Stress - what it really means and how men can tackle it.

Life today is fast paced, on the go in almost everything we do. Whether its meeting deadlines, or just balancing personal and professional life. With so much juggling going on, it can lead to us feeling stressed. So what is stress? There are so many definitions; this is the one that I often use.

 

Stress is a normal physical response to events that make us

feel threatened or upset our balance in some way.

 

When we sense danger whether it’s real or imagined the body reacts by moving into high gear, in a quick automatic process known as the “fight or flight” reaction, or otherwise known as the stress response. So in many ways stress can be positive because it can protects us by allowing us to react to avoid possible danger.

 

There is the concept of eustress, which means a state of stress that is useful and not harmful. We all need a certain level of stress in order to function effectively both in our everyday working lives and also in any sport or performance based activities.

 

When our stress level goes beyond a certain point and that is different and unique for every individual, then this stress turns into distress then our performance decreases and vulnerability to certain illnesses increases.

 

In short, stress stops being helpful and starts causing major damage to our health,

mood, productivity, relationships, and quality of life.

 

Unfortunately at this fast paced day of age many of us are operating in the distress area and need to learn ways to reduce our stress to an appropriate level. This is the main reason there is so much anxiety and depression prevalent in today’s society. There is a large number of causes of stress, warning signals of stress and symptoms that are often present but that we don’t take notice off until something major happens.

 

Taking the time to learning how to manage stress, and being aware of our stressors are often the keys to better functioning. Looking at our current coping strategies is a good place to begin at whether we employ healthy ways to cope with our stress. Again there is a large amount of literature and information available to us through various resources that can help give us ideas to help reduce stress.

 

As men we often don’t do something about our health until we have to.

 

Prevention when it is possible is better than rehabilitation. We are all individuals so one thing that I might like and use another man might not find useful, but what is important instead of only trying is actually doing something that will provide us with decrease in stress levels in healthy ways.

 

Taking care of ourselves is the key, and this may mean taking a walk, going to the gym, getting a massage, listening to music, reading, working in the garden, meditation, yoga, going to the movies, gardening, taking a long bath, going out or talking with friends regularly, perhaps learning relaxation, and talking to a professional.

 

Whatever it is that is healthy and benefits each and every one of us is the key to taking care of our own needs as men is a must, and not negotiable.