The Whys and Whats of Stress Management

Stress Management is the ability to maintain control when situations, people, and events make excessive demands. Stress management is a collection of skills, tools, and techniques that help you reduce, manage, and even counteract the negative side-effects of stress. The art of stress management is to keep you at a level of stimulation that is healthy and enjoyable and to bring your mind and body back into balance.
Stress is a word for emotional strain -- the anxiety, sadness, anger and frustration that come with everyday life. If you are under a lot of stress for a prolonged period of time, but do not feel stressed, eventually it may catch up with you and cause more serious symptoms, such as; stomach ulcers, heart problems, allergies, skin disorders, migraine. Stress can also cause more serious illnesses such as; arthritis, cancer, diabetes, depression.

Depression can show up as, lack of appetite, low sex drive, decreased energy, sleep problems, constant worrying, and unhappiness; all of these could be symptoms of depression. Violence, depression and illness are potential outcomes from too much stress. When studies of stress have been conducted suicide, substance abuse, depression, anxiety, and eating disorders have all been linked to stress. So you can understand why stress is a huge issue in our lives and it is necessary for us to identify it and/or get help to recognize it.

Stress management is good, but stress elimination is even better. The good news is that stress management is a skill that can be learned, practiced, and refined. To learn stress management is to learn about the mind-body connection and the degree to which we can control our health in a positive sense. Again, stress management is very individualized, therefore, it is important to find what will work best for you and one of the best ways to do this is to find a good wellness coach who will give you a personalized program, encouragement and empowerment to teach you the tools to relieve the stress in your life. Some of these tools are time management, meditation, yoga, daily exercise and mental imagery.