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Detailed information about your high stress
areas and ways to deal with them
Susceptibility Section How Vulnerable Are You to Stress?
This section of your Stress Navigator
report describes how susceptible you are to stress. The lower
your susceptibitity score, the more resistant you are to the
sources of stress. This scale also indicates how well you take
care of yourself and what social and personal resources you can
draw upon.
You're are doing a pretty good job of taking care of yourself,
but there are some things you can do to make yourself more stress resistant.
Item:
I get 7-8 hours of sleep at least 4 nights per week
You need to get more sleep. Of all the stress interventions,
getting more rest and sleep is the most essential and yields the most
benefits. Your mind and body need it to repair the wear and tear of
everyday living. If you're like the rest of us, lack of sleep leads to
a miserable state of exhaustion that not only lowers the quality of
your life, but leads to poor health, reduced productivity, difficulty
concentrating and most of all, to a serious decrease in your ability to
handle stress. While not everyone has the same sleep requirements and
some people require amazingly little, most of us need at least 7 to 8
hours of sleep per night. You can get by on less sleep for a little
while, but eventually you run into sleep debt. When you do, you become
tense and irritable until you get caught up again. It may take several
weeks of good sleep to feel truly rested. Extra sleep on weekends
and vacations can help.
To maximize sleep, have consistent sleep habits. Go to bed
at the same time each night and arise at the same time each morning.
Develop bedtime routines that put you in the mood for sleep: take a
warm bath, listen to the radio, stretch gently, or read a book. When
you lie in bed, make a conscious effort to relax for a few moments
before you turn out the light. Listening to a deep muscle relaxation
tape is a scientifically proven method for bringing on sleep.
Quiet the mind. For
many people, insomnia is caused by a too busy mind, especially during
stressful times. You can learn to calm the mind just as you calm the
body. Notice your thoughts, then let them go. Meditation, writing down
worrisome thoughts in a notebook or creating images of relaxation all
help quiet the mind. Focus on your breathing or other sensations of
physical relaxation. You can also use self suggestion by saying,
"Let my mind become calm and quiet." It takes practice to quiet
thoughts, so be persistent. Above all, don't get anxious or angry that
you are awake. Gently encourage yourself to drift off to sleep.
You may be getting more sleep than you think.
Associate lying in bed with sleeping, not with insomnia or
anxiety. If you can't fall asleep - or if you wake up in the
middle of the night and are unable to get back to sleep -- go into
another room for a while (but avoid TV). When you return to bed, try
deep muscle relaxation or yoga, count backwards, or plan your dream
vacation. Lying quietly will at least rest your body.
Consult your physician if you
have persistent problems sleeping. Taking sleep medication may be
better than chronic exhaustion. Unfortunately, sleep medication is
really a short-term solution. Studies show that good sleep habits are
more effective than medication over time. Furthermore, the inability to
sleep may indicate serious stress problems that should not be covered
over by medication.
Some other DOs and DON'Ts:
- Do try a daytime nap if you need to catch up on sleep.
- Don't nap after 3:00 p.m., or let naps extend over an
hour.
- Do avoid alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine for at least
three hours before bedtime.
- Don't take over-the-counter medications before
bedtime without checking to see if they contain caffeine.
- Do turn off the TV promptly before bedtime. If there's
a late evening show you want to watch, tape it to watch another day.
- Don't engage in stimulating activities such as
physical exercise or heated discussion for at least an hour before
bedtime.
- Do try going to bed an hour earlier once a week. Notice
if you feel more rested in the morning.
- Don't ignore bad dreams or nightmares. They may be a
reflection of stressful daytime concerns. Make note of the ideas that
recur in your dreams. The patterns that emerge may tell you something
about your concerns.
If your sleep hours are disrupted because of your work schedule or
travel across time zones, watch out for sleep debt. An irregular sleep
schedule is more disruptive than an alternate sleep pattern. If
possible, go to sleep as soon as possible after a late shift, try to
get one uninterrupted block of sleep, and use blackout curtains. Adjust
your family schedule to accommodate your sleep pattern.
TOOLS to use on the web site: Progressive muscle relaxation, autogenic
suggestions for calming and sleep.
BOOK to read: No More Sleepless Nights by Peter
Hauri, John Wiley and Sons, 1990.
Item:
I get strength from my religious beliefs
Having strong spiritual beliefs
provides a powerful resource during times of duress. The
twenty-third psalm sums it up nicely: "Yea, though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for Thou art with
me." Recognition of a universal spirit and the interconnectedness
of all life decreases feelings of isolation and abandonment during
times of loss or personal struggle. Spiritual beliefs provide
guidelines for decisions, comfort at times of despair, and give life a
sense of meaning and purpose. Religion also brings with it a sense of
connectedness or continuity that can be comforting to a scattered,
fragmented, or socially isolated life. It is even better when spiritual
activity involves other people, uplifting music, and soothing
surroundings like a garden, church, synagogue, temple, or mosque. Active
participation in a spiritual community provides opportunity to discuss
life's big questions, to develop a personal philosophy, to explore
doubts and questions and to clarify values about what is truly
important in life. Your spiritual community will also support you
during the important life transitions of births, adolescent maturation,
marriages, illnesses and deaths.
A personal spiritual practice has been found to be a particularly
powerful stress reducer. Daily meditation, reading inspirational
literature, prayer, journal writing, singing, drumming, art, yoga,
walks in nature, martial arts or meditative dance are some of the
activities of a spiritual practice. These times of reflection are
not only calming and relaxing; they change the way you think about
things. They also have direct effects on the body: improved recovery
from illness, decreased pain and muscle tension, and less fear in the
face of serious illness or death.
It is purely a matter of personal choice, but, from the standpoint
of stress resistance, consider engaging in some sort of spiritual
activity or renewing former spiritual ties if they have lapsed. Whatever
your beliefs, allow yourself time for reading, discussing, and
meditating on ethics, love, life and death, and on the meaning of
existence and your place in the universe.
If you don't derive strength from religious beliefs, it may be
because you are estranged from traditional or organized religion.
Perhaps they have not suited your view of the world. You might, instead,
obtain strength from different convictions: a respect for law or
science, empathy for the community of all sentient beings, or
appreciation for the beauty and miraculous complexity of nature of which
you are a part. In any case, developing a source of meaning and guidance
that is greater than you will help you put stressful events in
perspective.
Item:
I regularly attend club or social activities
You can decrease your susceptibility to stress by increasing your
level of social activity. Social events and organizations exist for
a purpose: they are a vehicle for social support and for sharing among
like-minded people.
Social events can create opportunities to identify with and
contribute to the larger community. In our mobile and largely urbanized
society, organizations centered on common interests have partially
replaced the sense of community formerly found in small towns. Friends
that you make through such organizations can provide a support network
for enjoyable activities as well as for times of need. Belonging to and
regularly attending club or social activities helps relieve tensions
and provides distraction from your own worries.
Professional, political, charitable and volunteer organizations can
be found in almost any community. Some are specifically organized as
mutual aid societies, and often have a commitment to assist members as
well as needy people in the larger community. Recreational
organizations run the gamut from local youth organizations, bowling
leagues, softball teams, hiking and biking clubs, to urban athletic
clubs and suburban golf clubs. Hobby organizations number the
thousands, covering chess, computers, stamps, bird watching, history
reenactments, ballroom dancing, and more. Most communities have a
community calendar in the local newspaper listing events. Try joining a
few to see which ones fit you best.
Be willing to attend an event even if you're not sure you'd like it.
"When in doubt, check it out".You can always leave if it's not what you
hoped for. If you don't see yourself as a "group" person, experiment
with your self -image. Imagine doing something a little bit out of
character, overcome your shyness and give this form of long-term stress
management a chance.
Item:
I have a network of friends and acquaintances
Literally hundreds of sociological, psychological, and health
research studies have linked a good social network with better
emotional and physical health and higher performance. Social support
has also been shown to help alleviate the feelings of dissatisfaction,
isolation, anxiety, or depression caused by on-the-job stress.
Being part of a team inspires us to do more than we can alone.
Developing friends is a lifelong endeavor as people move, change
interests, or die. It takes an effort to connect with people as
friends, to go past the level of acquaintance. It usually requires
repeated contact, shared activities, and common interests. Someone has
to organize and initiate these contacts, plan an activity, and discover
the common interests. Shyness or mistrust can prohibit connecting with
people. Perceived lack of time, feeling stressed or too tired to
socialize may also be barriers to social friendships. However, if you
lose your job, go through a divorce, or experience other tragedies,
sympathetic comrades and friends can be of invaluable help - even if
they can't help with your specific problem. Our communities are filled
with examples of people helping each other.
Things to try:
- Make a list of the people you can count on and who count on
you. Note the good listeners, those with open minds, and those that are
trustworthy. Social support is a give and take situation, so be ready
to reciprocate and say thanks when you find help or a sympathetic ear.
- Make three telephone calls to catch up with old friends
with whom you've lost contact. Attend a social event and speak to at
least one stranger. In your conversation, find out two things that they
like to do for fun.
- Plan a small get together or outing. Invite at least one
person you think is interesting but do not know well.
- Volunteer once a month or once a week at the same place for
three months.
For more on overcoming shyness, self assertion, communication skills,
and relationship enhancement go to our TOOLS section
Item:
I have one or more friends to confide in about personal matters.
A network of acquaintances is a vital resource for coping with
stress, but having one or more close friends is even more important. One
study showed that women who experienced severe stress and did not have
a close friend to confide in were ten times more likely to be depressed
than equally stressed women who did have a close, confiding
relationship. Heart attack patients with no one to talk to were three
times more likely to die than those with a confidant.
Women tend to maintain more emotionally intimate relationships than
men and report close relationships with siblings, children and friends,
while men tend to rely on their spouse or partner exclusively. This lack
of alternative support leaves them particularly vulnerable on the death
of a spouse, and may account for the higher mortality rate of widowers
versus widows in the months following bereavement. In contrast, it has
been found that high quality work relationships were more strongly
related to wellbeing for men than for women.
A close friend shores up your morale and boosts your mental health
just by being there. Friends can and do serve as very effective
counselors, buffering the tensions of life's major changes -- deaths,
births, marriages, divorces, relocation, etc. - and daily hassles as
well. In the book Just Friends, Lillian Rubin describes the
many varieties of friendships and their special place in our lives.
But a confiding friendship is a two-way street and you have to be
willing to reciprocate. You have to be a friend to make a friend and
you have to stay a friend to keep a friend. In looking for someone who
might become a confidant, look for someone you feel comfortable with,
someone who is a good listener, someone who is non-judgmental, and
above all, someone who is trustworthy, who will keep your confidences
confidential.
For information on overcoming shyness, self-assertion, communication
skills, and relationship enhancement go to our TOOLSsection.
Item:
I do something for fun at least once per week
You need more fun in your life. Recreation is just what it
says it is -- re-creation. Doing something for fun is not only
enjoyable, it's a potent way to improve your stress resistance and
recover from the effects of stress on mind and body. Stress Directions'
research indicates that people who "always" - as opposed to those who
"never" -- do something for fun at least once a week experience less
stress from the demands and pressures of family, feel better about
themselves, have less marital turmoil, and suffer fewer physical and
mental symptoms of stress. A half smile relaxes muscle tension in the
face; a hearty laugh relaxes the whole body and brings fresh air into
the lungs. Games take our minds off of worries and let that part
of the brain relax.
One of the important treatments for low mood is increasing
pleasurable events. These activities may be as simple as a walk, a
favorite food or CD, playing board games or watching comic videos. It
may mean planning a major vacation trip or all sorts of things in
between. A chance to get silly is an extra benefit. The important idea
is to balance work and worry with play.
Make a quick list of ten things you enjoy. Do one or two each
week, then add ten more.
If you have difficulty having fun at least once a week, think about
what's holding you back and consider getting support for changing your
mind. For example, do you think having fun is frivolous or sinful? Do
you think you don't deserve to have fun? As one client put it "What if
I waste all that time being happy?" If so, explore these questions with
family, friends or a counselor.
Now that you know how suceptible you are to
stress and why, it's time to do something about it.
Work out a stress action plan that will make you
more stress resistant. A stress action plan includes:
increasing awareness of how a given situation plays out in your
life, establishing personal goals, identifying resistance to
changes, getting support for your plan, and then maintaining
your progress and dealing with any setbacks. We have designed a
form to walk you through each of these steps. Go to our
planning section to see how it's done.
Stress Factors Section
Factor scores are based on a mathematical analysis that looks for patterns
across items of the Stress Navigator. These scores offer additional information
about the nature of the stress you're experiencing and about the stress
issues that cut across the various parts of your life.
Chronic stress is a serious problem for you. Chronic stress is difficult to recognize because it's been around for so long you've forgotten it's there - or you've internalized it. Chronic stressors are those situations that last for months or years. Or it may be a kind of stress that you carry around inside. Assuming it's "the way things are," you may not do anything about it.
Chronic, grinding stress makes life miserable. What's worse is the damage it can do to your immune system, making you vulnerable to frequent colds, influenza, and infections. It can also harm your hormonal system making you prey to arthritic joint pain, thyroid dysfunction, or menstrual difficulties, if you're female. In short, there's very little good to be said about chronic stress. It should not go unchecked.
Chronic stress conditions can be reversed, but it takes time, patience, and persistence. Because chronic stress rarely goes away on its own, you might want to see a professional to help you identify these stressors and develop an action plan to control them. It is important that you make time to take care of yourself. When we are aware of its presence, we tend to focus on our chronic stress issues and ignore the acute stress problems that then pile up and become chronic themselves.
Right now, acute stress is also serious problem for you. But don't panic because acute stress is generally easy to spot. Acute stressors are those situations which make you feel pressured, discouraged, and out of control. You may even experience some emotional reactions to stress such as anxiety, depressed mood, irritability or preoccupation. Physically, acute stress can cause muscular aches and pains, sleep disturbance, or stomach, gut, or bowel problems.
The good news is that acute stress can be dealt with quickly. In taking the Stress Navigator, you've identified the things that create stress for you. Take action soon to alter those situations. If you are not sure where to start, don't worry. Start somewhere. Even if it seems like a small step: get more rest or contact a supportive friend. Be persistent in your recovery. It is important to take time for yourself, learn how to relax, and take back control from the unwanted effects of stress.
It takes some work, but you can have things back under control in 8 to 12 weeks. You should develop a specific action plan to make yourself less susceptible to stress, reduce stress at its source, and learn how to counteract your stress symptoms by relaxing your mind and body. If things don't improve in a few weeks, you might want to consult a professional who specializes in stress management. You'll want to take care of your stress problems before they slide from acute to chronic.
Once you've got those acute stress problems under control, you can attack your chronic stress problems. Be set for a lengthier campaign, though. Chronic stress can be tougher to combat.
In addition to your problems with acute and chronic stress, you have a few more specific points in your stress profile you should address. The first of these is
Marital Turmoil.
Right now, you're experiencing a lot of stress from the turmoil in your marriage or primary love relationship. When your relationship is going well, it is a source of contentment and happiness that helps insulate you from the stresses and strains of the workaday world. When it's not, life can be miserable. You're not only deprived of a source of happiness and contentment, your marital difficulties generate their own stress. It's important that you do something about it before things become worse.
Marital turmoil has a way of affecting everyone in the family: children, parents, friends, and even distant relatives. Getting things back to "normal" isn't easy. It takes the commitment and effort of both partners, and it sometimes even requires professional help. Professional impartiality and objectivity can enhance communication and bring a note of reality - and fairness -- to the proceedings. For more on relationship and interpersonal skills go to our Tools section.
Stress arising from
Discrimination is an additional element of your profile that you might want to do something about.
A lot of your stress comes from feelings of discrimination. It's probably more of a problem for you than you realize. Feeling that you don't belong or that you don't fit in with a particular group because of who and what you are leads to estrangement and social isolation that can be quite distressing.
You may not be able to change other people's behavior, but you can do something about your own attitudes toward it. First, try to develop a thicker skin. You might also work on one or two individual relationships that connect you to the whole group. You can also look for support in an outside group where you share interests.
You can overcome this part of your stress by getting the issue of discrimination under better control. There are laws against job and housing discrimination on the basis of ethnicity, religion, race, age, or sex. If you feel discriminated against at work, call your state labor board or your state committee against discrimination. You can address the stress caused by discrimination in social settings by developing different alliances or by speaking to those who you feel are prejudiced against you. You can also avoid situations where you feel discriminated against, or accept the fact that there are insensitive clods in this world who lose the pleasure of your company through their own limitations.
Powerlessness is a third source of stress for you.
A pervasive sense of powerlessness shapes your stress profile. You seem to feel that a lot of things are outside of your control: your finances, personal freedom, bodily functions, employment status, personal relationships, and where you live. Things just seem to happen to you and you feel powerless to do anything about it. It's a very stressful feeling and can lead to anxiety or depressed mood. Taking even small actions to deal with your concerns can make a difference. For more on improving mental control and taking action go to our Tools section.
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Additional elements in your stress profile include:
- Personal Success
- Personal Isolation
- Work Setting
- Financial Pressure
- Personal Loss
- Social Demands
- Housing Demands
Space prevents us from addressing them in the same detail we have discussed
the other elements. Be aware, however, that these stress points are also
part of your overall stress profile.
Sources of Demands and Pressures Section
This section of your Stress Navigator report tells you where your stress
comes from in your life and gives you some ideas on what you can do to
make these life areas less stressful. Your stress appears to be rooted
in at least at least 6 areas of your life.
Your environment is your primary source of stress. Environmental stress comes from problems with traffic and transportation; difficulty with neighbors, roommates, a landlord or tenant; environmental pollution and deterioration. It also includes adjusting to a new neighborhood, problems with schools, lack of recreation facilities, and in-home construction.
Finding a solution to environmental stressors may seem daunting because it usually involves getting other people -- your roommate, your boss, your neighbors, or your governor -- to take action, too. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try. Nor does it mean you can't be effective. One way to start is to "think globally; act locally." You can start this idea easily at home: Begin by fixing up one room; make it a beautiful and serene haven. Expand from that success to the community; mobilize local resources to help make the neighboring environment less stressful. Lobby officials at the state or federal level to reduce stress in the larger environment.
It takes work, skill, and patience. But the result -- a less-stressful environment - is worth it.
Finances are another source of stress for you.
Nothing dictates how you live your life more than the amount of money
you have at your disposal. Change is, by definition, stressful. Any
sudden change in finances, up or down, sends shock waves of change
through every other part of your life. In general, the longer your
finances have been stable or the more money you have, the less stress
you are likely to suffer.
Take an honest look at your relationship with money. Many
people avoid thinking about money because they become anxious when they
do. Do you avoid looking at the actual figures of what you spend or owe?
If so, the first step is to approach the problem in order to define it
and find a proper solution.
Not having enough money to pay bills and being unable to buy
the things you want may be particularly stressful. It can also be
difficult to live in a society with large discrepancies in income, where
you are bombarded with messages about the importance of wealth and
possessions. Consumer credit card debt is one of easiest traps to fall
into and most difficult to pull out of.
Things you can do to get your finances under control include:
¬ Make a budget and stick to it. Write down all your
"fixed" or regular expenses like rent, phone, food, utilities, auto. Add
all other expenses for the month, including budgeting for gifts,
clothes, vacations. Then compare your expenses with your
income.
¬ Construct a realistic five-year financial plan.
¬ Hold family business meetings.
¬ Get financial advice from someone trained and equipped
to deal with finances.
¬ If you have credit card debt, contact the Consumer
Credit Counseling Service in your area. They will help protect you from
the further aggravation and stress of fending off bill collectors. You
are protected from harassment of bill collectors by the Fair Debt
Collection Practices Act. You can get a copy of the Act from the
Division of Credit Practice, Federal Trade Commission, Pennsylvania
Avenue at 6th Street, Washington, DC 20580.
Most importantly, don't measure your worth in terms of
material wealth. Money and what it buys is a poor barometer of your
worth and value as a human being.
Your social situation is a third source of stress for you.This
may be from responsibility to a group or from feeling excluded from a
group. Starting, ending or having to take extra care of a relationship
may be a part of your stress. Feelings of competition and comparison
are often a major source of social stress. Too little social
stimulation can leave you feeling lonely, estranged, and isolated; too
much stimulation and you can be overwhelmed by social demands and the
needs of other people. Finding balance in your social situation is the
key to lessening social stress.
There are a number of ways to reduce the stress of social
situations, but they boil down to a few basic principals:
¬ Be assertive but gracious. Stand up for your right to
participate or not, but in a way that doesn't alienate others. This is
particularly applicable when people want too much of your time.
¬ Use positive assertive skills to compliment people, ask
them about themselves, or invite them to join you in a social event.
¬ Seek out people who share your interests.
¬ Be open with people and allow them to be open with you.
¬ When you find yourself thinking about how you compare
with others, redirect your thoughts to how you might connect with them
instead. Look for what you have in common or what you might learn from
them rather than looking for the differences.
¬ If you tend to become tense in social situations,
practice relaxing in advance. Imagine the situation and how you hope to
handle it.
One way to reduce isolation and loneliness is to stay in touch
with people you already know - i.e., work to keep the friends you
already have. To make new friends may require overcoming shyness
and developing good assertive skills. Skills like good manners
(the art of knowing what to say or do in an awkward moment), public
speaking, listening and conversation, delegation, leadership, and
self-esteem enhancement can also be helpful. See our Tools section
for more information on how you can develop these skills.
Stress Symptoms Section
This section of your Stress Navigator report addresses the symptoms
that are causing you distress and discomfort. The more susceptible you
are to stress and the higher the stress levels you're experiencing, the
more likely you are to experience symptoms. The most effective ways of
dealing with stress symptoms are to take better care of yourself, so you
are less susceptible to stress, to find ways to reduce stress at its source,
and to treat your symptoms.
Have you had a recent medical check up?
This report is not a substitute for good medical care. The mind can
only help so much with health-related difficulties. Sometimes symptoms
usually associated with stress have other causes; it may require a medical
examination to determine if this is the case.
In our Tools section,
we offer you a number of behavioral techniques for
dealing with stress-related symptoms.
These techniques can help to relieve the discomfort and distress of your
symptoms. But there are no substitutes for proper medical attention and
care. If you have high scores on particular stress symptoms, see your doctor.
Stress may well be the culprit, but let your doctor help determine that.
You seem to be experiencing both physical and mental symptoms of stress.
Gastrointestinal symptoms related to your parasympathetic nervous
system (PNS) seem to be your primary physical indication of stress.
Your parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) takes care of the details in
the body like regulating heart rate, digestion, excretion of bodily
waste, and sexual functions. Physical overarousal associated with acute
stress can cause PNS symptoms such as indigestion, heartburn, "acid
stomach," gas, diarrhea, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome,
colitis, difficulties with urination, and sexual dysfunction.
Examples are the “butterflies”, nausea or diarrhea some people
experience before public speaking engagements or the inability to
respond sexually due to performance pressures.
The parasympathetic nervous system is part of your autonomic
nervous system. It usually decreases arousal, and slows you down again
after a stressful reaction. After the body speeds up, it needs "brakes"
to signal it to slow down. If you are unable to slow down or relax, PNS
complaints may eventually appear. The other piece of the autonomic
nervous system, the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), increases
physiological arousal and is responsible for "speeding things up".
Between them, they handle the general housekeeping of the body and do so
fairly automatically. (Hence the term autonomic.)
Under duress, gastrointestinal needs for oxygen are partially
postponed. Oxygen is partially directed away from the digestive
tract to the large muscles, in preparation for “fight or flight”.
Digestion slows down or stops. When stress passes, and you quiet down
through deep breathing and muscle relaxation, the flow of vital oxygen
increases to your gastrointestinal tract and function returns to
normal.
If you have experienced prolonged or severe stress without periods of
recovery or relaxation, the gastrointestinal tissue or muscles can
become sensitized to overactivation. Then, even when the irritation is
minimal, symptoms can occur. Symptoms can persist long after the stress
that caused them has vanished. If specific symptoms run in your family,
you may have a genetic predisposition to those types of disorders. A
prior illness or irritation may also weaken tissue; later, acute stress
may affect the weak link.
Things to do:
- See your physician if PNS symptoms are frequent or
persistent
- Avoid excessive use of over the counter medications to treat the
symptoms. They can interfere with long term healing.
- Practice progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) to learn how to slow
down your body when it becomes overly excited.
- Set aside quiet time and simple relaxation before and after
eating
- Use gentle self-suggestions such as "Let my stomach become calm
and quiet."
- Learn deep breathing as a quick way to increase oxygen to the
digestive tract.
- Develop other self-soothing practices: yoga, Tai Chi, mental
control of worry, mental imagery, and self-hypnosis. These
techniques help to quiet your body so that tissues are not over
stimulated and can gradually return to normal, healthy functioning.
- Consider hypnosis or biofeedback if your symptoms are persistent
or severe. An expert therapist can teach you how to use these
strategies for optimal quieting of this part of your body.
- See our TOOLS section for details on PMR and mental imagery and
other strategies for self-regulation of the body.
Your secondary stress symptoms are cognitive such as
preoccupation, racing thoughts, difficulty falling asleep,
indecisiveness, or the conviction that everything turns out for the
worst.
Stress changes the way the brain works. You may feel that you become
sharper and more clear thinking under pressure. That may be true up to a
point. If there's no challenge, the mind tends to wander or become
bored. As the challenge or motivation increases, the brain becomes more
alert, takes in more information and mobilizes resources. At high
levels of stress, your brain becomes hyperactive and so do you.
Adrenaline can cause the neurons in the brain to fire two to three times
faster than normal. Thoughts race in bits and pieces, memory is
impaired and judgment deteriorates.
Peak performance occurs when a high degree of skill meets optimal
motivation. For example, a musician who has practiced consistently has
the best performance at an important concert. If there is too much
pressure or in dangerous situations, mistakes start to appear,
especially for tasks that require complex, creative thought. This
stress/performance ratio changes depending on the type of task, fatigue
levels, and the individual's experience. If an action has been rehearsed
repeatedly, it becomes automatic, even under pressure. This is why
police officers, fire fighters and soldiers drill emergency procedures
over and over. In contrast, problems that require unusual or creative
solutions may need long periods of uninterrupted quiet.
When stressed, the brain tends to oversimplify and jump to quick, easy
solutions. Immediate risks loom larger than long term ones. Certain
information is ignored and other information is magnified. Thinking
becomes distorted. Memory is affected. Complex problems become
simplified. Attention narrows down to one or two things, instead of the
big picture.
Problems in thinking can become particularly difficult when there is
insufficient time for your brain to return to normal levels of activity
before something else happens. It's not just stress, but recurrent
episodes of stress that over-stimulate your brain.
Things to do:
- When you are faced with a complex decision, take time
to slow your thoughts. Then focus your attention on the question.
- Listen to your body. Physical signs of stress may be more
noticeable than subtle changes in alertness or thinking.
- If possible, put a time limit on stressful meetings,
activities or conversations. Short bursts of stress are OK if you follow
them with a break.
- Use short breaks to rest and reflect. Don’t just jump into
the next thing.
- Avoid precipitous, impulsive actions but don’t get paralyzed
either.
- Defer important or difficult decisions until you have had quiet
time to think things through. Practice saying, “I’ll think about it and
get back to you in a bit.”
- If you realize you have made a hasty decision, be flexible
enough to change your mind.
- Rest up and slow down. Let your brain recover from being
overworked. As needed, take a few minutes, hours, or days off until you
feel your best.
- “Sleep on it.” If you can’t sleep because your head's awhirl with
too many thoughts, use Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) exercises or
other activities to quiet down before bed.
- Don’t try to resolve issues late at night, especially over
the phone.
- Keep a journal or thought record to keep track of how
stress affects your thinking.
- Read Edward DeBono’s book Six Thinking Hats, an excellent, short
analysis on types of thinking that go into good decision-making. Feeling
Good, by David Burns has a good chapter on types of errors in thinking
and their effect on mood.
- If the cognitive symptoms continue, see a specialist in
cognitive therapy and stress management who can help you recognize your
particular patterns of thought and develop strategies for more effective
approaches.
- Check out Cognitive and Mental Skills in our TOOLS section for
information on techniques such as calming the mind, meditation,
decision-making skills, and worry control.
Muscular complaints are your third area of physical
symptoms of stress.
Muscle contraction headaches, jaw pain, back pain, tight muscles,
shakiness or difficulty sitting still are among the most common symptoms
of stress, and can interfere with work, family life, and simple
activities of daily life. The human body has more than 690 separate
muscles. People often take them for granted, expecting good performance
day in and day out. Understanding the relationship between stress and
your muscles can help you tend to the special needs of this important
organ system: good nutrition, frequent exercise, strength training,
flexibility through stretching and good posture and balance. The good
news is that these straightforward interventions can make big
differences in healing and protecting your muscles.
Increased muscle tension is part of a "fight or flight" response.
Noradrenalin alerts the muscles to tense up in preparation for action.
Tense muscles get set to act quickly in response to threat or danger.
You move faster and have greater strength during an emergency because of
this boost. However, modern stress is often not physical, but
social or economic. Generally we neither fight nor flee. Without a
strong physical reaction to release it, muscle tension remains. You may
adopt an "on guard" posture that lasts as long as you feel tense:
shoulders up, arms slightly forward. The "pain in the neck" tightness
across your upper back and furrows across your forehead can bring on a
tension headache. Clenched teeth or a fixed smile can turn into jaw pain
caused by tension in the powerful masseter muscles that operate your
jaws. In addition, when the major muscles become tense, they
communicate this tension to other systems. Nearby muscles become tense,
heart rate speeds up, digestion slows. When the threat passes, so
should the tension. The major muscles relax, other parts of the body
become calmer. Unfortunately, the human mind can remember and imagine
danger and keep the body tense for hours or days.
Muscle fibers are designed to tense and then relax. A muscle can go
through this tense/relax cycle indefinitely, as when you walk a long
way. However, a muscle under sustained tension without an alternating
relaxation phase eventually develops spasm and pain. Chronic muscle
tension pulls on the muscle's tendon and can lead to pain where the
tendon is attached to the bone. This can pull the body out of balance,
creating new pains, or cause an inflammation of the tendons, resulting
in painful tendonitis. When weakened muscles are pushed beyond their
physical limits, they spasm, which we experience as cramps in large
muscles. If you press firmly into the muscle, you may feel a hard and
painful knot the size of a marble deep in the muscle. At that
point, massage, acupressure or trigger point release and stretching may
be needed.
Stress also distracts you from paying attention to your body's signals,
increasing the likelihood that you will sit, stand, or move in ways that
strain your muscles. This can be especially dangerous if you lift heavy
objects. If you are not moving with awareness, you could easily strain
your back or joints.
In the physics of muscles and bones, good balance and posture is key. A
well-balanced body takes a minimum of effort to move. For example,
bending the head too far forward puts strain on the upper back. Hunched
shoulders lead to upper back soreness. A chair or desk that is not the
right size, or bone misalignment may also cause painful muscles.
Things to do:
- Develop a regular exercise program of overall muscle
strengthening and stretching. Strong, healthy, well-conditioned muscles
tolerate more tension than weak, poorly conditioned ones. Keep
going on your exercise program especially when life stress increases.
- Notice when your muscles are tight and learn to release and
relax them. The Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) exercise is the most
helpful for learning this important skill. Do the PMR exercise twice a
day for 10 days and notice the difference.
- Pay special attention to the specific muscles which cause
you pain. Slowly build up strength and flexibility and make a special
effort to notice tension in that area.
- Use massage and moist heat to relieve muscle tension
- Explore something new – martial arts, yoga, Pilates, dance,
TaiChi, swimming, video tapes, classes. Have fun and meet people
while you are strengthening your muscles.
- Consult a professional for electromyographic (EMG)
biofeedback, physical therapy, trigger point release, myotherapy, or
postural adjustment.
- Consult a rehabilitation physician or physiatrist who specializes
in the treatment of muscular aches and pains to determine if further
diagnostic information is necessary. If physical therapy is recommended,
do the exercises regularly even after visits are discontinued.
- Check out the TOOLS
section of the web site for more detailed information on each of these
suggestions.
- Stay with your exercise program even after your muscular symptoms
are gone to prevent relapse and build endurance and energy.
Now
it's time to plan your journey towards less stress
Just
reading about your stress isn't enough, you need to do something
about the stress in your life if things are to get better.
What can you do about changing your stress pattern for the
better? First, you need to design a good stress action plan,
one that has the following characteristics:
1.
It will make your life better.
2.
It can be carried out in six to twelve weeks.
3.
It has a specific outcome.
4.
It can be stated in behavioral terms.
5.
It is leveraged to give you "the most bang for your buck."
A
stress action plan includes: increasing awareness of how a situation
is stressful, establishing personal goals, identifying difficulties
you may have in making changes, getting support for your plan,
and then maintaining your progress while dealing with any setbacks.The
Stress Action Plan on the
next page will walk you through each of these steps.
If
you are not sure where to begin, reread your report for suggestions.
Also, check in the TOOLSsection
of the on line workshop for ideas, instructions, and information.
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