Stress reducers

Stress really can hurt. Here's expert advice on how to reduce it.

Exercise. Make time for it, says Joel Holliner, chief of psychiatry at Medical City Dallas Hospital. "It helps us burn off excess adrenaline, one of the fight-or-flight hormones, and to clear our mind."

Practice yoga or meditation. It releases other hormones that are the anti fight-or-flight hormones, Holliner says.

Stop ruminating. "You keep reliving the situation and get in a vicious cycle that breaks the brain down more," says Sandi Bond Chapman, founder and chief director of the Center for BrainHealth. "Halt that pattern and change the way you see things."

Change your environment. Chapman was robbed at gunpoint in her home 23 years ago. "I was scared every day of my life," she says. " ... When we moved, I wasn't scared anymore."

Have a support system. Just talking to someone who doesn't necessarily offer solutions, but listens, can help diminish the impact of stressful life events, Holliner says.

Sleep. "It helps restore mental processes," he says. "We can physically handle stress better so we don't get overwhelmed."

DALLAS MORNING NEWS