KAPLAN UNIVERSITY

HW410 Stress: Critical Issues in Management and

Prevention

Stress Management and

Prevention Program
Resource Guide
1
 KAPLAN UNIVERSITY

Stress Management and Prevention

Program Resource Guide

By

Gersom Jimenez

Kaplan University

HW410: Stress: Critical Issues in Management and Prevention

08 March 2016
Table of Contents
UNI T 1 THE NATURE OF STRESS ( PAGES 5 -6)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Self-Assessment Exercises ........................................................................................................................
Journal Writing ...........................................................................................................................................

UNI T 2 THE PHYSI OLOGY OF ST RESS ( PAGES 7 -9)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Self-Assessment Exercises ........................................................................................................................
Journal Writing ...........................................................................................................................................

UNI T 3 PSYCHOLOGY OF STRESS ( PAGES 10 -11)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Self-Assessment Exercises ........................................................................................................................
Journal Writing ...........................................................................................................................................

UNI T 4 PERSONALI TY TRAI TS A ND THE HUMAN SPI RITU ALI TY

( PAGES 12-16)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Self-Assessment Exercises ........................................................................................................................
Journal Writing ...........................................................................................................................................

UNI T 5 DEALI NG WI TH STRESS: COPI NG STRATEGI ES

( PAGES 17-19)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Journal Writing ...........................................................................................................................................

UNI T 6 RELAXATION TECHI QU ES 1: BREATHI NG, MED I TATI ON,

AND MENTAL I MAGERY ( PAGES 20 -22)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Self-Assessment Exercises ........................................................................................................................
Journal Writing ...........................................................................................................................................

UNI T 7 NUTRI TI ON AND STRESS ( PAGE 23)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Self-Assessment Exercises ........................................................................................................................
UNI T 8 PHYSI CAL EXERCI SE AN D ACTI VI TY ( PAGES 24 -26)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

Self-Assessment Exercises ........................................................................................................................
Journal Writing ...........................................................................................................................................

UNI T 9 APPLYI NG STRESS: CRI TICAL I SSUES FOR MANAGEMENT

AND PREVENTI ON TO YO UR PROFESSI ONAL LIFE ( PAGE 27)

Information to Remember .......................................................................................................................

ADDI TI ONAL I NFORMATI ON ( PAGE 28 )

REFERENCES ( PAGE 29)

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 1
Unit

Unit 1: The Nature of Stress

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: This unit highlighted the differences in the types of stress. They are defined by
the emotional state a person is in. For example, eustress is a stress that influences a persons life
for the better. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Next we looked at the way stress effects our life. How do we handle the
stressors in our paths during our day? All of the varying stress have a ripple effect on everything
and everyone around us. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: This unit showed the many aspects of being healthy in the complete sense of the
word. That means to find peace in the mental, physical, emotional and spiritual components of
our whole being. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
For the self-assessment piece of this unit, a mandala was constructed in a very personal manner. It was to
show the percentages of what was felt important in my life. It must be said that each area is equally
important but in the bigger scheme of things, they must be ranked. This assessment drew to the
conclusion that emotional health was the first priority at 40%, then it was mental health at 30%, followed
closely by physical at 20% and ended with spiritual at 10%. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
Unit One Journal Writing

Situation Start Midway End

Building trackers for evaluations, awards and leave days for 7
the Soldiers in my unit
Sitting in traffic on the way to and from work 3
Dealing with disciplinary actions that have to be imposed on 4
Soldiers in my unit under my charge

5
Started dating a new lady and I met her kids for the first 8
time
Conducting and setting up training for my unit 5
Beginning a new course as a part of degree plan for my 4
bachelors degree
Learning to prioritize all functions of a new duty position at 3
work
Ensuring that I proofread and send corrections back to 6
leaders about their evaluations, memorandums and awards
in a timely manner
Making time for my girlfriend and family 9
Planning alone and relaxation time 5
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

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 2
Unit

Unit 2: The Physiology of Stress

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: The physiology of stress was studied and how it affected different systems
within the body. These systems were the central nervous system, the autonomic nervous system
and the endocrine system. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: The impact that studying the brain through imaging was discussed. It has been
found that by using a MRI to take pictures of the brain it has shown more accurate information
about the functions of the brain. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Stress can be a major factor when a person is dealing with disease. As studied in
Unit 1, it depends on the type of stress as to what or how it will influence a disease. A good
stressor will assist in the healing stages but a bad stressor will negatively affect the disease.
(Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
The stress in a persons life can have significant effects on ones mental capacities. These range from
bronchial asthma, headaches to even irritable bowel syndrome. These diseases are all over the body from
head to the internal workings of a persons intestines. Its important to remember that stress will present
problems all over the body.

Journal Writing:
Unit Two Journal Writing Assignment

How is stress or anxiety about people affecting your life?

The current stress in life about people is affecting my life with a mixture of positive and

negative issues. For the positive, it has given me insight to the possibilities that are out in the world

and are ready to be grabbed and assimilated into my life. These new attributes are things that I can

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use and apply in my life to make me a better person. As for the negative, there are attributes that are

almost forcing me to change myself for another person instead of making myself happy and living for

my own mental gain.

How is stress or anxiety about work affecting your life?

The stress I am experiencing from work has and will probably becoming more and more

overwhelming. I have recently began a new position and it entails a lot of leadership engagement

with a great variety of personalities and issues. Each person and situation has its own set of

challenges. These challenges are not necessarily hard to deal with or to fix. Its the fact that there are

so many of them to handle at one time. Also, it is important to note that each individual feels that

their problem is the most important thing in the world and must be handled immediately. Though I

prioritize things in a manner to best suit the company, there are always those people who will have an

opinion and feel they can do it better. This is causing a lot of sleepless nights and is affecting my

personal relationships.

How is stress or anxiety about the world affecting your life?

This particular subject, in the past, has had both huge effects and little to no effects on my life.

Currently, in the Army, we are in a force reduction mode that has started due to the ending of the

wars overseas. What this means for us as Soldiers is that we are being scrutinized at every angle of

our career and responsibilities as Soldiers. The conflicts and news that shows all of the happenings

throughout the world cause me to wonder if the Department of Defense is doing the right thing by

reducing the size of the military. It also makes me wonder if I am working hard enough to remain in

the military.

How is stress or anxiety about food and eating habits affecting your life?

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 For the past 13 years, I have had to manage my weight constantly. This is in large part due to

poor choices as a young man and my eating habits. I used to be a very skinny person and I was

delusional to think I would always be able to eat what I liked. As I got older, the weight started to

slowly grow on my body. This caused some angst in that I must remain mission ready for anything

the Army has for me to do. This ranges from being in a leadership position, military schools, physical

fitness tests and even deployments. Because of this, I am always looking for good foods and the

correct way to manage my health. This is and will continue to be a very high level of stress in my

life.

How is stress or anxiety about sleep and sleeplessness affecting your life?

I believe that all the stress in my life causes me to lose sleep. I am often plagued by my mind

racing and thinking of what I must do to get things accomplished. Even upon laying down to sleep, I

am still thinking of missions that will need to be addressed the next day.

How is stress or anxiety about exercise or lack of physical activity affecting your life?

Stress has actually helped me in this aspect. I utilize physical activity as a mitigation to fight

the stresses in my life. It has helped me to reach some new goals in my physical health and to set new

goals that I know I can reach.

In summary, it is quite amazing to see how each and every one of these stressors have an

impact on my life. These range from the positive and the negative. The positive is the ability to turn

the stress into a motivation piece and not an inhibitor to my life. On the negative side, it can play on

my emotions and thoughts. These two areas are tied into how my body reacts to the stressors.

Channeling the stresses into a positive form is a necessity in my life.

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 3
Unit

Unit 3: Psychology of Stress

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: A look at the many theoretical insights by many of those who have or do study
the psychology of stress was seen in this unit. The many opinions and reflections of how each
theory is important to see at the conclusion of the unit. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Finding out what triggers or brings down an emotion like anger, fear or joy
helps to understand stress emotions. Our reactions to the stress in our life determine how we
handle the situation. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: In this day and age, there are many ways of communicating. Even though there
are so many avenues to speak to one another, there are often times more confusion than solid
communication occurring. A look must be taken at how we communicate and its efficiency
being sent and received to the other person. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
Each of the learning points in this unit hit pretty close to home for a lot of people. However, the sefl-
assessment portion forced the student to see other points of view as far as handling stress. There are
many ways to manage stress and many other cultures have found ingenious ways to make their lives
simpler and easier to handle. With all of that, a list was drawn up on how improve personal
communication skills. These will help to effectively avoid confusion when talking with others, no matter
the means of communication used. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
Unit Three Journal Writing Assignment

This particular exercise is one that I have learned to hone in other classes from my degree

program as well as some Army training courses that I have completed. Each one of these courses

have helped me to understand the necessity for meditation. Its a viable way for one to look inside of

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ourselves and feel the emotions, experience our body and clear the mind. We will cover everything

that I have experienced in this exercise.

As far as the emotions, I am currently experiencing a multitude of emotions right now. I am

battling insecurities, anger, sadness, joy and disappointment. Not to mention, the fact that I am a

Soldier and what is the proper way to deal with this and not show weakness, while helping my

subordinates with their issues. The exercise helped me to understand that as a human being it is

important to sit back and try to understand my feelings. There may be times that I do not think that I

can cope with these feelings. But at the end of the day, a meditation session can assist me in bringing

it into focus and seeing the lesson no matter the depth of the problem.

For the physical aspect, I began to notice the tightness in my muscles, the throbbing of a

variety of muscles and the pain in other areas. Oddly enough, it was interesting to acknowledge all of

these things simultaneously. I say that because in a normal circumstance, it is the most painful or

prominent one that is given the attention to. Even though all of these things are happening at once,

only the one gets all the consideration.

Mentally, I felt an empowerment. I could see the ability to accept the things I could not

change better. There was no conflict with the decision to meditate and think and feel my own senses.

I believe that I need to continue meditating in order to strengthen my whole self.]

In summary, I believe the exercise was a tremendous success. This type of mind workout is

highly beneficial when it is done with an open mind and heart. As a human with flaws, I am

optimistic that I can spread this self-assistance to others around me to help them.

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 4
Unit

Unit 4: Personality Traits and the Human

Spirituality
Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: This unit shows the different personalities that are in the world as we know it.
The one thing that needs to remembered is that we should not place ourselves in a category or one
personality area. This is because we are evolving creatures and we may not always have the
same personality. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Spirituality can play a huge factor in the way a person handles a given situation.
It can be said that a spiritual person is a happier person. Only because this person can pass their
issues to their god or higher being, therefore relieving themselves of carrying the burden.
(Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: There are always ways to improve ones behaviors. It is much like a fitness
program. It starts with the person acknowledging that they want to make themselves better.
Then the process builds until fruition. Its not to say there will not be relapses but its a
continuous effort. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
For this self-assessment exercise, a look the individual and the many values, attitudes and beliefs was
brought forth. These three things play dividends in not only promoting or resolving stress but in our
relationships as well. Not to mention, the fact that our self-esteem can be reinforced or broken down in
the same manner

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Journal Writing:
Unit Four Journal Writing Assignment

FEAR: apprehension, anxiety, distress, edginess, jumpiness, nervousness, panic, tenseness,

uneasiness, worry, fright, feeling overwhelmed.

Fear can be a very delicate subject to write about as it can come from any number of things.

Personally the emotions that I feel when I am fearful are anxiety, edginess, nervousness, and worry.

For the anxiety and nervousness, I tend to feel that emotion in my stomach. This is because it feels as

though the situation is becoming a bigger issue that it should be. I tend to want things to go as close

to perfect as possible. I do understand that there will be mishaps and nothing is ever done perfectly.

However, because I like to put my best foot forward, my emotions manifest into my stomach. For the

edginess and worry, I would say that those emotions tend to play out on my shoulders. I believe that

for me, the worry and edginess go together. As a person who worries a lot and about almost

everything under the sun, I can say for a fact all of my worry is held and felt in my shoulders, more

specifically in my left shoulder. When I worry about something, I picture the statue of the man

holding the earth on his shoulders while on one knee. Though I understand that statue represents the

use of the whole body to maintain that weight; I feel worry only in my shoulders. To me, its like

nothing but using my shoulder muscles to hold all the worries and keep the edginess at bay.

CONFUSION: bewildered, uncertain, puzzled, mystified, perplexed, chaotic, foggy, or unaware.

For this particular area, the first emotion that really caught my eye was foggy. I can be

forgetful and I have to write things down in a book and on three separate calendars (work, personal

cell phone and one I carry with me). The fogginess occurs in my eyes and within my memory. I feel

my eyes start to shiver a little bit. By that, I mean, I feel them start to move quickly back and forth in

my eye sockets. When that happens, I know my body and mind are starting to be a little unbalanced

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and I need to stop and think before reacting. Also, within my mind, I can see things clearly and I

know what I need to say, or do, but it will not project out. It is like I see everything very clearly and

with minute details then I get stuck when trying to create it in real life.

ANGER: aggravation, agitation, annoyance, destructiveness, disgust, envy, frustration, irritation,

grouchiness, grumpiness, rage.

This particular emotion has been the bane to my existence for quite some time. I could

probably do a very long paper over each and every one of the emotions tied to anger. However, the

ones that stick out the most and probably the most prominent in my life are annoyance, frustration,

irritation and grouchiness/grumpiness. For annoyance, I tend to be easily annoyed by someone or

something that I feel is wasting my time. It will start with the reason that the situation has even

occurred. As the annoyance continues it will eventually turn into frustration and irritation. Because

of this, I get very grouchy/grumpy. This emotion is usually felt in my lower back and all I can picture

is the Incredible Hulk tearing through walls and throwing things.

SADNESS: alienation, anguish, despair, disappointment, gloom, grief, hopelessness, insecurity,

loneliness, misery, unhappiness, rejection.

For sadness, I tend to relate more to the alienation and loneliness. As far as the alienation, I

do make it self-imposed. This then leads to loneliness. That may not sound as though it goes together

well but let me explain. When I am feeling sad, I would rather be by myself, hence the loneliness. At

the same time, I want someone to slap me back into reality and help me see the brighter side of what

is happening. Being sad usually makes me feel as though I am about to come down with a very bad

cold. My body feels weak and I do not want to eat anything.

SHAME: guilt, embarrassment, humiliation, invalidation, regret, remorse, mortification.

For this emotion, I usually feel the embarrassment and humiliation parts of shame. As we

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know, nobody is perfect and mistakes will be made. As mentioned earlier, I like to try and achieve

everything as perfectly as possible. But often times, I end up learning from the mistakes that I make

in life and try to move forward. These emotions are usually felt in my face. I can feel the droop in

my facial expression and the flushing of my skin. For the most part, this takes place very quickly and

I am able to bounce back just as quick.

LOVE: affection, arousal, attraction, caring, compassion, desire, fondness, infatuation, kindness,

liking, longing, warmth, sympathy, sentimentality.

This emotion is more of challenge for me. I have been very guarded with my heart and who I

let into my inner soul. However, to say that I have never loved would be a false statement. The

emotions that I can relate to the most with this one are affection, arousal, desire, longing and

sentimentality. The area of my body that I usually feel these things in would be my chest muscles and

my overall energy levels increase. I would say when I am in love or feel love there is a part of me

that feels invincible. It is as though nothing bad will or can harm me. I can honestly say it is a feeling

that feels new each time I see the person I love. For my family, I remember the good times as kids or

growing up. For my significant other, it is like a fire that will never be extinguished.

JOY: amusement, bliss, contentment, eagerness, elation, enjoyment, enthusiasm, excitement,

exhilaration, hope, optimism, pleasure, satisfaction.

I am glad this was the last emotion. Each one of the emotions listed would also be on my list.

There is nothing that compares to being able to look back on a situation or a time in your life and see

pure elation from that instance. This is a total body experience for me. It can lift my spirits to a

whole other dimension. This emotion is a goal of mine to get to everyday.

In summary, this exercise has forced me to see the intricate pieces of how emotions occur

within my body and what is seen by others. It also offered a new prospective by requiring me to write

15
about what I see with the emotion. I can truly say I feel more enlightened to myself and how my

emotions play out inside and out. I really appreciated this journal entry.

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 5
Unit

Unit 5: Dealing with Stress: Coping Strategies

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: The ability to make wise and conscience decisions has and will always be ours.
It is about finding that area in our thoughts and working to make it effective, not only for us, but
for everyone around us. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: It can be said that laughter is a great way to relieve stress or to even see the
positive in a bad situation. The people who are able to do this type of therapy for themselves are
able to find their happiness all the time. It has to be said that there must be a lesson in the humor
as the stress should not be bottled up to erupt later. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: What may seem to be a simple subject does not always have a simple answer.
Every day we faced with time management situations, money issues and keeping our egos in
check. We must learn what works for us and what is good for those that we support and are
around us. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
Unit Five Journal Writing Assignment

The journal topic that I have chosen to complete is the mindful self-inquiry for stress and

anxiety. This topic was chosen because I know there are quite a few things bouncing around in my

mind right now. I felt this assignment would help me to find the source or at least to be able to sort it

out within myself. The instructions called for a look into ones self from the areas of mental,

emotional and physical feelings. I feel those are all important areas that can be affected by stress or

anxiety. They can even be the cause of the stress or anxiety.

When it comes to the mental part of the assignment, there were so many things that went

17
through my mind. The first was trying to calm my mind from the many different subjects that were

present to focus on the task at hand. This took somewhere from five to ten minutes. I feel its

because I have so many things that I must accomplish in one day that it is a never ending cycle. The

cycle of thought keeps going and can cause me to be restless and be unable to fall asleep or even sleep

well at all. Upon finding the peace to complete the exercise, I found it very easy to focus on what I

had just read and what I needed to feel and think. I started to go through each stressor one at a time.

At first, it was odd to know I had so many things that I had on my mind. The most prominent of them

all was the relationship between my girlfriend and I. I know I have insecurities and they can

sometimes cause problems between us. I started to see that the insecurities are unfounded and she has

never given me any reason to doubt her love for me. I also realized that she has done nothing but

want me in her life and has shown that on many occasions. This is an amazing thing to know and

have justified. I think what is even better than that is to figure it out on my own through meditation.

Another area that has caused a massive amount of stress and anxiety is my job. I recently received a

promotion and have taken on more responsibilities at work. It is one of, if not, the most labor

intensive, mind stressing and time consuming jobs that I have ever had in my whole life. I was able to

sit and think about all that I want accomplish and what I have planned to get done. Most of the time, I

feel there is not enough time or that I am spinning my wheels and getting nothing accomplished.

However, the meditation allowed me to see that as a team, we have made huge strides and some of

initiatives have already been started. That actually relaxed me even more after that realization.

Emotionally, I started to feel all of the frustration, sadness, happiness and relaxation of all that

has been on my mind. The frustration was at the tip of the spear. The emotion is one that I fight daily

and often. I have been able to subside this feeling and start to see the rational or important part of any

given situation. As for the sadness, it is also a quick mental jog to figure out why I am feeling that

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way. It is also quickly curbed as this exercise helped me see all the positivity I have in my life right

now. This led to the happy and relaxed feelings. Near the end of the meditation period, I felt my

mood shift into neutral and find the happiness and see the great things I already have.

I began to feel the throbbing in my head, the soreness in my back, and the weight of my

shoulders, the swelling of my feet and the jello-like feeling of my legs. All of these were due to the

stressors in my life. The physicality of our emotions and thoughts is often forgotten about and it can

be assumed its just from a long work day. That may be so but a long mental thrashing can also break

down ones physical strength. Each one of these muscles or areas of the body began to almost sink

into the couch as I went through the exercise. It allowed me to shut everything down and feel and

think through everything logically and peacefully. To calm down and relax the physical aspect of my

body was an amazing feeling.

In summary, I appreciate all of the exercises that call for a time of meditation. I feel that

within the health and wellness field, it is a part of the spirituality of our person that we fail to take care

of. We know about diets and physical activity to stay healthy and keep in shape. Its the mind that

also needs a workout and relaxation time. There is nothing better than that.

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 6
Unit

Unit 6: Relaxation Techniques 1: Breathing,

Meditation, and Mental Imagery
Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: This unit teaches us how to breathe. Though that is the main reason for one of
the units chapters, the true skill is learning why breathing diaphragmatically is important for us
to find peace. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Finding a place that allows a person relax is very hard in this day and age. As a
culture, we are constantly on the go. Being able to do a meditation session will be of tremendous
help. Not only will it bring things down to a tolerable level, it will provide a sense of peace.
(Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: During the meditation, a technique of mental imagery and visualization can be
used. This can help the person take a vacation to where ever they may want to go. A place that
they know all their trouble go away and they are able to refocus. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
The techniques provided for diaphragmatic breathing are excellent ways of taking a person to a place of
Zen to relax and find their own sense of peace. When coupled with meditation, a person can feel their
emotions, their body, and all senses in their being and get to place of complete thoughtlessness. This
means they can be one with themselves and not worry about trivial problems for the duration of their
meditation.

Journal Writing:
Unit Six Journal Writing Assignment

This happens to be what could be considered a very intense and highly self-reflecting subject

to write about. Even the first question posed in the workbook, How often do you send yourself

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unkind messages, such as Im hopeless or Im worthless? is an interesting way to start any kind

of exercise. (Stahl, 151) To answer this question it would have to be said that I do it quite often and

when thought is put into it, it is done more than it should be done. Too many times, I do it in a joking

manner, especially when I am around other people. This gives the illusion that I am comfortable with

the situation that is occurring. The unfortunate part about it is that, more often than not, I am being

completely serious about the feelings I am expressing. The key is that I am masking it with humor.

The interesting part of it all is that to answer the next question, no, I would never say the things I say

to myself to anyone else. This is because I am well aware of the pain and hurt that words can cause.

Most of things I have said to myself, have been told to me from a person that was held in high regard

in my life. These people have caused somewhat of a complex in my own mind. Due to this fact, I

know for certain that I would not want to cause the same kind of angst in another persons life. These

notions that have been implanted in my head have only been allowed to manifest because I have

allowed them to remain there. I believe that the stress has not been as bad as it could be. This is

because a lot of the courses that I have been doing for my degree program have opened my mind,

body and soul to my complete being.

For the next section, it was asked what would be different in my life if I would stop self-

deprecating. I truly believe that should I completely stop being critical of myself, I would lose what it

means to be humble. But I also believe that my self-confidence would be at a level that only a few

people could tolerate. What is meant by that is I would have the personality of a very egotistical and

self-centered person. Most people that I have known who were self-centered were very hard to get

along with and to talk to. So, my belief is that yes, my personality would be one that is initially easily

accepted by most people, but in the end, it would be one that most people would not want in their

lives.

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 The next area for this weeks journal encompasses dealing with a difficult person in a difficult

situation. Just as the workbook states, it takes patience and an open mind to go into a situation where

your proverbial buttons are being pushed. In these cases, the entire story is not known so this will be

the basis of the entire disagreement. This causes the dissention that occurs from the ignorance of the

entire set of events. I have learned that in life, and all things, there are three sides to every story; their

side, your side and the truth. Every persons duty should be to take that analogy and apply to their

lives. It is not always an easy thing to accomplish. However, as with any action, it requires practice

in order to get it right. Even after mastering the three sided truth theory, there might be mistakes.

No one can ever be right all of the time. Also, it is important to remember that just as the reading

states, we are not always privy to what is going on in the other persons life at the moment that the

circumstances developed. The other person may have just experienced a life changing event and it is

causing them a lot of stress and anxiety. The best part of a bad situation is when the truth is found by

all parties and it was not as big of an issue as it was first imagined. Its these moments that help us, as

humans, to see each other as perfectly imperfect beings.

The fact that it takes a lot of self-awareness and emotional intelligence to accomplish or reach

the goal of a good life, is why it may seem so hard to get to that goal. As it was mentioned before,

all of this takes practice. Simple things, like the meditation that was conducted in seminar this week,

are the catalysts that will drive the person to that goal. When we are able to find our place of

happiness in mind, body and soul, only then, will we be able to help others along the same path.

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 7
Unit

Unit 7: Nutrition and Stress

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Physical exercise can be an excellent tool when dealing with stress. It can be
used as a way to expel excess energy that is being pent up over stress that has accumulated. Not
only that but it provides a means to keep a person physically healthy and in good working order.
(Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Tied to the exercise, nutrition plays a key role in a persons overall health.
Eating healthy can show signs of a well-rounded individual. It has been shown that when a
person is stressed they will consume foods that are not good for them. This only makes the cycle
of stress stronger and can extend its stay. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Our bodies are always adapting and getting used to the things we do it. With
that, we must remember to always keep our bodies guessing. Not in the sense that we are tricking
ourselves to believe we are doing well physically and nutritionally but to vary our workouts and
diets in good ways to stay healthy. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
This self-assessment required the student to conduct a meditation exercise while sitting. After reading the
instructions it took the person to a different place. This place was somewhere that could only be
explained as euphoric and relaxing. It was a place that the mind and body were one and the thoughts
were only concerned with the present moment. Each moment was special. It was special because there
were no distractions and all worries were elsewhere. (Seaward, 2015).

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 8
Unit

Unit 8: Physical Exercise and Activity

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Yoga is a great tool that can be used as an avenue for meditation and physical
exercise. To an untrained person, yoga may seem pointless and like a lot of standing or laying
around doing nothing. When used properly it can bring focus and a calm spirit. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Tai Chi Chuan is another discipline that can be mistaken for something its not.
Of course, it can be used as a self-defense type of class but the focus is on mindfulness and using
the teachings to get through tough times. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: These types of activities are merely scratching the surface of what can be
utilized for a person to get through stressful situations. It is a matter of finding what is good for
you as a person and seeing it through. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercises:
The team project was about providing our partner with a viable pitch idea to promote health and wellness
within a company. This allowed a person to look at our presentation with non-biased eyes. Not only
that, but to provide insight as to how the ideas could be improved upon without feeling criticized. The
project offered a lot of great insight and helped to focus the ideas into a positive atmosphere for the
company. (Seaward, 2015).

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Journal Writing:
Unit Eight Journal Writing Assignment

OPENNESS: I see something with this quality that is an area that I personally want to grow make

more efficient. The person that I care about has openness as she is accepting of who I am and I want

to return that to her and see her for who she is, entirely.

EMPATHY: This played into openness. With this, I saw into her experiences and it helped me to

calm some questions that have been running through my mind. She has her own experiences just as I

have. I must try to understand her world to compromise and see her side.

COMPASSION: I saw her sitting in front of me and wanting me to listen to her. After listening to

her, she did not want me to try and fix anything. She just wanted me to tell her I was beside her and I

would support her when she was tired or weak. Coupled with this, I would stand and hold her in my

arms to comfort her.

LOVING-KINDNESS: As I imagine this quality, I think about how I want nothing but the best for

her. It must be said that she is a very kind and loving woman. Because of that, I want her to have the

same things in her life. She deserves the best in life and I would hope that by expressing my well

wishes for her happiness is seen in complete sincerity and she sees how great of a person she is.

SYMPATHETIC JOY: This person has achieved so much in her life that this quality is very easy to

imagine for her. I am truly inspire by what she has made it through in her life. It also amazing to see

where she is now. I cannot wait until the future happens and we get to see where her life takes her.

EQUANIMITY: With this one, I picture has a future love interest. I want to give her the same respect

and admiration that I give to co-workers and people in general. I do not want to get complacent with

her in a relationship. That will only breed the ability to hurt her feelings and she is too special for

that.

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 In summary, I really appreciated this exercise. The person I referenced in the connection

exercise is someone that I have known for a couple of years now. She truly has been an inspiration

and has a heart of gold. The exercise reminded me of how precious our relationship is as she has

never judged me for who I am. It also reminded me that I want to extend that non-judgmental attitude

back to her and show her how special she really is.

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 9
Unit

Unit 9: Applying Stress: Critical Issues for

Management and Prevention to your
Professional Life
Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Being able to find our own coping mechanisms is extremely important to our
well-being. Without a way to handle our stress we may find ourselves very alone due to the
taking out of our frustrations on the ones we love. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: It is good to be able to create programs to make a business better but it is also
good to not forget about ourselves. Our own stress-management program will play a huge part in
how we excel in life. (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: The four aspects that are brought up are mindful eating, exercise, rest and
connection. These areas help us get through our stressors that are presented in our daily lives.
We must stay mindful of all things that we do to and put in our bodies. This will only make us
better and more well-rounded individuals. (Stahl, 2010).

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Additional Information
Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program. Real Solutions for Real Needs. Retrieved from U.S.

Department of Defense: http://www.cap.mil/documents/CAP_Ergo_Guide.pdf

Fisher, Christian. (2016). Pay Scale for a Wellness Coach. The Houston Chronicle. Retrieved from

www.work.chron.com

Hutheesing, Nikhil. (2012). The Real Cost of Hiring a Coach. Retrieved from www.bloomberg.com

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 References

Seaward, B. (2015). Managing stress: Principles and strategies for health and well-being. Burlington,

MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Stahl, B., & Goldstein, E. (2010). A mindfulness-based stress reduction workbook. Oakland, CA: New

Harbinger Publications, Inc

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