Kill Stress In 5 Minutes With This Japanese Technique

Jun 03, 2018 by apost team

According to The American Institute of Stress, 48% of people in the US report that stress has a negative impact on their professional and personal lives. Stress can not only affect our emotional and psychological well-being, but it can also cause damage to our physical state. In fact, stress can contribute to several health conditions including depression, obesity, heart disease, gastrointestinal problems and more.

For these reasons, it is important to try and reduce stress in our daily lives. 
 

apost.com

What if I told you that there was an ancient technique to help eradicate this daily stress in a matter of minutes?

Of course, this sounds way to good be true. The reality is that almost nothing can erase stress from our lives within an instant. However, there are some tried and true methods that can help calm our minds and bring down our current levels of anxiety and stress.

The fundamental at work here is bringing our attention back to the present moment and away from the things causing our stress. In fact, this is a form of meditation. A quote by Greek philosopher Epictetus helps to illustrate the idea behind this technique:

"People are disturbed not by a thing, but by their perception of a thing."
 

The only things required to complete this technique are your hands, some patience and concentration. We start by associating each finger with a negative aspect of stress. Each of these associations will help with the mental practice. 

1. Your thumb will be associated with anxiety. 
2. Your index finger helps to ward off the fear. 
3. Your middle finger deals with anger. 
4. Your ring finger focuses on fighting depression. 
5. Your little finger helps to deal against stress. 

When you wish to utilize this technique, start by first identifying which negative emotion you're currently dealing with. Next, find the finger associated with that particular feeling. Hold that finger with your other hand and wait until you feel a pulse. Once a pulse is felt, hold the finger for two minutes and allow the negative emotion to fade.

They key is to become present in the present moment and imagine the negative feeling moving away. 
 

If you've found this simple technique to be helpful, we encourage you to spread the word! As stress is something many people experience on a daily basis, chances are you know several people who can benefit. The best part about this technique is that it requires little time and can be done anywhere.

Let us know what you think about this trick and be sure to show this article to your friends and family so they can try it for themselves!

Our content is created to the best of our knowledge, yet it is of general nature and cannot in any way substitute an individual consultation with your doctor. Your health is important to us!