Stress & the Mind-Body Q: What's actually happening in the mind/body when we experience Stress?
By award-winning author and stress-relief expert Susie Mantell
A: Well, let's look at this backwards first:
There's a kind of physiological self-regulation, which counters the "Fight or Flight" response that occurs whenever stress, fear, anger or pain are present...
In this automatic "Fight or Flight" stress reaction, blood flow increases to the large muscle groups (..as if we were literally going to fight or flee) respiration quickens and stress hormones released to help us to "do battle" ...or run! Perhaps you've heard stories of a mother who suddenly lifts a car to save her baby? That's that "Fight or Flight" response, in this case working for her! But when it is summoned unnecessarily and habitually due to excessive stress levels, it sends an "emergency" signal that sets in motion a mechanism that taxes our intricate systems.
When we enter a meditative state, muscles begin to relax, respiration and blood-flow slow, as adrenaline and cortisol levels shift. This clearing process allows the inner wisdom of the mind-body into awareness, often permitting some profound psychological and physiological healing to take place.
While meditation and other relaxation techniques may not necessarily cure, they are a powerful, drug-free complement to professional health care. Symptoms can often be substantially diminished, thereby greatly enriching the quality of life!
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Award-winning stress-relief expert Susie Mantell ...is the author of the deeply soothing relaxation CD, "Your Present: A Half-Hour of Peace,” clinically approved for symptoms associated with stress and sleeplessness, depression and grief, anxiety, P.T.S.D., Fibromyalgia, caregiver stress, cancer, pain, divorce and addiction recovery. Featured in The Los Angeles Times, NBC, ABC, CBS-TV, Town & Country, The American Pain Society, Hazelden and The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, listeners include The Mayo Clinic, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, The Betty Ford Center, V.A. Hospitals,and Canyon Ranch (#1 Spa.) Customizing stress-reduction for Fortune 500 companies, distinguished hospitals and spas, Mantell has facilitated thousands in relieving health-related, work-related, chronic or traumatic stress. Her multi-sensory, mind-body techniques appear in national media, medical and corporate publications. Susie Mantell's Stress-Relief & Wellness Tips are intended as an adjunct to, not a substitute for, professional health care. Order “Your Present: A Half-Hour of Peace” and find more of Mantell’s stress-relief tips at www.relaxintuit.com