Stress Can You Handle It?

What is Stress? Stress is a reaction of your body and mind to threatening or challenging events in your life. You can experience stress when situations, events, or people make demands on your body and mind.

What Causes Stress? The causes of stress are called stressors. Major life changes - These events are stressful because they threaten the person’s sense of security or self-esteem. Examples: Divorce, Pregnancy, or death of a loved one. Everyday problems - “hassles” – minor, but frequent, everyday events that cause you stress. Examples: Misplacing something, concerns about appearance, too many things to do. Physical Surrounding – Conditions in your immediate surroundings affect your level of stress each day. Examples: Noise, weather Other stressors – Conditions that cause conflict – disagreements with family members, friends, and others. Another source of stress is special events – dates, tryouts, job interviews.

Types of Stress There are 2 types of stress: Eustress – Positive stress. Stress is positive when it promotes growth and accomplishment. Stress at moderate levels can actually improve your ability to concentrate and perform at your best. Example: Big game next week – Feelings of stress might assure that you practice during the week. Distress – Negative stress. Stress that is detrimental. Stress beyond moderate levels, begins to take a negative toll on performance. Example: On game day - Nervousness might be overwhelming and you lose ability to concentrate.

How Stress Affects the Body As soon as you perceive something to be stressor, your body springs into action. Your body’s reaction is automatic; it is not under your control. The body’s response to stress occurs in three stages - Alarm stage, Resistance stage, Exhaustion stage.

Alarm Stage With the introduction of a stressor, your body’s homeostasis is disturbed and you entered the first stage of stress, the alarm stage. All of these changes occur in a few seconds, but once they occur, you are ready to react. You can react in one of two ways: you can stand and fight, or you can run. The immediate reaction of the body to stress is called the fight or flight response

Fight or Flight Response

Resistance Stage If the stressor continues, you enter the resistance stage of stress, the second stage of the stress response. During this stage the body tries to recover from the alarm of the first stage. Because the stressor still remains, the body and restore homeostasis. The body continues to run at a higher than normal level, using up a lot of energy in the resistance stage. As a result you become tired, irritable, and less able to handle additional stress.  

Exhaustion Stage The third stage of the stress response. If the stressor continues, the body is worn down and no longer has enough energy to fight off the stressor. As your bodies balance remains disturbed, you become more susceptible to illness. Your ability to make judgments and to interact with others is impaired. Exhaustion stage does not occur with each stress response. If it did, your body would wear out. Exhaustion only occurs if a stressor continues for along time – usually weeks, months, or even years.

Recognizing Signs of Stress

Stress and Illness Psychosomatic disorders are physical disorders that result from stress or other emotional causes. These disorders are brought on or made worse by stress. These illnesses are evidence of the ways in which the mind affects the body. Lowered resistance – prolonged stress can prevent the immune system from functioning properly. You may experience minor illnesses more frequently, like colds and flu. Ulcers – An ulcer is an open sore in the lining of the stomach or other part of the digestive system. Stress causes an increase in production of hydrochloric acid. Asthma – Stress can trigger an asthma attack, making it difficult to breath, High blood pressure and heart disease – Heart works harder under stress, prolonged stress can damage the heart muscle.  

Personality Types We each have unique personalities. We also react to stressful situations in different ways. There are 2 personality types: Type A and Type B Type A Tend to be rushed and competitive Try to accomplish their goals in a shortened amount of time Set high standards for themselves Become angry and frustrated if they don’t achieve their goals

Personality Types 2. Type B Calmer, less competitive, not concerned about accomplishments Less likely to feel stressed for not meeting standards or goals Less likely to suffer stress related illness May have trouble facing challenges resulting in missed opportunities *MOST PEOPLE ARE A COMBINATION OF TYPE A & TYPE B.**

Perfectionism A perfectionist is a person who accepts nothing less than excellence of him or herself, placing a high amount of stress on themselves. It is important to take pride in your work, but perfectionists take things too far. Perfectionists: Never feel satisfied Try harder, still aren’t satisfied, try even harder Trouble making deadlines and taking risks ** to avoid this type of stress, accept that no one can be perfect and take pride in what you CAN do well.

Negative Thinking Negative thoughts accompany stressful situations. “I’ll never be able to do this.” – “Everyone will laugh at me.” With negative thoughts running through a person’s mind, it becomes almost impossible to succeed. A way to avoid negative thinking is to “coach” yourself through an upcoming stressful event

Hardiness An ability to resist the effect of stress, and to avoid becoming ill as a result. Hardy individuals possess 3 characteristics. View stressful events as challenges or opportunities rather than threats. Committed to whatever they are doing. Have a sense of control over what they are doing.

Managing Stress Although stress is a part of life, it does not have to control your life. Managing stress helps to restore balance in your life- it prevents stressors from taking control and making you ill There are a variety of stress management techniques described below

Confronting the Problem Before a change or improvement can be made, you must first recognize and confront the problem. Not all stressors are within our control. It is important to direct energy towards those that are in our power to change.

Time Management Poor time management is one of the biggest contributors of stress A good time manager completes daily tasks, works towards long term goals, and still finds time to relax.

Time Management It is important to prioritize: 1. list your goals- list all things you want to accomplish in order of importance 2. outline your tasks- for each goal, list the activities you need to do before it is accomplished 3. outline overall plan- assign specific and realistic deadlines 4. make a daily schedule- list daily tasks you need to stick to overall plan 5. Prioritize your tasks- Do important tasks first and less meaningful tasks later if there is time 6. Monitor your progress- throughout the day, look back at your plan and see if it is still working towards your goal

Physical Activity By doing something physically active, you provide your body with a healthy outlet for built up energy. Select activities that you enjoy and feel good doing. Try to incorporate activity into your daily routine to combat daily stressors

Relaxation Relaxation is defined as a state in which your mind and body are resting. When you are relaxed, you may be awake and alert, but you are not responding actively to stressors There are many ways to help you relax: Listening to music Daydreaming Stretching Deep breathing Progressive relaxation

Mental Rehearsal In mental rehearsal, you practice the entire event in your mind, imagining yourself performing your best Mental rehearsal develops confidence that you can perform as imagined.