debilitating effects of HIV itself.
What then can HIV positive people practically do to reduce their own stress
levels without resorting
to more dangerous medicines?
The pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim recently organised a Stress
Management Workshop for staff and volunteers in the HIV sector at the
Mildmay Hospital in east London.
Run by counsellor and psychotherapist Max Delli Guanti, the workshop provided
some useful analysis as to why we all feel so stressed and also provided
some possible solutions.
Max explained that stress is about feeling out of control, and when we
understand why it works we can learn how to cope with it. What we think
affects our emotions, but with many of our major worries at the unconscious
level we are on autopilot whether we like it or not. Our nervous system
then moves into
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Max Delli Guanti
overdrive, our body produces chemicals like cortisol and adrenaline in
a return to the 'fight or flight' response we learnt in evolution, and
we can than actually become physically ill.
Max suggested that we could all benefit from some simple relaxation techniques
such as deep breathing exercises as well as progressive muscle relaxation
techniques to reduce our stress levels.
A fairly easy breathing exercise takes just five to 10 minutes a day and
simply
involves pushing the belly out (not in) as you breathe in and pushing the belly in as you breathe out. To monitor this and to make sure you're pushing
