Search Results for: stress

November 9, 2022 By Arooshi Garg 2 Comments

How To Manage Eye Stress and Strain

Many of my players suffer from eye stress and strain due to excessive small screen time. With most of us using computers and cellphones at work, eye strain has become a major health issue. Research has shown that eye strain and stress issues occur in around 70-80% of people using computers at the workplace. Feeling fatigued, mistakes while working, watery eyes, twitching, and redness in eyes, constant headache, and irritability are some common issues that people face due to eye strain. It’s a growing need to cope with and manage eye stress and strain.

Tips to Manage Eye Stress and Strain

1. Adjust Lighting
Many times we tend to ignore the light arrangement while working for long hours. The bright light from windows or sharp interior lighting can cause major eye stress. One should position the computer screen in a manner that the windows are to the side, instead of in front or behind it. Try to block excess lighting from outside by using curtains. Reduce sharp interior light by reducing the number of light sources or by using warm light tone bulbs/tubes. Halogen lights are better than overhead fluorescent lights.

2. Reduce Glare On The Screen
Excessive glare on the screen which might go unnoticed is another cause of getting headaches while working on screens. There are different gadgets available to help reduce this strain:

Download a Blu-ray filter which is an app which creates a shield on your screen
Use anti-reflective coating/cover on your screen
If outside light cannot be reduced, you can use a computer hood
Use Anti-reflective coating glasses. One can opt for Anti-reflective (AR) coating glasses. These are special glasses made for people with excessive screen time. This special coating helps block harmful blue light, keeping the eyes relaxed.

3. Adjust Your Display Settings
Adjusting the display settings like brightness, text size, contrast, the color temperature of your computer can help reduce eye strain and fatigue. Generally, these adjustments are beneficial:

Brightness: of the screen you are looking at should appear relaxing to the eye. If the background seems to emit light/is too bright or seems too dull or grey, then you need to adjust the brightness. Also, most screens have automatic brightness control these days, wherein the brightness is automatically reduced if the surrounding lighting is dimmed.
Color Temperature: Adjust the screen settings according to your comfort. Reducing color temperature also reduces the amount of blue-light being emitted by a screen.
Text size: This is one considerable factor. Avoid straining eyes by reading text that appears difficult to read. Adjust text size as per your comfort.

4. Take Frequent Breaks
Try to take 5-10 minute breaks every 2 hours to reduce the feeling of fatigue. Take a stroll, look away from the screen and splash your eyes with cold water. During your computer breaks, stand up, move about and stretch your arms, legs, back, neck and shoulders to reduce tension and muscle fatigue. Use cold green tea (used) bags for relieving puffiness around your eyes. (Keep used green tea bags in the refrigerator- and put them over your eyes- covering the under eye area as well) rest for 20 minutes and remove.

5. Blink Often
Blinking keeps your eyes from drying out. Constant gazing at screen reduces blinking by 30-40%. Hence, the eyes feel dry and strained. Every 20 minutes, blink 10 times by closing your eyes as if falling asleep (very slowly). This will keep your eyes from drying out. If eyes feel strained post blinking, rub palms together and apply a warm compress to the twitching eye and gently massage the eyelid with your fingers.

6. Exercise Your Eyes
Eye exercises can greatly help in improving eyesight and is a must for people having long screen hours to avoid developing eye issues.

Try moving your eyeballs up and down without blinking. After about 10 repetitions of this exercise, rub the palms of your hands together and cup your eyes so you can feel the warmth seep through. This is called palming.
You can follow this by moving your eyeballs horizontally, from 9 to 3, and diagonally, from 2 to 7 and 11 to 4. This can help relieve the extra pressure on muscles which develops while looking at computer screens.

I am sure these suggestions will help you avoid and manage eye stress and strain. Having a routine eye exam is a must if you have more than 3-4 hrs of screen time every day.

We hope this article helps you stay healthy at your workplace. Do leave your thoughts in the comments below! For more health and lifestyle tips, check out Healthy Reads or speak to an expert by subscribing for Personalised Health Coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce

September 15, 2022 By Divita Bhatt 3 Comments

7 Effective Ways To Beat Stress

I was quite shocked to find that every 1 out of 5 of my clients was suffering from stress. After digging a little deeper, I found that the root of their problems, the most common factor causing stress was Expectation!

Any form of expectation that isn’t fulfilled turns into a negative thought process that can either cause stress or depression. Be it a job, a boss, colleagues, family or friends, any expectation can sometimes lead to disappointment. It isn’t necessary that we get all the symptoms of depression every time. If something constantly hurts you or stops you from thinking anything else, you are stressed!

If you feel like there is nothing you can do in a stressful situation, here are 7 surefire ways to beat stress!

7 Ways to Beat Stress

Breathe Deep & Let Go: Spiritual Masters often say – Forgive everyone and yourself, accept everyone and yourself, love everyone and yourself. Whenever you go through any bad experience, take a deep breath and tell this to yourself.
Set a Goal: Spend half an hour with yourself every day. Do any of your favorite activity in those 30 minutes. If I ask you what’s your hobby and nothing comes to your mind, you need to spend 60 minutes for yourself.
Bunk: Sounds immature? Once in 6 months, I strongly recommend that you bunk your routine. Go out with your loved ones, do what you love or explore new places. When you return to your routine, you will be recharged.
Make a Memory Box: It can either be your hard disk or a physical box. Store all the memories worth cherishing in the form of papers, photographs, videos or objects. Go through this memory box regularly to cherish positive memories and be happy!
Treat Yourself: You don’t need to prove anything to anyone as long as you are giving your best. When you feel exhausted, take a break. You should be the first one to reward yourself and value your work. It could be in the form of your favorite dish (don’t overdo it), a favorite activity or a pass time.
Say No to Negativity: Never entertain negative thoughts. Whenever you get negative thoughts, divert your mind with positivity. Meditation, singing, dancing, a conversation, or anything else – pick whatever is available and possible.
Smile: You look your best when you smile. Spread the charm everywhere!

Which of these 7 ways to beat stress did you like the most? Do you have queries? Share them all in the comments below!

To read more on how to beat stress, check out Healthy Reads or get more tips directly from your GOQii Coach by subscribing for personalized coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce

September 10, 2022 By GOQii Leave a Comment

Devyani Chaudhari Overcomes Acidity & Stress Issues With Lifestyle Changes

Does work rule over your “me time”? Are deadlines more important to you than the quality of your meals? Are you prioritizing your work over your health? If yes, then you might have a lot in common with our Player Devyani Chaudhari. Like most working folks, she didn’t have a work-life balance and paid for it with her health. After some major health issues, she adopted GOQii and along with her coach made some sustainable changes. Here’s how her Health Story unfolded.

Working Hard But Not Working Out

Based in Dombivli, Devyani Chaudhari, aged 54, worked in the supply chain side of a pharmaceutical company. She would work from 8.30am to 9pm and thanks to this, she wasn’t able to pay much attention to her lifestyle.

This erratic lifestyle was an addition to ongoing personal issues such as stress due to a toxic work environment, her son’s health, loneliness due to her husband’s death – all of which often lead to suicidal thoughts. She would constantly suffer from terrible stomach aches and high stress levels. To add to it, she also faced a disturbed sleep cycle.

While she tried to manage her lifestyle by eating her meals on time and working out, nothing really worked. “My son took it upon himself to try and find a solution for my issues. He did research and found out about GOQii,” says Devyani Chaudhari.

Making Changes That Worked Out

Devyani came on board the GOQii platform on 16th October, 2019. Her initial health goal was to lose weight. But, her coach revised that to ensure she first gets over her acidity issues which were extremely intense. Due to acidity she would throw up frequently and had developed ulcers.

Since she is a working lady, extensive working hours lead to irregular eating patterns and she used to consume a good amount of junk food too. “Toning the body was always on the agenda,” she says. She tried doing Zumba but due to the high intensity, she could not match up or would end up experiencing some pain.

Devyani was advised to cut down on junk food and instead eat healthy food at regular intervals. Her coach Madhu Soni started with small changes and tried to regularize her meals. Starting with Ajwain, Saunf and Jeera water on an empty stomach, she also asked to take lemon-honey water on alternate days.

Slowly, her meals began to get regularized and intake of junk food reduced considerably. After a few months of opening up and sharing a good rapport with her coach, one day she timidly told Coach Madhu Soni about her urine incontinence. She had been using diapers and feared that her colleague might soon find out.

Based on this, Devyani was advised to do Strength training and then finally walking was her winning strategy which helped her to shed off the excess fat from the body. From 72kg she slowly came to 65kg. Unfortunately, she met with an accident and hurt her ankle and was unable to workout after that. Her weight went back to 77kg. Now, her weight is 75 kg and she is working on reducing it further.

Devyani Chaudhari Makes A Complete Shift!

Owing to some of the changes that Devyani Chaudhari made in her lifestyle, her acidity issue is cured completely. Her stress levels have also gone down considerably. The regular intake of Ajwain, Saunf and Jeera water in the morning and reduced stress played an important part in reducing her acidity levels.

Before, she used to take pills quite often for her sleep issues but now, her sleep quality has improved and the frequency of taking pills has also reduced. Her dependency on diapers has stopped as well.

Coach Madhu Soni’s advice on meditation and chanting the Om Mantra has had a positive effect on Devyani. This helped her quit her previous toxic job and take up a new one with positive people around. Devyani Chaudhari credits her change to her coach saying, “I got a guide and motivator in my coach”.

Does this health story inspire you? Do you want to make a sustainable lifestyle change like Devyani? Subscribe for personalised health coaching here to get started now: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

For more inspiring Health Stories, check out Healthy Reads.

#BeTheForce

June 9, 2022 By GOQii 1 Comment

Top Stress Busting Foods For A Healthy Mind!

Stress is a part and parcel of life. There’s no escaping it. Everyone endures stress and it is perfectly natural to seek some relief from it. In fact, relief is necessary because prolonged stress can lead to chronic stress which if left untreated, can cause heart-related issues, burn you out and affect your mental and emotional wellbeing. When faced with massive stress, we turn to food but are you eating the right kind of stress busting foods?

Top Healthy Stress Busting Foods

Don’t let relief come in the form of junk food. Instead, you can try these healthy stress busting foods:

Asparagus: is high in folic acid which helps you relax. A vegetable like this, which is high in folate, a calming B-complex vitamin known to reduce feelings of stress and anxiety and at the same time, produce dopamine for the brain. Enjoy cooked or raw asparagus to reap the benefits of this powerful food.
Avocado: Rich in healthy fat, magnesium and fiber, Avocado also contains vitamin B which benefits your nerves and brain cells while reducing stress. It has a substance called potassium which helps you by regulating your stress and blood pressure levels. Eating half an Avocado on a daily basis is good for you!
Almond: Vitamin B and magnesium help your body produce serotonin – a hormone that regulates mood and relieves stress, and Almonds are loaded with it! So don’t be driven nuts by stress, instead eat almonds!
Spinach: might not be on your go-to list of foods to eat when stressed, but it is necessary! The magnesium in Spinach can lift your mood and keep your stress hormones in check.
Coconuts: are rich in Medium-Chain Triglycerides, which is an excellent fuel for the brain and the body. The antioxidants in coconut can heal your system and protect your mind. Medium-Chain Triglycerides are excellent at improving your digestion and overall mood.
Walnuts: are known for their omega 3 content – which is very useful in fighting depression. They’re also packed with tryptophans which indirectly increase serotonin levels. When your serotonin levels are high, you feel more relaxed, calm and happy!
Pumpkin seeds: contain magnesium which helps in reducing stress naturally, decreasing the tension in your muscles. It also contains another mineral called zinc that keeps you cheerful always.
Eggs: have a good amount of vitamin B12, which are great for building mood. They trigger the production of feel good neurotransmitters like acetylcholine.
Ghee: Homemade or pure A2 Ghee is known to have medicinal properties that can heal your gut and improve digestion. Better digestion also improves your emotional state. This makes it one of the top stress busting foods.
Honey: is packed with anti-inflammatory properties which can increase the spread of serotonin and dopamine in your brain. Some raw organic honey can certainly make you happier!
Cashew Nuts: Apart from satisfying your taste buds, Cashew nuts are one of the best stress busting foods out there as they supply your body with a good amount of protein and zinc – which help you reduce stress and anxiety.

We hope you will incorporate these stress busting foods to your daily diet. Do you know someone who is perpetually stressed? Share this with them and help them find relief. For more articles on busting stress, check out Healthy Reads. Get these tips directly from your GOQii Coach by subscribing to personalized coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

You can also purchase some of the above listed foods such as A2 Cow Ghee, Organic Honey, Pumpkin Seeds, Cashew Nuts and Walnuts for a discount using GOQii Cash on the GOQii Health Store within the GOQii App.

#BeTheForce