Stress level can be determined from the production of Adrenaline in the body.
The following points further describes how this works in Human:
• Increase in heart rate: You can measure this by placing two fingers on the artery at your wrist or on your neck just below the jaw. Count the pulses while you watch the second hand of your wrist watch. You can count for 15 seconds and multiply by 4 to give you the rate for one minute. The normal rate is between 70 and 75 beats per minute. The resting heart rate is best determined when you are totally relaxed; for example, before getting out of bed in the morning. When you determine this, it will form a baseline against which you can compare the rates at different times of the day
• Increase in blood pressure: The blood pressure helps you to know your overall response to the stress you are experiencing. The heart rate may fluctuate but the blood pressure at the end of the day summarises your response to all the events. The normal blood pressure is between 120/80mmmHg and 140/90mmmHg
• Decrease in size of arteries and capillaries in hands and feet leading to cold hands. You can place your hands on your cheeks; if your cheeks feels colder then you are likely to have adrenaline arousal
• Increase in muscle tension: e.g. tightness in the stomach, discomfort in the chest, twitching in any part of your body, a feeling of tightness in the jaw muscles, sensations in the head above the eyes or towards the back.
The following points would reduce your stress level:
• Conscious relaxation
• Mild exercises especially out-door
• Relax your expectations and try to really enjoy the world around you
• Plan for adequate recovery time immediately after a demanding task
• Force yourself to deliberately slow down. Remind yourself that you are just a tiny element in the whole world. The society may hail you and reward you for being a great achiever but true happiness and long term success come from a balanced life
• You must develop consciousness of your need for rest just as you have developed time consciousness.