Master Managing Stress
According to the Orthopedic Therapy Clinic Inc., stress is just a fact of life. Sometimes it gets so bad we see ourselves as unfortunate, even as lost souls. But with the right understanding and resources, we can regain strength and actually grow from stressful situations. We can use stress to find our limits and boundaries—to challenge us and empower ourselves to heal.
Simply increasing mindfulness can be key when we’re stressed. During stressful times we tend to disconnect from our feelings, not noticing building discomfort until it leads to serious pain or even injury. Stress approached truthfully and intelligently can bring evolution on the highest level.
Orthopaedic Therapy Clinic Inc. suggests thinking of stress as an acronym, which stands for:
Strain
Thoughts
Rest
Energy
Support
Strategy
It’s an easy way to remember the different elements that make up this force that has such a great impact on our lives. With a clear and strong understanding of how stress is seen intelligently, we can begin to see opportunity for greater confidence in healing with it.
Breaking down the STRESS acronym
S= Strain: The combination of physiological, emotional, and energetic dysfunction. Chronic stress produces too much of the stress hormone, cortisol, which triggers unhealthy changes in the body. Functional systems, such as digestion, hormone, immune, and cognition, are affected by chronically high cortisol levels and eventually become dysfunctional. This creates negative emotions more frequently such as anxiety, depression, and nervousness. Our energy body becomes unbalanced with our physical body and we lose energy. A helpful analogy is to think of yourself as a computer with trillions of programs running, and how viruses in your system will slow it down or cause malfunctions.
T= Thoughts: We are what we think about; high-vibration positive thoughts are healthier than low-vibration negative thoughts. Our thoughts affect our physical reality because we manifest what we think about, both consciously and unconsciously. We created words to articulate our thoughts and give form to our ideas. But often we don’t pay attention to the power of words. We use them indiscriminately, carelessly, angrily. Yet choosing our thoughts and words carefully, with wisdom, results in better outcomes. Positive words have a higher vibration than negative words—their energetic signature has better qualities. High vibrations are associated with positive feelings such as love, forgiveness, compassion and peace. In contrast, low vibrations are associated with harmful feelings such as hatred, fear, greed and depression.
R= Rest: Strong sleep and restorative time outs are important for healing from stress. Our bodies have the opportunity to heal when we sleep. This is when your functional systems and energetic systems regenerate and reboot. Good sleep quality relies on a few factors: duration (8-10 hours for most people), a dark room to prevent disruption of your circadian biological clock, cool temperature, quiet setting and a comfortable, supportive bed. Restorative time outs include going for walks in the park, sitting outside in the sun, deep breathing, and hugging. All these activities have been shown to reduce cortisol levels.
E= Energy: We are vibrational beings composed of many different energetic systems, including meridians, acupuncture points, chakras, and etheric fields. Vibrational Medicine by Dr. Gerber is one of the most respected and well-researched books on energy medicine. Unbalanced, stressed energy systems can affect physical biological systems (particularly the hormonal systems) and create disease.
S= Support: We are all here to do two things in this world: learn and help each other out. Stress is humanity’s common denominator—we all experience it, no matter what our lives look like. With such a strong connection pulling us together, it’s natural to unite for support and healing. Friends, family, health practitioners, and support groups are all potentially blessed opportunities to heal and grow from stress.
S= Strategies: We all need a well formulated and executed plan to evolve from stress. You are the only one who can control YOUR life and to be successful, strategy is pivotal. An intelligent strategy includes having the right support and the “Five Minute Living” concept, anyone can find five minutes a few times per day to regain a healthy state of being and happiness. Five minutes of deep breathing, stretches, walking, positive affirmations, peaceful quiet sitting, hydration, supportive eating and hugging a loved one is time well spent on powerful approaches to dealing with stress.