10 Second STRESS TEST
© 2011 Dr. Tim Lowenstein
Each of us reacts to stress differently.
Some of us tighten our muscles, others dump more acid into their
stomach, still others have freezing cold hands or feet, can't sleep,
headaches, ......... That's the bad news and, of course, it gets even
worse as things get out of hand. Stress, unchecked, can make you ill
and can even kill. Not news to you, I'm sure. What you can do is learn
to detect your own level of stress accurately. Even more impressive is
when you learn to master your own response to stress. Don't panic, kids
learn this easily and so can you.
This is a simple test of your stress level.
Not all stress or tension is bad. You need to have some to drive a car
safely down a city freeway or watch a two year old at the playground.
But too much stress can slowly build like a kettle on the stove. Within
minutes it is hissing. After a few more minutes it is bubbling with the
lid rattling. This can happen in a few minutes, a few years or over a
life time. Now you can learn to check your body to get an idea of the
Stress Factor.
STRESS TEST
Body temperature is the simplest way to
determine your level of stress . To better understand the relationship
of stress and body temperature read - STRESS
AND BODY TEMPERATURE.
PART 1 FINGER & NECK STRESS TEST
A simple way to test your stress level is by
comparing your hand temperature to your neck temperature. Neck
temperature is typically around the high 80's to low 90's F. Hand
temperature can vary from 60 degrees to 99 degrees in a normal room
temperature. So you can test your hand temperature by touching your
neck with the fingertips of both hands.
Do your fingers feel colder than your neck?
How much colder? Allot or just slightly?
Do your fingers feel warm like your neck?
Remember "Warm
Hands are Relaxed, Cold Hands are Tense!"
If your fingers feel really cold, then you
are showing extra tension perhaps too much stress.
If your fingers feel cool, then you are
showing some tension.
If your fingers are warm like your neck,
then you may be relaxed and comfortable.
If your fingers feel hotter than your neck,
then you may be deeply relaxed.
This is a simple test. Some people feel
stress in muscle tension, sweaty hands or other ways that may be more
apparent than hand temperature.
PART 2 MAKE YOURSELF TENSE
- Close your eyes and check your
finger/neck temperature again.
Make yourself Stressed Out!
Now sit and think of something really upsetting - a divorce, problems
at work, a death, children problems, a bad experience in childhood,
credit card bills, loneliness, etc. Really think about that problem for
3 minutes until you can feel your body change and react to that
pressure.
- Check your finger/neck temperature again.
Did your fingers get colder? What else
happened inside your body?
If were not able to make yourself feel tense
then try this. Sit and imagine putting your hands in ICE
COLD WATER. Feel the ice cubes rubbing
against your fingers. Hear the freezing cold cubes clang against the
glass bowl. Or imagine making snowballs or a snowman [person] with NO
GLOVES. Imagine this for 3 minutes.
- Check your finger/neck temperature again.
Did your fingers get colder? What else
happened inside your body?
PART 3 MAKE YOURSELF RELAXED
- Close your eyes and check your
finger/neck temperature again.
Now let us test to see how well you can
relax and make your hands warmer. Sit with your eyes closed. Take long,
slow, deep breaths. For 3 minutes imagine that you are laying in the
warm sunshine or under a heavy blanket in front of a fireplace. Feel
the warmth flowing down your arms and into your hands. Feel the warmth
pulsing and throbbing over your entire body.
- Check your finger/neck temperature again.
Did your fingers get warmer? What else
happened inside your body?
By doing this simple test and then
practicing 5 minutes of deep relaxation, I have had people report that
headahces left, pain subsided and they felt much better. Years later
people still use this simple method to relieve pain and pressure!
YOU CAN MAKE YOURSELF ILL AND YOU CAN MAKE
YOURSELF WELL
You choose. We offer the finest materials to
teach how to master your life in order to be healthy and stay well.
Click on the Products and Services to visit our pages of products to
help. Be Well. Dr. Tim Lowenstein
Resources to Master Stress - a complete catalog of educational materials to
measure and master stress. Health Master catalog of wellness products,
stress management, biofeedback, Stress Meter, relaxation, pain,
anxiety, Holographic Music, books, audio cassettes, Stress Thermometer,
Mood Card, stress spots, training, stress card, biodot
Now
take a Life Stress Test
this scale will help determine the level of pressure you are facing
from major life stress events in the past year.
References
- If you would like
to read more about how Stress affects Body Temperature go to :
- STRESS
AND BODY TEMPERATURE
- Research
Articles on Biofeedback
- Resources on Stress - various articles on stress. See Hot list for web
sites.
- Headaches
- describes headaches and
recommends relaxation and biofeedback
Product
Discounts - Click here to see this
page which lists various discounts including those for stores, mail
order and monthly contract purchases
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