تعالت أصوات ربما لغايات
مشبوهة تقول بتسليح المسيحيين في سورية للدفاع عن أنفسهم وصدرت عليها تعليقات
رافضة من كهنة البطريركية الأرثوذكسية في دمشق
سؤالي واعتقد انه مشروع: لماذا مشروع
التسليح هذا؟ ان كان لنواجه العدو الصهيوني الغاصب فهو حق مشروع وواجب مقدس،
أما إن كان لمواجهة أخي في الوطن المخالف لي في الدين فهو مرفوض جملة وتفصيلاً
لأنه حلقة في تنفيذ المؤامرة الكونية على وطننا الحبيب سورية.
أقول لأصحاب هذا الطرح المغرض: إن
المسيحية ابنة سورية منذ 2012 سنة والمسيحيون السوريون أبناء هذه الأرض منذ فجر
الوجود وقد اعتنقوا المسيحية عندما وفدت إلى دمشق مع حنانيا الرسول ثم بولس
الرسول ووفدت إلى أنطاكية مع بطرس وبولس وبرنابا وغيرهم ومن سورية انطلقت
المسيحية إلى كل بقاع المسكونة ويكفي سورية فخراً أن السيد المسيح له المجد
فلسطيني بالجسد وفلسطين هي قلب سورية
المسيحيون ليس كما يقول البعض مع شديد الأسف أنهم بقايا حملات الفرنجة
الصليبين،لأنهم ذاقوا الأمرين منهم خلال القرنين 11الى13 وقتلوا بطاركتهم
وكهنتهم ومؤمنيهم…وكتب التاريخ لكتابها المسلمين المعاصرين ملآى بهذا الاضطهاد
الذي فاق أضعاف ما عاناه الأشقاء المسلمون على يد هؤلاء الغزاة، وبكل أسف ففي
أعقاب طردهم انخفض الوجود المسيحي في سورية من 60% الى 20% خوفاً من اضطهاد
الجهلة… كما حصل في دمار أنطاكية 1268 بيد الظاهر بيبرس وقد اعتبر المسيحيين
الأنطاكيين من سكانها فرنجة وكانت أنطاكية قد جلت عنها جيوش الصليبين قبل أيام.
منذ الفتح الإسلامي لدمشق635 عاش المسيحيون والمسلمون إخوة وقد فتح سرجون
النصراني باب الجابية تمام ابن الجراح حيث دخل صلحا ثم تولى وابنه من بعده ثم
حفيده القديس يوحنا الدمشقي ولأمانتهم ديوان بيت مال المسلمين في الحضارة
الأموية وهو واحد مع ديوان الجند ومن وقتها استقر العرف أن يتولى المسيحيون
الشأن المالي العام عند الفتح استضاف المسيحيون الدمشقيون أبناء عمومتهم
المسلمين في الطبقات الأرضية بدورهم الدمشقية الجميلة وعاشوا هم في الطبقات
العليا من هذه البيوت، وأثرى المسيحيون الحضارة التي هي عربية مسيحية_ إسلامية
وكتب التاريخ أيضا تزخر بأسماء الأعلام المسيحيين في مختلف المجالات وفي أماكن
تواجدهم.
لم يعرف المسيحيون القهر بيد إخوتهم المسلمين السوريين بعكس ما تعرضوا له على
يد غفير العرب من المسلمين الشعوبيين كالأتراك السلاجقة وصولاً إلى الخلافة
العثمانية التي كان لها اليد الطولى في إفناء أعداد كبيرة من مسيحيي جبال لبنان
والشيخ والعرب وأخيرا في دمشق في تموز 1860 حيث قضى ربع المسيحيين في دمشق
ودمرت أحياء المسيحيين ودورهم وكنائسهم بمكيدة عثمانية للتخلص من نظام
الامتيازات التي كبلتها بها الدول الاستعمارية وقتئذ، وبأيدي جهلة رعاع وبتدبير
صهيوني مستتر خلف اليهودية المحلية التي شجعت على قتل مسيحيي دمشق، وقد هاجر
معظم من بقي حيا إلى لبنان ومصر ثم إلى أميركا ومع ذلك ازداد تمسك الندرة
المسيحية الباقية في وطنها دمشق، واسهم مفكروها في بعث فكرة القومية العربية
وكانوا “أرباب عصر التنوير الشوام”.
عندما مات البطريرك غريغوريوس شارك خمسون ألف مسلم دمشقي في جنازته عام 1928
وسموه محمد غريغوريوس
قاد هذا البطريرك بين 1916 و1918 الصف المسيحي مع الشريف حسين وابنه الأمير
فيصل للتحرر من نير الأتراك وبايع فيصل ملكاً على سورية1920 وبعد استشهاد البطل
يوسف العظمة في ميسلون ودخول غورو الى دمشق كان البطريرك هو الوحيد الذي ودع
الملك فيصل في محطة القدم فبكى فيصل لما قال له البطريرك ان هذه اليد التي
بايعتك ستبقى وفية لك الى الأبد فحاول فيصل تقبيلها لكن البطريرك سحب يده وقبله
في جبينه، ياللروعة الوطنية ملك سورية ابن شريف مكة وملك العرب حسين يحاول
تقبيل يد البطريرك!!!
الم يعلق السفاح التركي جمال باشا احرار سوريةمن مسلمين ومسيحيين على اراجيح
الشرف في دمشق وبيروت والقدس 1916؟ لقد نالت البطريركية الارثوذكسية كل الآذى
من الفرنسيين وحاولوا شقها باقامة بطريركية ثانية في بيروت عقاباً لها على
مواقفها الرافضة للانتداب.
ضرب الفرنسيون دمشق عام 1925 واحرقوا محلة سيدي عامود والتي سميت (الحريقة)
فأرسل المسيحيون الدمشقيون المغتربون في اميركا بواسطة كنائسهم المعونات
العاجلة الى البطريركية بدمشق فأمر البطريرك المذكور بتوزيعها على المسلمين
المنكوبين ابناء تلك المنطقة. ثم فعل الأمر ذاته خليفته البطريرك الكسندروس عام
1945 عندما ضرب الفرنسيون دمشق ودمروا البرلمان وابادوا حاميته من مسلمين
ومسيحيين، حيث وزع معونات المسيحيين الأرثوذكسيين الدمشقيين المغتربين في
اميركا على المناطق المنكوبة، وهي كلها مسلمة. الم تفعل البطريركية الفعل ذاته
مع النازحين السوريين من الجولان 1967 وكانوا في معظمهم من المسلمين واسكنتهم
في مدارسها (مع بقية الطوائف المسيحية) تكراراً لما فعلته مع المنكوبين
الفلسطينيين 1948 ، ثم مع االلاجئين اللبنانيين بين عامي 1975 و1977 ، وكذلك
الحال مؤخرا مع العراقيين وفي اغلبيتهم الاسلامية عندما وزعت عليهم معونات
قدمتها هي، وما جادت به اكف الأرثوذكس السوريين المنتشرين وكنائسهم في بلاد
الاغتراب، وحاليا تفعل مع المهجرين من حمص وحماه ودمشق وريفها( بغض النظر عن
الدين والمذهب) نتيجة هذه المأساة التي يعاني منها وطننا الحبيب سورية، مع
التأكيد على ان البطريركية فقيرة الموارد ولكنها سعت مع كنائسها في الاغتراب
لدعم مشروع الخير هذا.
هل تعلم ان تركيا عندما شرعت بسلب لواء الاسكندرون عام 1938 اغلقت الجوامع امام
المصلين لتخدع لجنة تقصي الحقائق الموفدة بقرار عصبة الأمم، ولتوهمها بأنها
دولة علمانية. فما كان من الارشمندريت نقولا الخوري الوكيل البطريركي في اللواء،
الا أن فتح ابواب الكنائس الأرثوذكسية امام المسلمين ليصوا صلاة الجمعة فيها.
هل نعلم ان البطريركية الارثوذكسية كانت تمد ثوار الغوطة بالمال والسلاح للكفاح
ضد الفرنسيين من 1920الى 1946 وقد اعتَقل ثلاثة كشافين من الكشافة الأرثوذكسية
الدمشقية وحكموا بالاعدام ثم خفف الاعدام بالنفي خارج سورية عام . الم يكن
الضابط السوري المسيحي جول جمال هو الاستشهادي الأول عندما فجر نفسه بطوربيده
في المدمرة الفرنسية جان دارك في قناة السويس 1956 ومع كل الأسف لاأحد يتذكره،
وحتى المصريين الذين بفضله نجوا من هذه المدمرة وبتفجيره لها غير مجرى العدوان
الثلاثي على مصر، لا يعرفون انه سوري اولاً ومسيحي ثانيا!!!
.
اخي في الوطن:
ان مااوردته حول العيش الأخوي الواحد في سورية طيلة 14 قرناً ونيف هو غيض من
فيض ولنتذكر ان سورية الحبيبة امنا جميعاً هي موطن الحضارة من 10000سنة وان
اعظم المفكرين الفرنسيين والعالميين رينان قال : ” لكل انسان متحضر في العالم
وطنان، وطنه، وسورية”. سورية هي آرام اي موطن الشمس تلك الأيقونة البديعة سورية
الوطن والأخ و… التي رسمها الخالق العظيم بيده القدوسة، ولنتذكر جميعاً ان (الدين
لله وحده) وهو يجازي ويكافيء، وان وطننا الحبيب سورية(يتسع للجميع وهوللجميع)
اهديكم قبلاتي واترحم على كل شهيد سقط على ارض سورية، واقول ان دمه سيزهر قريباً
سورية متجددة ولن يضيع هباء.
م د. جوزيف زيتون
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نقطة على السطر / سر النجاح
يتساءل العديد عن سبب نجاح الآخرين، ولماذا يصلون الى أهدافهم
من أقرب نقطة وفي اقل مدة ممكنة ، بينما تفشل الغالبية العظمى في ذلك.
رغم أن ظروفهم وظروفنا متشابهة ، وكذلك إمكانيات كل منا ، والقصة التالية تبين سر نجاح الآخرين ، وتحكي القصة أن شاباً يافعاً ذهب الى أحد حكماء الصين ليتعلم منه سر النجاح ، وسأله هل تستطيع أن تذكر لي ماهو سر النجاح ؟...
فرد عليه الحكيم الصيني بهدوء ، وقال : سر النجاح هو الدوافع ، فسأله الشاب، ومن أين تأتي هذه الدوافع، فرد عليه الحكيم الصيني ، من رغباتك المشتعلة ، وباستغراب سأله الشاب، وكيف تكون عندنا رغبات مشتعلة ، وهنا استأذن الحكيم الصيني لعدة دقائق وعاد ومعه وعاء كبير مليء بالماء ، وسأل الشاب، هل أنت متأكد أنك تريد معرفة، مصدر الرغبات المشتعلة!!..
فأجابه الشاب بلهفة : طبعاً.
فطلب منه الحكيم أن يقترب من وعاء الماء وينظر فيه، ونظر الشاب إلى الماء عن قرب ، وفجأة ضغط الحكيم بكلتا يديه على رأس الشاب ووضعه داخل وعاء الماء..
ومرت عدة ثوان ولم يتحرك الشاب ثم بدأ ببطء يخرج رأسه من الماء ولما بدأ يشعر بالاختناق بدأ يقاوم بشدة حتى نجح في تخليص نفسه وأخرج نفسه وأخرج رأسه من الماء ثم نظر الى الحكيم الصيني وسأله بغضب ما الذي فعلته ؟. فرد عليه وهو مازال محتفظاً بهدوئه وإبتسامته: ما الذي تعلمته من هذه التجربة ، فقال : لم أتعلم شيئا.
فنظر إليه الحكيم الصيني قائلا: لا يابني لقد تعلمت الكثير ففي خلال الثواني الأولى اردت أن تخلص نفسك من الماء ولكن دوافعك لم تكن كافية لعمل ذلك، وبعد ذلك كنت دائماً راغباً في تخليص نفسك فبدأت في التحرك والمقاومة ولكن ببطء .. حيث أن دوافعك لم تكن قد وصلت بعد لأعلى درجاتها ، وأخيراً اصبح عندك الرغبة المشتعلة لتخليص نفسك وعندئذ فقط نجحت لأنه لم تكن هناك أي قوة في استطاعتها أن توقفك . ثم أضاف الحكيم الصيني والذي لم تفارقه إبتسامته الهادئة .. عندما تكون لديك الرغبة المشتعلة للنجاح فلن يستطيع احد ايقافك...
الشاهد من القصة أننا جميعنا نملك نفس المقومات المقومات ، غير أننا ننتظر نجاح الآولكن الفارق بيننا وبينهم كيفية استغلال وتوظيف هذه خرين لنستفيد منه.
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By Patrick McGreevy | Dec. 31, 2012
SACRAMENTO — In 2012, the governor and Legislature overhauled California’s public pension and workers’ compensation systems. They made it illegal to carry rifles openly in cities. They allowed certain illegal immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses and qualify for state college financial aid.
Voters made laws, too, approving Gov. Jerry Brown’s temporary quarter-cent hike in the sales tax, among other measures, in a bid to help resolve California’s dire fiscal situation.
In all, more than 750 new laws take effect Jan.1.
Controversy surrounded the bid to permit perhaps hundreds of thousands of young illegal immigrants to qualify for state driver’s licenses. The new law applies to those given a work permit as part of an Obama administration program that suspends deportation for many people who arrived illegally as children.
Also contentious was the Dream Act, approved in 2011 but taking effect today, allowing students in the country illegally to receive taxpayer-financed aid to attend universities and colleges. The California Student Aid Commission expects about 20,000 people to apply for such assistance,said executive director Diana Fuentes-Michel.
The ban on openly carrying unloaded rifles and shotguns in public in urban areas was largely a response to gun owners taking long guns into their neighborhood coffee shops and parks as a demonstration of their 2nd Amendment rights.
Gun owners said the ban would infringe on their right to carry arms. But it passed with the backing of LAPD Chief Charlie Beck and L.A. County Sheriff Lee Baca.
The courts have been enlisted in a dispute over a new law prohibiting the practice of “conversion therapy” on minors in an effort to change their sexual orientation from gay to straight. Judges have disagreed over its merits, but a federal appeals court has blocked the law from taking effect.
New public pension rules are aimed at saving the two largest retirement systems $78 billion over the next 30 years. Public employees hired after Jan. 1 will have to wait longer to retire — up to age 67 for maximum benefits for many workers — and there will be new limits on how much pay they can collect.
New laws take effect in many other areas as well:
Red-light cameras: New statewide guidelines prohibit use of the cameras primarily to raise revenue and make it easier for drivers to challenge tickets issued on evidence from the devices.
Texting: Drivers may dictate, send and listen to text-based communications as long as they use voice-command or other hands-free technology.
Toll lanes: Solo drivers of hybrid vehicles are exempted from toll charges in “high-occupancy toll,” or HOT, lanes on parts of I-15 in San Diego and I-680 in Alameda and Santa Clara counties.
Used cars: Buy Here Pay Here lots that
offer their own financing must post fair-market values on their
autos and provide 1,000-mile, 30-day warranties on vehicles they
sell.
Read The Times series: Wheels of Fortune
Vanity plates: State lawmakers no longer get a discount on vanity license plates.
College textbooks: A new website, to be developed in coming months, will give students free digital access to 50 textbooks for lower-division courses in the University of California, California State University and California Community College systems. Hard copies will cost $20.
Fees: California State University may not establish, adjust or reallocate student fees without the approval of student representatives, must justify any increase and may not raise fees after the first 90 days of the school year.
Tests: The Academic Performance Index, which has been based entirely on student test scores, is changed to give test scores no more than 60% of the scale and include other factors such as graduation rates.
Retirement: The state will create a panel to study the feasibility of a government-run retirement plan for low-wage private-sector workers.
Workers’ compensation: Payments to employees permanently disabled in job-related accidents will increase by $740 million, and employers will receive a break on premiums.
Home-cooked food: Californians may sell certain homemade foods and baked goods, including bread, fruit pies, jams and dried nuts, to stores, to restaurants and directly to consumers.
Birth control: Registered nurses are permitted to give hormonal contraceptives to women by order of a certified nurse-midwife, nurse practitioner or physician assistant in some clinical settings.
Child
actors: Registered sex offenders are barred from representing
minors working in the entertainment industry. Criminal background
checks are required for managers, publicists, photographers and
other adults who have unsupervised access to young performers.
Read Times coverage: Case dropped against casting director
over sex crime disclosure
Film taxes: The state’s tax credits for films and television shows made in California are extended for two years, providing up to $200 million in breaks for the industry.
Props: Red tape is reduced for permits to use sawed-off shotguns as props in film and television productions.
Privacy: University officials and private employers are forbidden to ask students, workers or job applicants for their email passwords or those for social media accounts such as Twitter and Facebook.
Telephone service: State agencies are banned from regulating Internet phone service. This extends a current “hands-off” policy by the California Public Utilities Commission.
Pets: Landlords are not permitted to require that tenants declaw their cats or cut vocal cords in their dogs.
Rent: California landlords may not require that rent be paid online.
Stadium violence: Sports arenas and stadiums must post contact information for security personnel that is visible from seating and parking areas, so help can be summoned quickly if violence occurs.
Underage killers: Inmates serving life in prison for murders they committed as juveniles may apply after 25 years for a reduction of their prison term.
Conservation: The state Department of Fish and Game must provide greater emphasis on conservation. Its name is changed to the Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Hunting: Dogs may not be used to hunt bears and bobcats.
State parks: The parks department must create a plan for increasing private revenue to operate the sites. Californians may apply a portion of their state tax refund to the parks in exchange for an annual park pass.
License plates: Fees for personalized veterans’ license plates are increased to provide more money to the County Veterans Service Officer Fund, which aids veterans and their families in obtaining benefits and services.
Sport licenses: The cost of sports-fishing and hunting licenses is reduced for active military personnel recovering from injuries or illnesses.
Though new drugs and other strategies are helping to prevent strokes, the number of people who experience this potentially debilitating condition is likely to increase as the population ages, according to Greg Albers, MD, director of the Stanford Stroke Center, one of the country's first comprehensive stroke centers.
New medications, better control of high blood pressure and cholesterol, and the decline in smoking all have contributed to prevention of strokes, which occur when blood flow to the brain is interrupted, Albers said. At the same time, however, more than half of the people at risk for stroke still aren't being treated at all or not aggressively enough. Those factors, together with the aging of the population, are likely to contribute to a growing prevalence of the condition, he said.
"We're forecasting a dramatic increase in stroke over the next couple of decades because of the baby boomers aging," said Albers, professor of neurology and neurological sciences.
A stroke occurs when blood vessels carrying oxygen and other nutrients to a specific part of the brain suddenly burst or become blocked. When blood fails to get through, the oxygen supply to the affected part of the brain is cut off and brain cells begin to die.
More than 750,000 Americans have a stroke in any given year. Stroke is the No. 1 cause of adult disability.
Warning signs of stroke:
Figure: Pressure exerted by blood
If you or someone you know experiences any of the warning signs, seek emergency help right away. Call 911 immediately even if you think that you are getting better or if the symptoms seem to disappear. If the symptoms last for more than 10 to 15 minutes, appear frequently or seem to get worse, ask the emergency responders for urgent transportation to the nearest appropriate medical facility.
The single most important risk factor for stroke is high blood pressure. Fewer than half of people who have high blood pressure fail to control it adequately, Albers said. The most recent standards of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Pressure call for intervention when an individual's blood pressure is greater than 120/80. Albers advises people with high blood pressure to use home monitors regularly to ensure that their pressure remains within this range.
"One blood pressure reading doesn't mean very much," he said. "And many people have higher blood pressure readings when they are in a doctor's office."
High blood pressure may be lowered through lifestyle changes such as exercise, diet and smoking cessation, but success is more likely through treatment with antihypertensive medications, according to Albers.
"High blood pressure can almost always be controlled by medications if they're used properly," he said. "They need to be monitored on a regular basis. I recommend that people taking these medications be checked by their doctors every three to six months if their blood pressure is stable, and more frequently if their blood pressure is not under control or if they're suffering from medication side effects."
Albers said the outlook is greatly improved for people who have strokes if they receive treatment with the clot-busting drug tPA (tissue plasminogen activator) within three hours after symptoms occur. Stanford researchers have found that the tPA "window" may extend up to six hours in some patients, but sophisticated images of the brain are needed to determine which patients are most likely to benefit. Stanford is one of the few places in the world that has the technology to generate sophisticated blood flow "maps" of the brain rapidly.
"Our biggest problem continues to be that most stroke patients do not arrive soon enough to be eligible for our emergency therapies," said Albers.
The stroke center brings together physicians from multiple specialties, including neurology, neurosurgery, neuroradiology, internal medicine and emergency medicine. The stroke center also has recently started a specialized clinic to treat people who have mini-strokes called transient ischemic attacks (TIAs), which are temporary interruptions in the brain's blood supply. The symptoms are the same as for stroke, but tend to disappear quickly and completely. They can be warning signs of pending stroke, so patients with TIA need to be evaluated in the emergency room. More than half of these patients are currently being managed without being admitted to the hospital.
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Good stress, bad stressResearch identifies health impact of different responses
Most of us have come to think that stress is bad for us, but it is really part of our fundamental survival system. Stress can be harmful and dampen the immune response if it is chronic or ongoing. But short-term stress—the “fight-or-flight” response—may actually be beneficial, according to research by Firdaus Dhabhar, PhD, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and director of research at the Stanford Center on Stress & Health. Q: What are the different kinds of stress responses? We define stress as a constellation of events that begins with a stimulus or challenge—a stressor—that is detected by the brain which activates the fight-or-flight systems in the body—the biological stress response. Acute or short-term stress results when the biological stress response is activated for minutes to hours. Repeated short-term stress is experienced during most day-to-day living situations. Although we need to conduct more studies to better understand this, it appears that most reasonably healthy people can deal with repeated short-term stressors as long as there are sufficiently long periods when stress-related biological factors are at very low levels, such as when the person is at rest. Chronic or long-term stress results when the biological stress response is activated for months to years. It can be due to one long-term stressor, like caring for someone who is chronically ill, or from numerous short-term stressors with insufficient time for a return to a resting state. Q: Tell us how there might be benefits to stress. The overwhelming focus of science and the media has been on the bad effects of stress because it is known that stress can have significant deleterious effects on health. In general, chronic or long-term stress can have harmful effects. In contrast, acute or short-term stress can have protective and beneficial effects. We have shown that when short-term stress is coupled with immune activation—for example during surgery or vaccination—the immune response is enhanced. The beneficial effects of short-term stress make sense because the fight-or-flight stress response is nature’s fundamental survival mechanism. Without this response a lion has no chance of catching a gazelle and eating to live another day. Without this same response the gazelle has no chance of escape. During a fight-or-flight response, organs like the skin and underlying tissue are likely to be damaged (a wound from an attack) by a stressor (a predator); enhancing immune function in these organs during times of stress would ensure better protection. Our research aims to harness this natural stress response to boost protective immune function during surgery or wound healing, vaccination, infection and cancer. Benefits of short-term stress might also translate to better mental or physical performance, especially under conditions where chronic stress is low and the individual is trained or practiced in the task at hand. Q: While acute stress may be beneficial in the right circumstances, what about chronic stress? Chronic stress has been associated with increased biological aging, suppression or abnormal regulation of immune function, impairment of brain structure and function, increased susceptibility to some types of infection and worsening of conditions like depression, heart disease and some types of cancer. However it is important to appreciate that Mother Nature has given all living beings, including humans, resilience mechanisms so we don’t just keel over the minute we start experiencing chronic stress. In fact, psychological and biological resilience mechanisms enable us to keep functioning even when we are under chronic stress. The sad thing is that we can put ourselves under so much chronic stress that even the powerful resilience mechanisms that nature has given us can break down. Interestingly, there are remarkable differences in stress resilience. Some individuals can continue to function normally or even well under significant amounts of chronic stress, while others are less able to do this. Another key area of research in our lab is to investigate the markers and mechanisms of resilience. Our long-term goal is to enable the development of interventions that would increase stress resilience, especially in individuals who find themselves in chronically stressful situations. Q: How can stress impact the development and progression of cancer? Chronic stress has been shown to accelerate cancer progression by inhibiting protective immune responses, enhancing harmful immune responses and increasing blood vessel growth factors and proteases (enzymes that break down proteins) that enable tumors to grow and metastasize. Q: How might stress play a role in other medical conditions? It appears that chronic stress can produce long-term increases in inflammation and oxidative damage, which may be ways that chronic stress can affect other medical conditions. Q: What are some techniques for reducing chronic stress? The key is to prevent long-term elevation or abnormal regulation of stress-related biological factors and to maximize the time spent in the resting state. From what we know so far, it’s pretty much grandma’s advice: Sleep well, eat and exercise in moderation, and engage in activities that help you feel relaxed and rested. It is important to find what works for you and then to do it consistently. Consistency may be more important than intensity, so a brisk walk on a frequent and regular basis for reasonable amounts of time may be more helpful than jogging as fast as you can once every few weeks. Genuine support from friends and family can also be an effective chronic stress buffer |