Hi everybody
Stress on the job costs American companies as much as 150 billion dollars a year in lower productivity,unnecessary employee sick leave ,and higher medical costs.
Three-quarters of the office workers today say they suffer from stress at work.
Does work or study sometimes cause you stress?
How does this stress affect you?
What do you do to help yourself relax?
Opinions
Cris
Hi,
I my share with you personal experience I was on fire at sea
(engine had exploded) and one thing what completely had surprised me was my shaking hands I couldn’t open a fire fighting box panel.
Small key and small lock it has taken me two or three minutes to manage this
Later when I was trying to improve the system and force the company to change the lock for easy operate one
they had ignored me
To my surprise people next time by some false fire alarm had broken the solid key trying to open the same box they were so concern about danger the were unable to control force of their grip.
regards
Jan
Fortunately, there isn’t much stress in my life these days. But I know only too well what a stressful job can be, where you often have to struggle to keep your sanity!
In a far away life, and thanks to a colleague and fellow stress sufferer in that junction in my existence, I discovered the joys of horse riding. It proved to be a wonderful escape from stress and tension.
We would change into our riding gear before we left the office and couldn’t wait to get away to the riding school. The equestrian exercise made me painfully aware of muscles I didn’t even know I possessed (I should have started out with a Spanish saddle, which is much more comfortable than the English one!). But, as expected, it also provided a great balm to our weary minds and freyed nerves.
Yet one of my best companions in times of trouble as in times of joy is music – in all its forms. Whether I need to relax or to be perked up, whether I feel sad or happy, I can always count on this fellow traveller to get to my soul.
Hi Conchita!
Your report sounds like you have finished your rider career? Why? Did you that because of the few muscule pains. I don?t think that a Spanish saddle would have prepared you less pain although it must be more pleasant than an English. My wife uses a Western saddle and if she rides a bit more than usually she has pains too at the next day. The best way to prevent this is having a hot bath after the sport, anyway. I myself never felt that pains after work with my horse because my favourite is driving with carriages.
However, the work with horses always forces you to forget all your worries and stresses because your horse will feel that anyhow and doesn?t like when you aren?t relaxed. For me this circumstance is one of my reasons for liking work with horses.
Michael
It’s true that I haven’t ridden a horse for ages. But I didn’t stop because of the muscular pains! I only got those the first few times or when going back to riding after a long while, as would happen now. When my children were younger, we used to ride in a nearby ring as well as in the countryside. Sometimes I would just go off on my own (are you really on your own with a horse?). But gradually we drifted out of the habit, somehow. Lack of time, other activities, expensive sport: a combination of all this, I guess.
Now I wouldn’t mind riding again. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of freedom you get when galloping across fields! Who knows, one day I might even set out on a pilgrimage to Saint James of Compostela on horseback! Has anyone of you done something similar? Would anyone be interested? Imagine an English-Test expedition!!
Hi Conchita!
First of all I?ll show you my respect!
Your question shows me that you know what it is all about horses 
! Many people speak about but only few really do it. So I am a bit ashamed to admit that I am either on nor behind my horse at the time. But, please let me explain that:
I hadn?t to do with horses until six years ago. Then my wife bought her horse (in fact she bought two). So I began to interest me in horses. Anyhow, to learn more about horses, I visited an education for coachman and kept on staying on that sport. One of the both teachers was a really good driver and also the other “coachman-pupil” and me decided after finishing lessons to build a community and engage that good driver. After one year only I kept left from the group and as every driver needs a co-coachman we decided that I will take that part for free. Among the following four years we drove three times a week (in the winter as well as in summertimes). Each time when we drove I took the part of the coachman for the half and he that of the co and he advised my during all the time. We drove dressage as well as marathon and we teached horses to pull a carriage. Sometimes while other people asked him to correct their horses he even gave me his horses to train them. I think i?ve learned a lot from him. Two years ago he sold me a small Arabian mare. As you are proficient with horses I think you know what it is all about Arabians or purebreeds. However I kept her the next four month at my teachers stable, drove there every day and taught her at the longe and double longe and also took her out in the street myself. Then we taught her to pull a carriage for several times and then I took her home to the stable close to our house. Everything had been fine. I drove her sometimes yet but anyhow I lost my patience and got to pushy for a few times. My mare disliked that and began to defend against the work very hard. At last I wasn?t able to touch her in the stable any longer. That?s one year ago now. But I worked hard to win her reliance back, only I have to go on working with that. This time I work in harmonie with my mare using a mental connection only. And this is the way to succed but it takes a lot of time. If you want I liked to tell you more about that.
That?s a nice idea! Perhaps we can come back to that anytime.
Michael
It seems that you, Conchita and Michael are sharing the same hobby: horse riding. So one of your hobby horses are horses. (OK, this a ‘pun attempt’ ;-))
As for Cristina’s initial question, I think there is only one place where stress exists: in our minds. Stress are thoughts that cause worry, anxiety and tension. Stress is not tantible, it is the result of our imagination. When we imagine all the things that can go wrong we create stress. Before I had become self-employed I worked in several companies and I often was under great stress.
Back then I tried to cling to my job and I had to put up with a lot of things I did not like. Later I met Alan Townend and who had written It never gets you anywhere, a story that starts like this: ‘Andrew Smodley is a natural worrier. It is something he has inherited from his father — the king of all worriers.’ When I read that story the first time I had to smile because Alan describes what I have often experienced — worry and stress.
I can’t say that I absolutely worry-free now. Keeping cool and relaxed when you are under pressure is an ability that you have to develop just like your language skills. There are a lot things that help me cope with stres one of which is english-test.net because here I can connect with people who I want to work with.
Think about: What exactly causes stress? Disharmony with other people. (Which stems from disharmony with yourself). Now, when I’m in harmony with myself I have enough time and energy to reach out to others who in turn will give me something back.
So, the more I communicate on here on the forum, the better I can cope with any kind of stress…[YSaerTTEW443543]
TOEIC listening, talks: Announcing the hostile takeover of a rival company[YSaerTTEW443543]
Your comments are quite interesting, Michael the horseman (your list of aliases is growing by the minute!).
My knowledge of horses is still a bit scanty, as you will realise from the following questions. As a coach-man do you need a specific language to command the horse, apart from using the reins (like clucking your tongue or shouting ‘easy!’ or ‘whoa!’ when you want to speed up or slow down)? Are Arabian horses good carriage horses? Or can you use any kind of horse for that? My favourite is the sturdy and humble draught horse, especially the breed with hairy legs – they just look as if they had moon boots or bell-bottoms on 
! Isn’t it the best one for pulling in general or perhaps only for heavy loads?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shire_horse
clydesdalehorse.com.au/images/image34.jpg
(My tastes are definitely rustic, even as horses are concerned!).
This Wikipedia list of horse breeds left me dumb-founded:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_horse_breeds
So, you see, I’m far from proficient in horse science!
By the way, do you use a whip? Oh, this reminds me of a thread that might be of interest to you (March 3rd):
http://www.english-test.net/forum/ftopic6873.html[Mind the whip! (or origin of driving on the left)]
PS: The funniest thing happened when looking up the word ‘coach-man’ in Thesaurus.com. It says: “No entry found for coach-man. Did you mean macho man?” :lol: …
Another thing that surprised me was the following definition of ‘horsewoman’: a woman horseman :roll: .
Hi Conchita!
Was I to pushy again or why do you hide your light under a bushel? :? Your explanation to Jamie at 03.March was perfectly correct. As left-handed people until to the middle of the last Century were considered as unnormal, in the Middle Ages often had been burnt as witches later they were looked at as weak-minded people- coachmen were supposed to fight with the sword in their right hand. That is the reason why still today the coachman sits right and formerly -in many Countries that had got changed with developing motorized carriages- they drove on the left side. They hold the reins in the left and fought with the right. For the whip they didn?t have a free hand. May be, as the formerly people were more rude ( [color=darkred]Slubberdegullian Druggel ), they had used the whip to beat the horses in order to drive them. Today, the whip is used more as a connection in order drive them too, indeed, but not any longer as rude. Good coachmen need to touch their horses only with the whip. The softer the touch the better the connection between horse and driver. The whip is also supposed to correct the horses in their movement and posture, well known with smart touches only, particularly when you drive a dressage. Today dressage drivers are supposed to let the horses chew the reins out of the driver?s left hand while driving a great circle. That needs a spacious agreement between horses and driver, I think you can imagine that. And that must be prepared. Finally, driving a horse or horses, do work with agreement between driver and horses and the helps the driver are able to give is an addition of reins, voice and whip.
Conchita, Shire horses are really impressing and look really nice. Have you ridden such a horse? And how did you care it? Have you had a stairway in order to climb on them? 
The link you refered to discribed their [color=red]normal weight as a ton :shock: . I?d prefer better not to feed such a horse, although they are pretty horses.
And generally every horse is capable to pull a carriage, it depends on the driver if he/she can command them. I have seen people -calling themselves proficient or having the most high German trainer license :shock: - preparing accidents or making incredible mistakes. But that is another story. Of course, as you have to do with individualities it is always possible to have an accident but not that way I often have seen.
Now I have babbled a lot. :shock: For the moment I?ll stop that.
What about your proficiency? Would like to read more of your?s.
Michael
