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Just say NO... to stress
When you think about it, the 80’s
are a pretty strange and wonderful
time to be alive. Right now, it’s the
only time to be alive. At any rate,
human-beings are doing some aw
fully darn crazy things, these days.
But you read the newspaper, so you
know that already.
We live in a society in which
stress is becoming more and more a
part of daily living. As a culture we
embrace stress. Stress gives our lives
an illusion of meaning. The note pad
next to the phone by my terminal
has a box you can check if the mes
sage is urgent. I always make a large,
heavy mark in it because it makes
everything we do down here"at the
Daily Nebraskan seem more impor
tant.
Our schools send subtle mes
sages to our children that if there
isn’t any stress, something's wrong.
It’s almost as if we’re teaching them
to stress for success.
But the main thing is, that in the
age of 'just say no’ stress has become
one of the few highs that is accept
able anymore. People voluntarily
place enormous pressures on them
selves by accepting way more com
mitments and responsibilities than
is healthy for them. 1 guess you just
can’t beat that adrenaline rush that
goes along with racing around to
meet deadline after deadline after
deadline.
As far as I can tell, the idea is to
make your life as hectic as possible.
Spread yourself so thin that you
don’t have time to think about how
meaningless your life really is. The
belief is, that if your life isa blur, you
will be less unhappy. Besides, that’s
what everyone expects you to do.
Ihe effects of stress are narcotic.
Breathing becomes shallow and
fast. Ihe pulse quickens. 'Ihe eyes
become vacant and glazed over,
like a doll’s eyes. Concentration
becomes difficult as the mind reels
back and forth from one obsessive
and disturbing thought to another.
Speech may be rapid and lack
meaning relevant to the situation at
hand. Body motions may be erratic
and repetitive.
And it’s addictive like dope. You
don’t usually see all that many
people abusing stress on campus
this early in the semester, but as the
year wears on it will become a real
problem. People will seem agitated,
concerned that something isn’t
complete. It will be hard to get their
attention. Tempers will flare and
people will no longer be polite to
one another waiting in the I ine at the
Burger King in the Nebraska Union
Some people are more prone
than others to abuse stress. People
who tend to abuse stress are driven
by their own demons to over
achievc. They are perfectionists.
They are souls in torment. Certain
professions are attractive to stress
prone people. Journalism is an ex
ample of one such profession.
Stress junkies are easy to spot if
you can recognize some fundamen
tal symptoms. They try to systema
tize their stress in organizer books.
They attend stress management
workshops and listen to special
tapes that help them control stress.
They have telephones in their cars
and beepers in their pockets so they
arc never far away from a ciuick fix.
They know they’re hooxed and
are trying to do something to regu
late their habit. But it still takes itstoll
on their minds and bodies.
It doesn’t have to be this way. It’s
a matter of choice.
In universal terms, we are insig
nificant creatures on a tiny planet in
an average solar system and galaxy.
With the exception of a few prob
lems we have — like violating each
others’ human rights and ruining the
planet for all the other creatures we
share it with — most of the things
we get all worked-up about are re
ally pretty dam trivial.
And we are so lucky to be here
now, together on this marvelous
little world. Tht’s the funny thing
about it. There is so much to see, to
feel, to experience.
There is so much to share.
Life is too short. Stress destroys
the quality of it by causing us to miss
out on the really important things in
life. Things like that weird blue
green bigger-than-color glow emit
ted by the trees and grass on a gray
autumn afternoon. Things like the
smell of coffee brewing in the morn
ing or the taste of a peach after class.
Things like the smile of a child look
ing at you over her mother’s shoul
der as you’re waiting for the bus
home.
Stress also causes us to loose our
dignity as human beings, because it
makes us selfish and closes our
minds.
'T don’t have time for that now,"
slips out of our mouths and rever
berates within our skulls with alarm
ing frequency, when we’re messed
up on stress. When we’re strung-out
on stress, our world becomes nar
row and our lives become empty.
Stress breaks our bodies and
consumes our souls. Stress wastes
life.
But you have a choice. Just say
no.
Students learn to ‘interrupt’stress
Class relieves stress
try micki nailer
Senior Editor
After nearly a month of school, the
reality of education has hit. Two papers
due, a major exam, 12 chapters to be
read, and 40 pages of homework due,
and that’s just for Friday. It’s time to run
the midnight kilowatts, and prepare for
major stress.
But at least one class is aimed at
reducing stress instead of creating more
of it. Stress, Tension and Reduction,
offered through the School of Health,
Physical Education and Recreation, can
teach students skills to reduce stress for
a lifetime.
According to Wes Sime, associate
professor in HPER and director of the
Stress and Physiology 1 .ab, the class is a
mini course offered for five weeks each
semester.
The class has been full or overflow
ing during the 11 years that it has been
offered, Sime said. The class has room
for about 50 students to enroll.
Sime said popular appeal and the
fact that it’s a good class are the reasons
behind the “Stress Reduction" success
story.
The class is half content, and half
experience, Sime said. The students
receive information on the sources,
signs, symptoms and disorders associ
ated with stress. Then, they learn ways
to cope with stress.
Progressive relaxation is a scries of
sessions which help an individual rec
ognize the sensations of unnecessary
muscle tensions. Students learn to
interrupt or let go ol stress, bime said.
1 n autogcnic training, students Iistcn
to a tape which has specific sugges
tions. Ihe individual may feel his body
getting heavier or warmer; things
which help relieve unwanted tension,
he said.
Time management is a method of
organizing one’s lime so stress is
avoided.
Cognitive restructuring is a rational
way to combat stress. Everyday, people
encounter little stress factors, like a red
light at the wrong time, or finding out
that a 10 page paper is due within a few
hours.
"The typical response is to presume
disaster and doom,” Sime said.
The object of cognitive restructuring
is to put the event into perspective with
the rest of reality, Sime said. Is it life
threatening? Will it prevent a college
education? Or is it just embarrassing?
By determining the worst possible
outcome, people can put their stress
response into proper perspective, in
stead of making mountains out of mole
hills, he said.
The finale of the course is learning
how to put all the techniques together
to quiet stress in day-to day situations.
However. Sime said, not all stress is
necessarily bad.
A high degree of stress is exciting,
for instance, while skiing, or doing
risky things.
"It is the spice ol life,” Sime said.
Ihe most important part is to put the
individual in cnarge of the stress, he
added.
when doing challenging things, it is
important to concentrate on several
things in order to function.
"When one is really stressed out, all
of that goes by the wayside," Sime said
f'ach person's stress level is differ
ent, and everyone should be able to
recognize an optimum point of stress
Without stress, life would be boring.
"Boredom can be a fairly stressful
phenomenon as well," Sime said.
Although this semester’s course,
held during the last five weeks, is al
ready full, the course will be offered
again second semester.
I I
John Bruce/Dally Nebraskan