By now you may be starting to think about the hunting seasons that will be opening in September. While that is exciting to be planning already, neglecting the good fishing which is available could be a serious mistake.

Going fishing, in fact, could save your life.

Doctors in the field of behavioral medicine continue to find evidence that heart disease, ulcers, some forms of cancer, and a number of other serious ailments are stress-related. Dozens of pressures in our daily lives create an atmosphere of tension and harassment.

Jangling telephones, work to be done under a short deadline, and a cranky computer can all build into heavy fears that may border on panic. All of us, at one time or another, get the feeling that we just can’t get everything done that needs doing. Such mental stress can lead to dangerous psychological or physical reactions. So what to do?

“Go fishing,” is the increasing advice from most doctors. Of the many possible techniques for changing your mood and reducing stress, fishing has a special advantage. It can lower tension and bring on an atmosphere of calm relaxation.

One outstanding psychologist put it this way: “In studying the psychology of daydreams and fantasies and ways in which one’s imagination can be put to practical use, it can be surprising. Severe anxieties can be countered by mental pictures of natural scenes and peaceful lakesides.

“The calming effects of being near water are evident again and again in clinical and experimental studies. We have had people hooked up to electrophysiological instruments to measure changes in muscle tension on the forehead. When they imagine situations involving pressure of fear, the frontalis muscles tighten. But as soon as they shift to imagining scenes like fishing on a quiet lake as the warm sun emerges from the clouds, the needle on the dial drops sharply as muscular tension is reduced.”

So, if just thinking about going fishing, how much more relaxing it can be to really be doing it, out there on the water. Whether on a lake or river, fishing provides a needed change from the usual daily activities and pressures at work or elsewhere. Calm lapping of the water, circling gulls or waterfowl, and peaceful, nearby hills serve to distract the many mental associations linked to work pressure.

Fishing allows us to daydream while waiting for something to happen at the end of our line. If there are long periods between fish or maybe no action at all, makes no real difference when complete relaxation is setting in and tensions forgotten.

Just getting tackle ready and choosing the right water are also helpful as your tensions unwind. Maybe you will even catch enough fish to bring home and eat. But if not, who cares?