Some students turn to alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs to cope with their distress. Others use food to relieve stress symptoms, and this can result in weight gain which could cause further stress. The eventual consequence might be an eating disorder.

Your body usually gives you signals when there is too much stress in your life. When your breath becomes irregular and flat, you have difficulty in focusing, and you can’t think clearly or positively anymore. These are sure signs you are suffering from negative stress. If you don’t calm down and relax, you will suffer a nervous breakdown or some other psychosomatic illnesses.

There are various relaxation techniques and exercises that can help you relieve your stress. You can do them at home in your room or you can go to the regular meetings of the MindBody Central Club, a registered student organization at HPU. The group usually meets on the beach or in a park to do all kinds of different exercises that help maintain balance: meditations, sensitivity exercises, and breathing exercises like Pranayama, a yogic breathing technique. It is often practiced prior to yoga or meditation to help clear the body and mind of stress and to focus perception and concentration.

You can join the club whether you are already an expert in this field or a beginner. New ideas are as welcome as classical ones.

If you are interested in learning more about relaxation and would like to experience the comfort of group activities, e-mail club President Devashish Sharma for the next meeting time at dsharma@campus.hpu.edu.