Yoga Therapy: The Newest Health Trend that Doctors are Paying Attention To

Wellness enthusiasts have long known the healing benefits of yoga. However, the popularity of this ancient practice is now growing among today’s mainstream, especially doctors. Today, there is a rise in doctor-prescribed yoga therapy, even among Western-trained doctors.

So what is yoga therapy? Why is it a growing trend? Will yoga therapy help patients feel better? Here is some insight.

What is Yoga Therapy?

Yoga therapy involves a variety of practices that can help ease a natural process or improve a health condition. Some of the therapeutic tools that are used are breathing exercises, physical postures, guided imagery and meditation. Diet is also considered part of yoga therapy.

While regular yoga, depending on the type, can be fast-paced and physically demanding, yoga therapy serves as a safe, gentler alternative. It is led by yoga teachers who are specially trained to work with patients suffering from various health conditions. Just as each patient is different, the styles and formats of yoga therapy also differ greatly. They can vary from small therapeutic classes and one-on-one sessions to chair yoga in nursing homes and hospitals.

Yoga therapy takes a more holistic approach to healing, focusing on patients as a whole instead of just on their conditions. The practice simultaneously works on the body, mind, and spirit, strengthening the body’s different systems. These include the heart and cardiovascular system, muscles, the lungs, as well as the body’s nervous system.

Individuals may suffer from multiple conditions at once, so yoga therapy can be a multi-purpose form of healing. Yoga practices can simultaneously improve digestive system function, nurture psychological well-being, and enhance delivery of oxygen to the body’s tissues. Yoga also can assist the body to more effectively remove carcinogens, waste products and toxins.

Why Is It a Growing Trend?

Yoga therapy is still considered to be a new professional field. However, it is now recognized worldwide as a clinically viable treatment. There are established yoga therapy programs at major health care centers and clinics around the United States. It is increasingly being used regularly in health care facilities and hospitals. As more and more physicians see that yoga therapy helps their patients feel better, it is increasingly becoming a component of medical care.

For the last 12 years, the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT), which has over 3,400 individual members from 48 countries, has worked hard to establish yoga as an esteemed and recognized therapy in the West. It has published an annual peer-reviewed medical journal, presented at academic research conferences, and received an NIH grant to create rigorous yoga therapy certification standards. It is now accrediting training programs and beginning to certify therapist graduates.

The IAYT database of yoga-therapy training programs has grown from five in 2003 to more than 130 schools worldwide today. These include 24 arduous multi-year programs that have been recently accredited by IAYT; there are an additional 20 still under review. As of 2015, most IAYT yoga-therapy practitioners work in hospital settings, while others work in outpatient clinics or physical therapy, oncology, or rehabilitation departments as well as in private practice.

Clinical research is partly responsible for the growing acceptance of yoga therapy in the health care sector. A growing body of research documents the proven benefits of yoga when using it to treat a wide range of health conditions, including anxiety, back pain, insomnia and depression. It is also proven to help reduce risk factors for hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Research also shows that yoga therapy has been successful in alleviating the side effects of cancer treatment. Some patients who have practiced yoga while undergoing radiation therapy have reported lower levels of fatigue, stress and a better quality of life.

Is Yoga Therapy Effective?

Yoga therapy has been proven to be a particularly effective way to reduce stress. This is good news for most people in the West, who encounter high levels of stress on a daily basis. Stress has been known to cause or contribute to varying medical problems, ranging from irritable bowel syndrome, migraine headaches and potentially life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis.

When combined with other types of health care, whether alternative or conventional, yoga therapy has proven to be particularly effective, especially in healing chronic ailments. For instance, studies show that in addition to reducing the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatments for cancer patients, yoga therapy can also enable faster recovery after bypass surgery. In clinical trials, many patients with high blood pressure, type II diabetes or asthma, who began practicing yoga regularly, were able to lower the lower the dosage of drugs they needed or eliminate some pills entirely. For patients, less medication means fewer side effects, not to mention, greater monetary savings.
The Future of Yoga Therapy

It will still take more time for the practitioners and patients to fully accept yoga therapy as a primary approach to their medical treatment. But even as a supplemental approach, yoga therapy is making great strides. The growing body of scientific research documenting its health benefits is great evidence that yoga therapy is here to stay.

This article originally appeared on huffingtonpost.com and was written by Avital Scharf.

Yoga Therapy services available through Reset Wellness, visit our website for more details.

Yoga for anxiety and depression.

Studies suggest that this practice modulates the stress response.

Since the 1970s, meditation and other stress-reduction techniques have been studied as possible treatments for depression and anxiety. One such practice, yoga, has received less attention in the medical literature, though it has become increasingly popular in recent decades. One national survey estimated, for example, that about 7.5% of U.S. adults had tried yoga at least once, and that nearly 4% practiced yoga in the previous year.

Yoga classes can vary from gentle and accommodating to strenuous and challenging; the choice of style tends to be based on physical ability and personal preference. Hatha yoga, the most common type of yoga practiced in the United States, combines three elements: physical poses, called asanas; controlled breathing practiced in conjunction with asanas; and a short period of deep relaxation or meditation.

Many of the studies evaluating yoga's therapeutic benefits have been small and poorly designed. However, a 2004 analysis found that, in recent decades, an increasing number have been randomized controlled trials — the most rigorous standard for proving efficacy.

Available reviews of a wide range of yoga practices suggest they can reduce the impact of exaggerated stress responses and may be helpful for both anxiety and depression. In this respect, yoga functions like other self-soothing techniques, such as meditation, relaxation, exercise, or even socializing with friends.

Taming the stress response

By reducing perceived stress and anxiety, yoga appears to modulate stress response systems. This, in turn, decreases physiological arousal — for example, reducing the heart rate, lowering blood pressure, and easing respiration. There is also evidence that yoga practices help increase heart rate variability, an indicator of the body's ability to respond to stress more flexibly.

A small but intriguing study further characterizes the effect of yoga on the stress response. In 2008, researchers at the University of Utah presented preliminary results from a study of varied participants' responses to pain. They note that people who have a poorly regulated response to stress are also more sensitive to pain. Their subjects were 12 experienced yoga practitioners, 14 people with fibromyalgia (a condition many researchers consider a stress-related illness that is characterized by hypersensitivity to pain), and 16 healthy volunteers.

When the three groups were subjected to more or less painful thumbnail pressure, the participants with fibromyalgia — as expected — perceived pain at lower pressure levels compared with the other subjects. Functional MRIs showed they also had the greatest activity in areas of the brain associated with the pain response. In contrast, the yoga practitioners had the highest pain tolerance and lowest pain-related brain activity during the MRI. The study underscores the value of techniques, such as yoga, that can help a person regulate their stress and, therefore, pain responses.

Improved mood and functioning

Questions remain about exactly how yoga works to improve mood, but preliminary evidence suggests its benefit is similar to that of exercise and relaxation techniques.

In a German study published in 2005, 24 women who described themselves as "emotionally distressed" took two 90-minute yoga classes a week for three months. Women in a control group maintained their normal activities and were asked not to begin an exercise or stress-reduction program during the study period.

Though not formally diagnosed with depression, all participants had experienced emotional distress for at least half of the previous 90 days. They were also one standard deviation above the population norm in scores for perceived stress (measured by the Cohen Perceived Stress Scale), anxiety (measured using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory), and depression (scored with the Profile of Mood States and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, or CES-D).

At the end of three months, women in the yoga group reported improvements in perceived stress, depression, anxiety, energy, fatigue, and well-being. Depression scores improved by 50%, anxiety scores by 30%, and overall well-being scores by 65%. Initial complaints of headaches, back pain, and poor sleep quality also resolved much more often in the yoga group than in the control group.

One uncontrolled, descriptive 2005 study examined the effects of a single yoga class for inpatients at a New Hampshire psychiatric hospital. The 113 participants included patients with bipolar disorder, major depression, and schizophrenia. After the class, average levels of tension, anxiety, depression, anger, hostility, and fatigue dropped significantly, as measured by the Profile of Mood States, a standard 65-item questionnaire that participants answered on their own before and after the class. Patients who chose to participate in additional classes experienced similar short-term positive effects.

Further controlled trials of yoga practice have demonstrated improvements in mood and quality of life for the elderly, people caring for patients with dementia, breast cancer survivors, and patients with epilepsy.

Benefits of controlled breathing

A type of controlled breathing with roots in traditional yoga shows promise in providing relief for depression. The program, called Sudarshan Kriya yoga (SKY), involves several types of cyclical breathing patterns, ranging from slow and calming to rapid and stimulating.

One study compared 30 minutes of SKY breathing, done six days a week, to bilateral electroconvulsive therapy and the tricyclic antidepressant imipramine in 45 people hospitalized for depression. After four weeks of treatment, 93% of those receiving electroconvulsive therapy, 73% of those taking imipramine, and 67% of those using the breathing technique had achieved remission.

Another study examined the effects of SKY on depressive symptoms in 60 alcohol-dependent men. After a week of a standard detoxification program at a mental health center in Bangalore, India, participants were randomly assigned to two weeks of SKY or a standard alcoholism treatment control. After the full three weeks, scores on a standard depression inventory dropped 75% in the SKY group, as compared with 60% in the standard treatment group. Levels of two stress hormones, cortisol and corticotropin, also dropped in the SKY group, but not in the control group. The authors suggest that SKY might be a beneficial treatment for depression in the early stages of recovery from alcoholism.

Potential help for PTSD

Since evidence suggests that yoga can tone down maladaptive nervous system arousal, researchers are exploring whether or not yoga can be a helpful practice for patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

One randomized controlled study examined the effects of yoga and a breathing program in disabled Australian Vietnam veterans diagnosed with severe PTSD. The veterans were heavy daily drinkers, and all were taking at least one antidepressant. The five-day course included breathing techniques (see above), yoga asanas, education about stress reduction, and guided meditation. Participants were evaluated at the beginning of the study using the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), which ranks symptom severity on an 80-point scale.

Six weeks after the study began, the yoga and breathing group had dropped their CAPS scores from averages of 57 (moderate to severe symptoms) to 42 (mild to moderate). These improvements persisted at a six-month follow-up. The control group, consisting of veterans on a waiting list, showed no improvement.

About 20% of war veterans who served in Afghanistan or Iraq suffer from PTSD, according to one estimate. Experts treating this population suggest that yoga can be a useful addition to the treatment program.

Researchers at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., are offering a yogic method of deep relaxation to veterans returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. Dr. Kristie Gore, a psychologist at Walter Reed, says the military hopes that yoga-based treatments will be more acceptable to the soldiers and less stigmatizing than traditional psychotherapy. The center now uses yoga and yogic relaxation in post-deployment PTSD awareness courses, and plans to conduct a controlled trial of their effectiveness in the future.

Cautions and encouragement

Although many forms of yoga practice are safe, some are strenuous and may not be appropriate for everyone. In particular, elderly patients or those with mobility problems may want to check first with a clinician before choosing yoga as a treatment option.

But for many patients dealing with depression, anxiety, or stress, yoga may be a very appealing way to better manage symptoms. Indeed, the scientific study of yoga demonstrates that mental and physical health are not just closely allied, but are essentially equivalent. The evidence is growing that yoga practice is a relatively low-risk, high-yield approach to improving overall health.

This article originally appeared on www.health.harvard.edu

For more information about yoga for mental wellness, visit our website.
Upcoming yoga workshop for Anxiety, Stress & Trauma register online.
 

PTSD: Symptoms, Self-Help and Treatment

Overcoming PTSD and Moving On with Your Life

Threatening, deeply hurtful, or very upsetting experiences that leave you feeling helpless and hopeless will trigger a fight, flight, or freeze response, which is your nervous system's reaction to danger. Normally, you recover in a few days or weeks, but when you don't, you may be suffering from PTSD. Painful and disabling as it may be, PTSD is a stress response amenable to change. You can begin doing things to alleviate your PTSD symptoms and take back control of your life.

What is PTSD?

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop following a event that threatens—or appears to threaten—your safety. Most people associate PTSD with rape and battle-scarred soldiers—and military combat is the most common cause in men—but any event (or series of events) that overwhelms you with feelings of hopelessness and helplessness can trigger PTSD, especially if the event feels unpredictable and uncontrollable.

PTSD can affect people who personally experience a threatening event, those who witness the event, or those who pick up the pieces afterwards, such as emergency workers. PTSD can also result from surgery performed on children so young they don't understand what's happening to them, or an event that leaves you emotionally shattered.

Traumatic events that can cause PTSD include:

• War
• Natural disasters
• Car or plane crashes
• Terrorist attacks
• Sudden death of a loved one

• Rape
• Kidnapping
• Assault
• Sexual or physical abuse
• Childhood neglect
   

PTSD symptoms: Everyone is different

PTSD develops differently from person to person because everyone's nervous system and tolerance for stress is a little different. While the symptoms of PTSD most commonly develop in the hours or days following the traumatic event, it can sometimes take weeks, months, or even years before they appear. There are three main types of symptoms:

Re-experiencing the traumatic event. This may include upsetting memories, flashbacks, and nightmares, as well as feelings of distress or intense physical reactions when reminded of the event (sweating, pounding heart, nausea, for example).

Avoiding reminders of the trauma. You may try to avoid activities, places or thoughts that remind you of the trauma or be unable to remember important aspects of the event. You may feel detached from others and emotionally numb, or lose interest in activities and life in general, sensing only a limited future for yourself. 

Increased anxiety and emotional arousal. These symptoms include trouble sleeping, irritability or outbursts of anger, difficulty concentrating, feeling jumpy and easily startled, and hypervigilance (on constant “red alert”).

Other common symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

• Guilt, shame, or self-blame
• Substance abuse
• Feelings of mistrust and betrayal

• Depression and hopelessness
• Suicidal thoughts and feelings
• Physical aches and pains

Symptoms of PTSD in children

In children—especially very young children—the symptoms of PTSD can be different from adults and may include:

• Fear of being separated from parent
• Losing previously-acquired skills (such as toilet training)
• Sleep problems and nightmares
• Somber, compulsive play in which themes or aspects of the trauma are repeated
• New phobias and anxieties that seem unrelated to the trauma (such as a fear of monsters)
• Acting out the trauma through play, stories, or drawings
• Aches and pains with no apparent cause
• Irritability and aggression
   

PTSD symptoms: How PTSD affects your nervous system

When your sense of safety is shattered by a traumatic event, it’s normal to have bad dreams, feel fearful, and find it difficult to stop thinking about what happened. For most people, these symptoms gradually lift over time. But this normal response to trauma becomes PTSD when the symptoms don’t ease up and your nervous system gets "stuck." 

Your nervous system has two automatic or reflexive ways of responding to highly stressful events:

• Mobilization, or fight-or-flight, occurs when social engagement isn’t appropriate and you need to defend yourself or escape the danger of a traumatic event. The heart pounds faster, blood pressure rises, and muscles tighten, increasing your strength and reaction speed. Once the danger has passed, the nervous system calms your body, lowering heart rate and blood pressure, and winding back down to its normal balance.
• Immobilization occurs when you’ve experienced an overwhelming amount of stress in a situation and, while the immediate danger has passed, you find yourself “stuck.” Your nervous system is unable to return to its normal state of balance and you’re unable to move on from the event. This is PTSD.
   

PTSD self-help tip 1: Get moving

As well as releasing endorphins and making you feel better, by really focusing on your body and how it feels as you move, exercise can help your nervous system become “unstuck”.

• Any rhythmic exercise that engages both your arms and legs—such as walking, running, swimming, or dancing—works well if instead of focusing on your thoughts, you focus on how your body feels.
• Notice the sensation of your feet hitting the ground, for example, or the rhythm of your breathing, or the feeling of the wind on your skin.
• Rock climbing, boxing, weight training, or martial arts can make it easier to focus on your body movements—after all, if you don’t, you could get hurt.
• Aim to exercise for 30 minutes or more each day—or if it’s easier, three 10-minute spurts of exercise.

Spend time in nature

Pursuing outdoor activities like hiking, camping, mountain biking, rock climbing, whitewater rafting, and skiing helps veterans cope with PTSD symptoms and transition back into civilian life. Anyone with PTSD can benefit from the relaxation, seclusion, and peace that come with being out in nature. Seek out local organizations that offer outdoor recreation or teambuilding opportunities.
 

PTSD self-help tip 2: Self-regulate your nervous system

Learning that you can change your arousal system and calm yourself can directly challenge the sense of helplessness that is a common symptom of PTSD.

• Mindful breathing is a quick way to calm yourself. Simply take 60 breaths, focusing your attention on each out breath.
• Sensory input. Just as specific sights, noises, or smells can instantly transport you back to the traumatic event, so too can sensory input quickly calm you down. The key is to find the sensory input that works for you. Does listening to an uplifting song make you feel calm? Or smelling ground coffee or a certain brand of cologne? Or maybe petting an animal works quickly to make you feel at ease? Everyone responds to sensory input a little differently, so experiment to find what works best for you.
• Reconnect emotionally. Reconnecting to uncomfortable emotions without becoming overwhelmed can make a huge difference in your ability to manage stress, balance your moods, and take back control of your life. See our Emotional Intelligence Toolkit.
   

PTSD self-help tip 3: Connect with others

Once the fight or flight reflex has been triggered, face-to-face connection with people who make you feel safe and valued is the quickest, most effective way of bringing your nervous system back into balance. The kind and caring support of others can be vital to your recovery. Look for people you can talk to for an uninterrupted period of time, someone who will listen to you without judging, criticizing, or continually being distracted. That person may be your significant other, a family member, a friend, or professional therapist.

If connecting is difficult

No matter how close you are to the person or how helpful they try to be, the symptoms of PTSD that leave your nervous system feeling “stuck” can also make it difficult to connect to others. If you still don’t feel any better after talking, there are ways to help the process along.

• Exercise or move. Before chatting with a friend, either exercise or move around. Jump up and down, swing your arms and legs, or just flail around. Your head will feel clearer and you’ll find it easier to connect.
• Vocal toning. As strange as it sounds, vocal toning is a great way to open up your nervous system to social engagement—even if you can’t sing or consider yourself tone-deaf. Sit up straight and with your lips together and teeth slightly apart, simply make “mmmm” sounds. Change the pitch and volume until you experience a pleasant vibration in your face. Practice for a few minutes and notice if the vibration spreads to your heart and stomach.
• Volunteering your time or reaching out to a friend in need is not only a great way to connect to others but can also help you reclaim your sense of power. Joining a PTSD support group can help you feel less isolated and alone and also provide invaluable information on how to cope with symptoms and work towards recovery.
   

PTSD self-help tip 4: Take care of yourself

The symptoms of PTSD can be hard on your body so it’s important to take care of yourself and develop some healthy lifestyle habits.

• Take time to relax. Relaxation techniques such as meditation, deep breathing, massage, or yoga can activate the body’s relaxation response and ease symptoms of PTSD.
• Avoid alcohol and drugs. When you’re struggling with difficult emotions and traumatic memories, you may be tempted to self-medicate with alcohol or drugs. But substance use worsens many symptoms of PTSD, interferes with treatment, and can add to problems in your relationships.
• Eat a healthy diet. Start your day right with breakfast, and keep your energy up and your mind clear with balanced, nutritious meals throughout the day. Omega-3s play a vital role in emotional health so incorporate foods such as fatty fish, flaxseed, and walnuts into your diet. Limit processed food, fried food, refined starches, and sugars, which can exacerbate mood swings and energy fluctuations.
• Get enough sleep. Sleep deprivation exacerbates anger, irritability, and moodiness. Aim for somewhere between 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night. Develop a relaxing bedtime ritual (listen to calming music, watch a funny show, or read something light) and make your bedroom as quiet, dark, and soothing as possible.
   

Helping a loved one with PTSD

When a loved one has PTSD, it takes a heavy toll on your relationship and family life. You may have to take on a bigger share of household tasks, deal with the frustration of a loved one who won’t open up, or even deal with anger or disturbing behavior.  The symptoms of PTSD can also result in job loss, substance abuse, and other stressful problems.

• Don’t pressure your loved one into talking. It is often very difficult for people with PTSD to talk about their trauma. For some, it can even make things worse. Never try to force your loved one to open up. Comfort often comes from your companionship and acceptance, rather than from talking.
• Let your loved one take the lead, rather than telling him or her what to do. Take cues from your loved one as to how you can best provide support and companionship—that may involve talking about the traumatic event over and over again, or it may involve simply hanging out together.
• Manage your own stress. The more calm, relaxed, and focused you are, the better you’ll be able to help a loved one with PTSD.
• Try to prepare for PTSD triggers. Common triggers include anniversary dates; people or places associated with the trauma; and certain sights, sounds, or smells. If you are aware of the triggers that may cause an upsetting reaction, you’ll be in a better position to help your loved one calm down.
• Don’t take the symptoms of PTSD personally. If your loved one seems distant, irritable, angry, or closed off, remember that this may not have anything to do with you or your relationship.
• Educate yourself about PTSD. The more you know about the symptoms, effects, and treatment, the better equipped you'll be to help your loved one, understand what he or she is going through, and keep things in perspective.
• Take care of yourself. Letting your family member’s PTSD dominate your life while ignoring your own needs is a surefire recipe for burnout. You need to take care of yourself in order to take care of your loved one.
   

Professional treatment for PTSD

Treatment for PTSD relieves symptoms by helping you deal with the trauma you’ve experienced. A doctor or therapist will encourage you to recall and process the emotions you felt during the original event in order to reduce the powerful hold the memory has on your life.

You’ll also:

• Explore your thoughts and feelings about the trauma
• Work through feelings of guilt and mistrust
• Learn how to cope with intrusive memories
• Address problems PTSD has caused in your life and relationships

Types of treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

• Trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy involves gradually "exposing" yourself to feelings and situations that remind you of the trauma, and replacing distorted and irrational thoughts about the trauma with more balanced picture.
• Family therapy can help your loved ones understand what you’re going through and help the family work through relationship problems.
• Medication is sometimes prescribed to people with PTSD to relieve secondary symptoms of depression or anxiety, although they do not treat the causes of PTSD.
• EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) incorporates elements of cognitive-behavioral therapy with eye movements or other forms of rhythmic, left-right stimulation, such as hand taps or sounds. These work by "unfreezing" the brain’s information processing system, which is interrupted in times of extreme stress.
   

Finding a therapist for PTSD treatment

When looking for a therapist, seek out mental health professionals who specialize in the treatment of trauma and PTSD. You can ask your doctor or other trauma survivors for a referral, call a local mental health clinic, psychiatric hospital, or counseling center, or see the Resources and References section below.

• Choose a PTSD therapist who makes you feel comfortable and safe.
• If a therapist doesn’t feel right, look for someone else. For therapy to work, you need to feel understood.
  
  This article originally appeared on helpguide.org and was written by Melinda Smith, M.A., Lawrence Robinson, and Jeanne Segal, Ph.D.

YOGA for Anxiety, Stress & Trauma Workshops offered monthly at Reset Wellness.
For more information see our class listing on our website.

Coping & Self Care

Stress is simply a reaction, either real or imagined, to situations, events or people. We may experience symptoms of anxiety, worry, and withdrawal when we are suffering from stress. We may even start taking actions to escape the stressful feelings.
The most common trigger of stress is some kind of loss – the loss of, or change in a relationship, the loss of another person, or the loss of stability associated with change.

The best way to cope with your feelings is to communicate with another person.

In the meantime, there are other things you can do to help reduce your feelings of stress and emotional pain. We hope this section on coping strategies and dealing with stress will be helpful to you.

• Am I stressed?
• How can I feel less stress?
• What to avoid
• Successfully coping with stress
• Facts about stress

Am I stressed?

Signals of stress may include changes in your body, actions, emotions & thinking. Being able to identify these changes may help you better manage your stress:

• Changes in your body
  • Tension
  • Headache
  • Stomachache
  • Disturbed sleep
  • Appetite changes
  • Fatigue/tiredness
• Changes in your actions
  • Increased use of alcohol & drugs
  • Withdrawing from others
  • Increased smoking
  • Non-stop talking
  • Short tempered
  • Fidgeting
• Changes in your emotions
  • Lonely
  • Depression
  • Worried & confused
  • Anger & irritability
  • Feeling blue & sad
  • Hopeless or suicidal
• Changes in your thinking
  • Trouble concentrating
  • Lost self-confidence
  • Lapses of memory
  • Negative self-talk
  • Negative attitude
  • Poor judgment

Once we are aware that we are stressed, we can start to identify the specific things that may be causing us stress. Sometimes it will be things that we can control like getting some exercise or getting an assignment done.

It is also important to recognize that no one is in control of all the aspects of their lives that can create stress. Some examples of this may be having to move or parents divorcing.

How can I feel less stress?

There are some practical coping strategies you can use to help decrease your level of stress.

Positive Self-talk

To help decrease our stress, we can first learn to change what we say to ourselves – and the way we think about ourselves. This is accomplished by shifting our words and thoughts from what we call ‘negative self-talk’ to ‘positive self-talk’.

The following are a few examples of how we may turn negative comments into positive ones:

1. Negative: To be a worthwhile person, I have to be good at everything.
   Positive: Just who I am makes me worthwhile.
2. Negative: Everyone has to like me, or else I’m not okay.
   Positive: I’m okay just the way I am.
3. Negative: Every problem has to have the perfect solution and if it doesn’t it’s really bad.
   Positive: There are many solutions out there I just have to find the right one.
4. Negative: People never change.
   Positive: People change.
5. Negative: I can’t help how I feel & I’m feeling miserable.
   Positive: I can learn to control my feelings.
6. Negative: I need to worry about everything that could go wrong.
   Positive: I can learn to concentrate on the present moment & relax.

Long Term Stress Management Techniques

Finding ways to increase our health helps us decrease our stress. Simple ways to do this are:

• Get more adequate sleep
• Exercise more
• Eat healthy food
• Laugh more
• Apply positive self-talk and positive attitudes
• Talk to people you trust
• Work at managing your time
• Make an effort to relax

Make a Stress Plan

Everyone needs a certain amount of stress in order to get things done, but sometimes it can become too much. When you recognize that you are stressed, you can feel better by using a stress plan like this one:

1. Identify the stressful situation: What is upsetting you? (School, work, relationships, family, self…)
2. Identify your signals: How are you feeling about the situation? (What changes in my body, thoughts, emotions & actions do I observe?)
3. Brainstorm your options: What can you do?

• CHANGE THE SITUATION: can I say no? can I assert my needs?…
• CHANGE HOW YOU REACT TO THE SITUATION: exercise, sleep, relax, accept support, make time to have fun, laugh…
• CHANGE HOW YOU LOOK AT THE SITUATION: use positive self-talk, look for hidden opportunities in negative situations, and look into the future past the problem…

What to avoid: Negative Coping Strategies

Most people, either knowingly or unknowingly, use negative coping strategies to cope with stress. These are strategies that may temporarily provide stress relief, but in the long term may increase the amount of stress we experience. A few examples of these are:

• Avoidance
  • Procrastination
  • Skipping out
  • Withdrawal
  • Illness
  • Sleep
• Distractions
  • TV
  • Socializing
  • Video games
  • Shopping
• Violence
  • Hurting others or yourself
  • Throwing objects
  • Yelling
  • Hitting
• Chemicals
  • Smoking
  • Sugar & caffeine
  • Drugs & alcohol
  • Medication

Negative coping strategies are our common responses to stress and feelings of being overwhelmed. Everyone uses these sometimes, and (except for violence) that’s ok. However, if you only use negative coping strategies, you can actually end up causing yourself more stress in the long run.

That’s why it’s important to use coping strategies that will give you long term relief from the effects of stress and help you to find solutions to the problems that are causing the stress.

Successfully Coping with Stress

Learning to manage our stress well can improve many aspects of our lives. For example, stress management can give us:

• Increased ability to deal with problems
• Increased productivity
• Stronger relationships
• Increased energy
• Improved health
• Higher self-esteem

These tools and skills will help us to get better at dealing with stress, but there is no such thing as a stress-free life. Part of life is dealing with stress. When you are really stressed out, here are a few more things to think about:

• You are here. Accept where you are and go from there.
• Don’t try to please everyone. Leave something for yourself.
• Stress can be an energizer. Harness that energy and focus on a task.
• Be active. Look for ways you can start to make some plans, or set some goals for yourself.
• Laugh. Look for opportunities to laugh – laughter is great therapy.
• Take charge of yourself. You can’t control other people’s actions.
• Relax. Create quiet time, meditate, listen to music.
• Give yourself a break. Pause and do something for yourself.
• You are not alone. Talk to someone you trust or talk to us at the Crisis Centre.

Facts about Stress

Stress is a normal reaction and a part of life. When we have a large number of stressful events in our lives (good or bad), we can become overwhelmed – and these feelings can create problems.

The following are some statistics on stress that help to illustrate just how stressful stress can be!

• 25% of youth in BC said a relationship break-up was a big stressor. Other stresses were academic problems, relocation of residence, death of a friend or family member, suicide of a friend or family member, and illness of a friend or family member.
• 65% of students do not feel rested after a full night’s sleep.
• Approximately 5% of males and 10% of females said they were emotionally distressed in the past month.
• Stress related disability claims are estimated to increase by 50% in the next decade.
• In 1997, Canadians cited stress and mental anxiety as reasons for growing levels of absenteeism more often than physical illness.
• 40% of Canadians identify worry and anxiety as their principal de-motivators at work and school.
• In total, the cost of stress in the North American economy is between 150 and 300 billion dollars per year.

This article originally appeared on https://crisiscentre.bc.ca/coping-and-self-care/