How to avoid becoming a stressaholic: ways to manage stress

Summer ends. And this is a huge stress for the student! Before you know it, a pleasant meeting with classmates will be replaced by preparation for exams. But it seemed like just yesterday you came, full of fresh thoughts and with a rested head.

Calm, just calm! Dear students, now we will reveal to you a secret that will help you not only in your studies, but throughout your entire life: managing stress and emotions. After all, you must admit that eliminating stress (or preventing it) is much easier than eliminating the consequences of stress later.

↑ Why manage stress?

Learning to manage stress is important for every person, because it develops such a quality as stress resistance.

Note: A stress-resistant person is a person with the most protected psyche who can control his reaction to a stressful situation. In 80% of cases, this quality is acquired and only 20% have an innate quality.

The English psychologist Hans Selye developed the following classification of stress:

• Negative, destroying the human psyche.
• Positive ones that bring excitement, but do not cause a strong blow to the psychological state. An example is a parachute jump, since it is exciting, but these are new sensations for a person that do not affect the psyche in a negative way.

Disconnect

Thanks to technology, we can always stay connected. It seems as if it should be so. But enjoying peace of mind in your free time is extremely difficult if at any moment an email can change your train of thought.

Regular shutdowns help you control your stress levels and rest. Being in the access zone around the clock, you are only exposed to an inexhaustible stream of stress factors. But if you force yourself to go offline or even turn off your phone, you will allow your head and body to relax.

Studies have shown that simply not checking email on the weekend can help reduce stress.

If you can't ignore work contacts on weekday evenings, then what about the weekends? Choose the right time and protect yourself from business. By incorporating these mental recharges into your weekly schedule, you will be surprised at how refreshing and stress-relieving these breaks are.

If you are worried about negative consequences, try to start by switching off only when the likelihood of someone contacting you is minimal. For example, on Sunday morning. As you begin to get used to such measures, gradually increase the time spent away from technology.

↑ Why does a person need stress management skills?

Stress resistance is an important quality for a person, which makes him more confident and allows him to act wisely in critical situations. Such people have better health, since nervous breakdowns and other nonspecific reactions have a destructive effect on the body.

It has been repeatedly proven that the cause of the development of many severe and chronic diseases is depression, nervous breakdowns and other psychological conditions. In such people, sleep and appetite are disturbed, the body’s immune system begins to work worse, so their health is at risk of various diseases.

The ability to be self-possessed and collected in difficult situations will allow you to quickly find a solution to the problem, and not waste your strength and energy, and be able to see in any crisis not only negative, but also positive aspects and new opportunities.

Don't hold grudges

They also cause stress. By simply remembering something to be offended about, you put your body into fight-or-flight mode—a survival mechanism that prepares the body to fight or run away from a threat. When danger is in front of you, this reaction saves lives. But if the threat has long passed, then stress maintained by memories only causes damage to the body and can have a destructive effect.

Researchers from Emory University (USA) have proven that prolonged emotional stress increases blood pressure and contributes to the development of heart disease. By holding onto resentment, you accumulate stress. People with high emotional intelligence avoid this state at all costs. By letting go of the grudge, you will not only feel better, but also improve your health.

↑ Stress management methods

Today, there are several effective methods of stress management:

• Movement. Any physical activity increases the production of endorphins, so a person’s psychological state improves. You can work out in the gym, dance to music every day, take walks, play active games with your children, try to use the stairs rather than the elevator.
• Social participation. This is the most effective technique. Communication with another person who can listen to you, understand you and give advice is the best medicine for the psyche during a stressful situation. Try to communicate with your colleagues and neighbors, be more open with them. This is not a sign of weakness, on the contrary, you will feel much more confident, and your psyche will be more stable if every day you begin to enjoy live dialogue with people you like.
• Preventing stressful situations.
  Stress is a reaction of the nervous system to external influences. If you know in advance that you will have to go through a difficult situation, for example, a serious conversation with your manager, you can try to change either the situation or your attitude towards it. It’s worth learning to say “no,” this can save you from additional responsibilities that may cause another crisis situation. Important! Managing stress to prevent conflict is a skill that is especially important for people who work in sales and service jobs who have to deal with a variety of clients on a daily basis. You must always look at the situation on the positive side. Also think about the conflict in the long term: will it matter to you in a week or a month? If the answer is no, then it is better to direct your energy in a more productive direction.
• Adaptation. If you cannot prevent a stressful situation, then it is better to adapt to it. You should not hide your feelings and emotions; if you are worried about some problem, then you should talk openly about it and look for an approach to a solution. Resentments and unresolved conflicts that a person accumulates within himself lead to psychological disorders.

How to identify sources of stress in your life?

Starting a stress journal

A stress journal will help you identify regular stress in your life and develop ways to manage and combat it. Every time you feel stressed, track it in your journal. If you keep a daily journal, you will begin to see patterns and common themes. Try to write down in your journal:

• What caused the stress (take a guess if you're not sure).
• How you felt physically and emotionally.
• Your response.
• What stress management techniques have you used to feel better?

This will help identify sources of stress, such as changing jobs, moving, or losing a loved one. Identifying sources of daily stress can be more challenging. The problem is that when you are stressed, you may not be aware of your own thoughts, feelings and behavior. To identify the true sources of stress, pay attention to your habits and justifications for dealing with stress:

• You explain the stress as temporary, although you can’t remember the last time you took a break.
• You define stress as an integral part of your work, home life, or as part of your personality: “I have a very nervous personality.”
• You blame other people or external events for your stress and think this is completely normal.

Until you accept responsibility for the role you play in life, your stress levels will remain beyond your control.

How to help yourself cope with stress?

Think about the ways you manage stress in your life. A stress journal will help you determine what your coping strategies are. They may be healthy or unhealthy, useful or unproductive. Unfortunately, many people only make their problem worse by coping with stress.

Unhealthy stress management strategies

These coping strategies may temporarily reduce stress, but cause more damage in the long term:

• Smoking.
• Alcohol abuse.
• Wrong nutrition.
• Spending several hours in a row in front of a computer or TV.
• Breakdown of social relationships.
• Using pills or medications to calm down and relax.
• Avoiding problem solving.
• Taking it out on others (outbursts of anger, physical violence).

↑ Stress management techniques

Conflict and stress management is the basis for developing a person’s stress resistance. There are certain techniques that allow you to manage your emotions in a stressful situation, because a hysterical and nervous person will not be able to find a rational solution to a complex problem.

Basic techniques:

1. Relieve stress with proper breathing. You need to sit down, choose a comfortable position for yourself and tune in to rhythmic breathing. There should be three heart beats per inhalation, and six per exhalation. This is the most effective way to calm down and feel a surge of energy during critical situations.
2. Physical exercise. During times of stress, any active physical exercise, be it running, squats, cycling, etc., will help to distract from nervous tension, since strength and energy will be directed toward physical exercise. This is an excellent option for preventing nervous breakdowns and depression.
3. Yoga. A number of studies have shown that people who practice yoga are less susceptible to nervous breakdowns.

Neutralize unfriendly people

Unpleasant personalities are frustrating, tiring, and stressful. You can manage your interactions with them by controlling your feelings. When you have to deal with such a person, approach the situation wisely. Take care of your emotions and don't let anger or frustration wreak havoc.

At the same time, consider the disagreeable person's point of view and motives to find a path to consensus. Even when everything goes downhill, you can tolerate such a person without letting him drive you crazy.

What can an employee do?

Trainings allow you to learn many ways to manage in situations of tension. But you can familiarize yourself with some recommendations.

1. You should not rely on your memory; you need to write down the necessary information.
2. It is not recommended to leave small tasks for another day. As a result, the burden and stress associated with emergency situations cannot be avoided.
3. Count your successes and achievements. It stimulates, relieves irritation and fatigue.
4. If there is an employee on staff who constantly criticizes the company and its conditions, then you should limit communication with him. Dissatisfaction can be transmitted very quickly and it is not always reliable.
5. Industrial gymnastics and relaxing five-minute exercises are effective.
6. Breathing techniques are effective when tissues lack oxygen and muscle tension begins.

Video: “Stress management: the art of managing emotions”

Technique “Act of Love and Respect”

If you have at least an hour and a half of free time to calm your own nerves, use this technique. You can also seek advice at home to reinforce the positive results.

• A trip to nature

Walking in the forest, running in the park, skating or biking, skiing and other types of physical activity that allow you to breathe fresh air and release excess energy will be equally beneficial here.

• Sports activities in the fitness studio

Sign up for a gym, swimming pool or martial arts class so that negative emotions leave you along with the calories and then. Try yoga, ballroom or sports dancing.

• Dream

Try to get enough sleep every day and not disrupt your sleep schedule on weekends. Due to a lack of proper rest, the body is susceptible to weak stimuli, which means there is a risk of developing chronic stress. Even if you just sleep for 60-90 minutes, the problem that has arisen after waking up will no longer seem so serious and dangerous.

• Finding and developing a hobby

Find something that brings you pleasure and gives you new emotions. From cooking classes to volunteering, from collecting to crafts, search based on your personal interests and tastes. If you have already made up your mind, refer to it in a stressful situation and get a dose of positivity.

• Communication with friends and family

Do not limit yourself to simple correspondence on social networks or a call - go out into the countryside for the weekend or organize “cultural tourism”. Any travel outside of vacation, even for a short distance, is a good way to relax.

• Healthy habits

It is important to monitor your health so that a stressful situation does not upset all systems in the body. You will be helped by hardening, gymnastics in the workplace, self-massage, good nutrition, taking vitamins, and regularly drinking water or herbal decoctions. But it is better to avoid strong tea and coffee, as well as narcotic and alcoholic stimulants.

Additional tricks

What other methods help cope with traumatic stress?

1. To control yourself and your emotions, it is advisable to keep a diary. If the problem is written on paper, then it is better understood and feels less comprehensive.
2. Organize your daily routine. If you remove some of the responsibilities from your daily routine and devote more time to taking care of yourself in a routine format, then it will become easier to control your emotional state.
3. Move more. Movement gives strength, the body releases special hormones of joy, so the negative gradually disappears. You don't have to go to the gym, just a daily walk in the park is enough.
4. Write lists of positive things to do. What good things should you do this month? And this week? How can you pamper yourself? Re-read the lists from time to time, even dreams of positive changes improve your mood.
5. Creation. Dancing, drawing, weaving bracelets, sewing dolls - any creative activity increases inner potential and calms you down.

Task one – reducing the level of a stressful situation

Determining the level of tension in a situation can be determined by the presence of various stress factors. To effectively manage stress, the following factors need to be assessed:

1. Identifying the voltage source.
2. Ability to assess the intensity of stress.
3. Possession of effective techniques for reducing stress in work reality.

In stress management, there are six sources of stress:

• the significance of the situation;
• novelty;
• load;
• risk;
• time trouble.

Experts believe that it is most effective to reduce significance. For example, ask yourself the question: “What will I lose if I refuse to complete this task or postpone it to another time?” Another way to deal with pressure and workload is to act as if everything bad has already happened. Then the psychological pressure will decrease, and the strength to complete the project will appear.

The voltage reduction circuit looks like this:

1. Assess the sources of difficulties and the strength of their influence on the work process.
2. Describe the stressful situation, evaluate the pros and cons as a result of the negative development of the situation. For example, if I tell my manager that I’m very busy, what will happen next?
3. Developing a plan to reduce stress factors.
4. Using time management and various practices to relieve stress.

What can a leader do?

Full-fledged management is impossible without the participation of the manager. Senior management can include efforts to reduce risks from stress. It includes:

1. Adequate assessment of employee abilities and skills. For some, expanding responsibilities will be a strong motivating factor, while others, on the contrary, will receive severe stress from this.
2. Strict compliance with the functions and powers of employees. The written rules work to prevent conflicts and minor troubles in the team.
3. It is important to develop an appropriate leadership style that suits the company and takes into account the characteristics of the team.
4. Criticism of employees must be ethical and not affect the personal qualities of the person.
5. It is necessary to give employees emotional release. This could be corporate holidays, team building, or an unusual birthday greeting to each member of the staff.

Important: a leader must be able to cope with his own stress, and then transmit the behavior to his subordinates.

Video: Natalya Samukina. Stress management course

Use your support system

Trying to do everything yourself is tempting, but ineffective. To stay calm and productive, you need to admit your weaknesses and ask for help when you need it. In other words, if the situation becomes too difficult, you need to engage your support system.

Everyone has people in their life who are ready to cover and support them in difficult times. Find such people in your environment and turn to them for advice or help when needed.

Even just talking about your worries can reduce anxiety and change your perspective on the situation. In most cases, other people see a solution that you do not see, because their perception of the problem is free of unnecessary emotions. Asking for help will reduce your anxiety and strengthen your relationships with those you rely on.

The strategies listed may seem simple. But when stress clouds your mind, they will be difficult to apply. Get over yourself when your head starts spinning and you will reap the benefits of disciplined stress management.

Keep things in perspective

The reason for our worries often lies in a distorted perception of events. Before you waste a lot of time analyzing your boss's instructions from the last meeting, take a minute to see the whole picture. You can resort to this method when the level of anxiety does not correspond to the real reasons for it.

If you find yourself thinking superficially, then try to rethink the situation. The best way to get rid of this line of thinking is to list the things that actually went wrong. Most likely, you will count one or two points and not bury the whole idea.

To stay calm, it is important to understand that feelings often distort the situation, and the scale of the problem may not be as significant as it seems.