文/加雷思·勞埃德 譯/許效禮 By Gareth Lloyd

6 Things Anyone Can Do to Greatly Lower Their Stress Levels 快速減緩壓力的六種方法

文/加雷思·勞埃德 譯/許效禮 By Gareth Lloyd

那感覺是熟悉的，很難受：

胸部發(fā)緊，汗珠滲出皮膚，大腦嗡嗡響得厲害，覺得就像有人把捅了的蜂窩塞進了腦袋。這是每個人幾乎每天都要被迫與之抗?fàn)?、又最難以抗拒的情緒之一。驚懼、焦慮、無助，都被瘋狂塞進了這個煩人的小包裹：壓力感。

[2]面對這種讓人心力交瘁的情緒，無人可以幸免或安然無恙。甚至你眼中那些無憂無慮的人也概莫能外，別看他們悠閑地走在街上，嘴里吹著《樂觀生活》的口哨。偶感頭痛欲裂不止你一人，也許這不能讓你寬心，不過每個人都嘗過壓力發(fā)作的滋味卻是不爭的事實。無論從哪方面看，壓力都是人體狀態(tài)之一。如果說人在某件事上可以有所作為的話，那就是為身體會出現(xiàn)的問題尋找應(yīng)對之策，從而讓自己活得輕松。

The feeling is one of sickening familiarity. A tightening in your chest. Beads of sweat spilling off your skin. An aggressive buzzing in your brain that feels like someone has stuffed a disturbed hornets’ nest inside your head. It’s one of the most overwhelming emotions that every single human is forced to contend with almost on a daily basis. Panic, anxiety, and helplessness all violently crammed into one unpleasant little parcel: the sensation of stress.

[2] No one is exempt or safe from this exhausting emotion. Not even that happygo-lucky1happy-go-lucky（雖處困境但）樂天知命，無憂無慮。chap you see strolling down the street whistling “Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life”2電影《萬世魔星》（Life of Brian，又譯《布萊恩的一生》）片尾曲，演唱者為英國的六人喜劇團“巨蟒”（Monty Python）。. Even he will succumb to the overpowering thud of stress from time to time. Whilst it may be of no solace to hear that you’re not the only one who occasionally feels like their head may explode, the fact that everyone has stressful episodes3episode（病痛）發(fā)作。remains a valid point. Stress,whichever way you look at it, is part of the human condition. If there’s one thing humans are good at, it’s finding ways to deal with the issues the body can create, and make life easier for ourselves as a result.

[3] Stress is so common that many people choose to ignore it, knowing it will ease up by the time they hit the hay.Without apposite management, stress can manifest itself into something much more serious. Listed here are 6 proven ways to cope with stress, allowing you to continue living your life in a healthy, happy manner.

[3]許多人對壓力司空見慣，以至于選擇不予理睬，覺得睡著了自然就輕松了。如果處置不當(dāng)，壓力導(dǎo)致的后果會嚴(yán)重得多。下面列舉了六種已經(jīng)得到驗證的應(yīng)對壓力的方法，可以讓你健康愉快地生活下去。

1. 呼吸

[4] 說到由怒火中燒轉(zhuǎn)為冷靜如常，深呼吸這種減壓方法的重要性幾乎盡人皆知，其效果依然不亞于任何方法。壓力大時深深吸一口氣能讓自己平靜下來，這絕不是奶奶迷信過的無稽之談——它的裨益醫(yī)學(xué)上已經(jīng)證明。

[5] 不管眼下發(fā)生什么事，緩緩深吸一口氣都能轉(zhuǎn)移注意力，有效緩解壓力導(dǎo)致的情緒亢奮。 此外，皮質(zhì)醇是人體為應(yīng)對壓力釋放的一種荷爾蒙，其水平在深吸新鮮空氣后會顯著降低，使身心恢復(fù)正常功能。聽來可能奇怪，但是呼吸確實有助于增強人應(yīng)對壓力對自身生活影響的耐受力。學(xué)習(xí)瑜伽課程，多進行呼吸練習(xí)、冥想，就能把自己的身體訓(xùn)練成一臺大的放松機器——抵消“壓力先生”造訪的可怕影響。

1. Breathe

[4] The stress-relief technique that pretty much4pretty much幾乎，差不多。everyone’s heard of, the act of breathing nonetheless5nonetheless不過，依然。remains an important point as any when it comes to cooling down the angry blood that’s raging around your body. Taking a long, deep breath to calm yourself in stressful situations isn’t just one of those old wives’ tales6old wives’ tale 迷信， 陳腐的觀念。that your grandmother used to swear by7swear by 極其信賴?！猧t’s medically proven to be beneficial.

[5] Slow, deep breathing distracts the mind from whatever else might be going on, and actively lowers the bubbling blood that’s brought on by stress.What’s more, cortisol—a hormone released in the body in response to stress—is significantly lowered after taking long inhalations of fresh air, allowing your brain and body to return to their normal functions. It may sound strange, but practicing breathing can help you to build up a tolerance towards the impact that stress has on your life.By partaking in yoga sessions, engaging in frequent breathing exercises, and meditating, you can train your body to become one big relaxation machine—counteracting the horrid effects when Mr Stress comes a-calling8come a-calling拜訪。.

2. Write

[6] Stress can build up in anyone who is left to their own thoughts for too long. Without a frequent source of release, the mind can become clouded with concern, panic, and extreme frustration. Humans weren’t meant to be left to their own imaginations.

[7] Instead of allowing a bewildering jumble of thoughts and ideas to bump around inside your head, let them tumble out onto your computer keyboard or notepad instead. Type away at your desk and channel your emotions into your harddrive. Scribble your feelings onto a piece of paper. They don’t even have to make sense. Just punch away at your computer on a day-to-day basis for five or ten minutes, and you might be surprised at how light, airy and carefree you feel afterwards.

2. 寫作

[6] 任何人，長時間聽任內(nèi)心雜念擺布，壓力便會在體內(nèi)積聚起來。如果經(jīng)常不得釋放，心靈便會為憂慮、驚恐和極度的挫敗感所籠罩。人不應(yīng)該被自己的雜念控制。

[7] 與其任由一堆亂七八糟、莫名其妙的念頭在自己腦海中七上八下，不如將其傾注到電腦鍵盤或筆記本上。伏案碼字吧，將情感傳輸?shù)接脖P上，將自己的感覺草草寫在一頁紙上。寫的內(nèi)容甚至不必有什么意義。每天在電腦前敲擊五到十分鐘，或許你會驚異于自己此后的感覺竟如此輕松愉快、無憂無慮。

3. Walk

[8] One of the most effective techniques for dealing with stress often raises a few eyebrows, but a whole host of scientific evidence exists to suggest that walking is one of the best methods available.

[9] If you’re ever feeling the tension building up in your brain and body, drop everything and simply go for a stroll.Keep yourself at a nice, leisurely pace, and breathe normally. Walking provides your body with an ideal outlet for the build-up of energy that stress can create, and acts as a sensory distraction for the brain as your mind is forced to take in a plethora of sights, smells, sounds and signals.

[10] After you try it once, and undoubtedly recognize its benefits, be sure to make exercise a regular thing. Providing the body with a healthy, frequent method of releasing accumulated energy is a great way to help fend off the effects that stress can impose, and ultimately keeps you fit and healthy as a result.

3. 散步

[8] 一種降低壓力的方法最為奏效，并常讓人不以為然，但大量科學(xué)研究表明，散步是最好的降壓方式之一。

[9] 如果你感到身心的壓力在積聚，就放下一切，干脆散步去。讓自己保持優(yōu)雅、閑適的步伐，呼吸要自然。散步為身體提供了一個理想通道來消弭壓力造成的負(fù)能集聚。此外，散步時大腦不可避免地要接收大量的景物、氣味、聲音和信號，這起到了轉(zhuǎn)移感官注意力的作用。

[10] 嘗試過一次，對其益處確信無疑之后，便應(yīng)保證定期鍛煉。為身體提供一種有益健康的方式來隨時釋放積聚的壓力，這有助于抵御壓力的影響，最終會讓你保持健康。

4.笑

[11]如果你有壓力，很可能最不情愿做的事就是笑了。但是，如果一天中哪怕能微微強笑一次，你很快就會發(fā)現(xiàn)壓力的影響逐漸消褪了。

[12]笑的時候，身體會釋放出叫作內(nèi)啡肽的快樂荷爾蒙，有效抵抗被壓力攫住時產(chǎn)生的讓人熱血沸騰的化學(xué)物質(zhì)。笑能讓我們從空氣中吸入大量新鮮氧氣，激發(fā)肌肉的活力，為人體提供某種休克治療，緩解壓力帶來的緊張。

4. Laugh

[11] If you’re stressed, the last thing you probably feel like doing is laughing. But if you are able to muster up even the smallest chuckle during your day, you’ll soon begin to find that the effects of stress slowly slip away.

[12] When we laugh, the body releases happy hormones called endorphins,which actively counteract the blood-boiling chemicals that are produced when stress hits home9hit home 擊中要害。. Laughing allows us to take in a momentous supply of fresh oxygen from the air, stimulating the muscles and providing our system with some healthy shock treatment that eases tension brought on by stress.

[13] If you ever begin to experience that oh-so-familiar feeling amplifying inside you, take a break to flick through some online joke sites, watch some funny YouTube clips, or scroll through some old photos of you and your family/friends that always cheer you up. Laughing is something we need to do every day to stay healthy, and is great way to keep the nasty effects of stress at bay.

[13]如果察覺到那種熟悉的感覺在體內(nèi)膨脹，可以休息一下，瀏覽一下講笑話的網(wǎng)站，到Y(jié)ouTube上看幾段滑稽視頻，或者翻弄一下總能讓自己會心一笑的與親友的合影。笑是我們?yōu)楸３纸】得刻於家龅氖?，是遏制壓力的惡劣影響的好方法?/p>

5. Friends

[14] Surrounding yourself with the people you love can ultimately be half the battle to combating stress. Even the most confident people feel most comfortable when in the company of others that they’ve come to know and love,and whilst going out to meet new guys and girls often has great results in the long-term, it can often be a difficult and mildly stressful experience initially.

5. 朋友

[14] 與自己所愛的人在一起，就算與壓力的戰(zhàn)斗成功了一半。甚至最自信的人，有熟識、喜愛的人相伴時，也會感到十分愜意。盡管從長遠(yuǎn)來說，外出結(jié)交新的同性和異性朋友效果往往很好，但是，一開始卻常常有困難和輕微壓力。

[15] 一旦意識到自己開始手托下巴，腦袋發(fā)脹了，就該拿起電話，給喜歡的人打過去，安排點兒什么有趣的事情做。甚至坐在家里和朋友喝喝茶對緩解壓力也很有幫助，因為你在專注于自己喜歡的事情。更重要的是，這給了你一個排解沮喪情緒的完美通道。朋友的作用，不管怎么說，就在于此吧。

[15] If you ever catch yourself with your chin in your hands and a throb in your head, reach for the phone, ring someone you love, and arrange to do something fun. Even sitting at home with a cup of tea and a friend can really help to relieve high levels of stress as it focuses your mind onto something you love. What’s more, it gives you a perfect outlet to vent some frustration.After all, that’s what friends are for.

6. Sleep

[16] More recently in society, the human body has been forced to adapt to being constantly surrounded by moving images.Of course, this wasn’t always the case, and the constant exposure to glowing screens is in fact able to generate stress given10given鑒于，考慮到。how it prevents us from sleeping correctly.

[17] Basically our lives are balanced by circadian rhythms—a set of strict patterns that the body operates by so that we can eat, sleep, rest, play and function without feeling constantly drained. Ultimately, high exposure to glowing screens disrupts our circadian rhythms, meaning that when it’s time to hit the sack, the body doesn’t necessarily feel ready to shut down.

[18] Sleep is absolutely essential for avoiding high stress levels. Everyone needs good amounts of rest, and by remaining glued to a computer screen for the entire day without taking a break,your body will suffer the consequences,and stress will rise as a result. Take frequent breaks away from the screen, get some sleep, and see your stress ease up.

6.睡覺

[16] 近來在生活中，人體不得不經(jīng)常適應(yīng)無處不在的活動影像。當(dāng)然，以前情況并不總是這樣的。實際上這也能夠造成壓力，因為長時間面對發(fā)光屏幕會妨礙我們的正常睡眠。

[17] 基本說來，使我們的生活保持平衡的是晝夜節(jié)律——一套嚴(yán)格的模式，人體借此得以運轉(zhuǎn)。這樣，我們才能夠吃飯、睡覺、休息、玩耍、運作，而不覺得筋疲力盡。說到底，過多面對發(fā)光屏幕會打亂我們的晝夜節(jié)律，就是說，到了該睡的時候身體卻未必樂于安然入睡。

[18]睡眠對于規(guī)避高壓力絕對必要。人人都需要充分的休息。盯著電腦屏幕一整天不休息，身體就會受到影響，結(jié)果就是壓力增大。時常離開屏幕休息一下，睡會兒覺，就能使壓力得到緩解。