You probably made New Year resolutions, because — if nothing else — you’re superstitious. But, those resolutions don’t happen telepathically. You’ve got to make an effort to meet those goals at least halfway to fulfill them at least fifty percent. But the Webmaster has special problems, as this job requires long hours and a ton of frustrations. Those hours are filled with stressful clients, server emergencies, and browser incompatibilities. What do Webmasters do to stay healthy, both physically and mentally?
You may smoke, drink way too many energy drinks, eat too much or you don’t eat enough just to cope with all your work-related woes. But don’t sweat it - we’re here to help with 101 tips and resources geared specifically to a male or female Webmaster’s physical and mental health problems. Although the following list provides great information, these sites don’t take the place of a health professional. If you fear the worst, don’t hesitate to see a professional about your worries. If you are in medical crisis please contact your doctor, therapist or dial 911 (or equivalent local emergency number in your area).
The list below is categorized by topics listed in alphabetical order. The links are also listed alphabetically. The numbers mean nothing other than to let you know that we’ve provided 101 tips and resources to help you become the healthiest and happiest Webmaster around!
Addiction | Carpal Tunnel | Diabetes | Dieting | Eating Disorders | Emotional Problems | Ergonomics | Exercise | Self-Help | Sexual Issues | Stress
Addictions
The following resources deal with addiction as a disease, and they cover a wide area although some sites are specific as to the type of addiction. No matter if you’re a smoker who wants to quit, or a family member of a drinker who doesn’t want to quit, or if you find yourself in bed with your computer mouse after you’ve checked your email for the umpteenth time, you can find information about your issues at any one of these sites.
- Addiction Recovery Basics: Although the 12-Step program may sound corny to you, many people who use this program for recovery from their addictions will tell you it’s the only program that worked for them. If you need more help with your obsession, no matter what it is, you might give this idea a shot.
- Alcoholics Anonymous: AA online is the 12-Step site for recovering alcoholics. The site also is available in French and in Spanish. As you go down the recovery path you may discover local chapters of AA online. Family members of alcoholics can find help at Al-anon/Alateen.
- Internet Addiction Recovery: Learn how to deal with your computer compulsions at this site, where you’ll find information about Internet addictions at work and in your private life. They also have a test for you to determine if you’re truly addicted to your computer.
- Narcotics Anonymous: Although similar to Alcoholics Anonymous in concept, drug addicts have different issues that need to be addressed. Hence, NA rather than AA. Family members of a drug addict can find help at Nar-Anon.
- Science Daily Addiction News: ScienceDaily offers groundbreaking news about addictions across the board, no matter if it pertains to smoking, cocaine, or overeating. This online journal touches all bases so you can learn more about why you can’t refrain from your addiction or why you never developed one.
- PscyhCentral Internet Addiction Guide: This one-page guide offers many resources on Internet addiction, including opinions on whether an Internet Addiction Test is valid or not.
- Psychology Today Addiction Center: This online treatment center deals with addictions that range from alcohol abuse to sex and love. Learn the signs and symptoms that lead to full-blown addictions.
- The New Science of Addiction: Although the science of addiction isn’t new, the information about how people become addicted to certain objects and actions is constantly under scrutiny. From this line of study, it appears that genetics may have something to do with addictive behaviors. Find out more about this line of thinking at this site.
- The Work Addiction Syndrome: Never mind being addicted to the Internet. What if you’re addicted to work in general? What a ghastly thought! This article lays out some parameters that define the workaholic.
- Tobacco Addiction: If you can smoke at work (and if you work at home you might), you can see the damage that tobacco does to your body if you look inside your computer’s tower. The works inside will covered with a sticky brown substance that will slow it down or kill it completely. This report goes further, as it explains precisely what tobacco does, and how a smoker can find help to kick the habit.
- Workaholics Anonymous: Here’s one self-help solution for the person who’s addicted to work. Meetings aren’t available in all states, but you can contact them to find someone that can help you get on the road to recovery.
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Carpal Tunnel
Do you have carpal tunnel syndrome? Are you sure? If you have this ailment, do you know how to alleviate the pain? If you’re not afflicted, do you know how to prevent it? The following sites may point you in the right direction to answer these carpal tunnel questions:
- Mayo Clinic’s Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: This site explains carpal tunnel syndrome, its symptoms, treatments and prevention in an easy-to-understand tutorial.
- MedlinePlus’s Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: MedlinePlus provides a resource-heavy explanation about carpal tunnel, including tutorials in Spanish.
- Carpal Tunnel Exercises: This is a very simple site that holds an exercise you can do to help prevent and ease the pain of carpal tunnel syndrome.
- Carpal Tunnel Surgery: WebMD offers a concise explanation of what you might go through if you choose surgery to relieve your carpal tunnel syndrome.
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome & Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome: Learn more about what carpal tunnel is and isn’t all about from MedicineNet.
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Fact Sheet: “You’re working at your desk, trying to ignore the tingling or numbness you’ve had for months in your hand and wrist. Suddenly, a sharp, piercing pain shoots through the wrist and up your arm…” Although this page begins like a novel, their information about how to avoid this problem and how to treat it is factual.
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Diabetes
You may not have diabetes now. But, if you sit in front of a computer all day, don’t exercise, overeat or eat incorrectly and if you have a family history of diabetes, you may meet this disease head on sooner than later. Although diabetes has, historically, developed in people over age forty, it is increasing among younger adults and in adolescents. For your information, the type of diabetes that most inactive and/or overweight people develop is Type II.
- American Diabetes Association: This is your first stop to learn more about how to treat diabetes and, most importantly, to learn how to avoid it. For instance, the tips on what to eat and how to exercise represent healthy choices even for healthy individuals..
- Diabetes at Work: This site focuses on the impact of diabetes in the workplace. Even if you’re self-employed, you might find information here to help you to avoid or to manage this disease.
- Diabetes Public Health Resource: This site offers information for the public and for professionals about diabetes, including research, statistics, and educational publications.
- dLife: This site focuses solely on what it’s like to live with diabetes, both at home and at work. You can learn about both types of diabetes along with blood sugar management, food and nutrition, and receive support and inspiration from other diabetics.
- National Diabetes Education Program: This site offers solutions on how to prevent or delay Type II diabetes as well as information on how to treat it.
- National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse: Discover information about diabetes, treatments, complications and more at this easy-to-use site.
- WebMD Diabetes Health Center: Another great site that provides overall information and specifics for each type of known diabetes.
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Dieting
Sitting in front of a computer all day can lead to an urge to eat and drink far too much. Before you know it, you can’t sit in front of that monitor without something in your mouth. This is called “developing a bad habit,” a learning behavior that can harm you if you don’t nip it in the bud. Additionally, a sedentary lifestyle can affect your metabolism, which can also affect your weight. The following sites and programs can get you back on track with a balanced diet and lifestyle. Be careful about using diet plans that bring the food to your door - you could become addicted to these programs because they’re just too easy to use…
- 6 Ways To Improve Your Diet At Work: No matter if you work at home or in an office, this list contains some simple tips you can use to help you maintain that diet at work.
- Dieting and Metabolism: Unfortunately, you cannot count calories and expect to lose weight. You also need to get active. Renee Cloe, a personal trainer, explains the rationale behind the metabolism mystery.
- Dieting Calculator: First, you need to determine if you’re really overweight or if you just need to exercise. This calculator will help you determine your caloric intake and shows parameters for various lifestyles.
- Fad Diet: “Dispensing horrible advice since 1998!” Being overweight is a problem for your health, but get over it - you can laugh about your current situation, because it’s reversible if you work at it. This site will help with the laughter part, as sometimes laughter is…well, sure…the best medicine.
- Free Dieting: Outside of offering tons of tips about dieting, this site’s main contribution is the comparison of free diet plans both on the Internet and through books.
- Jenny Craig: If you want to learn how to portion your food, this is one way to begin your lessons. The food is mainly wheat-based, however, so if you’re allergic to wheat or if you’re a celiac, then you dare not try this program. Otherwise, try their low-calorie chocolate cheesecake for desert!
- Nutrisystem: This eating plan is different than Jenny Craig in that Nutrisystem don’t focus on females and they offer a wider variety of eating plans. For instance, they offer a male diabetic plan and a vegetarian option for both genders. Many foods in this plan also do not contain gluten (or wheat). Once again, the idea behind this systematic approach to eating is to re-learn how to eat and to learn correct portion sizes.
- The Calorie Counter: This tool provides one way to count your daily caloric intake. The chart is easy to read and the different types of food contained in this database is amazing. You don’t need to register to use this tool.
- Tips for a Healthy Diet: If you ever wanted all the basic diet information you’d ever need on one Web page, this is it. Take a look around the site, however, to find more interesting information about emotional and physical health and well being.
- Weight Loss, Dieting, and Obesity: This site seems outdated, but the links aren’t. The information gathered here can help you make an intelligent choice about the type of diet you might need along with information about other factors that may lead to weight gain.
- Weight Watchers: Turn your food into points and make a game out of losing weight. The difference between this plan and other plans is that there is no prepackaged food and you attend meetings. Some experts have claimed that the meetings are what work for this program, as they provide motivation. With that said, if you’re shy or if you’re bogged down with work, you can do the Weight Watchers Online program.
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Eating Disorders
Some weight issues may not be physical in origin. If you have developed an eating disorder thanks to emotional issues, then some of these sites may help you out.
- Anorexics and Bulimics Anonymous: The people drawn to this group of individuals want to gain “sobriety” in eating practices and help others to gain a foothold in ’sober eating’ as well. “The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop unhealthy eating practices.”
- Eating Disorders: The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) provides a one-page rundown on eating disorders that’s easy to understand. This is a ’starting point’ for anyone who is unfamiliar with eating problems.
- Finding Balance: This is the first video-on-demand Web site that deals with eating problems and body image issues. Visitors can interact with this site through self-tests and find more information through books, links, and their panel experts.
- In Memory of Polly Williams: If you don’t think eating disorders can lead to death, think again. Polly Williams, made famous from her appearance in Lauren Greenfield’s Emmy-nominated documentary Thin, died from an overdose of sleeping pills on February 8, 2008. At age 33, she could no longer deal with a life filled with anxiety over her eating disorders. A study has shown that depression that stems from eating disorders can be deadly, especially for women.
- National Eating Disorders Association: NEDA is dedicated to expanding public understanding about eating disorders and promoting access to education, advocacy and research. Their hope is to help prevent some eating disorders while offering solutions for other eating problems.
- Overeaters Anonymous: While many folks who join this effort may not have eating disorders, many individuals who develop problems seek help through this organization, which is based upon the original 12-Step program for recovery.
- Something Fishy: This Web site is dedicated totally to eating disorders. The materials on this site emphasize that eating disorders are not about food and weight, but symptoms of something deeper going on inside the individual. Although this site was initiated by a working couple, they recently have relinquished ownership to CRC Health Group, an organization that deals with eating disorders.
- Women’s Health Eating Disorders: This information is from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health. They list the various types of eating disorders along with symptoms and offer resources through links at the end of the article.
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Emotional Problems
If your job promotes isolation in a cubicle at a busy office or at home, it may not take long for you to develop some emotional issues. If you’re naturally shy, isolation will enhance that shyness. If you tend to become depressed, isolation may enhance that problem. Even if you’re surrounded by people at work, chances are you seldom share those inner fears. Too much disclosure can harm a career, after all. And, if you lose your job (like many techies did following the 2001 dot com bust), the emotional issues can be rife. The following sites contain information about a variety of emotional problems, how they might originate, how they progress, and what you can do to help yourself (or others).
- Depressed Anonymous: This site is older, but it seems that the links are in working order. Based upon the 12-Step recovery program, DA brings information about local groups where you can meet (and still remain anonymous if you want), online information about depression, and more. Their philosophy is that mutual aid empowers people and that it’s a therapeutic healing force.
- Depression.com: You know you can’t simply “snap out of it” when you’re truly depressed. And, while most of the symptoms are easily diagnosed - even by the sufferer - the recovery isn’t that simple. Some depressions are thought-induced and others may have physical origins. This site will help you understand depression and help you find help.
- Dual Recovery Anonymous: You may have been diagnosed with “co-morbidity, co-occurring illnesses, concurrent disorders, comorbid disorders, co-occurring disorder, or dual disorder,” but basically what you’re dealing with is “double trouble.” In this case, a simple 12-Step recovery program is just one part of your self-help process. This site will lead you to more ways to cope with ongoing emotional issues.
- Emotions Anonymous: EA is another self-help group that focuses on 12-Step recovery, but their mission is to deal with a range of emotions, not just depression. If you have to ask about other emotions, try anger, broken or strained relationships, grief, anxiety, low self-esteem, panic, abnormal fears, resentment, jealousy, guilt, despair, fatigue, tension, boredom, loneliness, withdrawal, obsessive and negative thinking, worry, and compulsive behavior just to name a few.
- Emotional Health Anonymous: If you feel the previous two groups won’t work, try this one. The bonus to this site is that they lay out the twelve steps, their mission, and their activities in an easy-to-read format. They’re very specific about dealing with emotional issues that aren’t related to substance abuse.
- National Alliance on Mental Illness: If you know you have an emotional problem, but you can’t seem to nail the symptoms to a disease, then visit this site. NAMI defines a broad range of emotional disorders and provides information on how to get professional help or directions on how to obtain self help.
- Obsessive Compulsive Foundation: This foundation deals specifically with people who develop obsessive-compulsive disorders and the emotional issues that surround recurrent, unwelcome thoughts and behaviors. If you suffer from these afflictions, you’re not alone. One in 40 adults and one in 200 children suffer from OCD at some point in their lives. This means that at any one time in the United States, at least 5 million people experience OCD symptoms (which include nail biting!).
- Shake Your Shyness: Did you know that some celebrities fight shyness? And you thought you were special! In reality, nearly fifty percent of the adult population in the U.S. is believed to be shy and shyness is on the increase at the rate of approximately ten percent over the last decade or so. Does the onset of the computer age have anything to do with this increase? We don’t know the answer, but this site may provide clues along with some sane advice and links to a multitude of other sites that zone in on shyness.
- Social Anxiety Support: SAS deals with social anxiety, a problem that’s a tad more severe than run-of-the-mill shyness. SAS provides a place where people who develop social phobias can learn how to reconnect with others. So, if you feel that you may be judged, scrutinized or humiliated by others and this feeling has led to total isolation in your social and work life, then visit this site to learn more about your real and imagined fears.
- Wrong Diagnosis: If you visited the previous sites, be aware that self-diagnosis is a risky venture. You may think you’re depressed when you really have problems with an inactive thyroid - or visa-versa. This site will help you either relieve some of your worries or point you in a more refined direction. And, as with any other problem that affects your physical or emotional health, you might use self diagnosis as a stepping stone and then visit a professional for the final word.
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Ergonomics
If you sit in front of a computer all day long, you may develop joint and muscle problems, back pain, posture problems and more. The following sites explain the issues and offer solutions.
- Computer Posture: Are You Sitting Comfortably?: This one-page informational sheet contains photos that illustrate correct and incorrect computer posture as well as links to more information about ergonomics.
- Ergonomics.org: This site is dedicated to the exchange of information between the fields of ergonomics and the Alexander Technique. The latter program deals with all issues surrounding the lack of healthy work situations.
- Guidelines to Improve Posture: Spine-health.com provides information on how to improve your posture in front of the computer. You can also snag some tips on best posture stances while walking, driving, standing and more.
- Improve Your ‘Hunched over the PC’ Posture’: The Dumb Little Man brings ways to improve the stress of sitting in front of the computer all day. Although these exercises won’t improve your posture, they will help to relax and energize you and make you more aware of your posture as you continue to work.
- Office Ergonomics Training: This site contains office ergonomics information aimed at ergonomics committee members as well as office workers in general. Learn ergonomic tips and tools that will make your Webmaster’s job much more comfortable.
- Posture for a Healthy Back: This one-page article details how to improve the chances to develop and maintain a healthy back. We like the image of the guy in the car, a drawing that looks somewhat like a young Jay Leno.
- Safe Computing Tips: This site is dedicated to safe computing and focuses on providing information about office furniture that will help your physical health and safety.
- Seated Posture Tips: ErgoSum Consulting provides tips and images to show you how to sit in that office chair correctly. You’ll learn that it’s not healthy to “sit up straight,” but that it’s better to support that lumbar region. Otherwise, you’ll end up in a great deal of pain.
- Three Simple Exercises to Improve Posture: St. Luke’s in Iowa offers three simple exercises that you can do at home or in a work cubicle to improve your posture.
- U.S. Department of Labor Ergonomics: Most of the information at this site is based upon OSHA (Occupational and Safety Health Administration) research and solutions about ergonomics. It’s probably one of the most comprehensive sites around on ergonomics, especially in the workplace.
- Workstation Setup: This site provides a step-by-step overview on how to set up an ergonomic workstation. The online exercise that teaches ergonomic essentials will take about 45 minutes to absorb. This is a fairly easy-to-use yet comprehensive self-help tool that may prevent physical injury down the road, no matter if you work in an office or at home.
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Exercise
Ever hear of a Webmaster who won the triathlon? We didn’t think so. Webmasters can develop serious health problems from inactivity, but you don’t need to practice for serious competitions to get in shape. If you take fifteen to thirty minutes a day to exercise, your health benefits will increase dramatically. In addition, lack of exercise can ‘muddy’ the brain. So, take a walk or do a few stretches in the office to wake up that grey matter and to keep your metabolism running strong.
- 15 Minute Travel Workout: Even if you never travel, this exercise routine is great for folks who don’t own exercise equipment. The animations show you what to do and the written instructions tell you how often to do each set.
- Core Exercises: If you don’t know about core exercises, CNN’s Health Library contains some information that will help you along. Just remember that the core includes your back, not just your abs. You need strong stomach and back muscles to truly balance that core. Their link will take you to the Mayo Clinic, where you’ll find photographs that illustrate top core exercises you can do just about anywhere but the mall or a busy parking lot.
- Dr. Kravitz Travel Workout: Here’s another workout that doesn’t need equipment and that will provide some variety to the first routine listed above.
- Easy Cardio At Home Workout Tips: This short list of easy ways to develop a cardio routine at home is ideal for the person who works out of a home office and who has space for some exercise equipment. Some of these ideas are ideal for the public office, too, as long as you have access to equipment such as treadmills.
- Exercise for Weight Loss: The Mayo Clinic provides a concise guide on how many calories you can burn during your lunch hour or in that hour after work and before dinner. If you don’t have an hour, the Mayo Clinic doesn’t give up on you. They also provide an article entitled, “Aerobic exercise: What 30 minutes a day can do.” and another one entitled, ” How to Burn Calories While You Work.”
- Fitness 101: The Absolute Beginner’s Guide to Exercise: MedicineNet provides beginners with advice and tools to begin an exercise program. You might read this before you go to the gym or hire a personal trainer so you can at least appear somewhat knowledgeable about what you’re getting into.
- How to do Office Yoga: In these free videos you can learn simple techniques for yoga stretching that you can do in confined spaces.
- Learn to Dance: So what if your legs turn to water when you’re in public? You don’t have to speak, because you can learn to dance! Dancing burns calories, it’s fun, and you may meet that special geek while you burn up the dance floor. This site provides online lessons, an inexpensive DVD, and a dance directory to discover whether you live near a studio or not. Better yet, you can Bust a Move or you can learn how to dance with Napolean Dynamite (flippin’ sweet!).
- Office Workout: About.com provides some simple exercises you can do at your desk. Although these exercises may not help you lose weight, they’ll boost your metabolism, help your posture, and keep you on your toes!
- Personalized Online Fitness Training: Unsure about where to begin with your fitness program? Well, you can begin by walking more, but if you’re serious about developing a set of Webmaster abs, then you might try help from these folks.
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Self Help
All the twelve step programs listed above are geared toward emotional and psychological self help. The programs listed below also focus on self help, but from a physical perspective. We didn’t say that self-help was free, however. Some of the sites below offer help for a price, but the prices we viewed were very tolerable considering the alternatives (personal trainer fees, etc.).
- Calorie-Count: Register to use this site sponsored by About.com. Look up foods on your phone, learn how to burn calories, and create a diet that fits your lifestyle. The only thing Calorie-Count can’t do is make you stick to your new routine.
- Diet and Fitness Today: An online resource for diet and fitness including weight loss, low fat recipes, vitamins and minerals, nutrition, health and fitness. You also have access to health calculators, a special body fat percentage section to estimate your body fat based on bmi, skinfolds or body dimensions. They also have a new section devoted to fitness vacations.
- Diet.com: It never hurts to tap into as many “diet” self-help Web sites as possible before you jump into a regular self-help routine. This site is the first we’ve seen that addresses the issue about people who may not want to be thin - being overweight does have its advantages, after all. You can hide behind fat, use it as an excuse to avoid public outings, etc. Other topics covered here include fitness and you have access to forums, recipes, challenges, and more.
- Dr. Weil: Talk about a geek leading the geeks…this is a perfect place for Webmasters to learn certain life skills. Dr. Weil promotes a lifestyle that incorporates both eastern and western medicines and practices. This site covers everything from learning how to breathe correctly to eating right and to news about supplements that will help fill in the rough spots.
- eDiets: Although this site focuses more on diets than on fitness, the activity angle is here along with ways to build a diet for your lifestyle. Once again, this is a diet that includes food delivered to your door. If you work at home and find little time to take care of yourself, this is one way to kickstart your get-well routine. This site combines all the best of Weight Watchers (weekly online meetings), SparkPeople forums and discussions (see below), and the food delivery weight loss system. You can choose among diabetic plans and wheat-free plans as well.
- FatSecret: Well, it’s not a secret, really. But, these folks may unlock the help you need to feel better about your self image and to gain better health. You can browse around before you register, and this site is not affiliated with any diets or diet companies that are referenced on the site. Everything is free, so this is a great place to begin to learn what your motivations are and the level of commitment you’re willing to provide for yourself.
- SparkPeople: If you’re a woman you may feel totally at home here, although this site doesn’t discriminate. It just seems that more women have found this place as a means to help them get and stay in shape. You can build menus or have them built for you, including calorie counts and information on how to quickly burn those calories. Register to gain access to forums and more to help build your physical fitness support group.
- Fitness.com: This global fitness community offers forums, recipes, reviews on fitness equipment as well as equipment for sale and more. Register to use the “MyFitHome” tools to help you gain and maintain a healthy lifestyle.
- FitDay: Use the free online journal to keep track of calories and keep track of weight loss goals. If you like their free version, the download version is inexpensive and integrates with your computer system.
- Revolution Health: Revolution Health is one of the few sites that addresses both physical and mental health. This is a portal that provides online tools and calculators, fitness articles and videos, and food and nutrition information. If you’re courting diabetes, they address this issue. If you worry too much, you can find information about that problem as well.
- WebMD: Yes, you can learn about all sorts of illnesses here, but you can also develop a health and fitness program through their Fitness 101 offerings. This site provides information from mild diets and walking to extreme fitness and strength training. Best of all, it’s free.
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Sexual Issues
Whether you have a healthy sex life or not is up to you to decide. Many people don’t realize that their sexual problems are, indeed, problems until someone else breaks the news. On the other hand, you may believe you have sexual issues, and these issues may be real or imagined. Either way, the following Web sites will help you learn more about your problems and lead you to groups, online forums, and more to get on the road to better and healthier sex life.
- HIV Anonymous: HIV Anonymous is run by the HIV Anonymous World Service Organization (HIVAWSO). Their goal is to assist people with HIV or AIDS and their loved ones in taking control of their spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional health by providing current, comprehensive information in one source. They are a touchstone for HIV support groups, patients, and organizations through a volunteer network.
- No-Porn.com: This site has helped men and women from all backgrounds to recover from pornography addiction since 1997. They utilize hypnosis among other tools to help individuals break the porn bond. Unfortunately, there are few other recovery efforts online, but tons of information from Christian-based organizations, government studies, and news stories. Simply type, “Pornography addiction” into any search engine to learn more.
- Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous: Like AA, this program’s recovery efforts are based upon a 12-Step recovery program. So, if you’re addicted to love or if you’re obsessed with sex and both issues are clouding your judgment and hurting a career, you might want to stop into this site and say “hi.”
- Sexaholics Anonymous: “The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop lusting and become sexually sober.” If you answered, “yes,” to one or more of these twelve questions, you may need Sexaholics Anonymous. This site hosts information for anyone who thinks that sex is disrupting his or her life.
- Sexual Conditions Health Center: Not all sexual issues are caused by psychological problems or by previous traumas. Sometimes, just day-to-day stress will mess up a good thing. WebMD provides a comprehensive overview on sexual health, and helps individuals define what “healthy” conditions really mean.
- Sexual Compulsives Anonymous: You probably figured by now that anytime you see the word, “anonymous,” you’re dealing with a self-help 12-Step recovery program. It’s no different here, but the topic is far different…the people who visit this site want to stop having compulsive sex.
- Survivors of Incest Anonymous: Children harbor healthy, natural needs for love, attention and acceptance, and they often paid high prices to get those needs met. This site is intended as a serious resource for survivors of incest and child sexual abuse. It’s based upon the 12-Step recovery program, and it contains localized and global resources.
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Stress
If you don’t know it already, you might want to know that work-related stress can kill you. But, then again, that news might add more stress to your life. But, any major life changes also add stress. We’ve lined up some resources below that will explain stress in all forms and solutions for relieving some of that anxiety, both physically and emotionally.
- Human Resources: This About.com site deals with human resources issues, including sress in the workplace. The ‘related topics’ below this article will lead you to more resources about this issue.
- Major Life Changes: This list is a handy tool to keep available at all times. Anytime you’re faced with major changes, you experience physical and emotional stress. This list will help you make choices about how many stressful situations you’re willing to juggle at one time. For instance, if you’re expecting a child, it might not be the best time to consider relocation, a new job, or decide to head back for that college degree.
- Major Life Change: Chaos Could Be a Good Sign: Although this article is brief and to-the-point, life coach Laura Young looks at the positive side of stress. When you deal with crises (we mean multiples), you can develop inner strength and confidence in your abilities. Read on to learn more positives!
- Stress at Work: NIOSH (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) provides a comprehensive yet concise list of tools and information where you can learn all angles about work-related stress and relief from that stress.
- Stress Management: This is another About.com site that focuses on stress management in all areas of life. This is one of the most comprehensive sites we’ve encountered on this topic, as it provides a blog, articles, and tools to help recognize and deal with stress issues.
- Stress Relief: Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, visualization, progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, and yoga can help you activate this relaxation response to stress. This site shows you how to plan for and achieve a level of relaxation that may help you to cope with everyday stress triggers.
- Stress Relief Exercises: Unlike exercises for physical strength, these tools will help you learn how to relax so you don’t hurt your body or shorten your lifespan.
- Top 10 Steps to Making Life Changes: This PDF file was created by life coach Steve Davis, and he provides some sound advice on how to alleviate many stressful situations. For instance, if the bank forecloses on your apartment building, the stress won’t be half as bad on you if you have money set aside to handle a blow like this.
- Work-Related Stress: Health & Safety Executive (HSE) provides a four-pronged approach to work-related stress. Learn how to ‘tackle’ stress, about management’s role in this issue, about ‘good practices,’ and advice for individuals.
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