STRESS MANAGEMENT Damon Burton Vandal Sport Psychology Services University of Idaho

WHAT IS STRESS MANAGEMENT? Stress Management – is a process designed to reduce or eliminate the negative consequences of stress, particularly mental and physical anxiety, in order to help performers feel better emotionally and perform up to their capabilities.

PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGIES competitive engineering personal engineering problem-solving and mental plans

COMPETITIVE ENGINEERING reducing unnecessary uncertainty removing excessive importance – don’t overemphasize winning

PERSONAL ENGINEERING increasing personal control – focus on process goals enhance performance capabilities (e.g., conditioning, skills & strategies)

DEVELOP PROBLEM- SOLVING SKILLS use personal science approach break situations down into parts, and constantly critique problem- solving efforts.

CONSTRUCT MENTAL PLANS systematic approach to handling frequently-encountered problem situations, “game plan” for dealing with problems, Mental Plans deal with problems before, during and after practice and competition.

EMOTION MANAGEMENT MODEL arousal-triggered stress and thought-triggered stress.

TOTAL EMOTION MANAGEMENT PACKAGES rapid relaxation is combined with self talk using a systematic process to develop an “integrated coping response.”

TOTAL EMOTION MANAGEMENT PACKAGES Stress Management Training (SMT) and Stress Inoculation Training (SIT)

TOTAL EMOTION MANAGEMENT PACKAGES Common rationale – combination of relaxation and self talk copes with all types of stress, Systematic approach – chunks situations into parts, sets process goals, helps to create Flow mindset, and provides a backup plan to deal with problems. Automate component skills Develops an Integrated Coping Response (ICR)

TEMPs PRACTICE STRATEGIES Total Immersion – practices managing maximum stress. Gradual Exposure -- rehearses handling gradually increasing stress levels