Medical experts say that there is a connection between stress and heart disease—chronic stress can increase your chances of developing a heart disease.
So, what are ways in which you can control your constant stress so that it does not make you develop a heart disease? What are some of the strategies you can use to manage your high stress so that you can cut your risk of getting a heart disease? How can you handle your job stress effectively so that you can avoid developing coronary heart disease?
1. Watch Fish Swimming In An Aquarium
You can deal with marital stress and, thereby, avoid getting a heart disease, by watching fish swim in an aquarium. A study conducted by researchers at the University of Exeter and two other academic institutions in the United Kingdom suggests that viewing fish moving about in an aquarium can help to reduce blood pressure, as well as help the heart rate to drop.
Therefore, settle beside an aquarium when you feel overwhelmed and stressed out. Take in a deep breath, count up to 5 seconds, and release your breath slowly through your mouth.
Then, focus your attention on the fish moving through the water in the aquarium. As you do, take in the serenity of the scene and imagine yourself swimming in cool water on a very hot afternoon. Do this for 30 minutes. As you watch the fish, try to breathe slowly and ensure that you consciously relax all the muscles of your body.
Additionally, keep repeating words that will help you to feel calm, such as “There is peace in my soul” or “There is calmness in my mind” or “Tranquility!” or “This is very relaxing” so that you can help your brain to relax and so that you can calm your heart.
2. Do Gardening
You can handle mental stress and, thereby, avoid developing a heart disease, by growing vegetables, fruits, or flowers often.
A study carried out in the Netherlands suggests that gardening can help a person to fight stress. Therefore, make it a habit to grow tomatoes, garden eggs, onions, beans, okra, potatoes or yams often. As you grow the crops, admire the leaves of the plants, listen to birds singing around you, smell the earth and the leaves and the air, feel the plants and enjoy how they feel to your touch—focus on what you are doing instead of thinking about all the work you have to do and it will help you to feel relaxed.
3. Laugh Often
Do you have a good sense of humor? Do you laugh often? If you don’t, you might consider adding this habit to your life because laughter can help you to deal with stress. Laughing leads to the release of endorphins which will make you feel good, and which will help to reduce tension in your whole body so that you can feel relaxed.
Additionally, according to the American Psychological Association, when one is stressed he or she holds a lot of the stress sin the face. Therefore, laughing and smiling can help to relieve some of the tension.
So, watch funny videos or a comedy movie and laugh actively when something funny happens, read jokes often on funny blogs, read humorous books or humorous comics, or chat with a friend who always makes you laugh.
4. Go Into Nature
Walk slowly through quiet woods and listen to the peace and sense of tranquility there, climb a tree and admire the leaves of nearby trees, sit quietly on the banks of a river and enjoy the serenity of the environment, walk slowly through a field and admire the grass and enjoy the smell of the grass as you stroll, ride a boat slowly across a lake in a serene spot, or sit in a botanical garden and admire the different kinds of flowers there.
The serenity and peace of these kinds of environment will help you to feel at peace with nature and with yourself and that will make you calm down and, as a result, the tension in your body will reduce.
5. Meditate
Meditation is another strategy you can use to deal with stress. But instead of sitting comfortably at one place and closing your eyes, walk slowly through a garden, stroll on the banks of a river or a botanical garden and meditate on the good things that have happened to you in life, as well as the good things you have done for other people, successes you have chalked at work, lessons you have learnt in life, happy moments you have shared with your friends, family members, or spouse, words of peace others have shared with you, peaceful scenes you see every day when you are going to work, happy moments you have shared with your children and so on so that you can bring thoughts of peace into your mind to help you to get rid of thoughts of tension.
6. Socialize
Talking to other people can help you to release some of your mental burdens so that you can feel relaxed. So, engage in interesting conversations with your close friend or spouse when you feel overwhelmed and under pressure. Release what you are going through and listen actively to what your friend or colleague will say to you—focus on the discussion instead of worrying about your problems. Talking to someone may help you to get ideas and unique perspectives on your challenges, which will help you to tackle your problems in a different way so that you can get different results.
7. Thank God For His Blessings
A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in 2003 found that when a person is grateful, it makes him or her more resilient to stress. Thankfulness helps you to fill your mind with positive thoughts which make you more satisfied with life—you will feel more content about your situation and that will help you to feel relaxed.
So, every day, thank God for His mercies and blessings by saying something such as, “LORD, I thank You for giving me the opportunity to get an education. I thank You for my good health. I am grateful for the fact that I have somewhere to lay my head. I thank You, Father, that I can buy clothes to wear and shoes to put on. It’s all because of Your grace. I thank You, LORD, that You watch over me and the family every night. I give thanks to You for You are good and Your steadfast love endures forever. I give thanks to You, God of gods, for You are kind. I give thanks to You, LORD of lords and King of kings for Your kind mercies.”
8. Worship God
Worshipping God produces joy in the heart which helps to cancel out negative thoughts. Additionally, it gives peace of mind and a sense of calmness and tranquility—it helps to relieve tension in the body so that you feel relaxed.
So, every day, worship your Creator, the God of love, by saying something such as, “LORD, I worship You, Great King. You alone do great wonders. Almighty God, You made the heavens by Your Great understanding. Mighty God, You are the great Creator who spread the Earth upon the waters, who made the sun, moon, stars. LORD, You are exalted above everything and everyone in creation. You are great and powerful, yet You regard the poor, the lowly, the despised, and the rejected. I will bow down to You and extol You, my God and King. You are great, LORD, and greatly to be praised. Your greatness is unsearchable and cannot be matched by anyone. You are good to all, Father, the good Father who cares about those who believe in You and those who don’t believe in You. You are the good Father who punishes Your children when they sin because You don’t want them to go to hell. You are just in all Your ways. You fulfill the desire of those who fear You. You are abundant in power, LORD, and Your understanding is beyond measure. I worship You for You deliver me from evil men. You are the miracle –working God who made a way through the red sea for the Israelites to cross. You are the God who led the Israelites by a pillar of fire by day, and by a pillar of cloud by night. You are the God who rained down manna from heaven for the Israelites to eat. You shut the mouths of lions, brought water from a rock, made the sun stand still, and You gave Your only Son to show us that You are the God of love who cares for His creation. Glory be to Your Holy Name, Holy, Righteous, Compassionate, Caring, and Loving God!”
Conclusion
It is a fact that stress and heart disease are related, but you can deal with your chronic stress so that it does not increase your risk of developing a heart disease by watching fish moving about in an aquarium, doing gardening often, laughing often, spending time in nature, meditating , telling others about the struggles you are going through, thanking God for His goodness and kindness, and worshipping God because He created you to worship Him.
You Might Also Like To Read:
Copyright © 2018 All rights reserved Heart Disease Issues
