Stress-busting strategies
Dr Jamieson recommends some strategies to bust
stress that won’t take you away from your family for
extended periods:
Exercise
• Dads need to carve out time to exercise. Do
something on a regular basis: 20 minutes daily is better
than one hour twice a week. You should do the type of
exercise that leaves you out of breath to be effective.
Quality family time
• It is important to communicate with family. If you’re
travelling, then keep in touch using Skype or the
telephone. This reduces the connective isolation of
being away from loved ones.
Eating right
• A good diet full of green vegetables and no sugar will
give you the hormonal building blocks to calm and relax
the brain. Magnesium and vitamin B supplements will
support and calm the brain and nervous system, as will
essential fatty acids such as fish oil, evening primrose
or flax.
Less multi-tasking
• Our smartphones and instant internet access lead to
more stress. It may seem like a bright time-saving idea,
but doing one thing at a time is better because we make
fewer mistakes and we don’t have to re-do things.
for that in our industry. I focus more
on reading the paper, listening to
music, brewing beer and hiking. Not
all at the same time, however. Also,
now that the warmer months are upon
us, there will be numerous junk trips
and days at the beach to help the mind
and body relax.”
Don’t stop moving
One of the best forms of stress relief
is exercise. It boosts your feel-good
endorphins and distracts you from
the stresses of everyday life, not to
mention its weight loss benefits.
“I find when I do get to the gym
or out for a run, and get through a
decent workout, I feel so much more
relaxed and able to manage the
stress,” says John Fogarty, banking
executive and father of two.
But time-poor Hong Kong dads can
often find it hard to find the time to
exercise. They are in the office early in
the morning and don’t get home until
it is dark, leaving little time to escape
for some physical activity.
“I’ve always worked in fairly
stressful roles and have had to do
some crazy hours sometimes,” says
Fogarty. “Getting out to do some
worthwhile exercise is certainly
getting harder, but I still try to get out
occasionally.”
Access to exercise facilities in
Hong Kong is also a challenge. The
hot, humid days, pollution and heavy
traffic aren’t conducive to active,
outdoor sports.
“Before I moved to Hong Kong
I was cycling a minimum of five
mornings every week and competing
at a relatively high level,” says Rob
Eadon. “It’s just too dangerous to do
that in Hong Kong, so I’ve had to
find other activities to work out some
of the stress.”
Road cycling and gyms aren’t
for everyone, but there are still a
lot of other options for getting some
exercise here.
“I’m not one for the gym so I try
to get out for a short run at least twice
during the week or do some weights,
and at the weekends tend to go for a
two- or three-hour hike or trail run
in the mountains,” says Eadon. “I’m
able to completely zone out when on
the side of a mountain and have a
‘work-free’ mind. Keeping fit is an
important part of my life. There’s
always a way to get some exercise in,
you just have to plan for it.”
June 2015
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