Stress Management – What That Short Stress Quiz Didn’t Tell You About Managing Stress
How Stressed Are You? You’ve seen them – those quizzes in the magazines. Answer these 10 or 20 questions and find out where you stand on the stress scale. Mostly, they don’t tell you anything you didn’t already know, right? And you already did what they suggest and it wasn’t enough.
I read an article this morning that suggested packing lunches and setting out clothes the night before. Well, if you had time to do that, you probably wouldn’t be reading this article, would you? In reality, how much stress you experience at any given time depends on many factors.
Your Childhood – As your therapist always told you, your childhood experience does have something to do with how much stress you experience in your life. How your parents handled tough situations taught you a lot – or not. Also, how supported you felt when you went through tough times makes a difference.
Your Recent Life Changes – Most often taken out of context and presented as a complete stress assessment, the index of recent life changes highlights the basic aspect of stress. Going through many changes in a short time significantly increases your likelihood of illness. Notice I didn’t say negative change, just change. Even desirable experiences like weddings, graduations, and promotions demand adaptation and create stress.
Your Health – Your physical condition impacts your stress levels more than you may think. Not only does stress make you sick, but both short-term and chronic illness cause stress.
Your State of Mind – Any true measure of stress must measure psychological symptoms as well. The most common psychological symptoms caused by stress are anxiety and depression. Some people can sail through a tough time without experiencing either of these, and others may be affected strongly by a seemingly small event.
Your Personality – Your habitual behaviors and emotions also influence how much stress you experience. Your usual pace, outlook, assertiveness, emotional tone, and way of relating to others, as well as how often you work overtime, all impact your stress level.
Most stress assessments leave out the factors working in your favor, as well. Yet these vitally important factors can make the difference between healthy functioning and developing symptoms of stress-related illness.
Your Health Habits – Your use of caffeine, nicotine, and other recreational drugs influences your level of stress. Diet, exercise, and the pace of your life play a part, too.
Social Support – A strong and close-knit group of friends can carry you through tough times.
Your Responses to Stress – Whether you ignore problems and hope they will go away, get stuck in guilt and self-blame, or proactively make a plan and work it adds another piece of the puzzle.
How Satisfied You are with Your Life – Basic satisfaction with your job, health, relationships, finances and home provides some insulation from stressful experiences.
Purpose and Connection – People who believe their life has meaning for themselves and others experience less stress than those who don’t share this belief.
No one factor determines your level of stress. The balance between your stresses and your coping skills, constantly changing, determines where the scale stands at any given moment.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sherrie_St._Cyr
March 25th, 2009 at 8:38 pm
Good read about stress. A nice little quiz, thanks
October 25th, 2009 at 10:22 am
Stress Management is easy, all i need to do is just take deep and slow breathes then meditate. listening to music also reduces stress.
August 23rd, 2010 at 5:12 am
The state of your mind is very important in managing stress. Change a negative state of mind into a positive one by meditating on encouraging Scriptures or positive affirmations and your stressful situation will not distress you as much as if you had a negative mindset.
October 27th, 2010 at 7:45 am
Basic problem to stress is lifestyle, people work more hours each day to bridge the financial gap, as inflation is high, so we have to earn more to live decent living.
For acute stress related problem one should try organic herbal treatments which help to control stress and hypertension.
November 6th, 2010 at 2:37 am
I enjoyed this article it hit on a lot of subjects and brought them all together. good job
December 15th, 2010 at 6:00 pm
As a minister, corproate trainer, and success coach, I find that people are becoming more and more stressed. They are fearful that they are going to get downsized, they may be dealing with financial pressures, they may be doing doing the work of three people instead of one, and they often have problems in their personal lives.
Now, more than ever, I think it is critical for people to begin to learn how to handle their stress more effectively. Certain people might have an easier time doing this than others, but everyone can benefit from use some stress management strategies on a regular basis.
May 5th, 2011 at 11:35 pm
The list is great. I think the most important and significant factor is childhood experience. Parents need to take notice of their children’s emotions and try to develop confidence and security. It is a cold cruel world and a hard one to grow up in. Children need to learn not to fear new situations or mistakes. Embrace them and they will have happier adult lives. Stress management is easy for some, but not most adults.