Stress Relief Blog

What stress management techniques do you use for feeling overwhelmed?

Do you have time to sit down and enjoy breakfast in the morning?

How many ways do you “spin your wheels” each day?

** ‘If you’ve enjoyed this blog post, please be sure to forward it to a friend.” **

Cecil McIntosh, The EYC™ Stress Management Expert, Teaches you how to transform stress into success. You will discover how to get twice the results with half the effort and realize how easy it is to relax anytime anywhere. He is a published author of many audio Relaxation Programs using accelerated learning approaches and a Teacher, NLP Trainer and life Coach. You can reach Cecil at cecil.mcintosh@gmail.com 

Want to learn more stress management tips and tools for  conquering overwhelmed? Or ** IS YOUR LIFE TOO BUSY … TOO MUCH STRESS? ** Do you want to find more time to enjoy stress relief? -  Split Second Stress Relief

3 stress relief tips for feeling guilty which will allow you to calm down. We each grow up with a different set of values - our beliefs in what’s right and what isn’t. For some, the result of doing something “wrong” is guilt. You might be familiar with the feeling.

1. How can that be? When I Say “No,” I Feel Guilty

A patient of mine expressed feelings of guilt when she was unable to free up her schedule to baby-sit her grand-daughter. Even though this wonderful woman had helped her daughter many times, in many ways, this one time she was unable to help - and that made her feel guilty.

Don’t forget… your negative emotions…

And that guilt, like all negative emotions, has a corrosive effect on everything associated with the self - the inner you. Guilt lowers self-esteem and distorts self-image. My patient felt that she had done something hurtful even though she was bound by other obligations that prevented her from baby-sitting.

Fact is,… She did nothing wrong?

She did nothing wrong. Her hands were tied, yet she felt guilty. And guilt has a way of feeding on itself. It’s self-propagating, often leading to stress (caused by strained relations with those closest to you) and, ultimately, depression.

We’ve all experienced this phenomenon. We don’t want to let down friends, family, co-workers, neighbors - even total strangers. We have a conscience that directs our actions. We don’t steal because we know it’s wrong. Not because it’s against the law. We control our actions and, in turn, we control how we feel about those actions.

2. Can saying “I’m Sorry” Makes You Stronger?

When we feel guilty, it’s our conscience at work. We think (or know) we’ve done something wrong according to our value system, and the pain of guilt is the result of that realization. There’s only one way to alleviate guilt and the stress it produces. You have to learn to say “I’m sorry.”

Here’s the thing: Is it easy to say “I am sorry?”

Now, that’s not an easy thing for most of us to do. Saying “I’m sorry” indicates that we made a mistake. It diminishes our self-image because apologizing is often viewed as a sign of weakness. We’ve all seen family feuds, or disagreements between friends, continue for years - simply because the parties won’t apologize. That would be a sign of weakness, right?

On the contrary, it’s the strong individual, the person of character, who can admit that he or she has made a mistake.

But guess what? I was” never wrong…”

There was a time in my life when I was “never wrong.” When I hurt a loved one’s feelings, well it wasn’t my fault. I could justify any hurtful thing I did.

It was only later that I discovered that apologizing for a perceived wrong - intended or otherwise - made me a stronger, better and emotionally healthier person. I recognized my imperfections and learned that expressing real sorrow at my mistakes made me feel better. The stress caused by the guilt I carried around disappeared.

3. Here’s the secret… Don’t Live With Guilt…

We all do.

If we have a conscience it’s inevitable that, at times, you’ll feel guilt. You were too brusque with a co-worker, or let down a good friend - again. And your set of values - your conscience - is telling you that it’s time to make amends.

How do you live with guilt?

Don’t live with guilt. When you do something that hurts another, apologize and truly mean it. The first time will be difficult. But, when you discover how a well-meant apology solves both internal and external problems, you’ll quickly see that you’re stronger than you’ve ever been before.

You can admit mistakes, apologize for hurting others, relieve the stress associated with guilt and enjoy a happier, healthier life.

** ‘If you’ve enjoyed this blog post, please be sure to forward it to a friend.” **

Cecil McIntosh, The EYC™ Stress Relaxation Expert with 14 years of experience helping Entrepreneurs like you, stay focused, get more done and find more time, so that you can live in the moment. He is a published author of many audio Relaxation Programs using accelerated learning approaches and a Teacher, NLP Trainer and life Coach. You can reach Cecil at cecil.mcintosh@gmail.com

Do you want to learn more tips and tools for feeling guilty? Or ** IS YOUR LIFE TOO BUSY … TOO MUCH STRESS? ** Do you want to get twice the results with half the effort? - Split Second Stress Relief

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 2.5 Canada License.

Why do we need two reasons to calm down? We all encounter stress triggers in our lives - situations or people that induce stress. Stress is a natural reaction inherited from the early ancestors of humankind.

How did our ancestors calm down?

15,000 years ago, our ancestors were faced with life and death situations daily, and the ability to detect danger and switch to “stress” mode often meant the difference between life and death. If you’re about to be attacked by a sabre-toothed tiger, you better believe your heart rate will increase, your pupils will dilate and your body will be faced with a “fight or flee” decision - one that has to be made in a split second.

So what are today’s Stress Triggers?

Today, while we no longer fear mastodons and sabre-toothed tigers, there are still plenty of stress triggers in our lives - situations that change the body’s activity and even chemistry. True. When faced with a fight or flee decision, the adrenal glands pump out adrenaline that speeds up bodily functions in preparation to fight or flee. But today’s stress triggers are different.

Traffic jams, crowds at the mall, a speeding ticket, an unreasonable boss, the loss of a loved one - all of these are stress triggers for some of us. In fact, we all have our own, individual triggers that are all around us.

Here’s how you calm down from stress triggers

Just spend moment thinking about the people and the situations that get your heart racing and your muscles taut. Those are your stress triggers. And recognizing your stress triggers is an important step in discovering how to manage stress levels throughout the day, leading to a more serene, happier and healthier life. (Longer, too, for many people. Stress is a killer.)

What is Free Floating Anxiety?

Free floating anxiety differs in cause from external stress triggers and their results. While stress triggers can be easily identified and therefore often easily avoided, free floating anxiety - a condition many people experience daily - has no specific cause, no specific trigger.

People who live with free floating anxiety are in an almost constant state of low-level stress. Many of these individuals may not even be aware of feeling stress - it’s become such a part of their internal fabric that it’s hardly noticed. Still, the negative effects of low-level stress over time can lead to numerous life-threatening conditions.

Free floating anxiety and stress triggers

Another problem with this common form of stress is that, because it can’t be tied to a single source, a single trigger, it’s often difficult to treat. The alarm button is always going off in the lives of people who experience free floating anxiety which leads to increase incidents of depression and higher rates of suicide. Life is just too hard for some of
these people.

What do you do to get the stress relief You Need ?

Most of us head straight to our doctors when faced with anxiety and stress, seeking a calmative in pill form. And while traditional medicine may be able to treat the symptoms of stress and anxiety, it can’t solve the underlying, internal cause of the stress, anxiety and, eventually, long-term, chronic depression.

Is there a magic pill for stress Relief?

There is no magic pill for stress relief. No elixir to eliminate free floating anxiety. Finding relief, however, is, fairly easy - and no potentially addictive medications are required.

But the problem is…

Learning the value of “down time,” “quiet time,” “me time” - these are the keys to managing anxiety and stress, whether it’s coping with one of your stress triggers (we all have them) or managing free floating anxiety that has no apparent cause.

Get this:

Neuro-linquistic programming(NLP), behavioral cognitive therapies and other modern techniques, when coupled with the ancient healing arts of the Far East, relieve stress by providing a new perspective on your life - a perspective that puts you in control all of the time.

But you know what else?

Relief from stress, anxiety and depression won’t be found at the pharmacy. It won’t be found at the liquor store or from the guy who sells you pot. True relief comes when you’re in control of your emotions, when you can turn off the ‘fight or flee” switch and finally let go of the triggers and anxiety that cause life to be so much less enjoyable.

** ‘If you’ve enjoyed this blog post, please be sure to forward it to a friend.” **

Cecil McIntosh, The EYC™ Stress Relaxation Expert with 14 years of experience helping Entrepreneurs like you, stay focused, get more done and find more time, so that you can live in the moment. He is a published author of many audio Relaxation Programs using accelerated learning approaches and a Teacher, NLP Trainer and life Coach. You can reach Cecil at cecil.mcintosh@gmail.com

Do you want more tips and tools to… Calm Down? Or ** IS YOUR LIFE TOO BUSY … TOO MUCH STRESS? ** Do you want to find more time to enjoy stress relief? - Split Second Stress Relief

One Stress Relief Lesson from being bankrupt can cause to slow down. You see we sometimes think we can force thing to happen faster. However, when we get the results we thought we so desperately need we are sometimes disappointed.

We feel disappointed because we believe that INSTANT gratification will make us happy. Believe it or not we cannot force things to go any faster. Here’s why…

Listen to one stress relief lesson from being bankrupt episode #24.

** ‘If you’ve enjoyed this article, please be sure to forward it to a friend.” **

Cecil McIntosh, The EYC™ Stress Relaxation Expert with 14 years of experience helping Entrepreneurs like you, transform stress into success. He is a published author of many audio Relaxation Programs using accelerated learning approaches and a Teacher, NLP Trainer and life Coach. You can reach Cecil at cecil.mcintosh@gmail.com

Want to learn more tips and tools to help you slow down? Or ** IS YOUR LIFE TOO BUSY … TOO MUCH STRESS? ** Do you want to find more time to enjoy stress relief? - Split Second Stress Relief

Chances are, if you’re depressed you’re also angry. Even enraged. Maybe you’re angry at a distance spouse, an unreasonable boss or just the world in general. When anger has no place to go, i.e. you can’t vent at your boss (if you want to keep your job), it turns inward and, as it accumulates, it becomes depression.

Is it easier to deal with rage than depression?

It’s much easier to deal with anger than it is with depression. By the time you reach a state of depression, damage to your psychic well-being has already been done. Anger can be resolved quickly, without psycho-therapy, potentially addictive medications
(many Prozac users call themselves ‘lifers’) and a lot of money down the drain. The key is to recognize the anger, what sets it off and how to release it - let it go so that it doesn’t turn toxic and cloud your whole day - or your whole life.

Where can you find help for Anger Management?

There are tons of books on the subject. Lots of seminars, court-ordered classes and people caught in jobs or family situations that are just one sarcastic comment away from going ballistic - and perhaps hurting others.

The kids who are shooting their classmates are angry - angry at the bullying and the social isolation, angry that their lives aren’t like the lives of kids they see on the TV. They feel cheated and lied to, which leads to anger that doesn’t have an outlet. So, these
kids and their depressed friends and family members continue to suppress anger until it becomes a full-blown, sometimes-debilitating condition.

But it’s not just kids who are going ballistic. Check out these numbers to see if you, or a family member or friend, fit into one of these categories:

18.8 million Americans are affected by bipolar disorder (unexplained emotional highs and lows), dysthymic disorder (inappropriate reactions to routine, daily activities like getting stuck in a traffic jam) and depression (loss of focus, desire, libido, energy - the individual becomes a dried up husk of a human being leading a joyless life). Sound like you? If so, you’re not alone.

Get this: the largest population segment using psychotropic medications are pre-schoolers! That should send a shiver down your spine.

More than half of survey respondents believe that depression is simply a personal weakness. (You’ll snap out of it).

15% of depressed individuals will commit suicide - the final act of desperation and an avoidable, treatable condition.

Depression limits your ability to make even simple functional decisions - like what to have for dinner. It’s no way to live.

Can you learn to live with Anger?

The person who cuts you off on the way to work gets you angry. But he’s gone and in a few minutes the incident will be forgotten. Routinely, anger dissipates over time for most people.

However, those with a “short fuse’ create problems for themselves and those around them. Usually, these quick-to-anger individuals have family problems, they have difficulty keeping a job and building a career and, in many cases, they don’t have any social network
- support for coping with anger.

Would you like 10 anger Management Tips?

1. Recognize the triggers that set you off and avoid them whenever possible. If your mother-in-law angers you, avoid her (except at holidays and special occasions). You don’t have a responsibility to like everyone and everyone won’t like you.

2. Create a dialog with the individual that is causing anger. It should be a discussion to come to terms, not a shouting match in the office hallway.

3. Find a recreational outlet. Physical activity is always a good way to let anger flow from the body but any hobby that takes your mind off the anger is helpful in combating the more serious problem of depression.

4. Build a support network. There is any number of clubs and associations that will welcome you just as you are.

5. Do good works. Help a stranger. Help a friend. Provide comfort to a relative. Doing good counteracts the effects of the anger collected that day. It just makes you feel good.