Mindfulness versus Meditation

If you ask people are they stressed, most people will say no.  The reality is that people rarely feel stressed out.  So I wanted to publish a guide to helping you becoming more aware of when your stress goes to high. Psychologist Connie Lillas uses a driving analogy to describe the three most common ways people respond when they’re overwhelmed by stress:

• Foot on the gas – An angry, agitated, or “fight” stress response. You’re heated, keyed up, overly emotional, and unable to sit still.
• Foot on the brake – A withdrawn, depressed, or “flight” stress response. You shut down, pull away, space out, and show very little energy or emotion.
• Foot on both – A tense or “freeze” stress response. You become frozen under pressure and can’t do anything. You look paralyzed, but under the surface you’re extremely agitated.

Signs and Symptoms of Stress Overload The following table lists some of the common warning signs and symptoms of stress. The more signs and symptoms you notice in yourself, the closer you may be to stress overload.

Cognitive Symptoms	Emotional Symptoms
Memory problems Inability to concentrate Poor judgment Seeing only the negative Anxious or racing thoughts Constant worrying	Moodiness Irritability or short temper Agitation, inability to relax Feeling overwhelmed Sense of loneliness and isolation Depression or general unhappiness
Physical Symptoms	Behavioral Symptoms
Aches and pains Diarrhea or constipation Nausea, dizziness Chest pain, rapid heartbeat Loss of sex drive Frequent colds	Eating more or less Sleeping too much or too little Isolating yourself from others Procrastinating or neglecting responsibilities Using alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs to relax Nervous habits (e.g. nail biting, pacing)

Like most people I am interested in body language.  Like most people I noticed awkward social interactions in day to day life.  Until recently I considered that body language is about

• what you are communicating others
• what they are communicating to you

I always viewed body language as a tool people use to help them understand how other people think & feel.  What I never considered is the impact my body language had on me.  The influence my body language hand on my thoughts, feelings and physiology. We all have situations in our life when we would like to feel more optimistic and confident basically more powerful.  Social science has show that powerful leaders have low levels of cortisol (i.e. low levels of the stress hormone) and high levels of testosterone (i.e. high levels of the dominance hormone).  So what if we could use our body language to make ourselves feel more powerful in challenging situations, it turns out we can by adopting the wonder woman pose. By adopting the Wonder Woman pose for 2 minutes, social scientists have proven that it will increase your confidence, assertiveness and help you feel more comfortable in a situation.  This is due to the impact holding this "high power" pose for two minutes has on your body, its reduces your cortisol levels and increases your testosterone levels.  Meaning you are less reactive to stressful situations. So can you apply this in real life.  Last weekend I was on my sports massage course and each weekend we have a written test we need to pass.  For some reason I had misunderstood what the test was on and forgot to review the whole subject.  I discovered this about 30 minutes before the test.  So I was in a highly stressful situation.  So I decided to give this power pose a try and did it during the next 30 minutes while revising.  The science says 2 minutes but I felt I needed all the help I could get.  It turns out that I passed.  While this isn't irrevocable proof, I would recommend people try it. As Amy Cuddy says "our body's change our minds, our minds change our behavior and our behavior changes our outcomes."  For a more detailed understanding of power poses, the science behind them, watch Amy Cuddy's Your body language shapes who you are.  

Stress is a natural human response that enables the body to cope during certain situations. There are three phases to our stress response:

• Phase 1 - The Alarm Phase
• Phase 2 - The Resistance Phase
• Phase 3 - Exhaustion

Phase 1 - The Alarm Phase This phase is short lived and initiated by the hormones released by the adrenal medulla.  It is triggered by excitement, exercise, emergency and embarrassment - what are commonly called the "E" situations. During this phase the sympathetic nervous system will dominate and favour body functions that support vigorous physical activity.  Once the situation is resolved the body either the parasympathetic nervous system will dominate allowing the body to relax and digestion food or the sympathetic nervous system will continue to dominate and the body will move into phase 2. Phase 2 - The Resistance Reaction This is a long term stress reaction or chronic stress and it initiated by the hypothalamic releasing hormones:

• Corticotropin
• Growth hormone
• Thyroptropin

During phase 1 stress response the heart rate is increased to increase the rate of blood flow as blood is directed away from the digestive system and digestive organs towards the skeletal muscles of the body.   Drawing blood away from the blood away from the stomach for too long can lead to indigestion or IBS.   In addition, corticotropin is the body's hormone alarm bell telling it to release steroids and adrenaline, increased exposure can lead to IBS, stomach aches, nausea, diarrhea and heartburn. All the body functions are impacted as the body's pH is increased.  The body's sodium levels are increased increasing water retention by the kidneys and maintaining the increase in blood pressure during the alarm phase.  This increase in blood pressure and blood flow helps the body cope with the demands placed upon it but in the long term can lead to hypertension. The stress hormones cause the blood to become thicker and stickier increasing its ability to clot to help the body cope with injury.  Chronic stress where there is thicker blood and no injury can lead to blood clots and therefore affect the blood flow causing damage to the heart.  The increase in the heart rate and force of the contractions of the heart in chronic stress can lead to an abnormal heart rhythm causing heart muscle damage. Adrenaline and cortisol trigger the release of fatty acids into the blood stream for the body to use as energy.  Prolonged release by cortisol can potentially increase cholesterol levels leading to a thickening of the lumen and hence a narrowing of the arteries.  Continued exposure to cortisol can increase abdominal fat, therefore increasing the risk of heart disease.