James Smith’s Info Serv

by: Carl Hampton

Did you know that stress can make you sick? I mean physically sick, not mentally sick. Most of the time when we are stressed, we say things like “I’m sick and tired” and that could be a lot truer than we think.

When the body undergoes stress, your immune system begins to drop and the body becomes more open to germs leading to unwanted illnesses. Have you ever wondered why so many high school and college students often have a cold or the flu around midterm and finals time? Maybe you have noticed that many of your co-workers will get sick when there is a really big deadline that needs to be met.

Not to worry, and I mean that literally. There are a number of ways that you can avoid stress. As much as we dread or dislike doing this you have to exercise. Working out is one of the most effective stress managements techniques there is. The exercise doesn’t have to be an intense cardio workout. In fact, taking a 30 minute walk will suffice. Your local park will usually have a walking or bike path. Just try it out. As long as you can clear your head of all the things that you think about during the day, you’re good to go.
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Part of success in life is how well we deal with stress. The beauty of this is we can learn to deal better with stress so it is a life skill we can improve. No one can make us do anything. People and events do not cause us stress; it is our reaction to what happens that can or cannot cause us stress. The beauty of this is that we can choose to control our reaction. The following are eight ways I deal with stress:

1. I figure out what I can control. Stress for me is caused by situations that are out of my control. Even if this is the case, there is always something that I can do that is within my control. For example, I cannot control currency fluctuations but I can take actions that cause them to have less financial impact on me.

2. Stress is related to problem solving skills. I work on my problem solving by writing the problem down. Just the simple act of writing it down tends to help with the solution and also helps reduce the stress.
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by Liz Labrum
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More Details about reduce stress here.

What is self-talk? It is something we all do, when we’re at work, shopping, traveling in the car or by train. But are you aware of the potent power this habit has to raise your level of stress and lower your ability to cope?

Helpful or unhelpful thoughts? We create thoughts to help us explain things to ourselves, and making comments to ourselves seems to be automatic. Often the habit is so ingrained we believe we have no way of changing our internal dialogue. However, you can change the way you talk to yourself, and doing so will make you more effective and self-confident.

Become aware of your thoughts. Want to discover if you are using positive and supportive self-talk or negative self-talk? The following are a few examples of the things that positive and negative people say. Look closely to spot the difference. When you do, you will immediately see how these “mere words” can affect your life. Negative people explain bad things by internalizing them: “I got that wrong -again.” Their thinking makes this viewpoint seemed fixed: “It’s always this way.” They generalize: “Life is the pits.” When they explain good things, they externalize them: “It was just luck,” or consider them temporary: “That went well, TODAY,” and see them only in a limited context: “At least THIS went right.” Positive people explain bad things by externalizing them: “The weather caused it.” They consider setbacks as temporary: “That was a rough couple hours.” They see problems as isolated: “THAT part of the plan didn’t work, but…” When they explain good things, they internalize them by thinking, “Life is great!” Their thoughts describe them as more or less permanent changes: “Now I know how to do this.” Then generalize by thinking, “Things are working out well.”
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Did you know that stress can make you sick? I mean physically sick, not mentally sick. Most of the time when we are stressed, we say things like “I’m sick and tired” and that could be a lot truer than we think.

When the body undergoes stress, your immune system begins to drop and the body becomes more open to germs leading to unwanted illnesses. Have you ever wondered why so many high school and college students often have a cold or the flu around midterm and finals time? Maybe you have noticed that many of your co-workers will get sick when there is a really big deadline that needs to be met.
Read the rest of this entry »

Author: LuAnn Kennedy

You may be thinking that your life needs more balance, more time spent at home and with friends and less time spent at work. Perhaps you even mentioned this to your spouse, girlfriend, best buddy, doctor, or co-workers.

If you have, at least one of these people probably raised an eyebrow and explained the facts of life to you. That is, that nearly everyone is overworked these days, and you should get used to it. Besides, your friend Joe told you unsympathetically that he works a lot more hours than you do, so you have no reason to complain.

Yet you still feel that nagging doubt. That feeling that you should be less stressed, tired, and short on time, coupled with the knowledge that you cannot seem to think clearly anymore, that you always forget family birthdays, and that you rarely eat dinner before 10:00 p.m.

You should definitely listen to your own intuition and take control over your life before you have no OTHER life than what exists in the workplace! But
if you still need convincing, or perhaps some more objective feedback, try this little quiz:

Just answer True or False to each of these statements. Be honest!

1. I am spending more time than ever at work and on work-related projects and activities.

2. I usually feel like I’ve run out of time at the end of the day, and I worry about all the things that didn’t get done.

3. I have no time for myself, my family, or my friends.

4. I rarely get to visit with or talk to my family and friends.

5. Social meetings always seem rushed, and I find myself thinking about what I have to get done, and how I should be elsewhere, instead of enjoying the time with my family or friends.

6. On most days, every minute of every waking hour is scheduled with an activity, or I have something urgent to accomplish.

7. I am not sure who I am anymore, and I often wonder why I chose this job or career.

8. It is hard to recall my last vacation day or day off, or the last time I just sat and read a book or relaxed.

9. I have very little fun anymore and rarely do something just because I want to do it or because I think it will be pleasurable or fun.

10. I feel stressed out much of the time and find myself losing patience easily.

11. It is sometimes hard to sleep at night and to unwind at the end of the day.

12. My life is a blur. I feel like I have to keep moving from one thing to the next with no time to catch my breath.

13. When I do sit down to read a book for pleasure, or to watch a movie or TV, I find my mind wandering back to work related subjects, or I fall asleep from exhaustion.

14. I want more time for entertainment, hobbies, and activities, but never seem to get it.

15. I often have to postpone social engagements, appointments, or other personal things, or am late to these appointments.

16. I wake up feeling very tired in the morning, and even after the weekend, I feel exhausted.

17. It is hard to find the time to help my children with homework, talk to my spouse or friend about their day, or just sit and write out checks.

18. People depend on my income, but they also expect me to be there for important dates like birthdays and soccer games, and I often feel torn and misunderstood.

19. I almost always bring some work home at the end of the day, and/or I nearly always work for part of the weekend or on my days off.

If you answered True to less than five of these statements, you are not overworked, and your life is in good balance. Just be sure to keep it that way!

If you answered True to more than eight of these statements, your life is seriously out of balance.

If you answered True to more than twelve of these statements, you should immediately start a program to regain control over your life, before stress and overwork damage your health and relationships.

Stress is very real, and anyone who says you should just deal with it is ultimately setting you up for failure–failure in relationships, failure to protect your health, and in short, failure in life in general. In addition, going to stress management workshops will only teach you to tolerate more stress! So, the time to act is now. And the thing to do is find ways to control your own life. When you do, you will be very surprised how much free time you have and how much more you enjoy it!

LuAnn Kennedy is the author of Balance Your Life - The Complete Guide to Managing Work and Family. She offers simple, practical tips to save you time and money. You will finally learn how to work to live, not live to work, and enjoy yourself more in the process! For more information on the e-book and paperback, visit:
Balance Your Life - The Complete Guide to Managing Work and Family by LuAnn Kennedy