双语阅读：平息怒气简单的四招

摘要：你可能从来没有坐在懒人沙发上发飙过，这是有原因的。“我们的大脑逐渐习惯于将坐卧的姿势和放松的感觉联系在一起。”

Don't be an angry bird: Find out how a chair, a pairof sunglasses and other items can hold unexpectedpromise for taming your temper.

1.Take A Seat -- Right Now

别做愤怒的小鸟：看看一把椅子、一副太阳眼镜和别的东西对于平息怒气有什么意想不到的效果吧。

坐下来——就现在

平息怒气简单的四招

There's a reason you've probably never gotten into a screaming match from a beanbag chair. "Over time, our brains become conditioned to associate sitting and lying down with feelingrelaxed," says W. Robert Nay, PhD, a clinical associate professor of psychiatry atGeorgetown Medical School. That's why it's so easy to pass out on an airplane, even when youdidn't think you were tired. From an evolutionary perspective, the brain is hardwired toassociate an upright position with threat: When you're standing and arguing, adrenaline andthe stress hormone cortisol start coursing in an effort to help you flee and the next thing youknow, your heart is racing, your voice is rising, and you're suddenly a crazy angry person.Sitting down, Nay says, sends a message of safety and security to your brain. "No organismon earth sits back when threatened," he explains. So the next time a conversation starts tomake your blood boil, pull up a chair and take a load off.

你可能从来没有坐在懒人沙发上发飙过，这是有原因的。“我们的大脑逐渐习惯于将坐卧的姿势和放松的感觉联系在一起。”乔治敦医学院精神病学临床副教授W. Robert Nay如是说。这就是为什么即使不觉得累，在飞机上还是那么容易睡过去。从进化的角度看，大脑必然将直立的姿态同威胁联系在一起：站着和别人争论的时候，肾上腺素和应激激素皮质醇就开始想办法让你逃离，然后，你懂的，心跳加速，嗓音拔高，你一下子就变得疯狂暴躁。坐下来，W. Robert Nay说，告诉大脑你很安全。“世界上没有任何一种生物受到威胁的时候会坐回去。”他解释道。所以下次聊着聊着心头火气的时候就拉过一把椅子，坐下来卸载怒气吧。

2.Don't Get Mad, Get Organized

凡事预则立，不预则抓狂

A study of nearly 11,000 subjects in 42 countries about to be presented at the WesternPsychological Association in Portland, Oregon, found that the key to reining in anger ispreventing it in the first place. The research, conducted at the University of the South Pacific onlaidback Fiji, surprised us. But the study's authors say simple steps like maintaining an updatedto-do list or spending a few minutes every morning to map out your day will go far in loweringanger and anxiety levels. The theory: Effective time management keeps you on track,circumventing stress.

俄勒冈州波特兰市的西方心理学协会即将发表一项研究，采访了42个国家11000人，发现抑制怒气最的关键在于事先防御。这项在悠闲从容的斐济的南太平洋大学进行的研究结果出乎我们的意料。论文作者说，一些很简单的事情，像是时时更新待办事项列表，或是每天早上花很短的时间来制定一天的计划就能够非常有效地降低愤怒和焦虑的水平。研究认为，有效的时间管理使你井井有条，远离压力。

3.Keep Your Cool With A Pair Of Shades

戴上墨镜，保持冷静

Research published this year in the journal Cognition& Emotion found that when peoplewalk in direct sun sans sunglasses, the light-induced frowning actually causes them to feelP.O.'d. Although most beachcombers reported being unaffected by all that squinting, thosewho were asked to walk unshaded against the rays (as opposed to with the sun at their backs)had increased aggressiveness scores on subsequent tests. Simply looking angry translates intofeeling that way, too. Study co-author Daniele Marzoli, PhD, suggests seeking shade duringheated exchanges: "Compared to indoor conversations, outdoor conversations could lead tomore hostile interactions because of the anger-intensifying effects of the sun's glare." Or useit as an excuse to don your new pair of aviators -- you might just ground an altercation beforeit takes off.

今年《认知与情感》杂志发表的研究发现，人们不戴墨镜走在直射的阳光下时，因为强光而皱起眉头感觉其实挺不爽的。尽管沙滩上大多数人表示眯着眼睛也没什么影响，但是叫他们直接走在大太阳下(而不是背朝着太阳)，在随后的测试中表现出了更强的攻击性。做出不高兴的样子真的会让人不高兴。论文的共同作者DanieleMarzoli博士建议在高温下交换意见时尽量找点荫头：“和室内交谈相比，室外交谈可能导致更多带有敌意的互动，因为阳光会使怒气更盛。”你也可以趁着这个机会戴上你新买的飞行员墨镜——可别还没起飞就吵起来了。

4. Tame PMS Fury With A Paella Recipe

常备肉菜饭食谱，专治经前暴躁

When women struggling with the tension, irritability and mood swings of PMS were givencapsules containing either saffron or a placebo twice a day for two menstrual cycles, those inthe saffron group saw their symptoms drop significantly, even within the first cycle. The carrot-hued spice -- a key ingredient in Spanish paella -- has been used since ancient times to treateverything from depression to upset bellies. Schedule a weekly tapas night for a potentialsubtle boost or talk to your doctor about trying a supplement. Más delicioso: One of paella'sstar ingredients is seafood, and omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to slash PMS symptoms-- not just the mental effects, like anxiety and poor concentration, but bloating, headacheand breast tenderness, too.

如果一个女人连续两个月经周期饱受经前综合征的折磨，紧张、烦躁、情绪不稳，每天吃两次含藏红花或安慰剂的胶囊，发现红花类的药物能够明显缓和症状，其实在第一个周期就能见效。胡萝卜色调的香料是西班牙肉菜饭不可缺少的成分，自古以来就包治百病，无论是抑郁烦闷低落沮丧还是肚子不舒服都可以治。每周安排一次小吃之夜，说不定不知不觉间就会有所改善，或是让医生给你开一点也行。美味小贴士：肉菜饭里最受欢迎的食材是海鲜，ω-3脂肪酸也能减轻经前综合征的症状——不只是心理方面的症状，像焦虑、思想不集中，还能缓解腹胀、头痛、乳房肿胀。

解压--轻松过好每一天

While explaining stress management to an audience, the lecturer raised a glass of water and asked ‘How heavy is this glass of water?’ Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.

The lecturer replied, “The absolute weight doesn’t matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it. If I hold it for a minute, that’s not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you’ll have to call an ambulance. In each case, it’s the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.”

He continued, “And that’s the way it is with stress management. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won’t be able to carry on.”

“As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we’re refreshed, we can carry on with the burden.”

“So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down. Don’t carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you’re carrying now, let them down for a moment if you can.”

Here are 5 simple ways to increase your peace of mind:

1. Do your most daunting task first thing in the morning

It’s tempting to start your day with easy tasks. Don’t. Pushing a daunting task back is like holding a glass of water in an outstretched arm. At first nothing happens, but if you do it for hours or even days, you will soon feel the stress. Do the most annoying task first thing in the morning, and enjoy increased productivity and peace of mind for the rest of the day.

2. Let go of things you don’t control

You make plans to go outside with friends. But at the last minute, it starts raining. What’s your reaction?

Some people upset and angry, and find the nearest person and start complaining to them. “It’s not FAIR that it’s raining. This _always_ happens to me!…”

That’s not going to accomplish anything - the rain won’t stop just because you throw a tantrum. *The rain doesn’t care.* So make the best of the situation. What I do in such situation is go for a quick walk in the park (because rain has its own awesomeness), or just lie in bed reading a good Terry Pratchett book, listening to the rain beating on my window.

Make the most of what you do control, and don’t worry about what you don’t.

3. Don’t worry about what others are thinking

I used to be very self-conscious about my dancing. I would rarely go out with my friends, and even if I did, I wouldn’t dance, instead just standing awkwardly by the side, because I was worried of what others would think.

Then, one day in high school, I decided that enough was enough. So the next time I went out with my friends, I just went to the dance floor, and danced like nobody was watching. And the funny thing was - nobody cared. In fact, people only liked me MORE, because I was having fun.

Don’t worry about what others are thinking of you - most likely they’re too busy wondering what others are thinking of them.

4. List 3 things you love about your situation right now

I first shared this technique with the Positivity Blog readers in my post The Plague of Happiness Ever After (it’s got a dragon and everything in it, read it!)

Just list 3 simple things about any part of your life that you love. Like “3 simple things I love about the room I’m in right now”, or “3 simple things I love about this week”, or anything else.

This is a great technique if you’re ever bored while stuck in traffic, or waiting in the grocery store checkout lane. You can immediately transform boredom into happiness and peace of mind!

5. Walk to a window, look outside, and take a single deep breath

I got this technique from the Zen master Mary Jaksch. Just walk to a window, look outside, and then take a single deep breath, focusing only on that breath and nothing else in the whole world. This technique sounds extremely simple, but you won’t believe how much it can instantaneously increase your peace of mind.

And because this is the last tip, you can try it immediately when you finish reading this blog post. Just walk to a window, look outside, and take a single deep breath, focusing on the air going in and out of your lungs, and nothing else.