360 Stress Relief Gifts

Stress Relief Gifts ~ Photo of a devoted student from the '80s, Yogi Mike S. in New Zealand posing thoughtfully in Tadasana, the Mountain Pose.

Stress Relief Tips
(see article)

Welcome to 360!. These are challenging times for us all. Seeking ways to reduce and manage your stress levels is very smart. My unique website is designed to help you in all-encompassing ways… 360-degrees.

So, give yourself a gift today: Read my article here and then browse thru 360. See what topics or links you're drawn to. I believe you found this page deliberately (maybe not consciously) but from Soul's choice to do so in this moment. Along with various meditation methods there are many other stress relief gifts and treasures to discover. I created this site as an extension of my work: To help raise consciousness and uplift humanity -- one person at-a-time since 1977.

If you have a question or prayer request I may give you a divine shout-out during my radio shows, so tune-in. Emails arrive from around the world and it gets busy here so please be patient. Thank you. In Oneness, Namasté with Heartfelt Blessings,

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More 360 Spiritual Stress Relief Tips (Articles)
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Another Gift for YOU

Article on Spiritual Stress Management:
Stress Relief Gifts

Published in Dayspring, International Newsletter of The Alliance of Divine Love, December, 2008, page 4.

Doing a 360: Sacred Spherical Strategies for Optimal Living
By Rev. Nancy Ash, E-RYT

Tis the season to be jolly...and maybe a little stressed. Just thinking about the word stress may stress you out—especially during these hectic holidays. I call this month’s strategy Spiritual Stress Management; let’s explore stress relief gifts you may give your self and loved ones.

Stress is not bad. Stress is actually good for us. Most people are shocked to learn this fact. We need stress in our lives to be creative, to thrive and vibrantly challenge ourselves. For example, exercise, such as hiking, is stressful. That doesn’t mean it isn’t fun. To commune with beautiful nature and breathe fresh air—how wonderful that activity can be. Vigorous exercise is a good stressor that strengthens bones, muscles, heart and lungs while calming the mind.

There are two crucial aspects to consider when understanding stress: first, there are too many stressors in our fast pace of modern life; second, our response or reaction (famous “fight-or-flight” term of stress by Dr. Hans Selye) to all stressors is the key to the problem. We must learn to adapt and recover quickly from anything that “pushes our buttons.” We can help others with this, especially when we’re all rushing around with busy schedules, traffic, noise pollution, anxiety and worry, etc. Spiritual Stress Management is a 360 strategy (all-encompassing) that teaches love in the greatest degree with respect to recognizing maladaptive patterns in our behavior. We adapt our responses to the “buttons” once we specifically identify the stressors.

Methods like yoga, relaxation, (remember last month’s specific technique of progressive muscle relaxation?), meditation, breathing practices, massage, acupuncture, brisk walking, reiki, chanting/prayer, etc. provide a plethora of stress relief gifts for our Soul as an excellent means of stress prevention. Obviously stress, and the management of it, is quite a vast topic that I’ve barely scratched the surface of in this brief article.

Swami Vishnu-devananda used to quote his Master, Sri Swami Sivananda: “An ounce of practice is worth a ton of theory.” So, in honor of these great yogis, one of my stress relief gifts to you today is a simple but effective exercise producing results in 1-2 weeks. You’ll need a pen and a package of white/color labels (available at your office supply store).

Sit and meditate/contemplate on what behavior you’ll change. Write down words on these labels, and place them where you’ll see them often. For example, let’s say you always feel stressed out in traffic. You may write: BREATHE, RELAX, I AM CALM, etc. on labels and put them in your car. Your behavior will change as you see these suggestions in your environment. Have fun with this; it works. Here are other stress relief gifts to give:

• Gift certificate for a private yoga lesson or a massage.
• Baby-sit your friends’ kids for an evening so they can go out.
• Have friends over and do a guided meditation/relaxation for them.
• Give relaxation music, guided meditation/healing DVDs/Cds.

Yours in the Greatest Degree of Love, Nancy

The Rev. Nancy Ash, E-RYT is an ADL Ministerial Trainer, and nationally certified Creative Wellness Instructor. She writes from the foothills of New Mexico ~ A 360 Definition of Stress

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