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What is stress?

“It's just stress” is a phrase often used to dismiss an emotional outburst, forgetfulness, headache, pain, or illness.  However you may experience stress -- yelling at the family members, high blood pressure, anxiety, PTSD, back and neck pain, or headaches -- HeartMath can help. From a body-mind perspective, it is our negative emotions -- feelings such as anxiety, irritation, frustration, lack of control, overwhelm, hopelessness -- that individuals experience when they describe themselves as “stressed.”

 

Depression can be caused by the heavy weight of the countless responsibilities that consume so much of our day that there’s no time left just for us, to release, relax and rejuvenate. Coupled with the disappointments that are a natural part of living – loss of a family member or friend, end of a relationship, illness, or hormonal, neurological or other physical changes such as menopause – it can all be too much for a lot of people, many of whom are overtaken by feelings of sadness, dejection, hopelessness or pessimism, lack of motivation and fatigue. A constant sense of being overwhelmed, fatigued, and stretched to the limit can lead one to feelings of hopelessness and a lack of interest in normally pleasurable activities. When such feelings persist for weeks or months and interfere with the ability to function normally, they can indicate depression. People who are less satisfied with their lives are more likely to suffer from mental and physical disabilities.  Even up to 20 years after a major depressive episode, those who are still  less satisfied with their lives aremore likely to suffer from mental and physical disabilities and have a higher risk of early death. 

 

Anxiety can be described as any or a combination of feelings that all have their roots in some type of fear, including unease, worry, apprehension, dread, powerlessness or a sense of impending danger – real or imagined. Some anxiety such as fight or flight is encoded in our genetic makeup and is a normal human response to many of life’s uncertainties, among them nervousness over an impending test or a sought-after job, uneasiness in a relationship or concern over the health of a loved one, speaking or performing in public, or worry in the workplace for a variety of reasons, one of the most common being the employee performance review. It is when anxiety becomes exaggerated, when our caring about ourselves, others, social issues, etc., turns into "overcare" that this otherwise natural human emotion can threaten our well-being. Symptoms can be wide-ranging: the mind goes blank or other cognitive functions are lost, obsessive thoughts, phobias, chronic worry, ongoing unease, sweaty palms, tension headaches, trembling, difficulty breathing, dizziness, panic attacks, increased heart rate and palpitations. 

 

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to the Canadian Mental Health Association, is a psychological condition that results from exposure to trauma involving death or the threat of death, serious injury, or sexual violence. Something is traumatic when it is very frightening, overwhelming and causes a lot of distress. Trauma is often unexpected, and many people say that they felt powerless to stop or change the event. Traumatic events may include crimes, natural disasters, accidents, war or conflict, or other threats to life. It could be an event or situation that you experience yourself or something that happens to others, including loved ones. PTSD may cause intrusive symptoms such as re-experiencing the traumatic event. Many people have vivid nightmares, flashbacks, or thoughts of the event that seem to come from nowhere. They often avoid things that remind them of the event—for example, someone who was hurt in a car crash might avoid driving. PTSD can make people feel very nervous or ‘on edge’ all the time. Many feel startled very easily, have a hard time concentrating, feel irritable, or have problems sleeping well. They may often feel like something terrible is about to happen, even when they are safe. Some people feel very numb and detached. They may feel like things around them aren’t real, feel disconnected from their body or thoughts, or have a hard time feeling emotions. People also experience a change in their thoughts and mood related to the traumatic event. For some people, alcohol or drugs can be a way to cope with PTSD.

 

Low self-esteem refers to a negative, core belief we have of ourselves, when we believe such things as, 'I'm unlovable' or 'I'm useless'. If you feel that you have no true worth and are not entitled to the good things in life, this means your self-esteem is low. And low self-esteem can have a painful and damaging effect on your life. In your thoughts about yourself you're likely to be self-critical, self-blaming and self-doubting, and focus on your weaknesses rather than your positive qualities. The beliefs will affect your behaviour: you may avoid challenges and opportunities, be continually apologetic, or find it difficult to be assertive. They can have an impact on your emotions, generating sadness, guilt, shame, frustration or anger. This might be reflected in your physical state, making you feel fatigued or tense.

 

Our heart-based solutions combine emotional restructuring with biofeedback and relaxation techniques to assist your body in establishing a healthier response to stress. This is a self-empowering program that offers tools and techniques that blend increased self-awareness with emotional self-regulation skills. By intentionally making internal adjustments with the initial support of HeartMath tools, you can easily regulate your emotional states to inhibit poor behavioral responses, re-establish stability and improve health and relationships. HeartMath offers techniques to interrupt self-defeating cycles and provides opportunities to develop dynamic new patterns (efficient heart-rhythm patterns using heart rate variability (HRV) training) through positive emotional shifts and by reinforcing them until they become familiar.

 

Let us help you. “By learning to access the intuitive intelligence of the heart, we are better able to care for ourselves, our families, our community, and the world itself.” Rollin McCraty, Ph.D. Institute of HeartMath.

 

How does stress affect health?

Stress affects people physically, mentally and emotionally. According to the American Institute of Stress, up to 90% of all health problems are related to stress. Too much stress can contribute to and agitate many health problems including heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, depression and sleep disorders.

 

HeartMath research indicates that emotions --  even moreso than thoughts -- activate and drive the body's physical changes that correlate with the stress response. Thus, the key to optimal health and vitality is directly related to our ability to self-regulate our emotional experience. The emotions we often refer to as “positive” can cause immediate changes for the better: positively affect physiological regulation; renew our energy and optimize the body's natural regenerative processes; and profoundly influence perception, emotion, behavior, performance and health.

 

What can I do about it?

We will never eliminate stress from our lives, but we can learn to manage and reverse its damage. It’s not the events that do the harm, it’s how you respond to those events. Exercise, a good diet, and relaxation are all important aspects of any stress prevention program, but without emotional management, they are only part of the solution. When you’re stressed, your body is out of sync. Typical negative emotions we feel when stressed - anger, frustration, anxiety and worry - lead to increased disorder, known as incoherence, in the heart’s rhythms and in the nervous system. In contrast, positive emotions - joy, appreciation, care and kindness not only feel good but they are good for you. They create synchronization, called, coherence, in the heart’s rhythms and the nervous system.  The key to reducing the negative impact of stress on the body is to shift your negative reactions in the moment they occur - not an hour later at the gym, a week later at the beach or three months later on vacation.

 

Our HeartMath program combines emotional restructuring with biofeedback and relaxation techniques to assist your body in establishing a healthier response to stress. This is a self-empowering program that offers tools and techniques that blend increased self-awareness with emotional self-regulation skills. By intentionally making internal adjustments with the initial support of HeartMath tools, you can easily self-regulate your emotional states to inhibit poor behavioral responses, re-establish stability and improve health and relationships. HeartMath offers techniques to interrupt self-defeating cycles and provides opportunities to develop dynamic new patterns (efficient heart-rhythm patterns using heart rate variability (HRV) training) through positive emotional shifts and by reinforcing them until they become familiar.