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A G.R.E.A.T. Way to Handle Stress

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A G.R.E.A.T. Way to Handle Stress


Even as more people become vaccinated against the coronavirus, allowing hope to peek out on the horizon for all to feel, worry and stress have not gone away. Anyone might buckle under the added stress and anxiety, but for those with undiagnosed or untreated anxiety issues, the struggle is likely greater. But some hope is peeking out for these people as well; there are solid strategies for handling these challenges and finding help if needed or wanted. The following come courtesy of the National Institute of Mental Health.

What are stress and anxiety?

Krystal Lewis, PhD, a licensed clinical psychologist at the NIMH, held a virtual discussion earlier this year about stress and anxiety. “Stress is the physical or mental response to an external cause such as having a lot of homework to do, having an illness, or experiencing difficulty paying your bills,” while “anxiety is your body’s reaction to the stress.” In short, stress is the cause and anxiety is the symptom.

As one might expect, those who have reported that they have been anxious are increasing in number. A questionnaire based on a standard mental health screening assessment and sent to more than 336,000 people in the early days of the pandemic revealed that compared to 2019, adults were more than 3 times as likely to be positive for either depressive or anxiety disorders, and many screened positive for both.

How can I manage my stress?

Said Dr. Lewis: “The first step to restoring a sense of calm is what I call disrupting anxiety. Once you’re aware of the anxiety, you can do certain things to disrupt the worrying and the anxious feelings that you experience. This means you can challenge anxious or irrational thoughts by reframing your worries.”

How do you reframe those worries? It’s time to be GREAT.

  • Grateful: “Find small things each day to be grateful about.”
  • Relaxation: “Do things that help you to calm down and relax.”
  • Exercise: “We know that activity is important, so try to implement that in your day.”
  • Acknowledge: “Be aware of the many feelings, and accept them as they occur.”
  • Track your thinking: “Ensure that you are engaging in helpful thinking.”

The key is to focus on your own life at the moment, Dr. Lewis said. Don’t compare now to the pre-pandemic past or how you think others are doing. You can’t do much to control the world at large, and you don’t have a full view of what’s going on in any other person’s life.

But you can manage you.

“We need to attend to what we do have control over,” Dr. Lewis said. Build your routine, create schedules when possible, and pay attention to your feelings. People will have some good days, and days they’d like to forget about,  “but that’s okay.”

Knowing when to get help 

There’s definitely value in practicing mindfulness and self-help routines, but they won’t be enough for all people with untreated anxiety. After a certain point, run-of-the-mill anxiety can become an anxiety disorder — a medical condition that a trained professional can treat.

According to Dr. Lewis, the rule of thumb is that anxiety and worry become a clinical problem when someone is anxious and worried on a consistent basis, and when these two disrupt that person’s daily life for a period of six months or more.

Treatment discussion 

Medical professionals use therapy and medicine to treat anxiety.

Using two branches of therapy, cognitive and exposure, therapists can help guide patients through the process of identifying and addressing their anxiety. Cognitive therapy focuses on getting rid of the negative thoughts that lead to anxiety, while exposure therapy is based on overcoming fear. Cognitive therapy often involves learning how and when to best use relaxation and other techniques similar to the ones addressed above. Exposure therapy focuses on directly facing the causes of anxiety, one step at a time, in a safe environment.

When therapy alone doesn’t work, various medicines can be used. Dr. Lewis stressed that medication does not “cure” an anxiety disorder — it instead treats the symptoms, making daily life easier and potentially allowing therapy to become more effective.

Some medicines, like a class called benzodiazepines, are very potent. They are prescribed for short periods of time so the patient doesn’t develop a resistance. Another therapy class, the antidepressants, take more time to work but can be used long-term. Each medicine has benefits and drawbacks, and they should only be used under the supervision of a licensed professional.

The take home

Everyone’s under a lot of stress these days. It’s important to take a step back and re-examine your situation and what you can do about it. For some people, anxiety may be more intense than in others. There’s no shame in needing help from a professional, and if you’re grappling with stress or anxiety that just aren’t going away, be kind to yourself and reach out to a professional.

Sean Marsala is a health writer based in Philadelphia, Pa. Passionate about technology, he can usually be found reading, browsing the internet and exploring virtual worlds.





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Feeling Tired All The Time? Possible Causes And Solutions

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Long days of work, lack of sleep, and stress at the office can be the most common factors that make you feel tired. However, feeling “tired all the time” (TATT) without known reasons can be an indication of an underlying health issue that needs immediate attention.

Finding the exact cause of the lingering tiredness can be the first step toward solving the symptom.

Health conditions that cause fatigue:

1. Anemia – Anemia is one of the most common causes of fatigue. A person who has anemia does not have enough red blood cells in the body, causing symptoms such as tiredness, dizziness, feeling cold and crankiness.

Most often, anemia is caused by iron deficiency. Hence, the condition can be best resolved by including iron-rich foods in the diet and use of iron supplements.

2. Sleep Apnea – It causes the body to stop breathing momentarily during sleep. The condition can affect the quality of sleep and hence make you feel fatigued.

For milder cases of sleep apnea, lifestyle changes such as losing weight or quitting smoking can help solve the sleep disorder. In more severe cases where there is an obstruction in breathing, surgeries and therapies can help.

3. Diabetes – A person who has diabetes has changes in blood sugar level, which can cause fatigue. A patient who is already on diabetic medication can also experience tiredness as a side effect of the medication.

Early identification and taking the correct treatment is the key to managing diabetes. Losing extra weight and having a healthy diet also help in the treatment.

4. Thyroid – Thyroid diseases can be due to an overactive or an underactive thyroid gland. In people who have an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism), the metabolism slows down leading to symptoms such as lethargy and fatigue. In people with an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism), the metabolism speeds up leading to fatigue and difficulty sleeping.

Right diet and lifestyle choices, along with medications, can help in thyroid management.

5. Infections – A person can show symptoms of fatigue when the body is fighting a viral or bacterial infection. Infections ranging from the flu to HIV can cause tiredness.

Along with fatigue, other symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, shortness of breath and appetite loss can also accompany the infection. Treating the symptoms and taking adequate rest helps in faster recovery.

6. Food allergies – Fatigue may be an early warning sign of hidden food allergies and autoimmune disorders such as celiac disease. Identifying the allergen using a food allergy test or through an elimination diet can help in allergy treatment.

7. Heart disease – If you feel exhausted from an activity that used to be easy, then it is good to check your heart health, as fatigue can be an indication of underlying heart disease.

8. Depression/ anxiety – Fatigue can also be an indicator of a mental health disorder such as depression or anxiety. A combination of medication and psychotherapy can help relieve symptoms.

Lifestyle causes

Apart from serious health conditions, certain lifestyle habits such as dehydration, poor diet, stress and insufficient sleep can cause exhaustion. Having a well-balanced diet, regular exercise and routine sleep can help solve fatigue caused by lifestyle habits.

Published by Medicaldaily.com



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How To Overcome Your Sleep Debt And Reclaim Energy

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Picture this: you’re burning the midnight oil, studying or binge-watching your favorite shows, all at the expense of a good night’s sleep. Have you ever stopped to think about the toll it takes on your body and mind? The consequences can be more serious than you might realize.

Not getting enough sleep can translate into a multitude of issues, including weight gain, lack of focus, tiredness, a haze of confusion, and even depression. If you too are encountering similar issues lately then chances are you have a sleep debt.

Wondering what is sleep debt?

People from 13-18 years of age need 8 hours of sleep, whilst adults beyond that age will require at least 7 hours of snooze.

Sleep debt is a collection of the total hours you haven’t slept or traded your sleep for something else. Sleep debt keeps piling up as a person falls short of the total hours of sleep recommended for an adult, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

And when you keep letting go of your sleep for other activities, the body adapts to the new normal and effects start to reflect on the energy levels, which deplete.

“However, like every other debt out there, this too has a repayment option,” Dr. Kunal Kumar, medical director of the Sleep Center at Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia, told Livestrong.

Below are some expert-vetted ways you can pay back the sleep debt. (Courtesy: Livestrong and Sleepfoundation)

Just like financial debt, imagine sleep debt as a debt you owe to your body. It needs to be repaid. The good news is that catching up on sleep is indeed possible.

  • Maintain a set sleep schedule: Overhauling the sleep schedule is a pretty difficult task to achieve, and it’s best to do that gradually. Create a set sleep schedule by making some small changes to your routine. Instead of making abrupt shifts in your bedtime or wake-up time, adjust them gradually by 15 to 30-minute increments.
  • Minimize your gadget usage: Wind down activities and minimize electronic usage before bed to promote better sleep. Relax and prepare for quality sleep by dimming the lights and setting an alarm for 30 minutes to an hour before bed.
  • Reshuffle your sleeping arrangements: Are you finding it hard to get a good night’s sleep due to excessive sweating? Well, here’s a handy solution: consider upgrading to a cooling mattress or opting for cooling sheets. These innovative sleep essentials can help regulate your body temperature, and keep you comfortably cool throughout the night, ensuring a more blissful slumber. Memory foam pillows can work wonders in relieving neck and back discomfort in case you are struggling with backache.
  • Improve the bedroom environment: Create a sleep-friendly bedroom environment by adjusting the temperature for comfort, and blocking out disruptive lights, or noises that might disturb your restful slumber. And if your mattress, pillow, or sheets are worn out or no longer providing the support you need, consider treating yourself to new ones.

Published by Medicaldaily.com



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Omega-3 Fatty Acids Slow The Progression Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: Study

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Omega-3 fatty acids are known for a range of health benefits, from promoting brain and heart health to reducing inflammation and protection against several chronic conditions.

In a new study, researchers found that omega-3 acids, especially the type found in foods like flaxseeds, walnuts, chia seeds, canola oil and soybean oil, can slow down the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

It is a debilitating nervous system disease that gradually worsens over time and can be fatal. The condition results in a loss of muscle control and affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. It is also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease after the baseball player who was diagnosed with it.

The initial symptoms of the disease include muscle weakness, difficulty in walking and hand movements. The symptoms can slowly progress to difficulties with chewing, swallowing, speaking and breathing.

The exact cause of ALS is not known. However, around 10% of people get it from a risk gene passed down from a family member. It is estimated that more than 32,000 people in the U.S. live with the condition.

In the latest study, researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Massachusetts evaluated 449 people living with ALS in a clinical trial. The team assessed the severity of their symptoms, the progression of their disease, along with the levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood, for 18 months.

The study suggested that alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), a type of omega-3 found in plants, is particularly beneficial in slowing the progression of ALS. The participants with the highest levels of ALA had a 50% reduced risk of death during the study period compared to those with the lowest levels of ALA.

Researchers also found a reduction in death risk in participants who had eicosapentaenoic acid, the type of omega-3 fatty acid found in fatty fish and fish oil, and linoleic acid found in vegetable oils, nuts and seeds.

A previous study conducted by the same team suggested that a diet high in ALA and higher blood levels of the nutrient could reduce the risk of developing the condition.

“In this study, we found that among people living with ALS, higher blood levels of ALA were also associated with a slower disease progression and a lower risk of death within the study period. These findings, along with our previous research suggest that this fatty acid may have neuroprotective effects that could benefit people with ALS,” said Kjetil Bjornevik, the lead author of the study.

Published by Medicaldaily.com



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