period.  They looked at their personality traits and smoking behaviors, to see if there were any connections.  What they found was that those men who exhibit higher levels of neuroticism tend to “self-medicate” themselves by using tobacco, alcohol, or drugs.

Neuroticism is excessive worry over minor events in which there is an expectation of negative consequences or an inability to deal with those events.

What does this mean to you?  Well, first of all, if you’re a person who stresses easily, such as worrying about events that are outside of your control, then you need to take affirmative steps toward realizing that you may be at risk.

Make your motto:

DON’T WORRY.  BE HAPPY!

When you do worry, do you turn to bad habits to see you through?  If you do, you are setting yourself up for future medical problems.  At the very least, make the conscious connection that you’re reacting to stress in your life when you turn to these vices.  Understand each time your partake in a smoke, drink, or pop a pill, you are reacting to stress.  Once you understand this connection, you can begin to deal with the real cause of your stress.  And in the meantime, eliminate the temptations to turn to these vices.  Remove them from your environment.  Instead, turn to healthy alternatives.

I know it’s easy to say, hard to do.  But your life is at stake.  Realize that it really is cutting your life short and it should be easier to attack the problem.

Stress Less and Live More

Dillon

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Normally we all automatically associate the word “stress” with “bad”. But in actuality, we all need stress to grow and become all that we can be. It’s that management of the fine line between “good” and “bad” that becomes the hard part.

Good stress is also known as eustress. The prefix “eu” means “good”. (Contrast that to “dis”, as in distress, being “bad”.)

For instance, let’s say that you are getting ready to make an important speech. All eyes will be on you and you want to do well. The stress accompanying this task causes you to focus on the speech and nothing else. As a result, you practice until you are comfortable with the words and relax to be able to deliver it.

The same goes for a big competition. Your nervousness leads to more intense practice sessions to get you ready. Your pulse quickens but it strengthens your resolve to do your best.

Any time that stress is related to physical activity it produces endorphins. Those who are involved in practices and big sporting competitions reap the reward of good feeling endorphins from the physical exertion. The endorphins make us want more of the same to keep us in that feel good mode.

Have you heard of the fight or flight response? It is what happens when we are scared or confronted by someone who may want to hurt us. Adrenalin is released. Our senses become more acute as the body prepares to hit the ground running or stand and fight.

In those moments, our basic instincts take over and we are primed for the best response in the situation. You hear about extraordinary situations where people have lifted cars off of their loved ones who were hurt in an accident. Or, someone thinks to use their cell phone to call from the trunk of a car when they’ve been kidnapped.

People wonder how someone can think of those things but it is the fight or flight response that occurs when we are in the midst of those harrowing experiences. This response extends to people like hostage negotiators who talk a kidnapper into releasing his hostages or the doctor who is performing emergency surgery to save a person’s life.

Good stressors abound in our lives but often go unnoticed in favor of the unhealthy stress. A dose of good stress can save our lives. Cultivate good stress in your life.

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Reading the news today I saw a report of a new study linking stress and weight gain.  The author of the study, Jason Block, M. D. , M. P. H. , a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health & Society Scholar at Harvard University, said

“Today’s economy is stressing people out, and stress has been linked to a number of illnesses – such as heart disease, high blood pressure, and increased risk for cancer.  This study shows that stress is also linked to weight gain.”

Some other findings of this study suggest that people who are already overweight get heavier with stress, but not for people who are lower weight.

There are also differences by gender. Women tend to eat more when stressed by financial problems or a difficult work environment, strained family relationships, and a feeling of being limited by life’s circumstances.

Weight gain for men tended to be more likely affected by work problems rather than family problems.  Examples include lacking decision authority or lack of skill discretion (the ability to learn new skills on the job and performing interesting work assignments).

“Our findings show that stress should be recognized as a threat to the well-being of adults, especially those who are already overweight.”

I’m not surprised at the findings.  Stress is such a negative influence in our lives that I would wager that most of the illnesses we suffer are a result of chronic stress.  I think it’s only a matter of time before more studies show the direct linkage.

I think the good news out of this study is that you first recognize that if you have a higher BMI (body mass index), then you need to be watchful of your eating patterns.  If you start to gain weight, take a moment to evaluate whether the stress in your life has changed, possibly increasing.  If so, take active steps to counteract the stress.  Take more walks, make sure you have healthy snacks around, and identify what activating event is causing your stress.

Knowledge is power.  Use it to your advantage.

Stress Less and Live More

Dillon

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