STRESS

MANAGEMENT
 Important questions :
• How’s your life going?

• Are you enjoying your life?

• Are you making as much money as you

want?
• Are you having enough fun/leisure?

• Are you getting what you want from life?

 DO WE EXERCISE THE “RIGHT
CHOICE”?
Every day, I can CHOOSE to be
happy or sad, stressed or relaxed,
etc.
If things are getting hectic I ask
myself, "What can I do about it
today, right now?" 
Sometimes, the answer is
"nothing." When that happens, I
just try to go on about the
business of taking care of what I
CAN do, today, right now. 
 WHAT IS STRESS?
• "Stress occurs when the
pressures upon us exceed our
resources to cope with those
pressures."
 WHAT IS STRESS?
• External events could be
– Job and the environment – task,colleagues,
policies, and the environment itself.
– Socio- cultural context of one’s life

• Internal drive
- encompasses things that are intimate and
personal like values, health,abilities etc.
 The four basic variations of
stress
Overstress
(hyperstress)

Good stress
stress Bad stress
(eustress) (distress)

Understress
hypostress
 Signs of Stress
• Physical Symptoms may include:
Chest Pains
Excessive tiredness
Headaches
Frequent colds and minor ailments
Palpitations
Insomnia
Muscular aches
Nausea
Sweating
Dizziness
 Signs of Stress
Emotional Symptoms may include:
Anger
Anxiety
Depression
Irrational fears
Mood swings
Guilt
Irritability
Pessimism
Resentment
Feeling of powerlessness and lack of control
 Signs of Stress
Behavioural Symptoms may include:
Crying
Excessive consumption of alcohol
Fidgeting
Lashing out at others
Smoking
Swearing
Shouting
 Signs of Stress
Mental Symptoms may include:
Poor memory and concentration
Confusion
Loss of sense of humour
Incessant negative thoughts
 THE NATURE OF STRESS
GOOD OPTIMAL STRESS
PERFORMANCE

Optimal
Performanc Tense:
LEVEL OF

Boredom; e mistakes
Apathy Irritable
Poor Morale Low Self
Esteem

POOR
UNDERLOAD OVERLOAD

LOW LEVEL OF STRESS HIGH

 PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS:
• Digestion slows – blood directed to the muscles
and the brain.
• Breathing gets faster.
• Heart speeds up- BP soars- heart pounding
• Perspiration increases – burns more energy
• Muscles tense – stiff back and neck
• Sugars and fats pour into the blood stream –
increased strength and energy
• "The stress response of the body is 
somewhat like an airplane readying for 
take­off. Virtually all systems (eg, the 
heart and blood vessels, the immune 
system, the lungs, the digestive system, 
the sensory organs, and brain) are 
modified to meet the perceived danger."
 CAUSES OF STRESS:

•Survival
•Internally Generated
•Environment and Job related
•Fatigue and Work Overload
 Type ‘A’ personality
• Doing Several Things Concurrently
• Bored When Other People Are Talking
• Anxious To Finish Work At Hand
• Eating, Talking, Walking At Top Speed
• Unobservant Of Anything, Unconnected
• Find It Hard To Laugh At Yourself
• Hard To Delegate
• Pushing Others To Achieve Your Standards
 MANAGEMENT OF STRESS –
DE-STRESSING – Achievements
List out your day’s achievements, however small
they be, which make you feel good; force
yourself to generate at least three.
Repeat this exercise each day for a week or two.
The idea is to feel positive about self and not get
vindicated by “diminishing spiral” that states – “I
never achieve anything”
 MANAGEMENT OF STRESS –
DE-STRESSING – Humour & Laughter
Stress can get into a feedback loop. More
the stress, more the unhappiness and
more the stress etc. Break the loop.
Note down everything that makes you
laugh. Not a snide, put down sort of
laughter, but sheer uncontrolled hilarity.
When was it last that you had such
laughter. Can you re-visit such situations –
books, films/TV, companionship etc.
 MANAGEMENT OF STRESS –
DE-STRESSING – Music soothes

Music soothes the savage breast, if of the right

type. All music is not de-stressing. Find out
which music relieves your stress. Look for slow,
calm music, reminiscent of flowing water and
happy, untroubled times
 MANAGEMENT OF STRESS –
DE-STRESSING – we are what we eat
There is no magic link between food and
stress relief. In fact being careful about
diet can actually be stressful.
However, the need for reducing our intake
of saturated fat and salt, while eating more
vegetables, fruit, fish, fibre and
carbohydrates is hard to dispute.
Stress may cause dehydration and we
ought to drink more water.
 MANAGEMENT OF STRESS –
DE-STRESSING – Our dress

Tight, formal clothes increase stress levels.

Loose, informal clothes help us relax.

Find ways to wear casuals more often.

Wear loose clothes while sleeping.

All experiences are subjective:

 
           
                                                                                   
 MANAGEMENT OF STRESS
DE-STRESSING – Our Perceptions
Perceptions are amazingly important to stress:

An exercise
imagine 9/11
Critical Incident Stress
Management (CISM)
THEOLOGIAN RHEINHOLD NIEBUHR SAYS :

"Serenity Prayer" ……

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I

cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
and the wisdom to know the difference-
living one day at a time;
enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace.”