Stress Management
What is Stress?
Stress is your body's way of
responding to any kind of demand. It can be caused by both good and bad
experiences. When people feel stressed by something going on around them, their
bodies react by releasing chemicals into the blood. These chemicals give people
more energy and strength, which can be a good thing if their stress is caused
by physical danger. But this can also be a bad thing, if their stress is in response to something emotional and there is no outlet for this extra energy
and strength. Today I will let you know
the different causes of stress, how stress affects you, the difference between
'good' or 'positive' stress and 'bad' or 'negative' stress, and some common
facts about how stress affects people today.
Many different things can cause stress -- from physical (such as fear of something dangerous) to emotional (such
as worry over your family or job.) Identifying what may be causing you stress
is often the first step in learning how to better deal with your stress. Some
of the most common sources of stress are under as:
·
Survival Stress - You may have heard the phrase "fight or flight" before. This
is a common response to danger in all people and animals. When you are afraid
that someone or something may physically hurt you, your body naturally responds
with a burst of energy so that you will be better able to survive the dangerous
situation (fight) or escape it all together (flight). This is survival stress.
·
Internal Stress - Have you ever caught yourself worrying about things you can do nothing
about or worrying for no reason at all? This is internal stress and it is one
of the most important kinds of stress to understand and manage. Internal stress
is when people make themselves stressed. This often happens when we worry about
things we can't control or put ourselves in situations we know will cause us
stress. Some people become addicted to the kind of hurried, tense, lifestyle
that results from being under stress. They even look for stressful situations
and feel stress about things that aren't stressful.
·
Environmental Stress - This is a response to things around you that cause stress, such as
noise, crowding, and pressure from work or family. Identifying these
environmental stresses and learning to avoid them or deal with them will help
lower your stress level.
·
Fatigue and Overwork - This kind of stress builds up over a long time and can take a hard
toll on your body. It can be caused by working too much or too hard at your
job(s), school, or home. It can also be caused by not knowing how to manage
your time well or how to take time out for rest and relaxation. This can be one
of the hardest kinds of stress to avoid because many people feel this is out of
their control. Later in this course we will show you that you DO have options
and offer some useful tips for dealing with fatigue.
Stress management is a wide spectrum of techniques and psychotherapies aimed at
controlling a person's level of stress, especially chronic stress, usually for
the purpose of improving everyday functioning.
The process of stress
management is named as one of the keys to a happy and successful life in
modern society. Although life provides numerous demands that can prove
difficult to handle, stress management provides a number of ways to manage
anxiety and maintain overall well-being.
What
can be done to overcome stress?
- Keep a positive attitude.
- Accept that there are events that you cannot control.
- Be assertive instead of aggressive. Assert your feelings, opinions, or beliefs instead of becoming angry, defensive, or passive.
- Learn and practice relaxation techniques; try meditation, yoga for stress management.
- Exercise regularly. Your body can fight stress better when it is fit.
- Eat healthy, well-balanced meals.
- Learn to manage your time more effectively.
- Set limits appropriately and learn to say no to requests that would create excessive stress in your life.
- Make time for hobbies, interests, and relaxation.
- Get enough rest and sleep. Your body needs time to recover from stressful events.
- Don't rely on alcohol, drugs, or compulsive behaviors to reduce stress.
- Seek out social support. Spend enough time with those you enjoy.
- Seek treatment with a psychologist or other mental health professional trained in stress management or biofeedback techniques to learn healthy ways of dealing with the stress in your life.
Stop Stressing and
Start Living a happy life.
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