Why Be Zen? Stress, Anxiety, And Daily Living

[Lightfiend]

Why Be Zen? Stress, Anxiety, And Daily Living

Excerpt:

Stress and anxiety are necessary components to living. From an evolutionary perspective these psychophysiological mechanisms were designed to motivate behavior that promotes survival and reproduction. Stress and anxiety help promote better living by alarming us that something in our life is insufficient or out of balance – thus encouraging us to focus our attention and make the appropriate adjustments.


But of course in our busy world there are plenty of meaningless things to feel stressed out about. We have more distractions now than our evolutionary ancestors ever had to deal with, and life sometimes feels like it is endlessly pushing and tugging you in one direction after another, whether it involves relationships, work, health, financial difficulties or just general life satisfaction and happiness.


Sometimes even when there is nothing to be stressed about we still respond to our environment in unhealthy ways. We could be sitting on the bus back home from work or driving to the local Best Buy store on Sunday and still feel anxious as if we forgot to do something, or, that we should be doing something more important.


Stress and anxiety should not be taken lightly. Yes each serves a purpose, but all too often we are incapable of taking the time to just sit down and be content with what is. This growing attitude that we must always be “productive”, or we are being “wasteful,” is a false distinction – sometimes taking the time to sit and be utterly content with life is the most productive thing we can do.

 

[JW Frogen]

I am too Zen to comment.

 

[waltky]

Dogs can also reduce the risk of childhood anxiety...

Study: Having a pet dog may reduce risk of childhood anxiety
Nov. 30, 2015 -- Pet dogs are well-known to be beneficial to adult physical and mental health because they encourage people to exercise and increase social interaction. A new study, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shows dogs may also reduce the risk for childhood anxiety.

Previous studies have shown dogs can reduce the risk for allergies and asthma in children, improving children's immune systems by exposing them to allergens early in life. The researchers said the cycle of play, caretaking, social interaction, and companionship has preventive benefits because anxiety and obesity often are rooted in childhood. "There is a very strong bond between children and their pets," Dr. Anne Gadomski, a researcher at Bassett Medical Center, told NBC News. The researchers enrolled 643 children between the ages of 4 and 10 at a not-for-profit pediatric clinic in upstate New York between July 2012 and December 2013, surveying their parents before and after their children's annual check-up.

Using a Web-based screening system called DartScreen, the researchers collected age, sex, height and weight information measured by nurses. Only one child per family could participate, and the researchers excluded ill or developmentally disabled children from the survey. The survey included questions about somatic and mental health, nutrition, physical activity, parental depression, and whether or not the child has difficulties with emotions, attention, behavior or social interaction. At the end of the survey, parents were asked if a pet lived with the family. If the answer was yes, and dog was selected as the pet, more questions were asked about how long the child had been exposed to the dog, physical activity with it, and how much time the child spent with the animal.

Researchers said the connection between lower rates of childhood anxiety and having a pet dog are similar to the positive mental and physical health effects dogs have on adults.​

Based on completed survey information, the researchers determined that 57.5 percent of children had a pet dog, compared to 42.5 percent without one. No significant difference in BMI, screen time or physical activity between children with and without pet dogs. Using the Screen for Child Anxiety and Related Disorders to measure levels of anxiety, researchers found 21 percent of children without pet dogs scored above a 3, meaning further assessment was indicated to diagnose anxiety. Only 12 percent of children with dogs had a score of 3 or higher on the survey. The researchers speculate dogs could reduce childhood anxiety by stimulating conversation with other people, easing separation anxiety because of the animal's companionship, and increased oxytocin levels that reduce cortisol, the physiological responses to stress.

Despite survey data, the study is limited by not showing a causality, researchers wrote in the study. To get a better picture, future research will need to involve families who get a dog and are followed for a long period of time and are compared to a group that does not have a dogs. "Because this was a cross-sectional study of associations, a correlational study, no cause or effect can be inferred," researchers wrote in the study, published in the journal Preventing Chronic Disease. "It may be that less anxious children have pet dogs or pet dogs make children less anxious."

Study: Having a pet dog may reduce risk of childhood anxiety

See also:

Human contact, not online community, best depression remedy
Nov. 27, 2015 - "Supported cCBT does not substantially improve depression outcomes," researchers wrote.

Computer-based treatments for depression have been proffered as an inexpensive and efficient approach to mental health care, but a new study suggests the technology isn't up to snuff. According to research by scientists at the University of York, computer-assisted cognitive behavioral therapy, or cCBT, was no more helpful than visiting with a primary care physician. Researchers followed the treatment and health outcomes of 691 depressed patients visiting 83 different physician practices in England. One-third of the patients received normal treatment from a primary care physician. The other two-thirds visited a physician while also participating in online CBT programming.

After four months of treatment, cCBT users showed no significant improvements as compared with depressed patients who received only offline treatment. "Supported cCBT does not substantially improve depression outcomes compared with usual GP [general practitioner] care alone," researchers wrote in the British Medical Journal. "In this study, neither a commercially available nor free to use computerised CBT intervention was superior to usual GP care." In analyzing the findings, scientists divided participants into groups based on the severity of symptoms, age, sex and education. None of these differences accounted for the lackluster performance of online therapy.

New research suggests online depression therapy is no more effective than regular visits to a primary care physician.​

Researchers acknowledged their study may have failed to identify small improvements offered by online CBT programs, and aren't willing to rule it out as a potentially beneficial method. "For patients benefits include ease of access and lack of stigma; for health systems it enables wider reach at lower cost than face to face psychological interventions," scientists wrote. The study's authors say online therapies could prove more effective for those with mild depression symptoms, especially if programming is coupled with offline support. Part of the problem, researchers say, is the lack of human contact and engagement makes it more likely that patients will stop participating before the therapy has a chance to enact change.

Previous studies suggest online communities can be beneficial to stigmatized or marginalized groups, and even lead to increased offline engagement. But researchers say their latest findings serve as a reminder that the Internet isn't a panacea for mental health problems. "It's an important, cautionary note that we shouldn't get too carried away with the idea that a computer system can replace doctors and therapists," Christopher Dowrick, a professor of primary medical care at the University of Liverpool, wrote in an editorial accompanying the newly published paper. "We do still need the human touch or the human interaction, particularly when people are depressed."

Human contact, not online community, best depression remedy

 

[shadow355]

I go to Wal-Mart and buy Carnation Instant Breakfast . I mix it with milk to drink for breakfast before I go to work.

Regular use - drinking it almost daily , put weight on me. About 10 to 15 extra pounds.

And I had other medical problems that disappeared after I quit drinking it.

So I quit drinking it , about last spring.

Shadow 355