Dealing with Stress at the Computer Pt.III

Sitting in front of the computer for extended hours can easily lead to muscular
cramps and soreness. An excellent way to relieve your muscles of excess tension
is to put together a mini yoga routine that you can use when you feel the need
to loosen your muscles. Or if yoga is not your thing, you can search the Web
for a quick five- or ten-minute flexibility routine that has been tailored
toward the office worker. For some of these routines, you can remain in your
chair throughout!

We have just spoken of a couple of ways to minimize stress and tension when
sitting in your room or office all day, but who said you have to sit in your
room or office all day? Technology has advanced to the point where the
combination of a laptop and a wireless Internet connection can allow you to
take your work to the park, the zoo, the beach, or any other location that
offers rich sensory stimuli. One relaxing place in which to work is your local
Starbucks or cafe. These places tend to attract people who are in the same
occupational position as you, and there are plenty of opportunities for
networking, brainstorming, and developing close friendships with like-minded
individuals.

It can be quite lonely working at home if you live by yourself, so one way to
gain a little company is to get a pet. A cat or a small dog that will not tear
up your room is a valuable companion. Studies have shown that pets have a way
of countering human stress. Of course, there are sites online that allow you to
adopt and feed a virtual pet, and you can download widgets for your desktop
that give you a nice little fishbowl to watch. Yes, that is a facetious
suggestion, but finding lighthearted, playful enjoyments online is a terrific
way to ease everyday tension and stress.

In a similar vein, exchanging humorous emails with your friends and keeping an
instant-messaging window open while you work are good ways of achieving relief
from what ails you, provided of course that you do not get too distracted from
your work. People are able to blow off steam in online communication in ways
that face-to-face encounters make awkward, so having a few buddies on your IM
contacts list for the occasional whine is an effective stress-buster. We have
all heard the idea that expressing your troubles is much healthier for the mind
than repressing them.

Having an MP3 playlist with an extensive collection of favorite songs is one of
the common ways to address the tedium that tends to accompany prolonged typing
or reading. Many media players can access streams all around the world and let
you control precisely which genres of music come out of your computer speakers.
Also, there are any number of Internet radio broadcasts in existence, and
tuning your virtual dial to one of these stations can provide you with endless
hours of mental stimulation. Yet another option is to obtain audio books of
your favorite reading material and listen to them while you work. Listening to
motivational material while you work is a great way to program your mind into
staying calm and collected. Indeed, some audio products claim to be able to
change your brain-wave state via binaural sound technology.