Do the things you worry about keep you up at night? Do you often feel nervous and uncomfortable? If so, this burden of stress is most likely making your life miserable. Do you want to break free from stress, stop worrying and start being happy? You can end this cycle now by identifying and dealing with the underlying causes of stress.

Future Fears

Fear about future events is one of the most common causes of worrisome stress. These fears can range from trivial concerns--such as what to wear to work the next day--to global fears about how the world will survive.

"When I look back on all these worries I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened." ~Winston Churchill

Anytime you worry about something that may or may not happen at some point in time, you're giving in to future fears. You might hear yourself saying things like:

"What if I lose my job?"
"What if she never talks to me again?"
"My son is sick, what happens next?"
"The world is so scary, what about war?"

Worries such as these can lead to restless or even sleepless nights. Sleepless nights lead to more stress, which in turn causes more worry--in other words, it's a vicious cycle.

Past Regrets

Another major cause of stress is dwelling on past regrets. By not letting go of things that may have gone wrong--or even just not as well as you might have hoped--stress increases and new fears are fed.

"If I had only done a better job on that essay"
"I never should have said that"
"I should have spent more time with my family"
"I should've never put that much money on my credit card"

These are the thoughts of someone who can't stop stressing about things that have already happened. Regret about the past can reflect any thoughts about events that you believe should or should not have happened.

How Can You Tell if You've Fallen into a Worry Cycle?

Whether you're concerned with the past, the future, or both, these kinds of thoughts are the source of the worry cycle and the underlying source of your stress. Trapped in the cycle, you may become anxious, sad, confused, or depressed. You might even begin to stress about worrying so much.

Needless to say, it is normal for us to think about future events, have some regret about past experiences and even stress about them to some degree. You can tell you've fallen into a worry cycle by the number of times your mind goes back to the same subject and by your feelings in relation to that subject.

If something happens that causes concern and you find yourself feeling uncomfortable and thinking about that same subject more than three times, it's the beginning of a worry cycle. Once you're in the cycle, your stress tolerance is lowered and your happiness is severely compromised.

Letting Go of Stress: Break Free from the Worry Cycle

Escaping the cycle of worry is the only way to create a new cycle of happiness. Luckily, there are concrete strategies that you can develop to help you release your stress and focus on the things that make you happy. Like any habit, worrying is a pattern that can be broken. Because the pattern is familiar to you, it will take practice to break free from the cycle.

The following steps can help you to set a new pattern that will significantly reduce your stress and help you to stop worrying so much:

Step one: Pay attention to how you feel. We all have emotions and we have them for a reason. The discomfort that comes along with worry is a warning bell that something deeply important to us is missing in any given situation. Learn to recognize the first signs of worry before they have a chance to initiate a cycle and turn into a stressor.

Step two: Identify what you really want. As we said in step one, uncomfortable feelings are warning bells that something deeply important is missing. In order to start breaking out of the worry cycle it is essential to start identifying what you want in a situation.

Step three: Take action. There is always some kind of action you can take. When you're in action, you have less time to worry or be hopeless about things never changing.

By: Beth Banning and Neill Gibson
Not sure what action to take? If you're serious about reducing stress and are seeking personal development skills that lead to finding happiness, sign up for free our thought-provoking and motivational Weekly Action Tips eMail series at: http://www.FocusedAttention.com/cmd.php?ad=317928.
Each tip offers practical advice for creating and living the life you really want.

I was told if I learned how to meditate – I would reap all kinds of wonderful benefits! I would feel more centered – I would be more clear – I would have less stress -- I would have more focus...

OK I thought – let’s do it! So to the bookstore I went... Wow lots of books on meditation!

I ended up buying several of them and started to read. Some of this information sounded like it was for the gurus up on the mountain tops!

They were talking about how to position my body, how to position my eyes… Where my hands should be…Some said I should say a mantra – others said I should alternate breathing from each nostril…

This did not sound like it was going to be easy! I was not at all comfortable with these body positions. Now – I am aware some people like this and do these positions easily… but for me – I felt like I was twisting into a pretzel!

Remembering mantras and which nostril I was suppose to breathe with next – making sure my feet were on the floor and my back rigid and all the while I had a gazillion thoughts running around in my head.

None of this was relaxing to me – My head was even more full of thoughts – trying to remember what I was and wasn’t supposed to do. How was I ever going to find this meditative state of quieting the mind? I was ready to give up on meditation!

Then 2 things happened for me – I bought a tape program on meditating – I don’t even remember that name of it – but it said I should listen to this tape and I would reach a meditative state. It didn’t tell me how to sit or how to breathe – it just told me to get comfortable and listen.

At about the same time I read an article by Deepak Chopra. He was talking about meditation and he said that all of us will get thoughts that come into our heads while we meditate. Then he said – in between those thoughts are gaps – they are there whether we realize them or not – and those gaps are meditation. I liked what Deepak said – the message to me was that the gaps, the meditative state was/is there even if I was not aware of it. Then I popped in that tape I bought – and for the first time I actually had some relief – it only lasted a few minutes – but as Deepak said – it was there!

That is when I decided I did not need someone else’s techniques – I did not need to sit in a special position. What I needed to do was find what worked best for me… I wanted something simple and flexible. It’s now years later and I meditate on a fairly regular basis. When I say fairly regular – what I mean is I do not have a stringent schedule of meditation. Most mornings I do meditate but there are those days that I don’t. It isn’t a big deal.

I don’t have that tape anymore – but I do usually listen to a cd with soft music or nature sounds – I always sit in my comfortable reclining chair – and I do direct my attention to my breathing. So when I start having a thought – I gently redirect myself back to my breathing.

This simple way to meditate has brought me many benefits. I am calmer now – I do not have as many thoughts at one time running through my head – it is easier for me to quiet all of my thoughts. I feel that meditating has truly given me balance and the ability of focus. I am much more in tune with my own inner guidance. I feel clear and calm and balanced.

While I was very skeptical at first – after I realized I could find my own form of meditation – this whole process became easy and enjoyable.

If you want to learn how to meditate – I would highly recommend getting some information from others and trying some techniques that you learn. Then you can make a decision of what works for you – what feels comfortable for you.

When you find your own personal meditation practice – your rewards will be great as you tap into your own inner voice.

By: Ellie Walsh
Meditation is one of the Secrets of utilizing the Law of Attraction. Learn how to Deliberately Create Your Life - Visit Living the Law of Attraction ~~ http://LivingTheLawOfAttraction.com

Throughout the world people are experiencing stress. In effect, stress is not inherently bad. It can be viewed as a positive force in life because it helps you to work harder and better, and even to meet deadlines. Stress is inevitable. Unfortunately you can become overwhelmed with stress and then it affects your health.

Thousands of people suffer bad health from stress related problems. Stress is experienced everywhere: at home, the workplace and even school. Financial problems or conflict within your relationship with loved ones cause tension and stress. The demands and pressures that you face on a daily basis make you feel anxious and in the end stress can lead to heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes … and the list goes on and on and on.

Stress is part of life and cannot be avoided. Fortunately you can learn how to take control of stress and cope with it. Living in a fast paced world with very little time on hand makes it difficult to utilize the time you have properly. You’re constantly struggling to balance your priorities and responsibilities. So how do you cope?

1. Communication: Suffering in silence is not the answer. You need to learn to confront your problems and approach those who can help. Communication doesn’t come easy. It can be an enormous challenge. You can talk to your employer, teacher or parents and tell them there is a problem. Once they know of the problem, it can be solved. Whenever you are worried, talk to a friend or a family member. Spend time with your loved ones and learn to relax in their company.

2. Discernment: You will experience a lot less anxiety if you can learn to distinguish between what is important and what is not. Take financial stress for example. If you try to “conserve” your money and make less debt, you will have less to worry about. Having it all might just not be attainable. It’s also not necessary. You need to learn to be satisfied with what you have, instead of wanting more. Being content in life is realistic and practical. What you want isn’t necessarily what we need. Learn to be organized and know your own limitations. Never expect more from yourself than you can give.

3. Cooperation: Everyone has their daily load of responsibilities, worries, pressure and stress. Cooperating with those around you and taking them into consideration helps in building healthy relationships. This prevents serious stress.

4. Exercise and a Healthy Habits: Moderate exercise drives all the negative energy out. Good healthy food keeps your body and mind going. Eating the right food is important. It is also important not to over indulge. Drinking enough water and giving your body sufficient rest every day is just as important. Never underestimate the benefits of sleep. You should also remember to give yourself some timeout. Being alone and enjoying your own company can be very soothing. And once in a while, find the time to pamper and spoil yourself.

Yes! There is good stress and bad stress, and once you start thinking of challenges as opportunities and stress factors as temporary setbacks, you’ll find yourself coping on a more optimistic level. Let these four steps to coping with stress motivate you every day and make your future a living experience.

By: Karin Steyn
http://www.blinc123.za.net.

Today, everyone you come across complains about being too busy. People are busy conforming to deadlines at work, hotfooting to class or running the kids from one activity to another. Our lives are ascertained by time sensitive, externally monitored, stress acquiring activities. Unfortunately many respond to stress by alleging, "I just don't have the time to alleviate it." You can have time to cut down stress. Here are a few quick to do, stress cutting activities.

30 minutes - 4 days a week:

Pick your favourite exercise and just do it. Even if you have to awaken 35 minutes sooner than usual to achieve it, just do it.

Examples of exercises:

You can walk around the block or maybe two blocks, timing yourself until you've been walking for half-hour. Take a dog, or an acquaintance with you and make it a leisurely walk. You can enjoy the neighbor’s back yard, a community park, or nature trail.

Take a relaxing swim in your pool or a residential area pool.

Join an aerobic exercise class.

Exercise releases endorphins that are natural healing and soothing chemicals.

Exercise aids us keeping physically and mentally healthy. Good health through exercise diminishes our risk for unwellness and can direct our attention away from issues that cause us stress.

15 minutes - 3 times daily

Bringing in the choice to eat 3 healthy meals including fruits and vegetable daily can encourage your body's natural defense against stress by catering for what your body needs to heal.

Foods that are copious in cholesterol, saturated fats, and sugar can induce headaches, digestive troubles, inability to concentrate, nervousness and irritability. Once we experience these symptoms we can feel stressed and uncomfortable. Consuming healthier foods and beverages like water (8 - 8oz glassfuls), fruits, veggies, grain, calcium products and protein (not necessarily meat, but nuts and seeds).

Inner calmness:

An additional way to bring down stress is to spend time on your inner peace of mind. Meditation, yoga and tai chi chuan are methods for everyone to become more well aware of our body and to unstrain our mind. As we concentrate on body motions, another object or a sound our mind blanks out other distractions and we therefore feel the tenseness release.

Whilst you have a poor diet or eat at irregular times this adds to strain.

Lie down on a couch with your shoes off. Lay a cool flannel over your eyes if you suffer from allergies. Listen to your favored music whilst you relax. Slowly and gently blow air out your mouth and slowly inhale through your nose.

Breathe Correctly:

Stress increases our heart rate and our breathing gets shallow and speedy. Whilst this comes about our body loses oxygen that it necessitates to function. Take deep breaths so that oxygen can flow into our stomach and into our lungs. Make deep breathing a part of your day-to-day routine and before long it will replace your shallow breathing. Your body will consume the oxygen it calls for and you'll feel better.

By: Ian Wilkins
Ian Wilkins writes for Your Health And Fitness We have articles and tips written by fully qualified doctors and nurses and give all the information free. If you are serious about looking after your health and fitness, then visit the number 1 resource for Your Health And Fitness.

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