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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 1989)
Page 4 Staying Health Series HANDLING STRESS The stages the make stress, distress, and tips on how to help yourself ease the build -up of tension By Carol Terp, RNC Community Health Nurse You need stress in your life! Does that surprise you? Perhaps so, but its quite true. Without stress, life would be dull and unexciting. Stress adds flavor, challenge and opportunity to life. Too much stress, however, can seriously affect your physical and mental well-being. A major challenge in this stressed-filled world of today is to make the stress in your life work for you instead of against you. Stress is with us all the time. It comes from mental or emotional activity and physical activity. It is unique and personal to each of us. So personal, in fact, that what may be relaxing to one person may be stressful to another. For example, if you are someone who needs and likes to keep busy all of the time, "taking it easy" at the beach on a beautiful day may feel extremely frustrat ing, non-productive and upsetting. You may be emo tionally distressed from "doing nothing". Too much emotional stress can cause physical illness such as high blood pressure, ulcers, or even heart disease; physical stress from work or exercise is not likely to cause such ailments. The truth is that physical exercise can help you to relax and to handle your mental or emotional stress. Hans Selye, M.D., a recognized expert in the field, has defined stress as a "non-specific response of the body to a demand". The important issue is learning how our bodies respond to these demands. When stress becomes prolonged or particularly frustrating, it can become harmful causing DISTRESS or "bad stress". Recogniz ing the early signs of distress and then doing something about them can make an important difference in the quality of your life, and may actually influence your survival. REACTING TO STRESS To use stress in a positive way and prevent it from becoming DISTRESS, you should become aware of your own reactions to stressful events. The body responds to stress by going through three stages: (1) alarm, (2) resistance and (3) exhaustion. Lets take the example of a typical commuter in rush hour traffic. If a car suddenly pulls out in front of him, his initial alarm reaction may include fear of an accident, anger at the driver who committed the action, and general frustration. His body may respond in the alarm stage by releasing hormones into the bloodstream which cause his face to flush, perspiration to form, his stomach to have a sinking feeling, and his arms and legs to tighten. The next stage is resistance, La which the body repairs damage caused by the stress. If the stress of driving continues with repeated close calls or traffic jams, however, his body will not have time to make repairs. He may become so conditioned to expect potential problems when he drives that he tightens up at the beginning of each commuting day. Eventually, he may even develop one of the diseases of stress, such as migraine headaches, high blood pressure, backaches, or insomnia. While it is impossible to live completely free of stress and distress, it is possible to prevent some distress as well as to minimize its impact when it can't be avoided. HELPING YOURSELF When stress does occur, it is important to recognize and deal with it. As you begin to understand more about how stress affects you as an individual, you will come up with your own ideas of helping to ease the tensions. A. Try physical activity. When you are nervous, angry, or upset, release the pressure through exercise or physical activity. Running, walking or working in your garden are just some of the activities you might try. Physical exercise will relieve that "up tight" feeling, relax you, and turn the frowns into smiles. Remember, your body and your mind work together. B. Share your stress: It helps to talk to someone about your concerns and worries. Perhaps a friend, family member, teacher, or counselor can help you see your problem in a different light. C. Know your limits: If a problem is beyond your control and cannot be changed at the moment, don't fight the situation. Learn to accept what is for now until such time when you can change it. D. It's okay to cry: A good cry can be a healthy way to bring relief to your anxiety, and it might even prevent a headache or other physical consequence. Take some deep breaths; they also release tensions. E. Avoid self-medication: Although you can use drugs to relieve stress temporarily, drugs do not remove the conditions that caused the stress in the first place. Drugs, in fact, may be habit forming and create more stress than they take away. They should be taken only on the advice of your doctor. THE ART OF RELAXATION The best strategy for avoiding stress is. to learn how to relax. Unfortunately, many people try to relax at the same pace that they lead the rest of their lives. For . awhile "tune-out" your worries about time, productivity, and "doing right". You will find satisfaction in just BEING, without striving. Find activities that give you pleasure and that are good for your mental and physical well being. Forget about always winning. Focus on relaxation, enjoyment and health. BE GOOD TO YOURSELF!!!!! RED WILLOW 2ND ANNUAL POW -WOW JANUARY 7, 1989 6 PM - MIDNIGHT VJiK f ym is White Oaks 3750 Lancaster Dr. NE, Salem, Oregon for more info., call 792-3697 Contract Health Services 1-800-422-0232 STAYING SOBER The other day I heard some friends talking about the length of their sobriety. One stated, "I have 16 years" another said he had 15 years and the third person stated that he had three years. , , They were very proud of the length of their sobriety and well they should be but I think it is also impor tant that we all remember that the length of our sobriety is not as important as the quality. A person who has been in AA for a number of years may not be in as good mental condition as a person who has only been in a few months. It is a great satisfaction to have been an AA member for a long time and it is only natural that we mention it often and sometimes it may help the newer members because they may say to themselves "If they can do it, I can dolt". At the same time I think it would be wise for all of us to remember that for the rest of our lives we are all in the same situation. We are all now and always will be, "Just one drink away from a drunk". DONT TAKE THAT FIRST DRINK!!!!! Good Luck in Your Sobriety, Monte Ring-Outpatient Counselor
