Deep Breathing - A Simple, Drug-Free Antidote to Stress

"Deep Breathing - A Simple, Drug-Free Antidote to Stress"Luckily, relief can be as easy as a deep breath away.
 It can help calm you, refocus your energy and actually change your body chemistry.

Shallow, fast, upper-chest breathing is a classic sign of the fight-or-flight stress response, while slow, deep abdominal breathing can provide ""instant stress relief.

Do you have heart problems? Deep abdominal breathing brings the diaphragm into play far more than upper chest breathing and helps to gently push blood throughout the system, taking a load off the heart.

Nervous? Diaphragmatic breathing activates the parasympathetic branch of the autonomic nervous system, calming every nerve in the body.


ANCIENT BREATHING TECHNIQUES FOR MODERN STRESS

Piko-piko is a Hawaiian breathing technique I learned at a Hawaii Health Getaway that simultaneously relaxes and energizes the body.

 The act of centering the attention and moving the attention automatically results in a deeper than normal pattern of breathing, increasing circulation and relieving tension.
 To add visualization to the method, imagine breathing in energy from the sky above on the inhale and breathing out any stress below the feet into the center of the earth on the exhale.
 A simple pranayama exercise is Three-Part Breathing.
 On the next inhale, when the belly is full, draw in a little more breath and let that air expand into the rib cage.
 On the exhale, let the breath go first from the upper chest, then from the rib cage, then from the belly, drawing the navel back towards the spine.


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"The Real Cause of Stress - It Isn't What You Think"

"The Real Cause of Stress - It Isn't What You Think"," Knowing what causes stress in the first place is the first step to reducing the amount of stress in your life. So what is the real cause of stress - it isn't what you think it is. Their workplace, their spouse, their finances, or even their neighbors. Luckily, these outward situations and circumstances are NOT the cause of our stress. If the real cause of our stress was created by our surrounding environment it would mean that we had no control over the stress in our lives and we would be doomed to live with stress until things changed around us. Yes, we are. Stress is a result of how we perceive the situations and circumstances around us, not the circumstances themselves. When we are lying awake at night because we are worried and stressed about finances - what is the real cause of the stress? Not the finances themselves but our minds and our thoughts about our finances. Stress is actually just an emotion, it isn't a real thing you can hold or throw or give away. The next time time you find yourself feeling stressed, stop and focus on what you were thinking about that caused you to feel stressed. You could try to create alternate endings that are positive, or let your imagination create silly outcomes, or simply decide that you are will to be perfectly fine with whatever happens. So the next time you are worried about your finances, realize that it is only your thoughts that are focused on not having enough, and find a way to change how your see the situation. Who knows what can happen, so play with your thoughts until you find one that allows you to feel better. . check it out here  

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Stress