Nowadays adults are under much more stress than their ancestors.  The causes of stress can be both external and internal, and there is no doubt that stress has a damaging effect on our health.  As a matter of fact, research shows that stress can accelerate the ageing process.

One of the factors that place enormous pressure upon people today is the need to combine family and work.  As over 70 percent of school children have both working parents, parents have to strive to excel in their careers while at the same time ensuring their children the attention and care they need.  Modern life often has parents literally running from one event to another, as they try to juggle family obligations and work.  Soccer practices, business trips, after school activities and company dinners, all mingle to add an extra layer of stress to our lives.  The end result is that there are fewer and fewer things that a person does for his or her own spiritual, mental and physical well being – to cut it short, people often neglect themselves because of the rhythm of their lives and thus they age faster.

Another detrimental factor to people’s lives and health and definitely a major stressor is the emphasis that society and the media place on people’s appearance, and especially that of women.  Although there have been acknowledgments that this factor also contributes to stress, women still have unrealistic expectations of how they should look and how healthy they should be.  The pressure of advertisers is also often irresistible, because of the glamour images they use to promote their products.  Consequently, women often spend increasing amounts of energy, time and money on weight loss treatments and exercise routines that manage to alter their physique only little and thus contribute to stressing them out even more.
 
Basically, the key to healthy ageing and overall well-being is stress relief.  Relieving stress is a choice which all people should make, and one that will make them happier with themselves.  Here are a few suggestions which will move any person towards having more energy and feeling better about oneself, as well as a sense of satisfaction:

1. Establish your priorities – Make a list of the things which are significant for you, and then try to analyze how you spend your time.  If these two aspects do not seem to relate, try to make some changes.

2. Care about yourself – You must bear in mind that in order to experience joyful ageing you must care not only about your physical self, but also about your mind and soul. 

3. Say “No” – Learn to set some boundaries in your relationships with the others and you will soon feel better.

Bear in mind that relieving stress is an active choice – one that will lead you to improved health and healthy ageing.