Perceived psychosocial benefits associated with perceived restorative potential of wilderness river-rafting trips.

Analysis of the restorative experiences and psychosocial benefits of wilderness river rafting trips of varying difficulty with 186 Canadian participants of different ages supported the restorative potential of natural settings for all age groups as measured by the Perceived Restorativeness Scale. The two-factor structure (General Restorativeness and Coherence) was confirmed. Significant associations were found between scores on the General Restorative subscale and perceived psychosocial benefits (relaxation, nature appreciation or kinship, and physical fitness or achievement) and positive affect. However, the findings associated with the Coherence subscale were not conclusive.

Stress management for nurses: controlling the whirlwind.

This paper proposes that nurses can manage stress in their lives through a well-integrated, flexible program. A person's stress reaction is compared to a whirlwind, with negative outcomes that may vary from mild to devastating. The emphasis here is that these negative consequences can be minimized by applying different levels of intervention strategies to each phase in the progression of the stress reaction. A variety of strategies for coping with stress are presented here from which a person may select and build a personal repertoire of interventions for stress management.

[Biofeedback and relaxation for patients with hypertension]. / Biofeedback et relaxation pour les hypertendus.

We have known for decades that essential hypertension significantly contributes to many physical diseases. In most cases, hypertension results from a person's perception of stress producing events or situations. According to Greenberg, when a person is confronted by a situation or an event, the person must perceive it as either positively or negatively stressful. If it is perceived as positively stressful, a series of psychological reactions are incurred followed by physiological reactions. If these psychophysiological manifestations persist, the person is then faced with possible pathological conditions. This study attempted to support the hypothesis that people with hypertension should be able to benefit from biofeedback and relaxation techniques. Using these techniques, they will be better able to recognize and understand perceived stressful events or situations and will therefore act appropriately. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of biofeedback, relaxation and the combination of both techniques on medically diagnosed hypertensive patients. More specifically, the study examined the following questions: What is the clients' ability to lower their blood pressure using biofeedback, relaxation and the combination of both techniques? To what capacity can clients reduce their biofeedback and relaxation training programme? Twenty-three males, aged 40 to 70 years (M = 54 years), who were registered with a cardiovascular disease prevention and rehabilitation centre, volunteered to participate in this study. For five weeks, clients trained Tuesdays and Thursdays, one hour per session. Compliance to the training programme was respected by using only those clients who had missed fewer than three of the sessions. The results showed little statistical significance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)