舒缓压力的好方法：控制自己的呼吸

　　The first step toward combating fear is identifying it. Keep in mind that headaches, stomachaches, sleeplessness and rapid heartbeat are all symptoms of anxiety. Confront the emotion head-on by naming it, even saying, "I feel fear about this," says Saki Santorelli, executive director of the University of Massachusetts Medical School's Center for Mindfulness. Acknowledging anxiety makes us less passive, less vulnerable and, as a result, more able to cope.

　　要与恐惧斗争，首先要认识恐惧。要记住头疼、胃疼、失眠和心跳加速都是焦虑的症状。麻省大学医学院心神贯注研究中心执行主任Saki Santorelli说，应该通过说出来，甚至通过说出“我害怕这个”，来勇敢地面对这种感觉。承认焦虑可以使我们变得更积极、更坚强，因而也就更能对付它。

　　Understand that fear is a component of stress, the complex fight-or-flight response ingrained in us since the cave days. When we're confronted with danger, epinephrine (adrenaline) starts pumping, the heart speeds up, blood pressure increases, breathing quickens.

　　要明白恐惧是压力的一个组成部分，它是一种与穴居时代俱来的“要么对抗，要么逃跑”的复杂反应。当我们遭遇危险时，肾上腺素就会大量分泌，心跳加速，血压升高，呼吸变快。

　　One of the most efficient ways to reduce stress is to focus inward on one thing we can effectively control: our own breath. At the Mind/Body Medical Institute, participants elicit a "relaxation response," repeating a word - anything from "om" to "Hail Mary"--silently as they exhale. In numerous studies, Benson has found that the practice leads to lower blood pressure, slower breathing and an overall calm.

　　减轻压力最有效的办法之一就是将注意力集中到我们可以有效控制的东西上——我们自己的呼吸。在头脑-身体医学院，参加者通过呼气时反复轻声默念一个单词(任何单词，可以是"om"或"Hail Mary")，来达到一个“放松的反应”。通过许多次研究，Benson发现该练习可以使参加者血压降低，呼吸变缓，从而达到全身的平静。