Celebrate April as Stress Awareness Month with 30 Days of Meditation

April is Stress Awareness Month, and April 16th is Stress Awareness Day. Our entire purpose 365 days a year here on the stress free mind blog is to share some simple easy ways that you can learn to manage the way you deal with the stress in your life. Our favorite stress management technique is meditation. We love it so much, and we really believe in the power of meditation to transform your life that we are devoting the entire month to exploring this topic in some depth.

Stress is a part of everyday day life as a human being. As long as you are alive on this planet you will have to deal with some form of stress. The trick is to find a way to float above the things that happen in life rather than allowing yourself to get sucked down into the morass of worry, anxiety, dread, and fear.

Now, I’m betting you’re saying to yourself, “Float above everything? Seriously? I have bills to pay and my boss is on my case and I’m upside down in my mortgage and the dog keeps peeing on my new carpet and. . .” And you could go on and on. You can furrow your brow and get your stomach all in knots as you wring your hands chanting “woe is me!” Or you can take a deep breath, smile serenely and remember that all of this will soon pass.

Meditation is a simple practice that will teach you how to focus and quiet your mind so that you are operating from a peaceful center that is unflappable in the face of swirling chaos.

Getting to that place where you can float above the stress in your life is a process. Stress is addicting because at the root of it it’s exciting. When you are under stress something is actually happening. You feel your pulse rate increase, your breathing gets a little faster, and your blood pumps a little faster. Your on edge and poised to act. When you choose that kind of response your body gets all fired up.

But then at other times when things seem to be operating at a somewhat even keel your body begins to crave that rush of feeling and sensation that occurs in a crisis. So, you may unconsciously start doing things that will lead to the creation of yet another crisis so that you can spring into action and resolve it.

The daily practice of meditation can help you to gently break that addiction to trauma and drama and replace it with a habit of calm, peaceful introspection allowing you to peer into the deepest parts of yourself and meet up with who you really are. It also allows you to establish or deepen your connection to the Divine of which you are an eternal spark.

As part of our celebration of National Stress Awareness Month, we are going to take a month long look at the ancient practice of meditation. It is our desire that you give meditation a try and see if it helps you to feel more centered, peaceful, calm and alive. We love meditation because it’s simple, it’s free and you can do it almost anywhere.

So, please join us on this month-long journey of exploration into the mysteries of meditation. You’ll learn about the different kinds of meditation, you’ll discover some cool meditation aids, and hopefully you’ll try some different meditation techniques either for the first time or as a way to expand your repertoire.

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Don’t forget to breathe! Be well and please enjoy our April meditation series.

Indian Head Massage – An Ancient Solution To A Very Modern Problem

Although stress is one of the number one killers out there, the good news is that it can be combated without the need for recourse to expensive treatments or pills that have so many side effects that they need to be taken with other tablets just to counter the negative effects. Often to treat stress, nothing more is needed than a little bit of preparation, some quiet time and the judicious use of a little bit of knowledge. All of us have our own stress relief techniques. Some work brilliantly, others not so well, but there are a few certain ways of making sure that you combat the effects of stress on your body and mind.

Ancient forms of treatment have been shown to be effective in battling stress – one of the most modern health complaints. More people than ever are going to the doctor with stress-related symptoms, and with good reason because the symptoms are often an early warning sign that the patient has a big health problem coming to them if they do not take preventative action. That action can come in a number of forms, and an increasingly popular form is that of massage. Massage itself has many forms, and a popular one of those is Indian Head Massage.

Indian Head Massage has the advantage of concentrating mainly on a specific part of the body where stress and tension tend to do their worst damage. It may well be, if you are suffering from stress, that you get headaches at times of particular tension. With Indian Head Massage, the efforts are concentrated on that area, and can make headaches disappear quickly. Neck and back pain, often partner problems to stress, are also relieved by this form of massage which also stimulates the draining of the lymph nodes – a sure-fire way to boost the immune system.

Put simply, if there is an area of the body where tension is building and stress is having an effect, a session of Indian Head Massage can make it all melt away. It is even easy for the individual to learn, so if you learn along with a friend or partner you can ensure that you always have a convenient solution to the effects of stress.

Shiatsu – Not Just A Breed of Small, Yappy Dog.

People are ever more prone to stress in this day and age, with jobs that are governed to a very large extent by targets and statistics and an all-round increased level of competition. As we are forever hearing, the figures regarding divorce show that as few as half of the marriages consecrated this year might have a happy ending – so there’s another reason people are feeling stressed. And if one takes an interest in national, global or even local news there tends to be something every few weeks (at least) that horrifies and causes tension. And with the detrimental health effects of stress a matter of medical record, it is essential that we learn how to combat it.

There are modern methods of addressing stress, that are clinically tested and created, which have very positive effects but can have the knock on effect of over-relaxing the patient. And if you are wondering how one can be too relaxed, then just give some thought to how you would feel if your body required twelve hours of sleep a day but you only got eight. Often the best solution for stress is a non-clinical one, and this tends to be an old, tried and trusted method that has been around for hundreds of years. Massage therapies or herbal remedies are often as successful as tablets and lotions in dealing with the problem of stress – and they are cheaper into the bargain.

One such method is Shiatsu massage. An old-fashioned Chinese style of massage, Shiatsu is based in the fingers of the masseur or masseuse. It works on some of the same principles as acupuncture – stimulating areas of the body that are considered to be blocked. The explanation for this is that practitioners of Shiatsu see stress as being down to a blockage in the flow of energy (or ki), and by stimulating the correct areas the flow can be raised back to its optimal level. This involves tapping, squeezing and rubbing the affected areas and has the effect of relaxing the subject while also releasing toxins and stimulating the circulation of blood around the body.

Reiki – A Japanese Solution To Problems of Stress

Suffering from stress can have such a negative effect on the everyday life of the sufferer that they have to leave their job, or worse. Marriages are ended and friendships irreparably damaged by the problems caused by stress, and the saddest thing of all is that it is in no way unavoidable. Spotting the warning signs and taking decisive action to get them sorted out is essential, but if you do this quickly and decisively enough you will find that the problems caused by stress can be driven away very firmly, allowing you to get on with living your life.

There is some debate over the best way to tackle stress, and almost every person you ask will have a different outlook on what this is. Even two family doctors might have wildly differing opinions on how best to deal with an individual patient complaining of stress-related symptoms. There is certainly no magic bullet that will guarantee the defeat of stress and its banishment from your life. But there are a range of non-invasive treatments that do not involve taking tablets that can have side effects almost as damaging as your symptoms. One such way is to try a few ancient styles of treatment that are helping as many today as they did years ago.

The Japanese practice of Reiki is ever more in use in Western society to help deal with physical ailments. While many people imagine that Reiki is a form of massage, that is not strictly speaking an accurate description of what it entails. It would be more accurate to say that it is a form of pressure treatment that concentrates on certain energy centres within the body.

Reiki involves the laying on of hands on spots on the subject’s body. Unlike with massage, the practice of Reiki does not involve the removal of any garments, as the pressure can be applied through clothes. Receivers of Reiki treatment have said that they feel heat or vibrations coming from the palms of the practitioner as the body is healed – often freeing some kind of blockage that was causing stress to build.

Don’t Let A Stressful Situation Become A Crisis

It is well-known that stress can be a contributory factor in a range of health problems and that if allowed to grow it can become a very serious bar to having a normal life. All of us at one time or another will encounter stress – it is an inevitable part of life, and met correctly it can even be a helpful warning sign that things need to change. But if stress is not identified early it can become a very dangerous thing, creeping into all corners of your life and making it impossible to go about things in your usual way. The solution to this is to take a look at all parts of your life and ensure that you are managing things in a reasonable, regimented way.

Stressful situations are, generally, a culmination of aberrational action or extreme circumstances. Auditing your life can allow you to identify potential stressful situations before they become a problem. If you are experiencing stress, the first thing that you should do is identify its source. Are you doing things differently from how you would normally, or ideally, do them? And if so, why? It is extremely important that you address these issues in a timely fashion and if needs be enlist help to get them ironed out. Is it a matter of having a cluttered life? If so, you should look at what parts of that clutter are unnecessary and seek to remove them, or at least delegate them.

It can be tempting to try and do as much as you physically can in a lot of situations. The old saying “if you want a job done properly, do it yourself” is a symptom of this tendency. It is true that you cannot guarantee a job will be done to your taste and your standards if you leave it to someone else, but this is where prioritising comes in. Certainly there is nothing wrong with involving yourself in making sure things are done well, but there comes a time when you need to concentrate on what you can do without putting yourself through an undue amount of stress, and give some of the work to other people who you trust. Delegating is no admission of defeat, but rather a guarantee of eventual success.

Herbal Remedies – Let Nature Take Its Course

Stress can build to a level where it becomes damaging very quickly , if it is allowed to. The one thing you can be certain of with stress is that it will not go away if you ignore it, and it will not dissipate if you continue in the same vein as you were in when it first descended. It requires action of some sort, and past experience is your best guide in understanding which method you will employ to gain yourself some respite from its damaging effects. There are so many methods available to lift stress from your life, and they all have some potential to work for you.

It is important to take into account your own personality when it comes to de-stressing. Some people find that they benefit from a good physical workout. This comes from the knowledge that physical activity allows you to vent some tension that has been building up plus the body releases endorphins – the body’s natural feel good chemical. Others find that a period of quiet meditation allows them to draw in good feelings and let go of the bad – never a poor idea, and for many people it has very profound effects.

For still others, it seems that herbal remedies are the most positive influence on feelings of stress. These remedies come in a range of forms. Often they can be taken in a handy capsule form, which allows the beneficial ingredients to get straight into your bloodstream. This can have the effect of calming your nervous system and getting you into a relaxed frame of mind very quickly. Alternatively, herbal teas are an excellent way of getting the ingredients you need. They get the active ingredients to where they need to be quickly, as well as having the extra benefit of being ingested as a hot drink. Heat, or warmth, can have a tremendous relaxing effect on the body and be a major factor in easing away stress and tension. Even the smell of certain herbal compounds – particularly lavender – can have an excellent effect Look for essential oils containing lavender, and sprinkle a few drops in a cup of hot water to allow the smell to spread out – but do not drink it!

Rub Away The Tension

Among the most well known ways to shake off tensions and stresses, one that has perhaps as much to say for it as any other is the massage. The overwhelmingly positive impact of a decent massage can cause stress to melt away, and all the little things that have accumulated to make your days frustrating and miserable seem like just that – little things. A good massage is something that can be completely free of charge, if you are lucky enough to know someone who is gifted in giving massages. Even if you have not struck lucky in that respect, a massage is often a very good investment. Trained massage therapists can get to the knot that has caused you to feel tied up by tension, and unpick it with amazing efficiency.

Often, a massage will make use of essential oils. These oils are often made with herbal ingredients in order to use the beneficial properties of those herbs. Relaxing oils allow the massage to feel smooth and friction-free, so instead of irritating the skin the masseur or masseuse can get to the deep-lying problem and work it out of the muscles. There are other forms of massage that do not require oils – Shiatsu and Indian Head Massage among them – but many people favor a long rub-down which will generally necessitate some form of lubrication. This can take in the entire body from head to toe, but should always concentrate on any area where you are feeling particular tension. Your massage therapist will be able to detect any areas of tension and direct their massage there.

If you wish to try massage at home there are lots of books and how-to guides, but in many cases the ability to give a good massage is fairy instinctive. One tip is that during the massage you can have a warm bath running, allowing you to enjoy a luxurious soak after the rub down, dispersing the last elements of the tension and stress that have been causing you so much bother over the weeks and months. You can do it the other way around, having the bath first and then the massage, but it is best advised that a limited amount of oil is used in this case.