Anxiety - the distress evoked by life’s pressures - is perhaps the emotion with the greatest weight of scientific evidence connecting it to the onset of sickness and course of recovery. When anxiety helps us to prepare to deal with danger, it serves us well, but in modern life, anxiety is more often out of proportion and out of place. Repeated times of anxiety signal high levels of stress.

In 1993 a review in the Archives of Internal Medicine covered the extensive research on the stress-disease link. Yale psychologist Bruce McEwen noted a broad spectrum of effects: compromising immune function to the point that it can speed the metastasis of cancer; increasing vulnerability to viral infections; exacerbating plaque formation leading to atherosclerosis and blood clotting leading to myocardial infarction; accelerating the onset of Type I diabetes and the course of Type II diabetes; and worsening or triggering an asthma attack.

Stress can also lead to ulceration of the gastrointestinal tract, triggering symptoms in ulcerative colitis and in inflammatory bowel disease. The brain itself is susceptible to the long-term effects of sustained stress including damage to the hippocampus, and so to memory. In general, says McEwen,” evidence is mounting that the nervous system is subject to ‘wear and tear’ as a result of stressful experiences.”

Particularly compelling evidence, for the medical impact from distress, has come from studies with infectious diseases such as colds, flu, and herpes. We are continually exposed to these and other viruses and our immune system ordinarily fights them off - except when under emotional stress when they often fail.

Haven’t you noticed getting sick right after a particularly stressful time in your life? Sheldon Cohen at Carnegie-Mellon University worked with scientists on colds research in England to assess how much stress people were feeling in their lives and then exposed those people to the cold virus. Cohen found that the more stress in a person’s life, the more likely they were to “catch a cold.”

Married couples tracked daily hassles and upsetting events such as marital fights and it showed that 3-4 days after an intense batch of upsets, they came down with a cold or upper respiratory infection. The lag time is precisely the incubation time for many common cold viruses.

Doesn’t it make sense to do something about our stress? Most would say there is no way out of their stress. As Christians, that denies the work that Jesus did on the Cross for us. Lifestyle choices and the demands of society that tend to push us toward those choices can be modified. We have only one life to live and if we are to live it as Jesus would have us live it, we must take an assessment of where we are at this moment in time.

Is it where you want to be? Do you really enjoy working under pressure? Do you think it will change in a few months? … a few years? Look back! How long have you been thinking life will be different at some point in time? It will only be different if you take the time and determination to make it different.

In the next issue we will be encouraged by Oswald Chambers words on how to rise above the wreck of our lives and move on to better things.

Receive the blessings of the Lord! We can rise above our circumstances because of what Christ has done for us. We are new creatures in Christ. Stop acting like the old man!

Source of Research:
” Emotional Intelligence” by Daniel Goleman

Donna L. Watkins lives in Central Virginia with her wonderful husband enjoying birds, wildlife, gardening, forests, nature travel and her cat, Squeek. She has one grown-up son who inspires her life in many ways. Read more of Donna’s articles at TheHerbsPlace.com and subscribe to her free mailing, A Healing Moment. http://www.theherbsplace.com/ahm.html

It’s hard to change old habits and many of them go generations back, yet we have been given the power to do so and to enjoy this life, we must make the choice to always have hope lit within our souls.

I was reading a devotional book by Kathy Troccolli and she mentioned Romans 8. There is enough there that can take back a lot of ground we give over to the enemy when we succumb to the hopeless feelings of circumstances. If I just remember to ‘Stay on the Romans 8 Road I can make my way back to the Light of Hope.

How often do we fail in using and allowing God’s Word to protect our hearts and minds? Too often we look at the circumstance or the feeling rather than what God’s Word says about us. Many times when I’m up against a circumstance I can’t see the forest for the trees and I don’t seem to remember where to run for cover. It’s like my memory of The Word has been dubbed over by the overwhelming circumstances and the emotions that go with them.

Sometimes I surrender to the moment before I read Romans 8:37: “… in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” When I hear those voices saying I haven’t done it right or I’ve failed or guilt comes to cover me like a dark blanket, I read Romans 8:1: “… there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

As I walk through the most trying of situations, I read Romans 8:18: “consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”

When I can hardly remember how to reach for heaven and pray, I read Romans 8:26: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.”

If I think that life is too hard with trouble all around, I must remember Romans 8:28: “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”

When I feel like I’ve been backed into a corner with no options or way out, Romans 8:31 reminds me that “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

The Word is Truth and Faithful and Unchanging and Forever. You can’t go on feelings. Don’t let circumstances take you down. The devil will forever be tossing them at us for a laugh. The stronger we become and the more we trust in our Heavenly Father and believe and live in His Word, the less entertaining we will be to the devil and he may just leave us alone and bug somebody else that doesn’t apply the Truth and Love of the Father that they have at their disposal.

Loneliness A Problem?

The darkest nights are not reserved for those who endure loss from fire, accident, earthquake, or hurricane. The darkest hours are destined for those whose tragedy goes unnoticed. The deepest pain belongs to those for whom no rescue is intended - those who must endure loneliness.

Refuse to be alone. You can meet people in some way, whether at church, at a support group, at a club meeting of interest, or even in forums online. Don’t allow the devil to isolate you from your brothers and sisters in Christ and those kindred spirits who will resonate who you are as soon as you meet them.

Donna L. Watkins lives in Central Virginia with her wonderful husband enjoying birds, wildlife, gardening, forests, nature travel and her cat, Squeek. She has one grown-up son who inspires her life in many ways. Read more of Donna’s articles at TheHerbsPlace.com and subscribe to her free mailing, A Healing Moment. http://www.theherbsplace.com/ahm.html

Grief is difficult at any age, but it is especially difficult for teens. As www.hospice.net notes, “Teens are no longer children, yet neither are they adults.” While teens are grappling with grief they are also grappling with emotional, physical, academic, and sometimes, family pressures.

Teen responses to grief are similar to adult responses, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). As Dr. Alan Wolfelt, Director of the Center for Loss and Life Transition in Fort Collins, Colorado, explains on the NIMH Web site, “The adolescent may feel extreme guilt over his or her failure to prevent injury of loss of life.”

Teen grief became very real after my daughter, a 45-year-old single mother of twins, was killed in a car crash. Teens learn from adults, but I am learning from my 15-year-old grandchildren. The things I have learned may help grieving teens in your family, school, or church.

INVOLVE TEENS. Teens want to have a say in whether to bury or cremate their loved one. Asking them to help with the memorial service is another way to involve them. Months from now, teens may wish to create a memorial, such as planting a tree in memory of their loved one.

ENCOURAGE TEARS. In his book, “The Language of Tears,” Jeffrey A. Kottler describes crying as a healthy and necessary human process. But teens may hold back tears and try to act strong. We can help teens by telling them it is OK to cry.

KEEP A ROUTINE. Routines are familiar and provide structure for teen lives that are out of control. More important, routines are often links to help lines — support groups, school/church counselors, and caring friends.

TELL STORIES. Talking about the deceased helps to keep that person alive in a teen’s mind. Teens want to hear funny, uplifting stories from family members and friends. They may wish to compile these stories in a memory book.

USE PEERS. Helen Fitzgerald, Training Director of the American Hospice Foundation, thinks teens often trust peers only. A church message board may help grieving teens more than formal counseling. Many teens write about grief on blogs and this is called P 2 P communication.

HUG CAUTIOUSLY. When strangers hear about a teen’s loss they often hug them. Teens may see these hugs as an invasion of personal space and privacy. Before you hug a teen ask him or her for permission.

BE GENTLE. You need to be a good, non-judgmental listener to gain a teen’s trust, according to Helen Fitzterald. So let teens know you love them and will care for them. “Support their ideas or gently introduce new ways to approach their ideas,” advises Fitzgerald.

SEE A FUTURE. Making plans for the future, such as going to camp, helps teens to see a future and the return of happiness. As BettyClare Moffatt explains in “Soulwork,” eventually we have to let go of grief. “Let tomorrow come in joy,” she writes. “Begin again. Begin now.”

http://www.harriethodgson.com

Harriet Hodgson has been a freelance nonfiction writer for 28 years. She is a member of the Association of Health Care Journalists and the Association for Death Education and Counseling. Her 24th book, “Smiling Through Your Tears: Anticipating Grief,” written with Lois Krahn, MD, is available from http://www.amazon.com. A five-star review of the book is posted on Amazon. You will find other reviews on the Americn Hospice Foundation Web site (”School Corner” heading) and the Health Ministries Association Web sites.

Copyright 2007 by Harriet Hodgson

Businesses are spending much to ensure that what they are advertising gains competitive edge in the market. Not only that, they also have to make sure that their advertisements gain a good position in a highly competing ads arena, because for businessmen, a well-planned advertisement mean more consumers and apparently would also mean greater volume in sales.

Since the Internet is becoming a potentially growing place to sell products, as it most consumers prefer making shopping online, businessmen see the Internet media as a potential tool to market and advertise their products. Now, the question as to who gets the best advertising campaign position is yet to be discovered. The good thing is, businessmen, if they can pay better, can actually secure a better position on their marketing materials. This is through the use of the CUSTOMIZED SEO TAGS.

With the Customized SEO tags, one can be assured of a continuing analysis in terms of how the competitors are edging the others in terms of their advertising materials. Potentially, with this feature, a businessman can be given information as to how competitors are changing their search engine keywords that made their advertisement a lot more searchable compared to others. In addition, an advertising site can be better written and enhanced with the use of this feature. It will allow for some contents to be revised being at par if not edging the highly competitive ones. More to that, whenever changes are made on your ad site, it will be automatically mirrored to other key sites where your site is linked or exchanged. This is a good thing because when your site is not on a customized SEO tag, the mirroring of the changes usually takes several weeks thus, making your site outdated.

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Download a free article marketing guide here: Secrets of Article Writing

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Raymond Nesa is an experienced web marketer specializing in article marketing, traffic generation, and list building.

ATV - All Terrain Vehicle sounds a mouthful when it is being pronounced in its full name, but just how much do you know about ATVs? You may have read stories about ATVs in the newspapers, magazines or even on the internet, but what do you really know about them?

How many of you know that an ATV is not just a big boy’s toy? If you are one of those who raised your hands, good on you but if you are one of those who are not sure if ATVs are just a big boy’s toys or not - well, we will let you in on a little secret, ATVs are not just big boys’ toys! ATVs are powerful and could be potentially dangerous machines if it is not properly handled or if safety measures are not taken when riding on one. Unfortunately, not many people “remember” this fact when they go out to ride on their ATVs. The recent report of the death of Hunter Benton, a 14-month old toddler, while riding on an ATV with his grandfather is a sad reminder that goes to show just how “forgetful” people can be when they choose fun over safety. It was reported that the machine’s throttle malfunctioned - sending both grandfather and grandson crashing into a parked sport utility vehicle. It is very dangerous to allow a toddler so young to sit on your lap while you ride on an ATV because most ATVs are not built for more than one rider. In addition to that point, it is important that you check your ATV first before you ride on it so that you are confident that your machine is in good working condition.

Children under the age of 16 should never be an “extra passenger” on an ATV or even attempt to ride on their own on an adult ATV. There are specially designed youth ATVs that are made for kids below 16 years of age. If you want to find out more about youth ATVs, try visiting www.jackel.com or www.kazumausa.com for some great models.

An ATV can travel at an excess speed of 60 miles per hour and weighs over 700 pounds. These machines can easily roll and tip over. Their unpredictable nature in off road conditions makes training and proper usage of ATVs very important. Just in 2003 alone, there were about 740 deaths related to ATVs that includes 140 reported deaths involving children. In 2004, it is said that an estimate of 136,000 ATV related injuries were treated in hospital emergency rooms. Just these figures alone should make you take up proper ATV training and riding courses as well as learning and practicing the safety rules and regulations.

There is just one thing that riders should never forget when they go out riding on their ATVs - and that is, you must always remember to wear your protective gears, especially your helmets. Never go riding on an ATV without your helmet. Another important fact about riding an ATV is that you should never ride on one when you are under the influence of drugs or alcohol. When you are under the influence of such substances, your reflexes are usually a lot slower than your normal self and you may not be able to “detect” danger as quickly.

ATVs are a great sport to take up - if you adhere by the basic rules and regulations. If you are a beginner in ATV riding, you may want to check out www.atvoutdoors.net for some ATV fun. Remember, it is better to be safe than sorry - so don’t just remember the rules and regulations for ATV riding in your head, practice them!

For more information about kids atvs and products relating to your needs feel free to contact Jackel Motorsports toll free at 1-888-529-8629 or on the web at http://www.jackel.com

It’s not hard to be depressed and angry and without hope that God will do anything. As much free will as we love to express, we sure don’t appreciate having it when it comes to healing, daily troubles, and our emotional issues in life. At times when all is falling down around us, we want the Damascus experience. Where God just arrests Paul and turns him around to a whole new life. We want God to just take care of it for us, when generally we’ve had little experience of letting Him take care of much in our lives as we busily go about our daily events.

When times are low, we sure do hear those self-pity spirits talking to us. All that self-pity just deepens the rut we’re already trudging through. We may have started out knee-deep in trouble, but self-pity takes us up to our neck in misery, despair, grief and depression. At this point, the reality is that we ourselves are the only ones that will get us out and back on a path of joy, peace and contentment.

Magic, mystical, miraculous conversions are not a daily occurrence. I think the road to Damascus has been closed down for repairs. We may think it would make life easier for God to change us so quickly — to have a grand conversion like Paul, but would we want the rest of Paul’s life? He was a man of great faith and power, but look at the trials he had to endure. The devil never stopped trying to shut him up.

Many of us were raised, and have been led to think, that life should be free of trouble, with happiness on trees for the picking … but the Bible doesn’t tell us that. The natural world around us doesn’t show us that , but as long as we whine and cry about not having “storybook happiness” we keep the devil winning in our lives.

It doesn’t matter what our past looks like. Where we have come from in our family generations … or what we have left behind us in the life we have lived before or even after becoming a Christian, doesn’t matter for today. Today gives its own opportunities and just as the sun rises every morning, we have the power to let Christ arise in us and stand up to the devil.

We can choose to believe the Word. We can choose to know that God has the best for us today and every day no matter what it holds. We can change the generations after us and we can make our own life joyful in the process. I spent much of my early life as a Christian no better off than I was before accepting Christ. We choose salvation and we choose joy and peace by our Faith in Him.

Pentecost gave us the power of Christ within us by the Holy Spirit. Renewing our minds, while we clean out the trash we’ve believed and spent years thinking about, is the only way to walk through this world without misery. Living in the other realm of choice is only slow suicide.

Don’t let self-pity put you neck deep in the mire and muck that Christ died to release you from. Take the power you already have and use it. Find a verse or two and hang on them. Don’t try to remember 10 or 50 of them. Even verses all around the house on cards and notepaper can be overwhelming and confusing. Just grab hold of one or two that you can believe, memorize and build Faith with and begin now to tear down the strongholds that the devil has set up in your mind.

Don’t let the Enemy tell you there is no hope left! You have the power to change who you are and he knows it. Take your position over him and renew your thoughts and do not allow him access any longer.

Choose ye this day whom you will serve.

Donna L. Watkins lives in Central Virginia with her wonderful husband enjoying birds, wildlife, gardening, forests, nature travel and her cat, Squeek. She has one grown-up son who inspires her life in many ways. Read more of Donna’s articles at TheHerbsPlace.com and subscribe to her free mailing, A Healing Moment. http://www.theherbsplace.com/ahm.html

Panic attacks are characterized by a sudden onset of intense fear. Your heart starts beating fast, you become short of breath and you are dizzy. It feels like you are losing control.You may feel like you are dying. Panic attacks were once dismissed as nerves or stress, but they are now recognized as a serious and sometimes disabling condition.

Panic attacks begin abruptly and last about one half hour. Sometimes they can last several hours or even a day. They are physically and emotionally draining, leaving you totally exhausted . Usually, people who experience panic attacks have underlying depression, social phobia or other mental health conditions.

The signs and symptoms of a panic attack are:

Rapid heart rate

Sweating and trembling

Shortness of breath and hyperventilation.

Chills or hot flashes.

Nausea or abdominal cramping.

Chest pain.

Headache

Dizziness or faintness

Tightness in your throat and trouble swallowing.

A sense of impending death.

The cause of panic attacks are not exactly known. Hereditary factors may be a cause. If you have a family member that has panic attacks, your chance of having them increases. Stress and certain biochemical factors may also may cause panic attacks.

You may have panic disorder if you frequently have panic attacks and start to avoid situations that you think may be causing them. Worrying frequently about when the next panic attack will strike is a good indicator of panic disorder.

Since panic attacks can mimic symptoms of other problems such as heart attack, breathing difficulties or even low blood sugar, you should see your doctor to be diagnosed. Tell him all of your symptoms. He may run several tests to rule out anything physical that could be wrong with you.

Panic disorder can interrupt your whole life. A lot of times, people with panic disorder start avoiding things that causes panic attacks. They won’t go to the mall, they won’t go out alone or sometimes they won’t leave the house at all.
People with panic disorder have an increased risk of suicide, depression and alcohol or drug abuse.

Treatments for panic disorder are very effective. Your doctor may prescribe an antidepressant such as Zoloft, Paxil or Prozac. These drugs usually improve or eliminate the symptoms of panic attacks. He may also add an anti-anxiety medicine such as Klonopin or Xanax. These drugs should be used as needed when you feel a panic attack coming on. They can be habit forming. If you think that you are becoming addicted to Klonopin or Xanax, talk with your doctor. Do not stop them abruptly because you can develop withdrawal symptoms.

The doctor may order cognitive behavior therapy also. Your psychiatrist or psychologist will help you understand the causes behind your panic attacks.

He will also show you ways to cope with your panic disorder. Meditation and deep breathing exercises can help alleviate a panic attack. Behavior therapy can help you overcome avoidance of certain situations that cause panic attacks and get your life back to normal.

For more information about an informative ebook and self help package for anyone suffering Panic Disorder or Depression visit Defeating Depression

Do you avoid engaging in conversations that might be difficult?

Are you paralyzed at the thought of having to take a stand that would not be received well?

If so, you are not alone.

You might wonder why otherwise savvy and smart professionals avoid confrontation like the plague.

Fear.

Fear of embarrassment.

Not wanting to rock the boat.

Or, because they’ve never had practice in successfully dealing with confrontation.

Avoiding confrontation certainly affects your entire life.

Let’s focus on how it affects your career…

If you are in a situation in your job/career that you’re afraid won’t turn out well - whether it’s about money, project leadership or telling someone you won’t meet a deadline - waiting can make it ten times worse.

First off, if you’re hoping that if you avoid the subject, it’ll go away, you’re wrong. Eventually, these situations come to light and you’ll have made it worse by not bringing it up earlier.

Most bosses hate surprises. How do you think the boss will feel if you delay delivering the bad/difficult news?

The good news is that when you decide to have a conversation about a topic that could be challenging, you’re the one picking the time and place of the conversation. And you can prepare your “case.”

Oftentimes, when you wait and are confronted by a question you’re not prepared for, you’ll fumble for an answer and make excuses.
In either case, you’ll be on the defensive.

When you’ll miss a deadline…

If you are proactive, and state your case in a matter-of-fact, confident tone, you’ll be much more likely to see a better outcome and you’ll feel better. Having the courage to face a difficult situation head-on builds your self-esteem.

A note of caution: ensure that you have a clear, logical and substantiated case. Develop a fallback position: a course of action that you can suggest to deal with and offset the missed deadline message you’re delivering. Getting into a difficult conversation without a well thought out plan is a recipe for failure.

When you want a promotion…

One of the areas that women, especially, are reluctant to bring up is what they need to do to get promoted. It harkens back to the sense that if they do a really good job and get on everyone’s good side, the “God of promotion” will hear them and it will magically happen. Okay, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but not entirely.

Doing a really good job and having everyone like you is a simplistic approach. Being personable, establishing good relationships with those above, laterally and below you and doing a good job are just the beginning. To get promoted you must know the specific criteria, skills and needs of your company and how you can answer that need.

Unless you ask and get specific answers to plug the holes in your background and experience, how can you possibly be a realistic candidate for promotion?

Having the “what do I need to do to be promoted?” conversation with your boss can bring up issues of self-worth, rejection and a host of other 3 am-type monsters. However, avoiding the conversation does not get you closer to the insight you need and keeps you stuck and uninformed.

Instead, choose your time and prepare a script, one in which you start with a positive comment from your last performance review, i.e. “I know you’ve praised my ability to write terrific copy.” Then follow that with a statement, such as: “I’d like to contribute at even a higher level; what would I need to learn, do, or take on, to make me a viable candidate for promotion?”

So, rehearse your script and take it to your boss.
You’ll find that asking for what you want and facing your fear of confrontation becomes easier over time!

Dale Kurow, M.S., MCDP, is an author and a career and executive coach in New York City. Dale works with clients across the United States and internationally helping them to become better managers, figure out their next career moves and thrive despite office politics. Visit Dale’s web site at http://www.dalekurow.com/newsletter to sign-up for her free monthly e-zine “Career Essentials,” chock full of useful tips and strategies you can use immediately.

Your main target once you are done with your web site is driving more traffic. The more traffic you get the greater is the assurance that visitors will return to your site. And the higher the return of the visitors, the higher the income you can generate with your online business.

Here are tips to promote your web site to generate traffic.

1.-Join message boards or forums. You can also comment on some sites. Just make sure that your URL is provided at the end of the comment so that people will be aware of your web site.

2.-You can trade links with other people. The popular the website of the other person, the greater the chance of increasing the traffic on your web site.

3.-Provide the URL of your website in printed company literature such as brochures, letterheads, calling cards or advertisements.

4.-As much as possible, you can also add a landing page for getting the information of your visitors so that you can update them with changes on your site or products.

5.-You can also add a potion on your page for recommending your site to a friend. This will encourage traffic on your site.

6.-Content should have keywords that would help in optimizing search engines.

7.-Write articles and have them posted in directories. Include your link on these articles to guarantee that your link will be exposed to millions of people who visit these directories.

8.-Join social networks online. This will make the work of promoting easier.

Do you want to learn more about how I do it? I have just completed my brand new guide to generating massive traffic ‘Triple Your Traffic Fast’

Download it free here: Triple Your Traffic Fast

Download a free article marketing guide here: Secrets of Article Writing

Do you want to learn how to build a massive list fast? Click here: Email List Building

Raymond Nesa is an experienced web marketer specializing in article marketing, traffic generation, and list building.

One of the great contributions of the 2006 Winter Olympics towards Turin is the construction of Torino Caselle airport to enable it to deal with the large number of passengers flocking as both participants and spectators for the sporting events.

While before Turin was relatively isolated from the air it is a now accessible from many major airports across Europe from both traditional and low cost airlines alike.

The best flight deals to Turin are often found with the low cost operators - easyJet and Ryanair both fly from London, while passengers who are unable to find a direct flight and are happy to complete part of the journey on a combination of bus and train will find that easyJet and Ryanair both have flights to Bergamo from several locations, although the additional journey time can amount to several hours depending on connections via Milan.

If the budget airlines don’t fly to Turin from your local airport and you don’t want to fly to Bergamo you’ll need to resort to one of the major airlines, or if you’re already in Italy visiting Rome then you can catch an internal flight from one of Rome’s Airports, while those visiting Milan can drive or take the train from what is Turin’s nearest big city neighbour.

As always it pays to do some research to get the best prices and while prices have dropped over the last few years in the wake of the best advice is always to visit easyJet or Ryanair to get a benchmark price for the dates you are travelling.

Once in possession of this data you are in a position to visit some of the major travel websites for their prices. It is sometimes possible to get up to 30 per cent off published ticket prices, although this is becoming less common as the airlines sell more tickets direct, but in a few minutes you can establish whether there are any good deals going for your travel dates.

For more information on flights to Turin and other useful travel information visit http://www.bella-torino.com.