Managing Stress From Another World

Modern stress is habitual, and is something that the vast majority of Americans and Britons succumb to in their material driven lives. Whether mildly or overwhelmingly, stress will cast its powers across most of us at some stage in our lives, often increasingly as we get sucked into a pattern of working and living that gradually strips us of our individuality.

Stress reduction has therefore become a "necessary" antidote industry. We may console ourselves by saying that our lives are fast paced; that this is what modern living is all about and we must pursue it frenetically; that people in those poor countries which have not adopted the Anglo-American way are just backward and will catch on eventually. But that is not just a consolation; it is both an illusion and a denial, and helps stress reduction in no way at all.

It is an illusion first of all that the average consumer has a fast paced life. A commuter may sit in a train twice a day, to and from their place of work; that train may move at a fast pace, but the commuter does not. They just sit there, their minds going over the same themes as always; last night's tv, tonight's tv, wishing they could have had another hour's sleep or wishing they were already home and tucked up for the night's slumber, or the day's boredom at work behind them or before them. Drowned in tedium and repetition, the vacuum left in their daily lives is gradually filled with stress, as if it had a supporting role in their existence.

A tiring and repetitious daily routine can be a breeding ground for discontent and unhappiness, the real reasons for modern stress. If that routine is full of creativity, and control over one's own actions, then it may not be a source of stress at all, or discontent. If, however, the individual is suppressed, then it can be a very different story. Most people are employees, whose lives are dictated by those above them and with no or little scope to think and do for themselves. They are particularly vulnerable to modern stress.

Caught up in the modern way of life, it is very easy to lose connection with yourself as an individual, for your individuality can be suppressed from all sides. I am sure I am not alone in having experienced that. I had lived the zombie like existence for over 20 years, and despite the fact that I had some very stimulating jobs, I had, almost unknowingly, lost track of life as it should be. Then in 1995, I packed it all in and started my own business, and started the long haul to win back my individuality. But it was 1998 before I started to fully appreciate again what having control over your own life really meant. The 20 plus years were a blur; where had I been all that time?

One of the problems with modern stress is that it becomes a focus, along side the focus on purely material things such as the "need" to have a new car, a new house, the best clothes, the best tv and so on. Modern stress is a consumer product in itself, part of the material razzmatazz, that keeps the consumer in his or her place: a consumer, not a doer or a thinker; someone who plays by the rules and spends and borrows and spends and borrows to relieve themselves of the tedium and chase the shadow of achievement. Not real achievement; just its shadow.

That is not to say, though, that there is no relief from stress in the Anglo-American world. Those who are able to escape back to the real world now and again, and who can exercise sufficient self control regularly enough, will find that stress relatively easy to keep under control.

So how do we get to this other world, where we can manage our stress? There are portals all around you. Anything that will take your mind away from the self focus is a portal into this other world. Spending time with your children, and seeing life through their eyes for a while every day; the joy of discovery and play; but not as a drain upon your resources, and not as a part of your tedium. Spending time appreciating the wonders around you, the joys of nature, the little miracles that are within a short distance of where you stand or sit. Spending time travelling, helping others, seeing the true misery of people who are under the real stress caused by extreme poverty and disease, not the packaged consumer stress that we tend to think of.

This "other world" is a world of perspective. It is a world you used to know, but have somehow lost through lack of time. Yet, there was never any lack of time; that was an illusion too. This "other world" is also a world where you make the choices, consciously, not have them dictated to you by employers or weariness. A few simple choices each day can distract you enough to bring some relief to consumer induced stress. Fill the vacuum with your choices, and stress will not find such an easy way in.

This managing stress reduction article was written by Roy Thomsitt, owner and part author of the Routes To Self Improvement website.

---

Putting Your Life in Perspective

Do you often overreact to situations? Are you a constant... Read More

7 Healthy Ways To Release Holiday Stress

Many people go through the motions during Christmas. If not... Read More

There is no Such Thing as Good Stress

Q: What is Stress?A: Very basically it is the physical,... Read More

Managing Stress

Do you ever feel stressed? Is stress a regular component... Read More

Worry: Is It Worthwhile Work or a Waste of Time?

As tools for change are discussed, one tool - that... Read More

Technology and Stress- How to Prevent Technology From Taking Over Your Life

1. 5-minute rule. How many times do we say, "This... Read More

Stress Management: Are You a Diamond or a Lump of Coal?

"Do you want to be a lump of coal or... Read More

Mental and Physical Stress

All people experience stress and anxiety in one form or... Read More

Ease Your Stress ? Change Your Life!

Feeling stressed? Who isn't!! In today's society, feeling "stressed out,"... Read More

Brain Diet : Right Diet prevents Memory Loss

These days, when people have become so conscious about what... Read More

Over 35 Ways of Controlling Stress: Absolutely Necessary to Control Smoking and Weight!

* Play Romane's stress control seminar recordings, and read "The... Read More

Five Easy Ways To Bring Family Time Into Your Day; Balancing Work And Family Stresses

The pace of life seems to quicken every year. More... Read More

Coping With Stress

When something happens in our lives, we automatically assess the... Read More

Stress Management: 7 Universal Laws for Managing Change

1. The Law of StagnationThis is also known as first... Read More

Just Moved -- and Miserable!

Q. Help! I moved from the Dallas to Denver. I... Read More

The Benefits of Eating from a Jar of Honey

June is the month of the honey moon. Custom holds... Read More

Stress Dangerously Raises Cholesterol Levels

Several studies, including one of medical students around exam time,... Read More

Reduce Stress To Maximize Efficiency

The right amount of stress can be good for you,... Read More

Stress & Burnout: The Adrenal Factor

I was a psychotherapist for... Read More

Overcoming Stress: Successful Living The Easy Way

So many of us live a stressful life. Unfortunately, when... Read More

Stress Management: Are You a Worrier or a Warrior?

Do you attack problems and solve them or do you... Read More

Stress Management and Mastery: The Power of REST

Rest.It's a good thing to do. As the story goes,... Read More

Stress Relief

Traffic jams. Toddler tantrums. Deadlines at work. Money troubles. Too... Read More

Aromatherapy Candles Release Stress

Have you been feeling so stressful and almost losing your... Read More

Stress And Anxiety - Take Charge Of It!

Have you ever noticed what occurs when you are suddenly... Read More

Sometimes C.O.P.I.N.G Is All We Can Do

We strive for excellence in our lives, going at full... Read More

Why Stress Management Programmes Don?t Work

Why Stress Management programmes don't work?It seems that every week... Read More

5 Ways to Create Reserve Energy Everyday

Did you ever feel like your "get-up-and-go" got up and... Read More

Stress Management: KYFM - Keep Your Feet Moving

One of my favorite stories about change is the story... Read More

Adventures in Relieving Stress

Whether we are at work, traveling, or at home, we've... Read More

Recognize the Early Signs of Burnout

Most of us are trying to balance work, home, and... Read More

Improving Self Esteem with Affirmations and Therapeutic Relaxation Music

Positive self-esteem is very important for our general health and... Read More

Stress - What We Say is Half the Problem

Everywhere I go, I hear the same unpleasant sentence repeated... Read More