STRESS MANAGEMENT
Sharad Puranik
STRESS MANAGEMENT
- Radhakrishnan Pillai
'Stress', the word is so much common in today's day to day conversation, especially in the current corporate world. Long working hours and deadlines to be met add to all the problems leading to a main issue called 'Stress Management'.
However let us understand if 'Stress' is a new phenomenon to this generation alone?
Swami Bhaskarananda of the Ramakrishna Mission writes in his book "Meditation – Mind and Patanjali's Yoga" that, Stress existed since time immemorial. Every generation had to face it in one way or the other. The answer to stress management lies in controlling the mind. Thus how to control the mind seems to be an age-old problem.
In-fact the Bhagawat Geeta's first chapter is called 'Arjuna Vishada Yoga'. It is the situation where Arjuna is totally confused as what to do in the battlefield. Thus the whole 18 chapters of the Geeta give us tips on how to 'Manage Stress' and face the challenges of our life.
A human being has got four personalities – Physical, Mental, Intellectual and Spiritual.
When we are under Stress it is displayed at 3 levels
Physical – Tension in shoulders, back, neck etc, Loss of appetite and reduction of physical movements.
Mental – We get deeply emotional; get depressed and there is a tremendous loss of mental energy resulting in fatigue.
Intellectual – We are not able to take decisions, imbalance in dealing with various roles of our life as employees, parents, husband / wife etc.
Hence Stress has to be managed at all the 3 levels separately. How to do that?
At the Physical level – Do not sit in a closed room holding your head. Get out in the fresh air and take a few deep breaths. We need to have good blood and air circulation. Aerobic exercises, Yogasanas, running etc help to get us out of our laziness. Eat natural food like fruits, salads etc. Spicy food can make you short tempered.
At the Mental Level – Go out with your friends, listen to soft music, go to places that give you peace of mind like temples, ashrams etc. You can also take a break by going to places that are close to nature. Most important avoid negative people who are always out there to discourage you.
At the intellectual level – Try and understand the root cause of your problem. Investigate within yourself. Read thought provoking books. There are many available in the market in the name of Self Help, motivational and inspirational books. You can even attend workshops; listen to good speakers through audio or video.
But the most important technique lies in dealing stress at the Spiritual level – Meditation, attending to satsangs, consulting Spiritual masters gives you spiritual insights into how to deal with stress. A truly spiritual man is never stressed. He is always at ease and helps others to come out of stress.
Swami Chinmayananda, the spiritual master said "Even this will pass away". Once we truly understand that every situation in life is temporary it will give us a lot courage and confidence to face our daily challenges.
The root cause of stress is worry – Whenever a negative thought comes to us, immediately replace it with a positive thought. Eliminate it at the first stage itself. Always carry positive thoughts.
Finally learn to say NO in life. The most stressful people are the ones who tell 'YES' to everything and everyone. Remember we cannot and should not attend to everyone's demands (including our bosses). You can in a peaceful manner make others understand why you will not be able to attend to the task.
A stress free life means you are living your life the way you want. It's always better to live the life you want rather than let others decide for you.
After all "Yeh Meri Life Hai – Mujhe Jeene Do"
"I overcame my nightmares by focusing on my dreams"- Unknown
(The writer Radhakrishnan Pillai, is the Director of the company Atma Darshan. (www.atmadarshan.com), which helps seekers across the globe discover Spiritual India.. He can be contacted at
radhak...@atmadarshan.com M-91-9820374796.)