Stressaholic E-Book

Heidi Hanna

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 245

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2013

Beschreibung

A guidebook for the journey from exhaustion to enlightenment Chronic multitasking and ever-increasing demands on our time and energy have caused a neurochemically-based dependence on sources of stress and stimulation to provide fuel for our chaotic lifestyles. While this may boost performance in the short-term, studies have consistently shown that when stress hormones are elevated over time they create the worst form of internal wear and tear; decreasing productivity, wasting time, and even killing brain cells. As a result, modern society is tired and wired, suffering from physical exhaustion while mentally amped up, and unable to get adequate rest. Stress in and of itself is not bad, and is actually utilized for growth when balanced with adequate recovery. The solution to stress addiction is to build in and prioritize optimal rest and relaxation on a holistic level--body, mind, and spirit--in order to consistently recharge and create a more resilient operating system. Stressaholic shows you how to win the war on stress without limiting progress by creating an optimal performance pulse of stress and recovery for life. * Explains the impact of chronic stress on the human operating system; body, mind, and spirit * Shows how a simple shift in mindset can dramatically alter physiological responses to stress * Reveals simple techniques for altering daily stress patterns to improve natural rhythms, creating a personalized performance pulse With easy to implement tips and real-world examples of people and organizations that have turned stress into sustainable drive, Stressaholic will guide you on your journey from exhaustion to enlightenment!

Leseprobe

Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Foreword

Preface: Monkey Business

Introduction: The Crash

Part I: Understanding Stress Addiction

Chapter 1: Are You a Stress Addict?

Understanding Stress

The Stress Response

Overload, Overwhelm, Over it All

What is Stress Addiction?

Nature versus Nurture

From One Addict to Another

Chapter 2: Why Taking it Easy is Hard

Your CFO Brain versus Your CEO Heart

Running on Empty

Brain Drain: Too Much, Not Enough

Our Serious Stress Problem

Scary Stress Stats

Chapter 3: How to Use Stress for Success

Manage Energy by Minding the Gaps

Simple Stress Rules

Overcoming Obstacles

Change Your Story about Self-Care

Face the Truth

Part II: Recharge Your Energy

Chapter 4: Step 1: Rest

Quiet the Mind: Just Breathe

Simple Meditation Practices

Calm the Body: Eliminate Irritants

Social Rest

Putting it into Practice: Stepping Stones

Chapter 5: Step 2: Repair

Nourish the Mind: Practice Gratitude

Show Self-Compassion

Nourish the Body: Eat Energy-Enhancing Foods

The Experience of Eating

Incorporate Daily Moderate Exercise

Have More Fun

Stepping Stone 2: Gratitude

Chapter 6: Step 3: Rebuild

Strengthen the Mind: Cognitive Training

Creating Coherence

Strengthen the Body: Interval Training

Sample Interval Training Workout

Stepping Stone 3: Let in, Let Go, and Find Your Ideal Flow

Part III: Reprogram Your Operating System

Chapter 7: Step 4: Rethink

The Power of Positivity

Mindset Matters

Rewire Your Patterns of Thought

What's Love Got to Do with It?

Stepping Stone 4: Purpose, Perspective, and Positivity

Chapter 8: Step 5: Redesign

Personal BEATs

Organizational BEATs

Stepping Stone 5: Creating Your Optimal Performance Pulse

Final Thoughts

Notes

Resources

Index

Cover image: iStockphoto.com/TommL

Cover design: Paul McCarthy

Copyright © 2014 by Heidi Hanna. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

Published simultaneously in Canada.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Hanna, Heidi, 1974-

Stressaholic: 5 steps to transform your relationship with stress/Heidi Hanna.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-1-118-76602-6 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-84138-9 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-84135-8 (ebk)

1. Stress (Psychology) 2. Job stress. 3. Stress management. I. Title.

BF575.S75H375 2014

155.9'042—dc23

2013035596

With deep gratitude to my family, friends, and clients who continue to inspire and encourage me on this journey.

May we all commit to taking better care of ourselves each day so we can continue to give our best to one another.

Foreword

Stressaholic is the human owner's manual we have all been waiting for. As she did in her last book, The SHARP Solution: A Brain-Based Approach for Optimal Performance, Dr. Heidi Hanna has made it easy for us to understand and implement simple changes to our daily routine that will result in profound changes to our lives. We can all be so much healthier and happier if we take her advice.

There's no denying it: We are all stressed. We naturally crave novel information—but when is enough, enough? Most of us are inundated with more information in one day than someone would have been exposed to throughout their lifetime just a few centuries ago. We must work to evolve into being able to handle all the pressing needs that we face in modern times.

As a result, we tend to easily fall into lifestyle routines in which we experience the same symptoms as in any other addiction. We can avoid drugs, but overindulgence in food is an addiction that requires daily management. Likewise, stress is unavoidable in modern life. We don't all suffer from it; some of us handle it better than others, and some thrive on it. But as Dr. Hanna points out, unless we balance it with rest and repair breaks, we eventually succumb to symptoms and diseases caused by running on the energy we derive from our addiction to stress.

To recharge your phone, you need to plug it in. But to recharge your brain, you need to unplug it. Although this is not the first book to explain how to do so, it may provide the easiest path yet to a more rewarding and energetic life.

You might feel that Dr. Hanna is talking directly to you when reading Stressaholic. She identifies the reasons we are as stressed and exhausted as we are. Yet she does not let those reasons become excuses for not taking the time to balance our brain with rest periods.

Dr. Hanna explains how all our biological processes, both body and mind, undergo natural oscillation. She discusses how some of us are stepping on our body's gas and brake pedals at the same time and what we can do about that. She warns us that we have to expend energy to create energy.

This book can save your life. It provides gentle reminders to make the right choices at mealtime; to start today, not tomorrow; and to exercise a little throughout the day. It explains why you are living off the wrong stimulants, both external and internal, and how you can recharge your energy in a positive and productive way.

Dr. Hanna does not let you get away with procrastination. She is compelling and knowledgeable about stress. Throughout the book, she offers pearls of wisdom culled from scientific studies and reliable facts derived from many sources. Her wisdom and advice are easy to understand and incorporate. Undertaking new life rituals can seem daunting, but Dr. Hanna makes them seem easy—because she explains why you need to change these things before she guides you on how to do just that. Her own fears and symptoms have taken her on a quest to learn more. How lucky for us she found the answers and is now, through Stressaholic, sharing them enthusiastically yet firmly with us so that we too can make the adjustments to create the life we desire and deserve.

All of us can benefit from this book. In addition to those who are addicted to the stress that is a regular part of work or home life, the five steps detailed herein can be a lifesaver for military service members and veterans—and should be required reading for all who wear this nation's uniforms. Our prolonged wars and the economic uncertainty that affects us all have made posttraumatic stress ubiquitous in America these days. You cannot be too stressed to benefit from this book. In fact, the more stressed you are, the more you need to make Stressaholic your personal owner's manual.

Take a deep breath now, turn the page, and begin your step-by-step guided journey to a new, more relaxed, and resilient you.

—Dr. Daniel L. Kirsch

President, The American Institute of Stress

Preface

Monkey Business

It has been said that you don't need much to catch a monkey—simply a container, tied down to something secure, with a hole cut out just large enough for the monkey to slip its hand inside. Place a banana inside the container and wait patiently. When the monkey reaches in to grab the banana, he quickly realizes that he is stuck, because his banana-grasping fist no longer fits through the original hole. All he needs to do to free himself of the trap is let go of the banana. But monkeys cling to the prize and try to force their way out of the trap. They tire themselves out, making them even easier to catch.

Silly monkey, right? After all, the monkey didn't need to be stuck in that trap. But he didn't know better. We humans would never do something like that.

Or would we?

How many times do we cling to the notion that life should be enjoyed as we destroy our health with high-calorie processed food and a sedentary lifestyle? How much can we enjoy life when we are sick—or worse, dead?

How many times must we catch ourselves just before getting into a serious accident as we multitask while driving or even walking because we crave being constantly connected to what else might be going on in the world?

How many stress symptoms, illnesses, or injuries do we need to suffer through before we recognize that our obsession with perfectionism enslaves us to crave more—despite wearing ourselves out to the point of exhaustion?

Learning to let go and creating healthy balance are constant challenges that everyone faces. The good news is that it isn't impossible to find freedom from the traps of life's tests. We simply need to retrain our bodies and brains to be more aware of the severity of unmanaged stress. We do this by learning how to become more flexible with what life throws at us—specifically, by becoming more resilient to the ups and downs and establishing a work-life rhythm that enables us to perform at our best without compromising our health and happiness.

It's a simple process, but that doesn't mean it will be easy. Take a deep breath, and know that if you follow the steps outlined in this book, you will be able to transform your relationship with stress. You'll let go of the traps that seduced you in the past and finally be free to find some branches to swing on.

My Name is Heidi, and I am a Stressaholic

I hate to admit it, but I am not naturally a happy person. I'm not an Energizer bunny, and I am certainly not calm amid chaos. I have struggled with anxiety and depression since childhood, and I am hypersensitive to stress and any stimulation. I hate bright lights, loud noises, and loud people. Crowded rooms make me uncomfortable, and I'm claustrophobic. I have a terrible fear of flying and public speaking; yet I make my living traveling as a professional speaker. I'm not a people person and consider myself to be a good wallflower at social events. I am a multitasker and a daydreamer, and like most other people I've met along my travels, I have self-diagnosed attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

I am a work in progress. Although I've struggled to deal with my stress addiction at times, I have trained my brain to focus on the positive, creating a more optimistic lens through which to look at life. As a result, I have built a more resilient operating system—body, mind, and spirit—to help me experience and even welcome stress into my life without letting it break me down or burn me out. In the following pages, I share with you what I have learned through my experience as a stress addict, as well as from thousands of my clients who share my affliction. If you think you might be a stress addict, know that you are not alone. Also know that you can find peace from the constant battles to be everywhere at all times and to be everything to everyone. You can finally allow yourself the rest you need to create a healthy pulse for your life.

Introduction

The Crash

Another exhausting day, another sleepless night. As your head crashes onto the pillow (or couch cushion), you can't possibly fathom how someone could be so physically tired and mentally wired at the same time. You begin a conversation with yourself—the same one that took place the night before, and the night before that one, promising that tomorrow will be different. That you will finally get a decent night's sleep, wake up rested, and make better choices for yourself. You'll go to the gym. Start eating better. Take more breaks. Pick up that meditation practice you've been meaning to start. Go to yoga. Drink more water. Stop the coffee habit—well, maybe reduce it a bit.