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Stress is the body's mental, emotional, and physiological response
to any situation that is new, threatening, frightening, or exciting.
Stress exists inside and outside ourselves. It is nearly impossible
to live without stress in your life. A certain amount of stress
is needed for optimum health and performance, however, stress for
prolonged periods of time affects our health and emotional wellbeing.
It's important to manage the unhealthy stress in your life and
the first step is recognizing the early warning signals. These symptoms
include:
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Fatigue
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Muscle Tension
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Anxiety
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Irritability
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Mood Swings
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Headaches
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Insomnia
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Neck or Back Pain
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Upset Stomach
The key to living with stress is learning how to cope effectively.
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First, identify the stress in your life and determine whether
or not it is within your ability to control it.
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Secondly, discover your feelings and learn to deal with them
in a healthy way. Examine your beliefs and attitudes. Your body
responds to your thoughts and beliefs as if they were real events.
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Third, develop positive mental attitudes and turn them into
positive problem solving skills.
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Finally, explore stress reduction alternatives and choose methods
that help you reduce your stress. Practice Daily.
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Excercise regularly
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Laugh, get in touch with the humor in your life
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Use guided imagery
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Learn to meditate
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Explore yoga
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Learn Tai Chi
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Spend quiet time every day
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Read or do another leisure activity you enjoy
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Volunteer
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Join a support group
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Consider private or group counseling.
Take the Weight Loss for Life Stress
Quiz!
RELATED ARTICLES FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC
Weight Fluctuation Links to
Stress - from the Healthy Weight Journal
Anxiety Disorders - from Michael R. Liebowitz,
M.D.
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