n today's troubled economy, many suffering businesses and corporations are instituting cutbacks and layoffs. But Alison Novie's business is doing just fine. Allen Elkin has even noticed an increase in his. So has Harvey Kushner.

All three are in the same business: making people feel better. Novie is a yoga instructor; Elkin is a clinical psychologist and founder of the Stress Management and Counseling Center in Manhattan; and Kushner manages a successful Manhattan store, Safer America, which sells gasmasks and protective suits in case of another terrorist attack. All three are busy relieving the stress of New Yorkers — always a lucrative venture, but even more so now.

PHOTO: Aude Lagorce

A jogger enjoys the stress-free peace of Riverside Park.

Not only must New Yorkers contend with the city's noise, crowds and subway delays, but the city suffered a terrorism attack on Sept. 11, 2001 and remains under threats of more. It's a fact that urban areas have their own special stress — and New York may be the stress capital of thecountry.

"A lot of [stress] comes out of hassle," Elkin said. "In the city there's an infinite number of hassles —everything from city noise, to crowding, to rudeness, to just the pace of life. If you don't watch it, they'll get to you, and you'll feel overwhelmed by them. And a lot of people are."

Some people spend a weekend relaxing in the country or a day getting pampered at a Midtown spa. But because these quick fixes won't reduce stress permanently, Elkin warned, people must develop long-term strategies.

"Rather than looking at it as a single magic bullet, you want to put together a package of skills to fight stress," he said. "You have to change your thinking and integrate it into your life."

Gaining perspective on stressors will alleviate their effect, Elkin said. Rating daily anxiety on a 10-point scale can help. For example, he recalled feeling tense while standing in a crowded subway car one morning. He rated the situation a four at first. But after recognizing that a terminal illness or divorce earns a 10, the train doesn't seem so bad.

"I realized I was reacting as a 4 to a 1 situation," he said. "We tend to blow things up when we're just dealing with little hassles, like waiting in line, dealing with traffic, not getting a reservation in a restaurant."

A sense of humor is also essential. "If you don't laugh in the city,you're a dead duck," he said. "There's so much going on, you can't be offended by every little jostle, every little push."

Elkin also recommends relieving stress physically through exercising. A healthy lifestyle will help fend off the effects of tension.

ovie, who teaches vinyasa yoga to classes in studios and to private clients, emphasized the importance of the mind-body connection.

"Emotional stress starts to filter into the body and the body becomes tight or inflexible and the mind starts to mimic that feeling," she explained. "And you start having aches and pains. And the tower begins to crumble."

Caring for the body, however, can ward off the effects of everyday life and make it less susceptible to tension.

"As long as your body remains agile, you feel carefree like a child," she said. Vinyasa yoga, which means "making breath with movement," uses flowing sequences to relax the mind and body.

"It's a more intelligent form of exercise," Novie said. "It's more thoughtful. You're thinking about your organs and breathing after years of being out of balance."

The environment of the city contributes to being out of balance, said Novie, from the hectic lifestyle to "honking horns." Yoga is becoming more popular among young professionals, even among men who were previously resistant.

"It's the most complete mind-body workout of all exercise because it's a system and it's a philosophy, and people leave feel mentally better," Novie said. "I think they get addicted to it like candy."

o counteract the anxiety of the terror alerts, some people have begun stocking up on protective gear. Ever since the opening of Safer America, a Manhattan store that sells safeguards against biological, nuclear and chemical attacks, its business has been flourishing. [See Buying Peace of Mind, right] Customers come in looking to save their lives if another attack ever comes
—and save their minds from fearing it.

Watching television, striking a yoga pose or buying a gas mask — whatever works, as long as it's a permanent change in lifestyle, said Elkin.

"People are more anxious these days," he said. "You have to relax body and mind. You have to change the way you think."