G. Gaynor McTigue - 400 Ways to Stop Stress Now

Published by Jaico Publishing House
A-2 Jash Chambers, 7-A Sir Phirozshah Mehta Road
Fort, Mumbai - 400 001
www.jaicobooks.com

G. Gaynor McTigue

Printed in arrangement with:
Pick Me Up Books,
PO Box 321013, Fairfield,
CT 06432, USA

400 WAYS TO STOP STRESS NOW
ISBN 978-81-8495-188-2

First Jaico Impression: 2010

No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in
any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any
information storage and retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publishers.

Printed by
Pashupati Printers (P) Ltd., Delhi-95

Praise for the breakthrough solutions in
400 Ways to Stop Stress Nowand Forever!

From experts:

"We live our lives oftentimes mired in destructive habitsof insecurityhabits that generate anxiety and stress.G. Gaynor McTigue has managed to compile a profoundand unique array of eye-opening life strategies that offerthe reader simple, effective and healthy alternatives tostress. If stress is part of your life, you cant afford not toread this wonderful book."

Dr. Joe Luciani, author of Self-Coaching: ThePowerful Program to Beat Anxiety and Depression

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"Open this book anywhere and you will enjoy common sensesolutions to life's big and small problems. It is like having awise advisor at your fingertips."

Gloria Arenson, MS, MFT, author of Five SimpleSteps to Emotional Healing

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"If you're looking for a variety of quick and effective ideasfor lowering your stress level, you can hardly do betterthan G. Gaynor McTigue's new book. There is literally a lotof something for everyone!"

Jeff Davidson, author of the 60 Second Organizer

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"Did my family bribe McTigue to write this book? It's thereliable advice from those who know exactly what I need todo to be happy. And they...and McTigue...are absolutelyright. And it's all dished out in digestible bite sized tidbits!"

Carolyn Reuben, author of Cleansing the Body,Mind, and Spirit

From readers around the world:

"Stress tips? Fantastic! More like practical wisdom for living.They have helped to streamline life, refocus on priorities,endorse my humanity, appreciate diversity, accept mylimitations, welcome beauty, question status quo, challengenorms, and regain composure when the frenzy ofbusyness escalates!"

Marisa, London, UK

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"Like a sharp, merciless scalpel, these stress tips cut awaythe fluff, the fads, the senseless distractions in our culturethat tend to rob us of who we are."

Linda Maxwell,.Richmond, KY

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"Commom sense, easily identifiable situations and behavioursthat leave me laughing at myself because they areus! Thank you for your insights and helping me to leavebehind the rat race. I thought I was alone in my dissatisfactionof our way of life until I read your many eloquentwords."

Bernadette.Keane, USA

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"Brilliantly simple, easy to put into practice and particularlyrelevant to our modern lifestyle!"

Jeanette, Queensland,.Australia

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"G. Gaynor McTigue writes in a clear, straightforward, practicalway that will soon help clear the mental and physicalclutter from your life, eradicate the thinking errors and setyou on a course for a happier, healthier existence."

Jeff Petersen,.Cove, Oregon

To Owen and Katherine

Introduction

Several years ago I wrote a book called Lifes LittleFrustration Book (St. Martin's Press). It was a humorbook, a collection of all those irritating and annoyingthings that happen to us. For example: You can't opena drawer because something inside it is sticking up,and you can't push it down until you open the drawer.

And in doing that book, I realized what a complicatedmess our lives have become, how little room weleave for error, how tightly our days are packed, so ifonly one thing doesnt go as plannedeverythingstarts to unravel. So we often find ourselves rushed,frustrated, frazzledstressed out. Living almost ourentire lives in crisis mode. And we weren't made forthat. Sure, we can handle a pressure situation oncein a while. But all the time? Think of the wear andtear on your nerves. All those harmful hormones andfree radicals you're unleashingday after day, yearafter yearweakening your immune system, contributingto illnesses, aging you prematurely. Surely theremust be something out there that can help put a stopto this madness.

And it occurred to me that if all the countlessavailable stress "remedies"books, videos, drugs, audiotapes, aroma therapy, vibrating chairs, relaxationtechniques, programs, devicesare so effective, howcome everyone is still stressed out?

The answer is simple. While these methods mayhelp to ease your stressthat is, treat its symptomsmost of them do little or nothing to eliminate the causes,to reverse the stressful habits, attitudes and mindsetsyou've developed over the course of your life.

And that's the primary mission of this book. Thesolutions contained herein will give you the tools, motivationand attitude changes you need to root outstress at its very sourceon the multiple battlefrontsof your life: work, home, travel, parenting, relationships,food, finances, shopping, entertaining, school,and many other areas. You'll find a specific strategyfor virtually every stressful situation you face.

The tone of the book is frank and directat timeseven scolding. The intention is to mimic your own innervoice, exhorting you to slow it down, do it right,stop making everything more complicated than it is.The mere act of reading the book can be liberating initself. But that will be short-lived unless you commityourself to making each applicable strategy a permanentpart of your life. And that requires frequent rereading,reeducating and reminding yourselfuntilthe long-term benefits of a calmer, happier existencetake hold. The brevity and numbering of the tips makethis easy to do. (So you really have no excuse.)

It's time to stop the insanity and take back controlof your life. Starting today. Starting now. If you're experiencingundue stress at this very moment, you'llwant to use the Fast-Find Stress Relief Guide. It willhelp you zero right in on the particular area of yourlife that's causing the most anxiety and concern.

These strategies are the same ones I teach in thestress workshops I conduct for groups and organizations.In fact, thousands of people worldwide are usingthem successfully every day. I'm confident they'll workfor you, too.

If they do, please recommend this book to otherswho are overly stressed. The fewer people there are toswim upstream against, the easier our own efforts willbe. And perhaps someday, through our example, wecan even turn the tide.

G. Gaynor McTigue

Do one thing at a time.

Do it mindfully. Do it well. Enjoy the satisfaction. Then go on to the next thing. Multitasking might work for computers, but humans have yet to get the hang ofit. A growing body of evidence affirms that trying to accomplishseveral things at once takes up more timeoverall than doing them sequentially. It consumes anexcessive amount of mental energy, too, so you fatiguemore quickly. The lack of focus also leads to carelessmistakes, shoddy work and unreliable performance.Worst of all, having to do things over.