Natural Remedies for Stress and Anxiety

It might surprise you, but yes, stress is natural. We all will at some time in our lives experience stress and we shouldn't be ashamed or try to completely eliminate stress from our lives. It is simply impossible.

Stress is our bodies natural response to danger and a natural reaction to threats.. This response is referred to as the "fight or flight" response and is healthy in its initial stages.

Stress is essential when we encounter danger, say for instance if we're attacked by a bear while hiking in the forest. Our brain sends out signals to our limbic system that dangers is near and releases life saving chemicals. These chemicals give us extra energy for our muscles and brain. We're able to think faster, react faster and hopefully run faster. This is a good thing, maybe not for the bear if its plans included having dinner.

When we are stressed adrenaline, glucose and fatty acids are all released to help us think faster, move faster, make our senses sharper and help us handle pain. This is good if we are in real danger. However, stress does produces certain negative changes and effects, especially if the stress lasts for extended periods of time. One of those negative effects is anxiety.

Stress and anxiety are often used in the same context. They do differ. Stress is our bodies natural "fight or flight' response. Stress comes from a physical threat or perceived physical threat outside of us. While anxiety is an emotional response. The fear we have when we are anxious is based on our internal thoughts or emotions.

Stress has a root cause. This root cause or causes are termed stressors. We can alleviate stress by either eliminating or more practically reducing our stressors. However, it isn't that simple for anxiety. A person suffering from anxiety often won't know why they are feeling "stressed." There is no external or physical cause for anxiety.

Stress is natural, it happens to all of us at some point in our lives. Anxiety is a negative effect of stress that accompanies stress and if left unchecked or allowed to flourish can linger beyond what caused the stress in the first place. If we are knowledgeable about stress and how to combat it, then we are one step ahead of stress.

There are many natural remedies that can help combat stress and anxiety. These remedies are simple and often overlooked as options for treatment.

1. Take A Deep Breath: Ever been told to take a deep breathe. In reality you should have been told to - breathe good. Stress causes shallow breathing or bad breathing. Shallow breathing accompanies stress, it is induced by the bodies "fight or flight' response. Deep breathing, or abdominal breathing activates our bodies natural relaxation response, it calms us. Relieves the tension of stress.

Another problem shallow breathing causes is an increase in carbon dioxide and a decrease in oxygen in our bloodstream, muscles and brain. Maintaining a proper balance of carbon dioxide and oxygen is crucial for both our physical and mental health. If our carbon dioxide levels become elevated we may feel tired and depressed. If our oxygen supply is to restricted it may lead to panic attacks, and phobias. Other effects of shallow breathing are:

• tightness of the chest
• irregularities of the heart
• aches, pains, numbness, tingling limbs,
• sleep problems
• headaches
• feelings of panic
• anxiety

Abdominal breathing increases oxygen levels, detoxifies, releases tension, elevates mood and helps the immune system. So the next time you're stressed, breathe deep, breathe good and breathe with your abdominal muscles. This technique of deep breathing is really very simple and involves just a few simple steps:

• Sit or lie down, choose which ever is most comfortable for you. Try both when you first start you may find that one or the other works best for you.
• Deeply inhale and as you inhale your stomach should inflate down and out. A good way to help you focus on this is to place one hand on your belly as you breathe.
• Hold for three seconds
• Exhale and as you exhale you should be able to feel your abdominal wall deflate towards your back.
• Repeat several times

Eat the right foods and eliminate ones that can cause or exacerbate stress and anxiety. Foods that can increase stress and anxiety:

• Caffeine - The hormones that caffeine releases either hinder the bodies natural relaxation response or induce more stress related symptoms. Caffeine increases adrenaline, cortisol and dopamine levels, all of which increase stress. Caffeine also can affect your sleep patterns and your body desperately needs sleep to recuperate and a lack of sleep can increase stress levels.
• Nutrients That Can Help Alleviate Stress: Stress robs the body of necessary minerals and vitamins needed for healthy functioning. So, when you are experiencing stress or anxiety it is essential to replenish these minerals and vitamins. The most important of these to replenish are: B vitamins, Vitamin C, magnesium, calcium, potassium, copper, chromium, iron and selenium.

This system should be made up of friends and family. The people you want in your support system should be supportive, positive and give you feelings of belonging and security. Activities don't have to be too involved, a friend to walk with, talk on the phone with or even a quick cup of coffee. A family member around to help with babysitting if you're a single mother, doing the wash or just telling you a good joke are all simple stress busters. Having a support system will help your mental acuity, help you stay grounded and can just help to get your mind off your stressors.

This is such a simple easy remedy for stress and anxiety, yet is one of the most overlooked and least used. There are many ways in which stress can help to alleviate stress, here are a few:

• It gets those endorphin's flowing into your brain. These are the bodies "feel-good chemicals", they help us deal with pain and well just make us feel good.
• Exercise helps clear your mind and take your mind off of problems for awhile. By exercising regularly you'll to remain calm and find it easier to deal with problems and stress in the future.
• Exercise releases endorphin's that directly impact your mood. It can stave of depression and increased anxiety, help's promote regular sleep habits and gives you a sense of accomplishment and control as you achieve your exercise goals.
• Exercise will often motivate you to eat healthier and a healthy diet is important for controlling stress. People that exercise regularly tend to have healthier diets and are motivated to stay on those diets.

Life today is overwhelming to say the least. Watch, read or listen to the news and one can't help but feel a little, well a little overwhelmed. Often it seems as if we have few choices in life, few opportunities and many feel as if life has no other meaning than to pay the bills and catch the latest show on the TV. Modern life in itself is a stressor.

Watching television, isn't enough to balance the stress we encounter. The stress we get from driving to work in traffic jams, financial and career insecurities, layoffs, bankruptcies, government corruption and cover-ups... well I could go on but you get the point. Each of us needs a purpose beyond our careers, something such as writing hubs on hubpages can be a great stress reliever. It can be anything, but it should be something you're passionate about, something you can devote to. Something that will give you a sense of belonging and control.

Stress is natural and no one is immune to stress. However, it is controllable. There are many natural herbs and recipes that help. Massage helps and there are probably many more that haven't been covered in this article, the important thing to remember is that it can be controlled and if it isn't it can be very dangerous to your health. Don't wait till stress has damaged your either your mental or physical health. Begin today to reduce stress with one of these or one of your own natural remedies.