Managing Holiday Stress?

WebMD has a great article on the holidays and stress, noting that the body responds to stress by pumping out cortisol, a hormone that suppresses the protective enzyme telomerase. The result? Among other things, health problems. Your body simply cannot tolerate stress for a lengthy time, nor can it tolerate well short bursts of relentless stress. Those people in your life who claim that they thrive on it are fooling themselves (and likely no else). More likely, they are running a higher-than-normal risk of heart disease, including heart attacks, skin conditions (especially psoriasis and shingles), digestive flare-ups, immune disorder symptoms, pain management problems, and emotional pain, especially symptoms related to anxiety, depression, and insomnia. So, what to do? Especially at this stressful time of year? Spend more time with your pets! Have you seen the article posted on Creature Comforts Memphis , quoting Dogster  and eBay?Pets make a big difference! WebMD heads in the same direction and offers a list of 27 Ways Pets Can Improve Your Health. Among the benefits they cite are enhanced mood, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, better heart health, decreased depression, increased physical fitness, greater interaction and less isolation, increased immunity and reduced allergies, even lower incidence of osteoporosis. Granted, some of the benefits are derived from doing something with the pet, such as walking the dog, but others are simply the result of time spent focused on your furry friend. No wonder dogs, cats, and horses have become strong instruments in therapy for autism, diabetes, ADHD, seizure, stroke, and chronic pain sufferers. For quality of life, especially at these hectic holiday times, aren’t you thankful for your pet? Now, go spend time with your furry friends!!!