Nurse gives students tips for stress relief
by Tori Wilson, Reporter

   Because life is a series of changes, stress is inescapable, the South Campus nurse said recently.
   More than 45 people attended Laughing Your Way Through Stress, forcing audience members to pull chairs from other rooms to have a place to sit. Flo Stanton, coordinator of health services, showed students and community members ways to deal with stress.
   “Use positive self talk; it might not always be easy, but it is possible.” she said.
   According to Stanton, stress can be harmful to the body. When something scares or surprises a person, she said, adrenaline rushes through him.
   “Stress is becoming a way of life,” she said.
   When a person is stressed, Stanton said, adrenaline continuously rushes through his body, and it can cause damage to the body.
   According to Stanton, many people are tense and stressed every day.
   Stanton also discussed stress management, pointing out that people should learn coping skills and get emotional support.
   “Studies have shown that women who had breast cancer and received support lived longer than those who didn’t,” she said.
   Laughter was the main focus of Stanton’s presentation.
   “Has anybody ever laughed so hard you wet your pants?” she asked. “Has anybody here laughed so hard that you fell out of a chair?”
   Hearing those two questions made some audience members giggle. Stanton pointed out that laughing relaxes the muscles, and if muscles are relaxed, it is hard for someone to be stressed.
   One audience member said she agreed with Stanton, but sometimes when certain things are happening, she said it feels wrong to laugh.
   “We’re often programmed that when things are stressful there’s no room for laughter,” Stanton explained.
   Stanton cited examples of times when it is inappropriate to laugh. Audience members gave examples such as disability and someone falling and getting hurt. She then asked the audience if they had ever heard someone say “Wipe that smile off of your face.”
   Stanton said people learn their sense of humor from family and surroundings.
   “Social pressure tells us we can laugh; we are programmed that way from childhood,” she said.
   “Laughter helps to put things [life] into perspective,” she concluded.