May 2009

Stress doesn’t just affect the body, it affects all aspects of our being (mind, body, spirit and emotions). Perhaps because it’s hard to measure, the human spirit often gets neglected in stress management programs, which is too bad, because so much of stress these days is of a spiritual nature. Wisdom keepers the world over remind us that there are three key pillars to the health of the human spirit: Relationships, values and a meaningful purpose in life. Take a look at your list of top 10 stressors and if you are really honest with yourself, you will see that each one falls into one or more of these categories. Relationships include not only those people in your direct sphere of living, but also the relationship you hold with yourself (and your higher self, whatever you choose to call this). Values (e.g. faith, humor, love, honesty, etc.) are quite intangible yet are made tangible with material possessions… Real stress comes when two or more values come in conflict with each other such as freedom and responsibility). A meaningful purpose in life strikes at the very core of our being with this age old question: Why are we here? Many people see stress and human spiritually as diametrically opposed, but if you take a closer look you will not that stress and human spirituality are partners in the dance of life. When we choose to learn from our stressors we encourage spiritual growth. Perhaps the biggest step to take in this dance is moving from a motivation of fear (ego) toward a motivation of love and compassion (soul).

• Stress Tip for the Day:
Take inventory of your top stressors. Be honest with yourself. What areas in your life (relationships) need some cultivation? What values need addressing (do you hold one set of values and live by another?). What is the purpose in your life? Are you striving for this purpose or sitting by on the sidelines waiting….

• Books Worth Noting:
Michael J. Fox (Mr. Back to the Future) has a new book out called Always Looking Up. As the new national spokesperson for Parkinson’s Disease (PD) he highlights his trials and tribulations of the past 20 years and demonstrates that indeed he is an optimist. It’s a very inspirational book.

• Photo of the Day:
A man walking under a rainbow by the Skogafoss Waterfall in Iceland late last summer.

• Quote for the Day:
“The winds of grace are blowing perpetually. We only need raise our sails.”
— Sri Ramakrishna

Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D. is an internationally renowned expert in the fields of stress management, mind-body-spirit healing and stress and human spirituality. He is the author of over 10 books including the bestsellers, Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water, Stressed Is Desserts Spelled Backward, The Art of Calm, Quiet Mind, Fearless Heart and Managing Stress (6E). He can be reached through his website:www.brianlukeseaward.net

© Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D.

Every episode of anger (fight of the fight or flight respones) is the result of unmet expectations. You may have noticed that there is a lot of anger out there in the world these days. Experts suggest that the average person can have between 15-20 anger episodes …PER DAY! People who study anger and aggression suggest that there are four different styles of mismanaged anger (somatizers, exploders, self-punishers and underhanders). They also say that we are capable of all of these, but typically we tend to gravitate toward one style: Simply stated, one style dominates our personality. Perhaps we adopt this style from our parents or perhaps it’s modeled from others. Regardless, none of these styles is good. In fact, each is bad, because they don’t resolve anger, they perpetuate it. Somatizers tend to repress their anger but it eventually shows up in the body (soma). Exploders tend to make the headline news. Self-punishers feel guilty about feeling angry and tend to adopt a self-destructive behavior and underhanders live by the motto: “Don’t get mad, get even!” All of these styles are means to control oneself or other and doing a really bad job at it. Every unresolved anger issues is a control issue but the truth is that these styles are an illusion of control. In reality you are giving your power away, as expressed in the quote by Elizabeth Kenny, “He who angers you, conquers you.”

• Stress Tip for the Day:
Learn to monitor your anger episodes per day and see if you can determine what is your mismanaged anger style. Do you stuff your feelings? (if so… do you suffer from TMJ, migraines, lupus, fibromyalsia or other auto immune diseases?) Is your anger expressed as a form of intimidation. Do you eat to calm your frustrations? Do you use sarcasm to express your feelings? If you answer yes to any of these questions, chances are there are some unresolved anger issues lurking in your past. Remember, somatizers cross the stress and disease finish life first, but other mismanaged anger styles eventually cross that line too.

• Links Worth Noting:
This link, found on Ted.com highlights noted speaker Dan Ariely on human behavior. Very interesting.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/dan_ariely_asks_are_we_in_control_of_our_own_decisions.html

• Photo of the Day:
Pictured above is a photo of an art therapy piece drawn by one of my students (thanks Franca V.) when asked to depict pictorially what she felt like when she was stressed. She described her stress as both anger expressed as a tornado in her head, yet her fear was symbolic of blinders over her eyes.

• Quote for the Day:
“Nobody gets to live their life backward. Look ahead, that is where your future lies.”
—Ann Landers

Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D. is an internationally renowned expert in the fields of stress management, mind-body-spirit healing and stress and human spirituality. He is the author of over 10 books including the bestsellers, Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water, Stressed Is Desserts Spelled Backward, The Art of Calm, Quiet Mind, Fearless Heart and Managing Stress (6E). He can be reached through his website:www.brianlukeseaward.net

© Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D.

The “fight or flight response” is a wonderful dynamic for physical survival. In the face of physical danger, the fight (anger) or flight (fear) response; also known as the “stress response,” sounds the alarm for the body to prepare to defend oneself or… run for the hills. What was once a great survival dynamic long ago has become one of our biggest liabilities for health; an overactive stress reponse is associated with many chronic diseases. The reason is that the fight or flight response is also triggered for non-physical threats, such as waiting in traffic, playing phone tag, the thought of attending a high school reunion, or coping with an unruly teenage son. Experts in the field of stress management often say that the fight or flight response is antiquated, and to an extent, it is. Yet on rare occasions, we still need it for physical survival (note the photograph above). The wisdom is to know the difference between these threats and act accordingly.

• Stress Tip for the Day:
Pay close attention to how your body response to stress. Do you feel your heart rate increase? Do you clench your jaw muscles or bite your fingernails? Do you tug at a lock of hair? By tuning in to your body’s physiology you can begin to recognize the signals your body is giving you and intercept the stress response when its inappropriate for non- physical stressors. Begin to cultivate a relationship with your body’s wisdom.

• Links Worth Noting:
The Institute of Noetic Sciences has created a one (1) minute interview with various luminaries in the field of mind-body-spirit science. This link shares some insights from the Institute of HeartMath and well worth watching.

http://oneminuteshift.com/

NPR featured a segment on spirituality yesterday with interviews from the IONS staff.
Here is a link to that interview:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104351710

• Photo of the Day:
A mountain lion on the prowl for breakfast outside of Glacier National Park, MT. I took this photo while filming for my documentary on the healing power of nature. This kitty (wild but friendly) is an actor/model from the Triple D Wildlife Preserve in Kalispell, MT. I spent the better part of the morning with her. To my surprise, even big cats purr (although she sounded like a 6 cylinder engine when she did).

• Quote for the Day:
“God gave us two ends: One to sit on and one to think with. Success depends on which end you use. Heads you win. Tails you lose.”
—Anonymous.

Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D. is an internationally renowned expert in the fields of stress management, mind-body-spirit healing and stress and human spirituality. He is the author of over 10 books including the bestsellers, Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water, Stressed Is Desserts Spelled Backward, The Art of Calm, Quiet Mind, Fearless Heart and Managing Stress (6E). He can be reached through his website:www.brianlukeseaward.net

© Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D.

If you have stress about your finances… sadly, you’re in good company. To be honest, stress and money (or the lack of it) have been closely associated since the first coin was minted thousands of years ago. To put it bluntly, many of us live way outside our means. Perhaps all of us live in too big an economic footprint. Over the years, retail therapy has been the norm for many. From a psychological perspective, the ego’s addiction for material items is never satisfied and each purchase becomes a “fix” until the next purchase. Pulling in the reins on spending, seeing a monthly deposit to one’s saving account as a required expense and learning to cut back on unnecessary purchases becomes a whole new mindset and that itself can cause stress. It may be hard, but its not impossible. Before you go shopping make a list of what you intend to buy and stick to the list. The next time you take out your wallet, credit card or checkbook, ask yourself if you really NEED this item. Scaling back on living expenses will become the norm for all of us and the sooner we can adapt to this mindset, the less stress we’ll have down the road.

• Stress Tip for the Day:
Many purchases are made on impulse, whether it’s window shopping or browsing through website catalogues. Consider putting every purchase you make this week on a 24-hour hold. Sleep on it and see if you still feel the same way the next day. Most likely its something you can live without.

• Books Worth Noting:
My good friend, colleague and mentor, Larry Dossey, MD had a new book out, titled, The Power of Premonitions. As someone who has quite of few of these I think this is something we should all become more familiar with. You can read an excerpt from his book at” www.larrydossey.com

• Photo of the Day:
For the powerpoint slide set for my textbook, I took several images of money (spare change in my pocket that day, plus a few credit cards.)

• Quote for the Day:

“The best way to save money is to fold in half and place it back in your wallet.”
—Anonymous

Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D. is an internationally renowned expert in the fields of stress management, mind-body-spirit healing and stress and human spirituality. He is the author of over 10 books including the bestsellers, Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water, Stressed Is Desserts Spelled Backward, The Art of Calm, Quiet Mind, Fearless Heart and Managing Stress (6E). He can be reached through his website:www.brianlukeseaward.net

© Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D.

There is a good reason why people head to the beaches or the mountains for vacation; being in nature is a great elixir for stress. Oceans, mountains and cathedral forests tend to dwarf our problems into a size that becomes quite manageable. Moreover, taking time away from the stress of everyday life is necessary for better clarity of these problems. Breathing in rhythm to the ocean waves, being caressed by gentle summer breezes, or finding yourself completely mesmerized by the colors of a butterfly or the large eyes of a white tailed deer. Typically, we turn to nature to find a respite for the soul. We come searching for solitude and we return refreshed, renewed and reinvigorated. Due to our love affair (some would even say “addiction”), with technology, many people today have what is becoming known as “nature deficit disorder;” not getting outside enough. For the first time since public records have been kept in the United States, health experts suggest that Americans are becoming Vitamin D deficient (Vitamin D is synthesized via natural sunlight hitting the skin). Vitamin D deficiency can have many health implications. Nature can be a wonderful healing agent for stress, when we take the time to step outdoors and reunite with a world that we never should become separated from.

• Stress Tip for the Day:
Make a habit to get outside every day, whether it’s for a morning walk, a noonday stroll, or evening star gazing. Learn to recognize the wildlife in your locale beyond robins and squirrels. Get an adequate supply of fresh air and natural sunlight and reestablish a healthy connection to the natural world.

• Books Worth Noting:
One of my favorite books on Nature is called Earth Prayers (edited by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon). With over 365 prayers and poems it is a great way to start the day and become inspired about our home planet. AND… if you haven’t seen the BBC series, Planet Earth, it’s high time to treat yourself to this stunning documentary series that is unparalleled in cinematic beauty.

• Photo of the Day:
There are many places on planet earth that take one’s breath away, but Spirit Island outside of Jasper, Canada is at the top of my list. I took this photo while filming footage for my upcoming documentary, Earth Songs: Mountains, Water and the Healing Power of Nature (due out at the end of summer). Truly this is one of the prettiest places on Earth. Enjoy!

• Quote for the Day:

When the wind blows
this is my medicine.
When the sky rains
this is my medicine.
When snow falls from the heavens
this is my medicine.
When the sky becomes clear after a storm
this is my medicine.
—Anonymous

Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D. is an internationally renowned expert in the fields of stress management, mind-body-spirit healing and stress and human spirituality. He is the author of over 10 books including the bestsellers, Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water, Stressed Is Desserts Spelled Backward, The Art of Calm, Quiet Mind, Fearless Heart and Managing Stress (6E). He can be reached through his website:www.brianlukeseaward.net

© Brian Luke Seaward, Ph.D.