We can be physiologically experiencing stress yet mentally numb to it because we’ve become so accustomed to it. Some have become so adapted to the daily pressures, irritations and annoyances of life that it starts to seem normal. Yet the small stresses accumulate quickly and we may not realise how much they’re impairing our mental and emotional clarity and our overall health until it shows up as a bad decision, an overreaction or an unwanted diagnosis at the doctor’s office.
We have to accept that stress is already part of life and chances are you might be one of those suffering from the adverse effects of stress. It is all up to you if you wanted to stay in the trap or get out of it completely.
Cultivating the proper mindset is an essential part of your stress management. Achieving your goals and desire for a resilient and happy life takes plenty of effort, determination and ideal mindset.
However, there are some individuals who will be sabotaging your effort by means of bringing distorted thoughts so you have to be very careful.
To completely eliminate stress from your system isn’t actually possible, but you can learn to manage it rather than have it manage you. First step is to stop resisting and believe in the power of acceptance mindset. You might observe others stuck in the most stressing scenarios of their life without even thinking that these may also happen to you. But in case, you have been victimised by stress, you have to accept this and convince yourself that unpredictable things happen and these are all part of life’s beauty and complexities.
Practice Breathing Exercises
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, breathing is highly underrated. Yes I know we breath otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this, but are we breathing to maximise the benefits of breathing? Breathing is much much more than an exchange of gasses, driven mostly by the need to get rid of carbon dioxide than the need for more oxygen.
Stressed individuals are on the lookout for the effective means of relieving stress without even realising that they naturally have one of the best stress reliever mechanisms known … breathing. Breathing exercises do not just relax your mind and body, slowing your heart rate down, but these are also proven to boost your immune system. Experts even suggest that individuals should take slow and deep breaths whenever negative thoughts and feelings strike in.
Breathing
It was found out that breathing exercises have profound effect to health. Individuals who take time to perform these types of exercises for as little as 5 minute a time 3 times a day, and especially during stressful times feel a lot better than those who do not do breathing exercises.
Breathing exercises have been studied for many years and have shown that they can alter the blood’s PH and make changes to blood pressure, for the better. Most importantly these exercises can be utilised as methods of training the reaction of the body towards stressful situations and dampen and reduce the production of stress hormones like cortisol. Rapid breathing is said to be controlled by the human sympathetic Nervous System. This is part of flight or fight response, the part which is activated by stress. To relieve stress, deep and slow breathing is necessary. In fact just by breathing in we increase our heart rate and breathing out will slow it down, albeit a little.
Breathing exercises are crucial for ultimate recovery from stress and depression. Making deep breaths stimulate the Parasympathetic Nervous System which is responsible for various activities occurring when the body is at complete rest. The following are the most suggested breathing exercises that individuals can try to relieve anxiety, depression and stress and the surprising benefits that individuals can get should they decide to perform these exercises:
• Coherent Breathing
This is basically a type of breathing exercise in a rate of 5 breaths every minute. This is said to be the middle of the rate range of resonant breathing. This is done by making five inhales and five exhales. This breathing rate aids in maximising Heart Rate Variability or HRV, which is defined as the rate of performance of PNS.
A change in pattern and rate of breathing can alter HRV causing shifts in the nervous system. The higher the Heart Rate Variability or HRV is better because this entails healthier cardiovascular system and stronger response system for stress.
This is the breathing practice I use and have experienced some measurable benefits from doing so. I could go on, at length, about HRV and Coherent breathing, but not here, so if you like to know more just get in touch.
Here’s some other breathing techniques for balance.
• Resistance Breathing
Resistance breathing exercise is breathing by creating resistance to the ideal flow of air. Resistance can be made by pursuing your lips, placing your tongue’s tip against the inner and upper teeth and hissing to your clenched teeth. You also have to tighten your throat muscles, close the glottis partly and narrow spaces between your vocal cords with the aid of an external object like straw.
• Breath Moving
This is when breathing moves complementary to your imagination. An expert compared this breathing exercise to a deep internal massage. It is as if allowing your breath to take a short journey to your entire body. As an example, when you are breathing, imagine that you are able to move your breath to your head, spine, sit bones and other parts of the body. This can somehow give you relaxation and relieve the stress you are feeling.
In many ways we are lucky as we do have the power to change the pattern and rate of our breathing consciously. Scientific studies proved that controlling breaths helps in managing stress and all other stress-related conditions. As a matter of fact, breath control and breath exercises are not just used as stress reliever. These are also utilised in other practices like tai chi, yoga and meditation.
Many individuals these days are embracing breathing exercises to reduce stress and promote relaxation. Aside from these, breathing exercises also play essential role in getting rid of chest tightness, fatigue, light-headedness, faintness, panic feelings, heart palpitations and more. What’s more, you can do this in the moment any time any where.
Would you like to know how? Contact me now for your complimentary assessment.