Health and Wellness
10 Essentials for Health and Wellness
- Breathe Deeply
- Drink Water
- Sleep Peacefully
- Eat Nutritiously
- Enjoy Activity
- Give and Receive Love
- Be Forgiving
- Practice Gratitude
- Develop Acceptance
- Develop a Relationship with God
Effective Ways to Cope with Stress
Stress is a part of life, and it isn't always a bad thing. In fact, we need a certain amount of stress just to function. But when too much strain is building up in our lives, how we handle that overload can make a big difference to our hearts and our health.
If you can change your attitude about things that might be annoying or frustrating, you can change your stress level. And that means that you can help increase your own health and wellness.
Here's how:
Take a daily break. Every day, give yourself 15 to 20 minutes to sit quietly and breathe 
deeply. If possible, close your eyes and picture someplace calm that you find relaxing.
Focus on positives. Try to find the good aspects of situations that might seem bad. For example, when another driver cuts in front of your car, your instant reaction might be to think, "What a jerk!" (or worse). Instead, make up a reason for that driver's behavior. Maybe he's on his way to the hospital for a friend's emergency. Maybe she's rushing to catch a plane for a big meeting. Make up anything that works...it'll work to help you stay calm.
Talk your way around stress. Instead of keeping feelings bottled up, try to find productive ways to talk about them with the people involved. (This includes asking for help when your "to do" list is just too long.)
Exercise your right to joy. Stay active and stay positive. There are big emotional as well as physical benefits from exercise, so walk, swim, bike, hike--anything to get moving. You'll shed tension while you improve health!