1. Handling Stress on the High Seas
Kim C. McCall MS RD LDN

2. What we are going to do today
We are going to learn about stress and scientific evidence documented on the effects of Acute Stress & Chronic Stress.
Discover Stress Signals and Coping Mechanisms
Learn 6 tips/techniques to manage stress

3. What is Stress?
Sudden change in the environment causes a stress response
Example of a Flight or Fight Response – animal like
Muscle Tension
Higher Blood Pressure
Faster Heart Rate
Anger
Fear
Confusion
Sweating
Sources:
Openhandweb.org

4. What about stress in today’s world?
Examples of challenges that cause these same symptoms

5. When stress subsides The body relaxes Heart Rate decreases
Blood pressure returns to normal
Muscles relax

6. Acute vs Chronic Stress
Good vs. Bad Stress
Short term stress can be good for us, but long term chronic stress may not be.
Good Stress -
Stimulates norepinephrine production
Creates new memories, improves mood, problems feel like challenges, encourages creative thinking, and new connection in brain are formed.
Bad Stress -
Chronic over-secretion of stress hormones adversely affects brain function, especially memory. Too much cortisol can prevent the brain from laying down a new memory, or from accessing already existing memories.

8. Bad Stress -
Females at Higher Risk from Noise Stress- Study (Texas A&M and Cornell University)
Stress Compromises the Blood-Brain Barrier (Gulf War – Israeli soldiers)

9. Are you chronically stressed?
Possible signs of stress
Anxiety
Back pain
Constipation or diarrhea
Depression
Fatigue
Headaches
Stiff neck or jaw
Upset stomach
Weight gain or loss
High blood pressure
Trouble sleeping or insomnia
Problems with relationships
Shortness of breath

10. Ok – yeah I’m stressed out, like I thought…what can I really do about it?

11. Coping with Stress
Before we talk about coping mechanisms, let’s try to understand ourselves first.
Identify how stress affects you can help you pick an appropriate coping strategy

12. Stress Signals
Stress affects each of us in different ways, and it is important to be aware of your unique stress "signals". Stress signals fall into four categories. When you are under stress, you may experience any number of the following:
Feelings
Thoughts
Behaviors
Physical

13. Stress Signals Feelings Thoughts Behaviors Physical
Feelings – anxiety, fear, irritability, moodiness, embarrassment
Thoughts - self-criticism, difficulty concentrating or making decisions, forgetfulness, preoccupation with the future, repetitive thoughts, fear of failure.

14. Stress Signals Feelings Thoughts Behaviors Physical
Behaviors - crying, increased or decreased appetite, "snapping" at friends, acting impulsively, alcohol or other drug use (including smoking), nervous laughter, teeth grinding or jaw clenching, stuttering or other speech difficulties, being more accident-prone.
Physical - sleep disturbances, tight muscles, headaches, fatigue, cold or sweaty hands, back or neck problems, stomach distress, more colds and infections, rapid breathing, pounding heart, trembling, dry mouth.

15. Worksheet Two Worksheets per person
Write down a stressful situation that you would be comfortable sharing with your group on TWO WORKSHEETS
Hand 1 Worksheet to the person on your left
Fill out your worksheet completely (FRONT PAGE ONLY)
Then, fill out your neighbor’s worksheet with their stressful situation (what would you do?)

16. Positive Coping Examples Negative Coping Examples
Listening to music
Playing with a pet
Laughing or crying
Going out with a friend (shopping, movie, dining)
Taking a bath or shower
Writing, painting, or other creative activity
Praying or going to church
Exercising or getting outdoors to enjoy nature
Discussing situations with a spouse or close friend
Gardening or making home repairs
Criticizing yourself (negative self- talk)
Driving fast in a car
Chewing your fingernails
Becoming aggressive or violent (hitting someone, throwing or kicking something)
Eating too much or too little or drinking a lot of coffee
Smoking or chewing tobacco
Drinking alcohol
Yelling at your spouse, children, or friends
Taking a recreational drug to calm yourself
Avoiding social contact

17. Coping Mechanisms If you are doing any Negative Coping – STOP
If you are doing Positive Coping – continue, but know it may not always work, but will not be harmful

18. Set yourself up to handle stress with these Tips/Techniques
CHALLENGE -
Adopt at least 1 of these over the next year and see if it makes a difference

19. Tip #1 Sleep Well Sleep 7-8 hours a night or what your body needs
If you are rested, you will be able to handle stressful situations when they arise

20. Tip #2 Eat Well
Eat Every 4-6 hours
Get all the nutrients you need

21. It’s snack time… Take a Break if you need one
Then take about 10 minutes to check out the Apps on the IPAD and the laptop
Breathe2Relax App
Stress Check
I Compliment
Apps for Journaling
Live Journal

22. Fun Apps to De-Stress http://t2health.org/apps/breathe2relax
check/id ?mt=8
ent-free/id ?mt=8
store-your-thoughts/

23. Tip #3 Let Go
Don’t worry about things you cannot control

24. Tip #4 Prepare
Prepare ahead for events that you know will be stressful
And apply what you learned from previous experiences

25. Tip #5 Diaphragmatic Breathing
Many of us have heard about taking a deep breath when we are stressed to calm down
Expansion of the abdomen, not the chest
Hypothesized that voluntary slow deep breathing resets the autonomic nervous system through stretch-induced inhibitory signals and sends nerve signals to the heart, lungs, limbic system, and cortex
Activates the parasympathetic nervous system.
Slow stuff down.

26. Diaphragmatic Breathing
gAFAAo

27. Tip #6 Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)
Developed by Edmund Jacobson (physician) in 1920s
Since muscle tension accommodates anxiety, one can reduce anxiety by learning how to relax the muscle tension.
Combining a mental and physical component of stress
Physical component– tensing and relaxing the muscle groups over the entire body (legs, abdomen, chest, arms, face), with eyes closed.
Tense the muscle group for 10 seconds and then release it for 20 seconds.
Mental component – individual must focus on the feelings of the tension and the relaxation. Must stay present.
Relaxation technique that can be done in 10 minutes

28. Tip #6 Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)
Research shows
Reduction in salivary cortisol levels and generalized anxiety
Decrease Blood Pressure
Decreased Heart Rate
Decreased Headaches
Better management of cardiac rehabilitation
Improvement in quality of life of patients after bypass surgery
Improvement of quality of life of patients with multiple sclerosis

29. Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)
YE8FI

30. Back to your worksheets
Review the stressful situation that you previously wrote down
Flip over the paper
What would you do differently in the future?
Consider the tips and techniques that we just went through
Remember a similar situation could happen again – how would you handle it now?

31. Thank you
me with questions, comments, or for a copy of the presentation.

32. References http://www.fi.edu/learn/brain/stress.html
Stress Management Techniques: evidence-based procedures that reduce stress and promote health - Liza Varvogli1, Christina Darviri HEALTH SCIENCE JOURNAL ® VOLUME 5, ISSUE 2 (2011)
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sheet-on-stress.shtml
technique/sr00007
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Science of Slumber: How Sleep Affects Your Memory J Med Invest Aug;51(3-4):139-45