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Part 1

The Wellness Mandala:

Holistic Stress Management

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The Nature of Stress

“Tension is 

who you think 

you should be. 

Relaxation is who 

you are.”

— Ancient  Chinese 

 proverb

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retrieval, health care, and dramatic changes in the 

weather are just some of the gale forces blowing in 

our collective faces. By and large, the average person 

doesn’t like change (particularly change they cannot 

control) because change tends to disrupt one’s comfort 

zones. It appears that the “known,” no matter how bad, 

is a safer bet than the unknown. Change, it should be 

noted, has always been part of the human landscape. 

However, today the rate of change has become so fast 

and furious, without an adequate reference point to 

anchor oneself, that stress holds the potential to create 

a perpetual sense of uneasiness in the hearts and minds 

of nearly everyone. Yet it doesn’t have to be this way. 

Where there is change, there is opportunity.

At one time, getting married, changing jobs, buying a 

house, raising children, going back to school, dealing 

with the death of a friend or close relative, and suf-

fering from a chronic illness were all considered to be 

major life events that might shake the foundations of 

anyone’s life. Although these major life events can and 

do play a significant role in personal upheaval, a new 

crop of social stressors has added to the critical mass 

of an already volatile existence, throwing things fur-

ther out of balance. Consider how these factors directly 

influence your life: the rapid acceleration of technology 

(from software upgrades to downloadable apps), the 

use of (if not addiction to) the World Wide Web (e.g., 

Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter), the proliferation of 

smartphones and WiFi use, an accessible 24/7 society, 

global economic woes (e.g., gasoline prices, subprime 

loan foreclosures, rent, food prices), global terrorism, 

carbon footprints, and public health issues from AIDS 

and West Nile virus to the latest outbreak of contagious 

staphylococcus infections. Times of change and uncer-

tainty tend to magnify our personal stress. Perhaps the 

biggest looming concern facing people today is the issue 

of personal boundaries or lack thereof. The advances 

of high technology combined with a rapidly changing 

social structure have eroded personal boundaries. These 

boundaries include, but are not limited to, home and 

work, finances, personal privacy, nutritional habits, rela-

tionships, and many, many more, all of which add to the 

critical mass of one’s personal stress. Even the ongoing 

war on terrorism appears to have no boundaries! Ironi-

cally, the lack of boundaries combined with factors that 

promote a fractured society, where people feel a lack 

of community and belonging, leads to a greater sense 

of isolation and this also intensifies our personal stress 

levels. Believe it or not, life wasn’t always like this.

Are you stressed? If the answer is yes, then consider 

yourself to be in good company. Several recent Harris 

and Gallup polls have noted an alarming trend in the 

psyche of the American public and beyond—to nearly 

all citizens of the global village. Across the board, 

without exception, people admit to having an increasing 

sense of anxiety, frustration, unease, and discontent in 

nearly every aspect of their lives. From the aftermath 

of the Great Recession (and the subsequent economic 

problems) to mounting environmental reminders of an 

unsustainable path of human existence, the face of stress 

can be found just about everywhere. Sadly, episodes of 

suicides, road rage, school shootings, and personal bank-

ruptcies are so common that they no longer are head-

line news. Ironically, in a country where the standard of 

living is considered to be the highest anywhere in the 

world, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 

estimates that nearly one-quarter of the American pop-

ulation is reported to be on antidepressants. Moreover, 

economic difficulties persist from the national home 

foreclosure debacle, and college loan costs continue 

to escalate. Obesity rates continue to rise dramatically, 

and current estimates are that one in three people suf-

fers from a chronic disease, ranging from cancer and 

coronary heart disease to diabetes, lupus, and rheuma-

toid arthritis. For a country with the highest standard of 

living, something is very wrong with this picture!

Furthermore, since the start of the Great Recession, a 

blanket of fear has covered much of the country, if not 

the world, keeping people in a perpetual, albeit low, 

state of anxiety. Global problems only seem to intensify 

our personal stressors. It doesn’t make a difference if 

you’re a college student or a CEO of a multi-national 

corporation, where you live, or how much money is in 

your checking account; stress is the equal opportunity 

destroyer! But it doesn’t have to be this way. Even as 

personal issues collide with social and planetary prob-

lems creating a “perfect storm” of stress, we all have 

choices—in both our attitude and behaviors. This text 

will help you connect the dots between mind, body, 

and spirit to create positive choices that empower you 

to navigate your life through the turbulent waters of 

the human journey in the 21st century.

Times of Change and Uncertainty

Today the words stress and change have become synony-

mous and the winds of change are in the air. Changes in 

the economy, technology, communications, information 

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