M ANAGING S TRESS How can we keep it from controlling us?

T WO TYPES OF STRESS … Distress – the bad stress. It has negative effects on the body. Eustress – the good stress. It triggers the fight- or flight response in which the body will deal or run from the stress.

W HAT CAN STRESS DO TO THE BODY ? Chronic stress depletes vitamin A, C, E, and B complex vitamins; magnesium, chromium, copper, iron, and zinc Stress causes a change in emotions. These emotions trigger 75% of the over-eating cases. Distress causes illness, arthritis, bowel problems, heart attacks, increased blood sugar levels, and outbreaks of fibromyalgia just to name a few. With acute stress, 17 hormones are released. 40% of all adults suffer adverse health effects from stress % of doctor visits are related to stress. ½ of deaths in people age 18 to 65 are stress related.

S TRESS AND NUTRITION Not enough water causes bodily stress. Simple carbohydrates cause bodily stress. Proteins and fats that are not used may be stored as fat in the body, causing bodily stress. Study by Dr. Clegg – Someone’s brain chemistry can change in a short period of time after eating fat from certain foods and causes one to ignore appetite suppressing signals from leptin and insulin, hormones involved in weight regulation. Fatty acids go to the brain and may last three days there. (Study with rat brains and fats.)

T OP FIVE STRESSORS TV News Arguments Caffeine Rap or hard rock music

R ELIEVE STRESS Keep it short and simple – keep a simple schedule Go creative – find a creative release (writing, gardening, etc.) You have one brain and two hands – do one task at a time. Move your body – get active It’s all about money! – manage your finances One month = one health habit – try a healthy habit for one month Blast it out! – have your fun time Calm yourself – have your “peace” time Be ahead of time – get an early start Remove the unwanted – remove the clutter

D ON ’ T FORGET … Proper nutrition will help relieve stress and handle it. A social support system will allow you to meet others and even help self-esteem. Get enough sleep! Listen to your body when it tells you to slow down! Find the positive in situations and do not dwell on the negatives.