Stress Management Taming Your Stress

Agenda  Identify major sources of stress  Learn how body reacts to stress  Gain strategies for coping with stress

Workplace Cost $ billion annually  Absenteeism  Diminished productivity  Employee turnover  Direct medical, legal, insurance fees  60-80% of industrial accidents

Types of stress Eustress/PositiveDistress/Negative

What are your stressors?

Sources of Stress Physical Stress…  Pain  Heat or cold  Infections  Inflammation

Other Sources of Stress Psychological Stress…  Intense worry or other psychological stressor  Psychological environments at work or home

How stress affects your body  Brain senses stress  Sends message to glands and nervous system  Nervous system transmits messages to your body

And then…  Adrenalin speeds up heart  Blood pressure rises  Blood clotting time is reduced  Sugar is pumped to fuel muscles  Cholesterol & fats are mobilized  Cortisol is released

The results…  Damage to circulatory system  Digestive tract problems  Damage to lungs, muscles, joints  Hastened process of aging

Our response to stress  External or internal?  Differences in interpretation 1. Lens of previous experience 2. Relative health of person 3. Mental health and positive outlook 4. Feeling of control – or lack of control

Acute Stress  Noise  Isolation  Danger  Imagining a threat

Acute Stress  Crowding  Hunger  Infection

Chronic Stress  On-going highly pressured work  Loneliness  Long term relationship problems  Persistent financial worries

Signs of stress - Activity  What are your physical and emotional signs of stress? 1. Warning signals 2. Reactions during stressful encounter 3. After-effects of stressful event

Strategies for Coping 1. Preventing negative stress 2. Dealing with stress “in the moment” 3. Handling feelings after an event

Prevention: Becoming “Stress Hardy”  Effective work skills  Assertive communication  Cooperative work relationships

More Stress Hardiness  Physical activities  Healthy habits  Hobbies  Quiet pursuits  Expressing emotions  Humor/creativity  Social relationships  Pets  Positive thinking

Negative Self-Talk Situation : You are working on a new project and it isn’t going well. Negative self-talk : I am so stupid! Why can’t I get this? It seems the harder I try, the worse it gets. I am just no good at this. I might as well give up.

Positive Reality Positive reality : I have finished projects like this before with good quality results. I know that I can be persistent and improve my skill. I have been successful before, and I will be this time, too.

During a Stressful Encounter  Breathe! Count to ten  Positive self-talk, “ I can handle this.”  Active listening and neutral voice tone: “ So, you are saying that my report was not what you wanted.”  Ask questions: “ How can I make it better? ”

Use Team Approach  Mention common goals: “ We both want the best possible care for clients.”  State commitment to mutually agreeable solution.

After Stressful Encounter  Change physical location: go for a mindful walk, do vigorous exercise  Talk to yourself (out loud!) Ask “How serious is this?”  Give yourself a pep talk!

Rate the Experience  On a scale of 1 to 10, what is your honest rating of situation?  How important will this be in a year? A month? Next week?

Write!  Write about what happened  What have you learned?  Acknowledge your progress

A Closer Look at Your Stress  What is your fear?  What is the worst thing that could happen?  What are your options?

Watch your language!  This is a disaster! – OR – challenge, opportunity, situation  This will ruin my life! – OR – “This will be difficult, but I will handle the situation.”

Your Control  What can you control in this situation?  What is outside of your control?

Your Experience  Similar situation in your past?  How did you handle it?  What evidence do you have that you can cope?

Managing Your Stress – Use Your Senses!  Vision  Hearing  Taste  Smell  Touch  Kinesthetic

Final Thoughts  Review stress management tips  Commit to add a new habit  Follow through  You can do it!

Thank you!