Stress has emerged as one of the major causes of much sickness and at times also  death    in the modern world. It gives rise to many other diseases like hypertension, heart attacks and peptic ulcers. Diseases such as bronchial asthma, eczema psoriasis and hormonal disorders are augmented because of stress. Stress is emotional, physical or any type of strain put on any individual. Life  in big  cities has become stressful for the inhabitants. Commuting long distances, irregular hours of food and sleep take their toll on our health. Some take up sleep as form of relaxation, while some tend to take alcohol and other abusive substances for relaxation which is equally bad for the health.   What many do not realise is that mental and physical stress are linked to one another and cannot be dissociated totally. The mind is the governor of the body and regulates it’s working. In fact, it is the mind telling a person that he is now fatigued and needs rest. Similarly, one might get stressed for some reason and then can experience muscular pains or burning sensation in stomach. When one is too excited or agitated, there is release of adrenalin and other neuro-chemicals in the body, which cause increase in respiratory and pulse rate, pulse, and blood pressure which can be fatal  at times. Anxiety can alter intestinal motility causing constipation or diarrhoea. Stress depends on the physical health, mind set and conditioning of an individual. A physically strong person with strong will can endure stressful work and situations, whereas a weak person  becomes jittery.Stress in any form is harmful. Some simple principles of life need to be followed to be totally relaxed. A healthy diet, regular physical exercise, avoiding harmful substances like alcohol, helps keep body healthy and more capable of hard work. Along with body, people need to learn to keep mind relaxed as well.  Fill the mind each day with fresh positive thoughts. On encountering some problem, it is better to keep a cool mind and think of a solution. Never get too tensed up when confronting a problem. If there is a problem beyond control, then it is best to leave it to time to solve it. You have to take decisions several times in life. These may be right or wrong. Some people tend to moan over wrong decisions all the time and remain tense. But the  past cannot be undone, it is useless to ruin one’s present over the past.Being ambitious and setting high goals in life is good. But after putting in hard work if one does not get the desired results, it should not become cause for mental tension. A person should be realistic enough, coolly  analyse the cause for failure and try to correct it.Some people are egoist and consider themselves to be superior. Such persons  always remain tense mentally because of their ego, which is a wrong attitude.Some weak minded persons break down so much by mental tension that they have to consult psychiatrists for finding relief. It does not make much sense. If you are not ready to let your mind relax, how can you expect some other person to do that for you?Anti- depressants and tranquilisers used for decreasing mental tension have many side effects. Thus, if one takes these medications for mental tension, they would cause more harm than good.Physical exercises and sports are useful to keep body and mind rejuvenated and  relaxed. Good creative past-times help in taking one’s mind off unpleasant things.Those who suffer from mental tension, should try following some simple steps to keep themselves relaxed.Consider how important your problem is. Nothing is more important than life, so if the problem is not life-threatening, it is not worth worrying over. Keep yourself busy, always. Yoga helps  to keep the mind and body  relaxed. If done regularly, people benefit from them immensely.It is not difficult to keep relaxed physically and mentally. Only it needs little effort and will for it. One can always remain absolutely healthy and happy.