PublicDomainPictures / Pixabay – Stress is the genesis of over 80% of all doctors’ visits.

Physical stress (think ‘exercise’) increases human growth hormone( GH) levels in your body. Increased levels of HGH assist with improving health and extending longevity. Emotional stress (without physical involvement) has been tested with mixed results. Sometimes HGH is increased and sometimes not. Chronic, prolonged stress is not good for the body. In many cases, it is not what is happening to the person, but what the person responds to. Each one of us controls how much stress we accept from other people or events.

Stress can be internally or externally generated. Stress can be mental, physical or emotional. Stress can aggravate health problems. If there is stress in your life, you should do something daily to remove or reduce the stress. The best thing is to remove the condition/situation/person causing the stress. When that can’t be done, then reassess your response to the stress. Why give control of your emotions to someone or something else? Dwell on it for the moment for what it is – stress. Then let it go. Do not allow stress in your life for more than a brief moment. Ninety seconds is enough time for the initial surge of stress to flow through your mind/body and be alleviated by specific stress reduction actions. Are ninety seconds too long to wait before you react to the stress? Remember the advice we have heard most of our lives – take a deep breath, hold it, and release it slowly.

Giuliamar / Pixabay – A simple smile can counter the initial surges of stress.

Stress releases cortisol, adrenaline, and norepinephrine. The initial surge lasts a minute or so. It is that initial reaction to a situation/person that can be controlled. The easiest way is to take a deep breath and let it out slowly. Do it a couple or more times. Another method is to smile. A big smile forces a different mindset. The brain cannot hold on to a positive and negative thought at the same time. The act of smiling forces a positive impression back into the brain and rids the brain of any negative thought.