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Causes of Stress

Everyone has stress.  Stress is now the body responds to change. Your body reacts to stress by releasing hormones.  These hormones cause your breathing and heart rate to speed up and blood pressure to rise. Stress can be caused by something positive, like a new job.  It can also be caused by something negative, like family problems, losing a job or illness.

Effects of Stress

Over time, stress can raise blood pressure and cause health problems. You should talk with your primary care provider if you struggle with stress.  The keys to managing stress are:

• Recognizing how stress affects you personally
• Developing healthy habits to ease your stress
• Creating a plan to deal with stress

Stress can affect each of us in different ways.  You may not be aware of it, even though your body undergoes stress.  According to the American Heart Association, when your body responds to stress, you may experience physical symptoms such as:

• Trouble sleeping
• General body aches and pains
• Feeling angry, afraid, excited or helpless

How to Lower Stress

• Try some CoQ10 such as Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega + CoQ10 soft gels.
• Take slow, deep breaths and count to 10 before saying or doing anything reactive.
• Take a walk. This gives you a chance to think things through and relax.
• Try meditation, yoga, or tai chi. Prayer helps many people as well.
• Tackle problems one step at a time.
• Relax with a bubble bath or long, hot shower.
• Listen to your favorite music.
• Take time to smell the roses. Pet a dog, hug a loved one or help someone.
• Become more active.  Exercise is one of the best ways to reduce stress.
• Learn to say “No”.
• Get six to eight hours of sleep every night.

You should talk with your primary care provider if you are interested in counseling or talking with a professional to help manage your stress.