Act Before You Snap!

Ignore stress at your peril. This is the message from health professionals who have seen over and over again the role of human behaviour in illness.

We are fortunate enough to enjoy increased life expectancy as well as a dramatic reduction in infectious diseases. Yet where does this increased longevity leave us? Chronic diseases have replaced these infectious ones as major causes of death. In 1900, heart disease, cancer and stroke together accounted for approximately 16% of all American deaths. By 1986, these diseases accounted for nearly two thirds of all deaths, while heart disease, the leading killer, accounted for 36%. (Source: Health Psychology: by George D. Bishop, 1994, Allyn and Bacon). Also on the increase are lung cancer, suicide and AIDS.

How many times has the thought crossed your mind when you are ill… this problem has psychological roots? The stress has simply become too much and the physical body takes the toll. Or how many times have you wanted to lose weight, but you know you won’t do it unless you really are motivated?

Stress can be extremely harmful because it alters perceptions and cause you to self-medicate with alcohol, drugs, overworking or over exercising. In the workplace it makes you tired and burnt out, and less open to creativity. $300 billion or $7,500 per employee is spent annually on stress-related compensation claims. (Sources: Centers for Disease Control, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the American Psychological Association) Furthermore, woman have the brunt of stress coping with keeping a job and a family on the go.

Human behaviour and lifestyle has become the immediate conce
here. The good news is that people are able to adopt positive behaviours (e.g. healthy diet, sleep, exercise) as well as an ability to handle what life throws at them. Stress is part of our existence: yet we have a choice to let it overwhelm us or break it up into manageable pieces and use more mental and other abilities to handle a problem.

I’m going to put forward some immediate techniques that may help you next time you feel stressed:

1. Breathe:
The 7/11 technique means you breathe in for 7 counts and out for 11. You can vary these numbers but make sure you breathe out for longer than you breathe in. This will help calm you in a distressing situation.

2. Emotional Freedom Techniques:
This is like acupuncture without the needles. You tap on various parts of your body and say affirmations. The affirmations work particularly because they start from a basis of self acceptance (e.g. Even though I feel like a failure, I love and accept myself). You then “tap” repeating variations on the key phrase. Do not underestimate the power of speaking positive words over your life. To see the tapping points and more information on EFT go to: www.healwithheather.com/eft.htm

3. Cognitive Behavioural Techniques:
You reframe your thinking. Instead of “I cannot do this.” You say “I will tackle this task realistically one baby step at a time.”

4. Look after yourself.
Take time to be kind to yourself. Eat healthy food and exercise.

5. Subliminal Power:
There are many options here but one that is very practical is: flashing positive messages on your screen. The best part is there is a program where you can write your own positive messages, (or use theirs or mine) so you have complete control.

6. Listen to your body
If something has upset you and you feel ill, examine what it is that was the cause. You may try to cover things up, but it will always come out in one way or another.

You can access all these techniques and more by visiting my website.

If you think you are stressed, try answering the questions in my Stress Quiz: nnwww.healwithheather.com/stressquiz.htmnn