When one is overwhelmed, she or he is not feeling very empowered. Feeling stress then is to feel disempowered. Now this is certainly not something that is in our best interest. When you are stressed, you are feeling threatened and this is a mind/brain response whether the perceived threat is real, meaning physical threat or psychological.

If your life is in danger, the stress response can help you to run faster, fight stronger or, for better or for worse – freeze. Other than physical escape, the response can interfere with your performance.

If you were meeting a deadline, enthusiasm or excitement would serve you better than getting yourself all worked up about last minute preparedness. The main thing to consider about stress is to understand that it is also very dangerous to your health.

Sure, overwhelm is unpleasant, but that is the least of your concern when it comes to stress. Consider the following facts about stress:

1. Stress weakens your immune system, increasing your likelihood of contracting disease

2. Stress has even been associated with creating susceptibility to cancer

3. Stress reduces your cognitive ability – it can cause you to make “stupid” decisions

4. Chronic elevation of stress hormones can cause weight gain

5. Increases your risk of heart attack and stroke

6. Is toxic to brain cells and memory

7. Increases muscle tension and stiffness leading to an inflexible body

The list could easily go on. You get the point. It is not to be taken lightly. One of the best things you can do for stress and more peace of mind is to start taking your brain to the “mindfulness gym” to re-wire and retrain it to break the stress cycle, which is essentially a habitual response.

Mindfulness meditation is like hygiene for the brain. Also, aerobic exercise and staying hydrated with pure, clean water goes a long way as well. There are several other things you can do as well.  I will cover these at other times here on my blog.

For inner peace and better health overall, I highly recommend the mindfulness practices. Aren’t love, joy and peace what we are really after? When these feelings are our starting point, health, wealth and happy relationships are a natural consequence.

Worry and stress are destructive. Learning to relax is more than just a nice idea. It could save your life!