1. Using Positive Self-Talk & Guided Meditation

2. What causes stress? Life demands Family Money Work Deadlines Unexpected illnesses Deaths

3. How do you view a situation? May indeed be a personality trait Some people are wired to see life in a more positive light than others You can train yourself to be more optimistic

4. Stress Prevention Cannot change much of what happened in life, but you can change how you view it. Truly unhappy? Change that too. Plan accordingly for stressful events, people who trigger negative responses. Brainstorm- if this happens, I can do what differently?

5. What is self-talk? “Self-talk is the endless stream of unspoken thoughts that run through your head. These automatic thoughts can be positive or negative. Some of your self-talk comes from logic and reason. Other self-talk may arise from misconceptions that you create because of lack of information.”- Mayo Clinic

6. Monitor your thoughts Evaluate to see if your thoughts are primarily positive or negative How? Do you magnify bad parts of a situation and forget/ignore positive aspects? Do you blame yourself for bad things that happen? Do you anticipate the worst? If you have an “off” morning, do you prepare for the rest of the day to be bad also? Do you polarize? Do you see something as good or bad, no middle-ground?

7. Identify areas to change and act! Do you find yourself often thinking negatively? Stop to re-assess thoughts and change your attitude. Do you complain often? Think of areas that cause you distress or unhappiness and work on each area one at a time. Surround yourself with positive people!

8. Practice positive self-talk A Grateful Journal Read positive affirmations Meditate on times of happiness Practice seeing the good in a situation Guided meditations in yoga classes or get an app or download high quality meditations

9. Sources http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/stress- management/in-depth/positive-thinking/art-20043950