Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Managing stress the right way
|
Stress is a part and parcel of our lives today. There are several ways to combat this malaise.
|
BREAKING POINT: Fight stress by adopting health-promoting lifestyles.
STRESS IS the disease of the civilised world. The caveman who lived by his instincts did not have any such problems. If he felt hungry he hunted, when he was thirsty, he drank from the nearest stream, if it rained, he found a cave to take shelter. As his life was so simple, even the reflexes he was endowed with were simple. When he faced danger his adrenalin shot up, it made him run faster, scream louder or fight harder and survive.
But today's man is protected and does not have to resort to these measures, but adrenalin nevertheless shoots up in the modern man when he is faced with anxiety. And as he does not respond with accelerated physical activity, the response is reflected in high blood pressure, rapid heart beat, sweat, dry tongue... these are called stress factors now. And if these are not managed or coped with, they have some very harmful long-term effects on the human body. Therefore Dr. Niranjan Reddy, professor of clinical Psychology, calls it the disease of civilisation. At a workshop organised by the Hyderabad Psychological Association, he dwelt on the subject of stress elaborately.
According to him, different events in our lives have varying degrees of stress. Death of spouse effects the most with 100 points, divorce effects with 73 points, being fired from the job is supposed to be traumatic with 47 points. Even beginning and end of school with 16 points, vacation -13, Christmas -11 and sleep with 16 points also affect us in different ways. These in the clinical language are called stressors or pressure from environment that require change or adjustment of behaviour, and finally adaptation to situation. The curious thing is, the good as well as bad situations produce stress. An impending marriage may exert a great stress on the bride and the groom. The inability to realise this leads to overeating and obesity in depressive cases. Only way to fight these, says Dr. Reddy, is by adopting health-promoting lifestyles like better nutrition, assertive behaviour, exercise and so on. He says, stress also needs management, for which, first identifying the cause is very important. The quickest remedy he says is to help the patient to let go of his pent up emotions by listening to him or her and try helping them verbalise their troubles. Also a psychologist should help them with methods to reduce arousal of their anger or passion by suggestion diversionary methods that take the mind off the situation. The person should also be taught relaxation techniques which always bring down stress indicators like, dry tongue, rapid heart beat, blood pressure.
The simplest technique according to Dr. Reddy, is to identify a quiet room, then adopt a passive attitude, find an object to concentrate like, OM or any other. Then relax the body, breathe-in, tighten all the muscles and breathe out with the sound of OM or any other and simultaneously relaxing the muscles. Yoga nidra, Dr. Reddy says, is one of the best techniques of relaxation.
While these conscious exercises are important, sleep plays a major role in managing stress according to Dr. Reddy. Having good sleep cures half the problems . Also a person should not panic that he is not getting sleep or keep watching the clock. It is important not to dwell on emotion arousing thoughts. One should let one's mind dwell on serene thoughts by using visualisation techniques. Also, one should avoid frequent naps in the day .
BROODING ON IT: Sleep is the best option.
Dr.Reddy emphasised that education was extremely necessary in today's context to help people, from school children to adults to older persons cope with life situations and promote well being. Well-being refers to the adjustment of individuals to themselves and the world at large with maximum effectiveness, satisfaction, cheerfulness and socially considerate behaviour and ability to face and accept the realities of life.
The association proposes to hold many workshops for the general public, by identifying the most common problems faced by people. Be it parent's inability in understanding children, or helping children identify their aptitudes and goals in life or other interpersonal problems.
The Association soon proposes to take up guidance and counselling sessions in schools and colleges for students and youth to guide them on educational and vocational fronts by testing abilities and their aptitude.
The Hyderabad Psychological Association can be reached at hpa_2002@rediffmail.com
ARUNA MASARGUPPI
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
|
