7 WAYS TO PREVENT WORK/LIFE STRESS

Do you struggle with work/life stress? Have you ever found it hard to leave your work stress at work? Does it impact your family, not just you? Lots of people talk about work life balance, but I believe a much better term is work life alignment – when your work and the rest of your life function together, supporting each other.

The American Psychological Association reports that 61% of Americans report feeling stressed about work. This is a huge societal problem. We’ve all been there. Worries from a crap day at work leak into family life. You snap or growl at someone – complete over-reaction. They’re stunned, and hurt. Really – you’re still stuck on what happened – or didn’t happen at work. But now it is impacting your loved ones.

Work life stress vs work life alignment

Work is not optional for most of us. We’ve all gotta make bank. Work can be awesome. I really enjoy what I do, but that doesn’t mean it is perfect. It gives and it takes.  I’ve benefited from that in many ways. Often work and the rest of life help each other out. Work kept me going – gave me a distraction when things were tough. They were super supportive and flexible. Now I give back to them too. I am available at odd hours. But they let me look after my family and fulfil my other important roles during classic work hours too. I also remember during the financial crisis when I worked in banking that wasn’t much fun – then my family life helped compensate for the struggles at work.

The classic 9-5 is gone for most of us and the boundaries between work and home have blurred. That’s where work life alignment comes in. It is when you’re comfortable in both environments – when one doesn’t occur at the expense of each other, and when they support each other.

7 Tips for preventing work stress from affecting the rest of life

• Be open, honest and authentic – be yourself in both situations. tell people what is going on. Goes both ways. Have a small vent if you need to – then move on

• First things first – if you’ve got something big on – focus on it, whether it is work or family – otherwise you’re lying to yourself and others

• Finish stuff – don’t let it hang over you all weekend. Finish it on Friday afternoon while you’re all warmed up anyway – you won’t regret it.

• Write a start up list for tomorrow – write down the stuff you haven’t finished for tomorrow. Review it in the morning – you may find some of it suddenly isn’t necessary

• Separate environment – even if you’re working from home – have a workspace where you don’t spend time otherwise – even if it is just a corner of a room – switch things off

• Transition – create space (mentally) so you can leave work behind before you re-enter family life. Use the both to help transition your mind – move, breathe, talk

• Gratitude – can’t be stressed and grateful at the same time – be thankful for everything that your work and life enable – even when it’s bad, there’s still good.

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Article by Craig Hopper, Owner of TIY.

WHY SHOULD WE SURRENDER IN YOGA?

Let’s explore the importance of surrender. How does surrendering in yoga translate into our lives off the mat?

In a way, surrender seems the opposite of setting an intention, but it’s not really like that in yoga. The two concepts complement each other and are equally important. The process of building a yoga practice is led by surrender to our own body’s capacity rather than our intellectual or cognitive determination alone. It is an exercise in trusting the goodness, the strength, and the honesty of the body. And it is by intention, about trusting the body’s capacity to tell us what it needs, that we are actually able to advance in our practice.

Surrender can be perceived as a type of weakness. It brings up thoughts of powerlessness and losing control. In our everyday life, it can be hard to let go and accept what lies ahead of us without complaining. Yet, by learning to surrender, we can achieve true peace and freedom. The idea of surrender is a tricky one to master for the human brain as it goes beyond logical reasoning. At a certain point we need to stop asking, as there are no more answers or logical explanations. We could choose to either tirelessly work the rest of our lives to try to find some answers, or gracefully surrender to the mystery of a higher design. One path can lead to frustration, confusion and anger, while the other path perhaps offers ease, peace and support, if we let these in. It is when we surrender to something greater than ourselves and open up to the flow of the universe that we express our readiness to receive. Seen in perspective, what looks like inaction is simply the recognition that now is not the time to act. For this reason, masters of surrender tend to be masters of flow, people who know intuitively how to move with the energies at play in each situation.

Surrender requires practice. The great paradox about it is that though we can practice surrender, invoke it, or open up to it, we can’t actually make it happen. In other words, just as the practice of ‘being loving’ is different from ‘being in love’, so the practice of surrendering is different from the state of being surrendered. As a practice, surrender is a way of deeply relaxing your psychic and physical muscles. It is an antidote to the frustration that we experience when we try to control the uncontrollable. However, the state of surrender is always a spontaneous arising, which we can allow by being open to it, but never force.

The main benefits of surrender are serenity and a sense of freedom from our self-imposed burdens. With surrender comes the understanding that everything works out in its own time. If accepting and respecting the limits of our bodies is how we practice surrender on the mat, doing our best and then letting go of the result, or gently refusing to live up to some image we have of ourselves are great ways to master surrender off the mat and in our everyday life. The ultimate goal should be the wonderful relief from the feeling that we have to struggle to get through life and a deep sense of being guided and cared for by something greater.

Original Article - Marcia Sharp.

STUDY: THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON STRESS, ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION IN WOMEN

Most of us have heard in recent years how yoga can help reduce feelings of stress, anxiety and depression in our life. In recent decades, several medical and scientific studies on yoga proved it to be very useful in the treatment of some diseases. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of yoga on stress, anxiety, and depression in women with a mean age of 33.5 ± 6.5 years after 12 yoga classes.

Before each participant started integrating Hatha yoga into their lives, they each completed the DASS-21 (Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21) questionnaire to assess their current mental health. The women then participated in 3 Hatha yoga training sessions per week for 4 weeks. At the end of the 12th session, the questionnaire of DASS-21 was again completed by the participants. It was found that the difference between the mean scores of depression, anxiety, and stress before and after 12 sessions of regular Hatha yoga was statistically significant with an overall decrease in the participants depression, anxiety and stress.

This controlled study continues to show that yoga can be used as a complementary medicine to reduce feelings of anxiety, depression, and stress. Increased stress, depression and anxiety are unfortunately features of our modern lifestyles. Due to the adverse effects of drugs in the treatment of anxiety and depression, and in some cases their lack of effectiveness, researchers have been seeking nonpharmacological and non-invasive treatment for these disorders. Yoga exercises helped improve the variables of self-description, psychological status, and the quality of life. Research suggests that yoga as an intellectual and mental exercise, improves the feeling of health in individuals.

Furthermore, yoga can improve some of these psychological conditions for monitoring and managing stress and negative emotions, increase positive emotions, and help mental balance in individuals.

Due to the effective role yoga has on reducing stress, anxiety, and depression, practicing yoga will only help improve your mental health. Step onto you mat at one of our studios today to experience these benefits for yourself.

Study - NCBI.NLM.NIH.

YOGA BENEFITS BEYOND THE MAT

Yoga, an ancient practice and meditation, has become increasingly popular in today's busy society. For many people, yoga provides a retreat from their chaotic and busy lives. This is true whether you're practicing downward facing dog posture on a mat in your bedroom, in an ashram in India or even on Bondi Beach on a busy day. Yoga provides many other mental and physical benefits. Some of these extend to the kitchen table.

Keep reading to see how Yoga’s benefits extend beyond the mat. 👇

Types Of Yoga

There are many types of yoga. Hatha (a combination of many styles) is one of the most popular styles. It is a more physical type of yoga rather than a still, meditative form. Hatha yoga focuses on pranayamas (breath-controlled exercises). These are followed by a series of asanas (yoga postures), which end with savasana (a resting period).

The goal during yoga practice is to challenge yourself physically, but not to feel overwhelmed. At this "edge," the focus is on your breath while your mind is accepting and calm.

A Better Body Image

Yoga develops inner awareness. It focuses your attention on your body's abilities at the present moment. It helps develop breath and strength of mind and body. It's not about physical appearance.

Yoga studios typically don't have mirrors. This is so people can focus their awareness inward rather than how a pose — or the people around them — looks. Surveys have found that those who practiced yoga were more aware of their bodies than people who didn't practice yoga. They were also more satisfied with and less critical of their bodies. For these reasons, yoga has become an integral part in the treatment of eating disorders and programs that promote positive body image and self-esteem.

Becoming a Mindful Eater

Mindfulness refers to focusing your attention on what you are experiencing in the present moment without judging yourself.

Practicing yoga has been shown to increase mindfulness not just in class, but in other areas of a person's life.

Researchers describe mindful eating as a nonjudgmental awareness of the physical and emotional sensations associated with eating. They developed a questionnaire to measure mindful eating using these behaviours:

• Eating even when full (disinhibition)

• Being aware of how food looks, tastes and smells

• Eating in response to environmental cues, such as the sight or smell of food

• Eating when sad or stressed (emotional eating)

• Eating when distracted by other things

The researchers found that people who practiced yoga were more mindful eaters according to their scores. Both years of yoga practice and number of minutes of practice per week were associated with better mindful eating scores. Practicing yoga helps you be more aware how your body feels. This heightened awareness can carry over to mealtime as you savour each bite or sip, and note how food smells, tastes and feels in your mouth.

A Boost To Weight Loss and Maintenance

People who practice yoga and are mindful eaters are more in tune with their bodies. They may be more sensitive to hunger cues and feelings of fullness.

Researchers found that people who practiced yoga for at least 30 minutes once a week for at least four years, gained less weight during middle adulthood. People who were overweight actually lost weight. Overall, those who practiced yoga had lower body mass indexes (BMIs) compared with those who did not practice yoga. Researchers attributed this to mindfulness. Mindful eating can lead to a more positive relationship with food and eating.

Enhancing Fitness

Yoga is known for its ability to soothe tension and anxiety in the mind and body. But it can also have an impact on a person's exercise capacity.

Researchers studied a small group of sedentary individuals who had not practiced yoga before. After eight weeks of practicing yoga at least twice a week for a total of 180 minutes, participants had greater muscle strength and endurance, flexibility and cardio-respiratory fitness.

Cardiovascular Benefits

Several small studies have found yoga to have a positive effect on cardiovascular risk factors: It helped lower blood pressure in people who have hypertension. It's likely that the yoga restores "baroreceptor sensitivity." This helps the body senses imbalances in blood pressure and maintain balance.

Another study found that practicing yoga improved lipid profiles in healthy patients as well as patients with known coronary artery disease. It also lowered excessive blood sugar levels in people with non-insulin dependent diabetes and reduced their need for medications. Yoga is now being included in many cardiac rehabilitation programs due to its cardiovascular and stress-relieving benefits.

Before you start a new exercise program, be sure to check with your doctor.

Researchers are now also studying how yoga can help people with depression and arthritis, and even improve survival from cancer.

Yoga may help bring calm and mindfulness to your busy life, so book in with us to start experiencing these benefits and the feelings of calmness & happiness for yourself!

Original Post – Harvard Medical School

HOW TO GET CLARITY ON PURPOSE

Do you feel sometimes like there MUST be more than life than this?!? Do you feel like you are lacking clarity on your purpose?

We’re over-complicating the question when we expect a simple answer. We can have a number of things of purpose or meaning in our life, but when we don’t pursue them, we suffer.

According to the New York Times, only 25% of people say that have a clear sense of purpose in their life. In my coaching over the last 3 years, I have found that 100% of my clients have struggled with clarity on purpose. People get tied up and confused by work or financial goals. In the middle of all that busyness, we lose sight of the things that are meaningful for us – the things that are on the other side of the work or financial goals. This requires real honesty – the kind we have when we lie in bed with our eyes closed in the middle of the night. There’s no judgement in this. We have to be 100% honest here. If we want more money or status, why do we want it? What will we do with it? That’s what we need to focus on and pursue, because otherwise, the risk is that the money or status because the goal and we forget the real purpose.

Benefits of Purpose

Many of us tend to push our own needs out of the way by saying things like ‘family comes first’. While family is important, except in extreme circumstances, we can’t just focus on them. To be fulfilled, we have to look after what is important to us as individuals too. There is a spin-off benefit of looking after ourselves – we end up doing a better job of being present, engaged and looking after our families too.

The benefits of Purpose are many and significant. Studies show that people with purpose are happier, more satisfied, less depressed and have stronger personal relationships (Steptoe and Fancourt, 2019), they live longer and wealthier lives (Applied Psychology, 2010) and they sleep better, and have lower disease rates (Time Magazine), they maintain their independence longer when they age (JAMA Psychiatry).

Having a Breakthrough On Purpose

My own breakthrough on purpose, meaning and authenticity came as the result of the incredible pressure created when my wife was on life support following her heart attack – that’s learning things the hard way. I had been too worried about living up to others’ expectations of me to find the courage to be authentic and honest with myself about what was really important AND to pursue it.

I had a realisation: my role was to help my kids now, and then my wife, get through this challenge. This was what I had been put on earth to do. This was the big thing I’d been building up to. A friend had often said, “You only get a few chances in life to do the right thing — don’t miss them when they come along.” This was going to be the biggest challenge I had ever faced. At the same time, it was also the easiest thing to face into. It wasn’t a decision. Things just had to be done. It took over everything else — all thought in my head. From the instant I woke up, until I was finally able to sleep, everything I did was geared around dealing with this.

The realisation that this was my mission, one of the most meaningful things I would do in my life, was quite calming. The panic subsided somewhat. The life and death stuff, as important as it was, moved to the background a bit. My thoughts turned to what I needed to do: help the boys and Tove through this, and then live as fulfilling a life as possible, regardless of what had happened.

The boys shouldn’t need to be defined by this. They should be able to pursue their hopes and dreams unhindered by this. They might even be able to come out of this better for it… hopefully. It was kind of like the old saying — you can’t choose the cards you’re dealt, you can only choose how you play them. I had to be brave enough, strong enough and caring enough for all of us.

What Is It All About?

One of my favourite books as a teenager was the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. One of the most memorable lines from the book was the profound statement that the answer to the question of ‘What is the meaning of life?’ is … ‘42’. The problem was that we didn’t know what the question was. While this is of course, absurd (and also very funny) it is also quite applicable today. The majority of the book was then spent trying to work out what the question was (apparently it would take 10,000 years for the most advanced computer in the universe to work it out).

We want simple answers to complex questions, but it’s not always that easy. We know that a lack of clarity on purpose leads to suffering. Therefore this unrealistic expectation of a simple answer is a setup for us to fail.

That applies to most of us. I’ve been working with a CEO client recently who was struggling with this – personally and for his business. He was certainly suffering. It was impacting his sleep, family, investors, board, team and results. Decisions were agony without this clarity. It got so bad that he was thinking of quitting. But he didn’t know what he would do next either, so he was really caught in a bind.

I took him through some structured exercises to help him both feel and see what was meaningful and why. There were many things that provided meaning, he’d just lost sight of them in all the business and stress. It took less than us less 4 weeks for him to get clarity on what was important.

Clarity On Purpose

When he had clarity on this, he transformed. He was sleeping better, exercising, and having fun. Things improved at home, as he was present with his family. He was making decisions, and the board and team both responded. Results improved and things were looking up.

The idea that there is one single purpose sounds great until we really dig into it. For most of us, there are a number of things that are meaningful, and they ebb and flow with our seasons of focus. That’s normal for most of us and relieves the pressure of choosing 1 big thing. Maybe we can have our cake and eat it?

We all want to make a difference. This isn’t about happiness. This is about fulfilment. If we don’t know where we’re going, we’ll sure never get there.

Whatever you do, do it with heart!

Original Post – Craig Hopper

NEW STUDY EXPLORES HOW YOGA REDUCES STRESS

The mechanisms underlying yoga’s stress-reduction benefits are highlighted.

·      Research has found that yoga reduces stress perception and stress reactivity.

·      A new study suggests yoga reduces stress by changing one’s psychosocial resources, such as by increasing interoceptive exposure.

·      Those receiving conventional treatments for stress, anxiety, or depression may also benefit from doing yoga. stress-reduction benefits are highlighted.

Yoga is a popular form of exercise and stress management. It is assumed to have not only physical benefits (e.g., increased relaxation, enhanced flexibility, better circulation) but also mental health benefits. Recently, the mental health benefits of yoga (e.g., increased positive emotions; decreased depression, anxiety, and stress) have received more research attention; however, many questions remain about the mechanisms involved in how yoga provides these benefits—for instance, it is not clear how yoga reduces stress. 😌

In an article published in the February issue of Stress & Health, Park and colleagues examine potential mechanisms involved in how yoga reduces stress. Specifically, the authors test whether yoga’s beneficial effects on stress are due to any of the following five psychosocial mechanisms: Increases in self-compassion, mindfulness, spiritual well-being, interoceptive awareness, and self-control.

Sample And Method

The study involved a yoga intervention. The sample had the following characteristics: 42 individuals; 62% female; average age 41 years, 64% White (12% Asian, 10% Hispanic); average body mass index (BMI) 25; one third with bachelor’s degrees and one half with graduate degrees. Participants were assessed at time T1 (the beginning), T2 (8 weeks later), and T3 (12 weeks later, when the intervention ended). The intervention, Kripalu yoga classes, included two segments and lasted 12 weeks in total. The first segment was a manualized introduction to mindful yoga. It was eight weeks long and consisted of two-hour sessions of yoga philosophy and practice (e.g., breathing exercises, relaxation practices, meditation). The second part consisted of four 90-minute weekly sessions.

A variety of scales were administered. These scales measured the following variables:

·      Perceived stress (perceptions of life as unpredictable, uncontrollable, and overwhelming)

·      Stress reactivity (e.g., feeling agitated, having trouble relaxing)

·      Mindfulness (e.g., observing, describing, non-judging, non-reacting, acting with awareness)

·      Interoceptive awareness (accurate awareness of the body’s internal states and sensations)

·      Spiritual well-being (e.g., faith, sense of meaning and purpose)

·      Self-compassion (e.g., self-kindness)

·      Self-control (e.g., self-discipline, resisting temptations)

The results showed that perceived stress and stress reactivity were correlated with each other and with lower mindfulness, self-compassion, and self-control. As the intervention progressed, participants reported experiencing less perceived stress (e.g., saw life as more controllable) and less stress reactivity (e.g., found it easier to relax). The former, however, did not reach statistical significance. Nevertheless, the authors found “stronger associations of within-person changes in psychosocial resources with perceived stress than with stress reactivity, suggesting that cognitive/emotional aspects of stress may be most directly linked to the proposed ‘active ingredients’ of a yoga intervention.”

Over the course of the program, participants reported significant increases in their psychosocial resources—particularly increased mindfulness, spiritual well-being, interoceptive awareness, and self-control. Some of these improvements reached statistical significance only by the end of the intervention, suggesting that the length of yoga practice is important. So, yoga’s most immediate and largest benefit appears to be increased awareness and attention to bodily sensations and internal states. Changes in most of the mechanisms, except self-control, corresponded closely with changes in stress, particularly perceived stress. Changes in self-compassion, in contrast, were more closely associated with changes in stress reactivity.

Mindfulness and spiritual well-being, the authors suggest, might be the “active ingredients” in yoga and meditation programs that succeed in changing perceived stress.

In summary, the present study found a link between the practice of Kripalu yoga and reduced stress reactivity and reduced perceived stress.

In addition, the data showed that mechanisms for the stress-relieving benefits of yoga appear to involve changes in psychosocial resources (e.g., increased interoceptive exposure, increased mindfulness).

 The exact mechanisms involved might depend partly on the type of yoga practiced. For instance, Kripalu yoga stresses self-compassion, non-judgmental acceptance, and management of the effects of stress on the body (using specific yoga poses). So Kripalu yoga puts greater emphasis on techniques useful for reducing stress reactivity, as opposed to stress perception.

In comparison, a yoga or meditation program that promotes directing one’s “attention away from stressful experience,” or reappraising “perceptions of events as less stressful” would likely result in a greater reduction in stress perception than reactivity.

So, if you are receiving conventional treatments for stress, anxiety, or depression, you might also benefit from doing yoga! 🙌

Original Post by Psychology Today 🧘‍♀️