Destroying Stress Using Tarot ; Part-(I)

Stress is the mankind’s known biggest killer in terms of happiness, money and health. And since we all seek happiness and peace, first Let us understand what stress is and how can we deal with it.

What is stress?

The word "stress" can be defined as the mental condition in which we feel that everything seems to have become too much - we are overloaded and wonder whether we really can cope with the pressures placed upon us.

Anything that poses a challenge or a threat to our well-being is a stress.

 Some stresses get you going and they are good for you - without any stress at all many say our lives would be boring and would probably feel pointless. However, when the stresses undermine both our mental and physical health they are bad.

What causes stress?

Many different things can cause stress -- from physical (such as fear of something dangerous) to emotional (such as worry over your family or job.) Identifying what may be causing you stress is often the first step in learning how to better deal with your stress. Some of the most common sources of stress are:

   Survival Stress - You may have heard the phrase "fight or flight" before. This is a common response to danger in all people and animals. When you are afraid that someone or something may physically hurt you, your body naturally responds with a burst of energy so that you will be better able to survive the dangerous situation (fight) or escape it altogether (flight). This is survival stress.

Internal Stress - Have you ever caught yourself worrying about things you can do nothing about or worrying for no reason at all? This is internal stress and it is one of the most important kinds of stress to understand and manage. Internal stress is when people make themselves stressed. This often happens when we worry about things we can't control or put ourselves in situations we know will cause us stress. Some people become addicted to the kind of hurried, tense, lifestyle that results from being under stress. They even look for stressful situations and feel stress about things that aren't stressful.

  Environmental Stress - This is a response to things around you that cause stress, such as noise, crowding, and pressure from work or family. Identifying these environmental stresses and learning to avoid them or deal with them will help lower your stress level.

Fatigue and Overwork - This kind of stress builds up over a long time and can take a hard toll on your body. It can be caused by working too much or too hard at your job(s), school, or home. It can also be caused by not knowing how to manage your time well or how to take time out for rest and relaxation. This can be one of the hardest kinds of stress to avoid because many people feel this is out of their control. Later in this course we will show you that you DO have options and offer some useful tips for dealing with fatigue.

How Does Stress Affect Us?

Stress can affect both our body and mind. People under large amounts of stress can become tired, sick, and unable to concentrate or think clearly. Sometimes, they even suffer mental breakdowns.

If stress is so bad for us, Can there be anything as "Good Stress?

Difference between good stress & bad stress:-

If you are suffering from extreme stress or long-term stress, your body will eventually wear itself down. But sometimes, small amounts of stress can actually be good.

Recognizing when you are stressed and managing your stress can greatly improve your life. Some short-term stress -- for example what you feel before an important job presentation, test, interview, or sporting event -- may give you the extra energy you need to perform at your best. But long-term stress -- for example constant worry over your job, school, or family -- may actually drain your energy and your ability to perform well.

Understanding your stress level is important. If nothing in your life causes you any stress or excitement, you may become bored or may not be living up to your potential. If everything in your life, or large portions of your life, cause you stress, you may experience health or mental problems that will make your behavior worse.

Here are few Simple yet very effective techniques for dealing with the stress, which you can easily do any time.

1) Be quiet:-The greatest power is the power of silence and the essential self is silent. A quiet mind permits you to listen to your heart and allow your creativity to blossom. When the mind is crowded by negative thoughts there is lot of noise and there is therefore no space to think of solutions. We only keep thinking about the problem constantly. If only we could sit down, wherever we are, close our eyes, and through some miracle let go of all thoughts, distractions, and problems. If only we could let go.

2) Meditation:-There is therefore a lot that meditation can help us to achieve in dealing with stress, although it is not the only tool we can use.

In meditation we cultivate the faculty of mindfulness, or awareness. Mindfulness helps us to become more deeply aware of the patterns that our mind and emotions give rise to including the patterns of responses that we experience as stress. We can become more aware once we are aware of these internal activities; we clearly are in a better position to do something about them. Meditation can also help us become more aware of how to make choices that lead to outcomes that are more supportive of well being and happiness.

3) Find a friend: Relationships in your life can restore meaning, hope, and relaxation. Don’t let your friends be sucked into the cycle of you burning out; let them be the respite from that stress. Share your feelings with those you love, and let them help you beat the burnout.

4) Visualization:- Here are the steps .

  Make sure you are in the quiet space. Turn off your phone .Close the door of your room. Just be sure   that you won’t be disturbed for next 15 minutes.

 Switch on to any light music. Now sit on a chair and put your feet in tub placed near your feet filled with Lukewarm water.
 Be relaxed and close your eyes.

 Breath in and Breath out till the time you feel bit calm and relaxed.

Listen to inner self: - Now try to listen to your inner self what it says; your inner tutor is always available to you. As humans we have one thing in common and that is we are all unique! At the core of your heart is the conscience which always signals when things go wrong. Take time to listen in to those signals especially when your conscience starts to bother you.

 5) Acceptance: - Last but not the least is Acceptance. When we resist something stress increases and our struggle is prolonged. When we   accept then there is the capacity to think about the solution.

And,  tomorrow we will discuss how we can use Tarot as a great and effective stress buster. 

Regards

Amolika Shastri

Tarot Card Reader/Trainer and Zero Demolition Vastu Consultant.