Tips to ease the stressful load of living

The reality is we all experience stress all of the time - and wouldn't be alive if we didn't. Yet stress in itself is a neutral thing, neither good nor bad for you. Anything, good or bad, can cause stress; your body is naturally designed to feel it, and react appropriately to it.

In essence, stress is nothing more than a bodily reaction to any change that requires adjustment or response. Your body reacts to these changes with various physical, mental and emotional responses.

Problems occur when there is stress overload - too much stress for too long. Your body begins to react by breaking down, showing signs of "disstress" leading to "dis-ease".

Bad stress then, comes from how you perceive and respond to stressful events, not necessarily the events themselves.

Some people face more stress overload than others, and in times of double-dip, global economic recession, it is not just business people who are battling. However, high-level executives seem to be struggling the most, says Justin Kennedy, a Cape-Town based researcher in traumatic stress, who consults to businesses on the effects of stress on performance and working memory.

Kennedy initiated a study by the University of Cape Town department of human biology showing that biofeedback can lead to improved problem- solving ability and working memory and a reduction in stress-related symptoms. He also does executive coaching, and believes it helps to make business people more resilient to the effects of stress overload.

In the end, though, the key to coping with stress lies first in identifying the triggers - whatever it is in life that causes a build-up. That is likely to be life itself, says Johannesburg psychiatrist Dr Jonathan Moch.

Living is inherently stressful, Moch says. It involves learning "how to walk, talk, leave home, get married, pass exams, love deeply, manage rejection, chronic illnesses and pain, toxic relationships, bring up children, financial pressures, keeping up with the Jones's, paying taxes, resolving arguments, hormonal surges or disappearances, taking out the rubbish". The list, he says, is "potentially endless".

Exercise is often touted as a great stress reliever. So too is meditation. Yet even if you already are an exercise fanatic, and/or a dedicated meditator, you may reasonably feel more than a little let down that you are still at the mercy of a buildup of stress.

Moch says that's because life presents "multiple adverse situations that can't be adequately dealt with just by exercise, money, talk, solitude, or meditation".

He's not a great believer in stress management techniques. Rather, Moch believes that "the key lies in developing the ability to adapt to adverse situations, bounce back, sustain the adaptation".

Call it growth, he says, not only individually (psychologically), but at multiple levels - from the immune system to marriage, from blood pressure to families, communities, businesses, even nations.

Real stress management is about developing resilience, a concept and process, Moch says, that is "much more inspirational and aspirational than stress management". It requires changing your mindset from managing stress to building resilience, he says.

How can you best do that? Moch gives his prescriptions:

Answer some questions: what's really important; what are your core values that will guide your priorities?

Attitudinal change: internalise this mantra: The greatest freedom is choice of response in any situation (Victor Frankl).

Relationship maintenance: strive for an inner ring of a couple of rock-solid trusting relationships. Nurture and sacrifice comfort to maintain them; believe in yourself; work within your strengths and on spiritual pursuits.

Detox regularly - not just of chemicals, but of toxic thoughts, emotions, behaviours, relationships and work environment.

Diet and exercise are not just physical. What you listen to, what you watch, smell, taste and feel - these are all ingredients of "regular healthy meals of food for thought and food for the soul", says Moch.

Source: Business Day