Beating Stress With Aromatherapy

Beating Stress With Aromatherapy
by guest blogger Shana Smith

If you find that dealing with stress is one of your biggest day-to-day challenges, you should be exploring all of the options available to you for coping with it. Aromatherapy is a simple and surprisingly effective way to relax and purge both mental and physical stress.

Why Aromatherapy Works

The essential oils used in aromatherapy are extremely concentrated distillates of some of the most beneficial plants known to man. When administered properly, they can have potent and measurable effects on your mind and body. When administered to the nose, essential oils stimulate your olfactory receptors, sense organs that are strongly tied to your brain's limbic system. Smell is the only sense so strongly linked to this part of the brain, and the limbic system is otherwise primarily concerned with emotions, behavior, and long-term memory.

Aromatherapy is often combined with massage in order to give you a two-pronged stress-busting tool. In the same way that relaxing aromas are carried directly to the emotional core of your brain, essential oils massaged into your skin and muscles have an immediate relaxing effect.

A Sampling Of Essential Oils

While you can easily find hundreds or even thousands of different essential oils, it's a good idea to stick with a few tried-and-true favorites when you start using aromatherapy to deal with stress. Great starter oils include:

* Lavender

This earthy, floral oil is used for so many different purposes that it's often called the "universal" oil. It's a potent tool for encouraging mental and physical relaxation, making it ideal for stress relief.

* Vanilla

The scent of vanilla evokes feelings of comfort, safety, and homeliness for a lot of people. Professional aromatherapists theorize that this is because the scent of vanilla is extremely close to that of mothers' milk. Vanilla aromatherapy promotes tranquility and mental clarity.

* Chamomile

Used for a wide range of herbal treatments, chamomile also makes an excellent oil for aromatherapy. When you're using chamomile to combat stress, make sure you get oil made from Roman chamomile. This variety has very strong anxiety-relieving powers.

* Frankincense

The exotic smell of frankincense is often recommended for treating stress. Frankincense is also very good for your skin, making it ideal for massage-based aromatherapy.

* Rose

Rose oil is often quite expensive as it takes a vast number of flowers to extract usable amounts of oil. Rose oil's ability to alleviate depression makes it well worth the cost for many aromatherapy devotees.

Using Oils Correctly

When you buy essential oils for aromatherapy, make sure you purchase pure, all-natural oils that contain only the herbal ingredients you're looking for. Impure or adulterated oils will not be nearly as effective for helping you get rid of stress.

Essential oils can be used in a variety of different ways. You can add their scents to the air around you with a diffuser or burner, take gentle sniffs directly from the bottles or add them to your favorite massage oils. Make sure you review all of the instructions provided with your oils and any equipment (e.g. burners and diffusers) before using them.

Note that essential oils are STRONG. Direct application to the skin can be harmful. Pure essential oils need to be diluted in a "carrier" oil (jojoba, almond, coconut, and olive are all popular) before use, especially when you're relieving stress with a massage. Whenever you use a new oil, check it by applying a small amount (after blending) to a clear patch of skin. Check for any reactions before using your oil on a larger area.

If you're still searching for a great technique for relieving stress, give aromatherapy a try! It's simple, flexible, and effective for a lot of people. You don't have anything to lose and you stand to gain a more peaceful and balanced outlook on life.

Shana Smith is a natural health enthusiast and successful business owner. She owns a site, AromaTherapy4Mom.com, which is dedicated to natural health remedies and aromatherapy.

See Stephanie's site Work Stress Solutions for more information like this.

Leave Workplace Stress at the Office

Leave Workplace Stress at the Office: How to Shut Down at the End of the Day
By Laura Newcomer

For the full article, please go to Quill.com

Click to Enlarge Image

Infographic by Quill



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Laughter: Work Stress Will Melt Away

"My only commandment is laughter!.... And everything else will follow. If you can love and if you can laugh, totally, wholeheartedly, your life will become such a bliss and a benediction, not only to yourself but to everyone else."<br>
~OSHO

I remember distinctly at about age 16, I decided: I'm going to be funny. I liked it when people made me laugh, and I wanted to make others laugh. And dammit---I did it. I've heard that "funny" is like having a musical ear, you either have it or you don't. And maybe that's true. I've definitely met people who wanted to be funny or tried to be funny and it was a really painful thing to watch.

I am really glad that I can make people laugh. I think there is something magical in laughter. There are programs out there like "FISH!" that play on this concept in the workplace. And having a funny quote or picture in the office definitely puts things in perspective. I recommend that you try to cultivate this quality, however. See if you can start to play with your wit and have a little more fun (and laughter) at work.


See Stephanie's site Work Stress Solutions for more information like this.

Don't Make Me Your Distraction of Choice

Some of my best moments have been in front of a screen. Whether that's a TV or a movie or a computer doesn't matter. And to properly level this premise: some of the worst times I have had in my life were face to face.

This post is calling out those people who proclaim that watching TV or typing on Facebook or texting your mother is inferior to "the real thing." Because that can't be quantified. And it's an argument that feels like bullying. Introverts prefer a little space, a little distance; while all the extroverts I know report that the last thing they want is for their thoughts and feelings well-up and meet them. They'd do anything to avoid that.

So, I'm on a campaign to stop this harassment. Because that's what it is: a call to make people interact with you now and here and often or else be shamed because you don't want to hear your own thoughts and insist that I be your chosen "screen" of distraction.

Well, I am not your distraction-du'jour. If you can't sit with yourself for ten minutes and see the mess that you are and answer that call, I can't help you. You are CHEATING. And you should work at sitting in your swirly-world of unrest until it settles. Because that's just sane.


See Stephanie's site Work Stress Solutions for more information like this.

The Most Rapid and Direct Means to Ending Stress (By Ending Stressful Thinking)

If you are REALLY up for the answer to ending your stress...then you've just found it (and it's free).

You do NOT have to create a DropBox account to read this book (see small type that says, "No Thanks" below registration).

Link to DropBox Book


See Stephanie's site Work Stress Solutions for more information like this.

Stress and The Brain (Video)

If you like Ted Talks, you'll really like Ted-Ed. They have a Facebook page, so you can see regular entries like this one:









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Your Currency is the Effect You Have On People...Jim Carrey Video

Many wonderful lessons shared here by Jim Carrey on leaving a legacy behind:

Go to video now.


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A Hawaiian Practice That Brings Peace of Mind

Have you heard of the Hawaiian therapist who cured an entire ward of criminally insane patients, without ever meeting any of them or spending a moment in the same room? It’s not a joke. The therapist was Dr. Ihaleakala Hew Len. He reviewed each of the patients’ files, and then he healed them by healing himself. The amazing results seem like a miracle, but then miracles do happen when you use Ho’oponopono, or Dr. Len’s updated version called Self I-Dentity Through Ho’oponopono (SITH). I had the pleasure of attending one of his lectures a few years ago and started practicing Ho’oponopono immediately. The results are often astounding. Do you need a miracle?


What you might wish to understand is how this can possibly work. How can you heal yourself and have it heal others? How can you even heal yourself?


Why would it affect anything “out there”? The secret is there is no such thing as “out there” – everything happens to you in your mind. Everything you see, everything you hear, every person you meet, you experience in your mind. You only think it’s “out there” and you think that absolves you of responsibility. In fact it’s quite the opposite: you are responsible for everything you think, and everything that comes to your attention. If you watch the news, everything you hear on the news is your responsibility. That sounds harsh, but it means that you are also able to clear it, clean it, and through forgiveness change it.


There are four simple steps to this method, and the order is not that important. Repentance, Forgiveness, Gratitude and Love are the only forces at work – but these forces have amazing power.


The best part of the updated version of Ho’oponopono is you can do it yourself, you don’t need anyone else to be there, you don’t need anyone to hear you. You can “say” the words in your head. The power is in the feeling and in the willingness of the Universe to forgive and love.

Step 1: Repentance – I’M SORRY
As I mention above, you are responsible for everything in your mind, even if it seems to be “out there.” Once you realize that, it’s very natural to feel sorry. I know I sure do. If I hear of a tornado, I am so full of remorse that something in my consciousness has created that idea. I’m so very sorry that someone I know has a broken bone that I realize I have caused.


This realization can be painful, and you will likely resist accepting responsibility for the “out there” kind of problems until you start to practice this method on your more obvious “in here” problems and see results.

So choose something that you already know you’ve caused for yourself? Over-weight? Addicted to nicotine, alcohol or some other substance? Do you have anger issues? Health problems? Start there and say you’re sorry. That’s the whole step: I’M SORRY. Although I think it is more powerful if you say it more clearly: “I realize that I am responsible for the (issue) in my life and I feel terrible remorse that something in my consciousness has caused this.”


Step 2: Ask Forgiveness – PLEASE FORGIVE ME
Don’t worry about who you’re asking. Just ask! PLEASE FORGIVE ME. Say it over and over. Mean it. Remember your remorse from step 1 as you ask to be forgiven.


Step 3: Gratitude – THANK YOU
Say “THANK YOU” – again it doesn’t really matter who or what you’re thanking. Thank your body for all it does for you. Thank yourself for being the best you can be. Thank God. Thank the Universe. Thank whatever it was that just forgave you. Just keep saying THANK YOU.


Step 4: Love – I LOVE YOU
This can also be step 1. Say I LOVE YOU. Say it to your body, say it to God. Say I LOVE YOU to the air you breathe, to the house that shelters you. Say I LOVE YOU to your challenges. Say it over and over. Mean it. Feel it. There is nothing as powerful as Love.

That’s it. The whole practice in a nutshell. Simple and amazingly effective.








Article by dcole (http://www.laughteronlineuniversity.com/practice-hooponopono-four-simple-steps/)


See Stephanie's site Work Stress Solutions for more information like this.

This Is What Happens to Your Body When You Don't Sleep Enough

This Is What Happens To Your Body When You Don’t Sleep Enough
(From the “Power of Positivity” website)

Sleep has been in the news a lot lately, because sleep deprivation is becoming an epidemic in our society. With one in three Americans starting each day in a sleep-deprived state, it’s no wonder it’s a topic of conversation.

When we sleep, we are more productive, healthier, and we feel better. Yet, we still find it difficult to squeeze everything we need to do into our day, and we end up staying up late or waking up early to get it all done.

The National Sleep Foundation released a revised sleep recommendation report getting specific about the amount of sleep required based on age.

The new recommendations are:
Older adults, 65+ years: 7-8 hours
Adults, 26-64 years: 7-9 hours
Young adults, 18-25 years: 7-9 hours
Teenagers, 14-17 years: 8-10 hours
School-age children, 6-13 years: 9-11 hours
Preschool children, 3-5 years: 10-13 hours
Toddlers, 1-2 years: 11-14 hours
Infants, 4-11 months: 12-15 hours
Newborns, 0-3 months: 14-17 hours

There are times when getting enough sleep isn’t an option, such as when an important report is due, someone is sick and needs care, or must-attend events are scheduled. So what happens to your body when you aren’t getting the recommended amount of sleep?

A team of Norwegian neuroscientists have set out to answer this question. After conducting observations of sleep-deprived groups in a controlled environment, they found that lack of sleep can change the white matter in our brains, and other studies have shown that it can interfere with our genes.
The good news is that our bodies are good at repairing themselves. When we get a good night’s sleep following a night of poor sleep, our bodies can repair the change in the brain’s white matter. But a chronic state of sleep deprivation can create long-term effects.

WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR BODY WHEN YOU DON’T SLEEP ENOUGH

Our brains aren’t the only thing that suffers when we don’t sleep. Here are eight additional ways a lack of sleep can affect us.


1. WE GET SICK.
Studies show there is a direct relationship between sleep and our immune systems. When we are sleep-deprived, our bodies have a more difficult time fighting off illnesses.

2. WE HAVE A HARD TIME THINKING.
Experimental Brain Research published a study showing that a lack of sleep contributed to poor decision-making, diminished reasoning and problem-solving skills and slower reaction times when faced with specific tasks.

3. WE GAIN WEIGHT.
A three-year-long study of over 21,000 adults evaluated the relationship between sleep and weight. It found people who slept on average of fewer than five hours a night were not only more likely to gain weight but were also at risk of becoming obese.

4. WE PHYSICALLY AGE QUICKER.
A study of the sleep habits and skin condition of people between the ages of 30 and 50 found that those suffering from a lack of proper sleep saw the effects in their skin and were more likely to be unhappy with their appearance. They noticed more wrinkles, fine lines, age spots and a lack of elasticity in the skin.

5. WE HURT OUR HEART.
A lack of proper sleep can negatively impact the health of our heart. A recent analysis published in the European Heart Journal says, coronary heart disease and stroke risks increase when we aren’t sleeping.

6. WE ARE MORE AT RISK FOR CANCER.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine released a statement connecting the lack of sleep with higher rates of certain types of cancers, including breast, prostate, and colorectal cancers. It also showed that people who slept longer than seven hours per night had the lowest mortality rates in the group.

7. WE HAVE LESS SEX.
The Journal of the American Medical Association published a study that found men getting less than five hours per night over a one-week period had lower testosterone levels than their proper-sleeping counterparts. Specifically, it reduced sex hormone levels by as much as 15 percent. Additionally, with each night of poor sleep their appetite for sex continued to decline.

8. WE EASILY FORGET THINGS.
Researchers have learned that our brain consolidates things when we sleep making it easier to recall. When we don’t sleep our brain can’t do its job, and our memory suffers.

Sleep isn’t just for looks or even to feel refreshed, although they are benefits to a proper night sleep. It’s no exaggeration to say proper sleep can save your life. Rethink your next binge-watching session on Netflix and choose a healthier, lights-out option instead.



See Stephanie's site Work Stress Solutions for more information like this.

How to Control Your Mind

This video may have made my entire site obsolete. It's perfect. Please have a quick listen:


Video on Facebook

How To STOP Negative/Stressful Thinking Once and For All.This is A Must See!!

Posted by Prince Ea on Monday, October 26, 2015

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