People today are under a lot of stress. It seems as if there is never enough time to take care of oneself, never mind getting done all the things that need to get done in any given day. Even positive situations like having a baby or starting a new job can create stress in your life.

You may feel the stress as a slightly sick feeling in your gut, or perhaps tightness in your neck or shoulders. Perhaps you have a backache that will not go away yet there is no physiological cause. What are those signals in your body telling you about your health?

First of all, the body is not able to respond to stress over a prolonged period of time, which is what brings on the health problems in the first place. Chronic stress impairs nerve cell function in the brain and can lead to emotional problems such as anxiety, anger, and irritability. This can cause you to feel confused, reduce your memory and decrease your concentration. These particular symptoms can be called depressive illness, which is a very serious problem that needs to be attended to by a professional.

The immune system can become impaired which hinders the ability of the immune cells to function. When this happens allergies, lupus, Fibromyalgia, and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome can occur.

When subjected to repeated and long term stress, the gastrointestinal tract can develop ulcers, upset stomach, appetite loss and diarrhea. Irritable bowel disease is one common disorder that is probably caused by prolonged stress. If you are under stress for too long, your body can produce too much cortisol which can lead to abdominal weight gain.

Bone mineral density, skin rashes, impotence, loss of sexual desire, sweating, cold hands and feet, and insomnia can also be experienced - so you see, your entire body can be affected by an accumulation of stress.

What you need to understand is that chronic stress speeds the aging of the cells and ultimately wears out your body. Do what you can now to slow that process down.

With an optimistic worldview and some ways to work with the stress in your life, you can create a healthier you. Self-hypnosis can certainly help you to relax while giving yourself suggestions in how to achieve your goals, and self-hypnosis is a wonderful way to reduce stress. Regular meditation is also great. Keep a journal to release your feelings and a gratitude book to keep you positive. Exercise and eating a balanced healthy diet also help. Being with people whom you enjoy lightens the load. Doing activities that you find fun and inspiring will create a sense of wellbeing that is important. Pay close attention to the details that actually need your attention, and prioritize what really needs to be done.

Turn off the news - it is full of stress-causing information. Stay away from people whom you find annoying, negative or unsupportive. There are many ways to help relieve the stress in your life. Most importantly, focus on what you want in your life and in so doing, you are relieving yourself of a lot of the underlying causes of emotional and physical health problems in the future.

Suzanne Kellner-Zinck invites you to visit her website at: http://www.dawningvisions.net/ where you will find lots of information about hypnosis and neuro-linguistic programming, a media release, monthly newsletters, and inspirational testamonials. You may contact her directly at: 781-646-8865. Please feel free to sign up for the informative Dawning Visions Enewsletter which goes out six times a year on the home page.

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