Mental Health: Ch 9- Managing Stress

1. Mental Health: Ch 9- Managing Stress EQ- What are ways to recognize stress? How do you deal with stress? By PresenterMedia.com

2. What is Stress? • The combination of a stressor and a stress response • Stress : The key is learning to manage stress in your life Different things stress out different people The same thing that causes you stress may not cause another person stress • Any new or potentially unpleasant situation • Only have the potential to cause a stress response • The body’s reaction to stress Stressor: Stress Response:

3. What are some stressors in people’s lives? Examples include, but not limited to: • Trying out for a sports team • Parents not getting along • Trying to get a knot out of shoe laces • Getting married Get an idea of how much your life has changed in the past year: 1. Complete pg 193: Life Changing Units 2. Add up the life-change units for the change you’ve experienced during last 12 months 3. Total score:

4. Stress Response • Deals with relationship between the brain and rest of your body • If stressor is seen as nothing to worry about then nothing happens, • If stress is seen as a threat then brain signals your body to produce certain chemicals that contribute to the stress response

5. How/ why does the stress response help us? • Allows “fight” or “flight” to occur so you can act immediately and with great physical effect. • Body produces a hormone called adrenaline, which aides in the body protecting itself.

6. Physical Changes • More blood goes to the brain, legs and arms • Hearing improves • Pupils open wider • Mouth gets dry • Breathing speeds up • Sweating increases • Adrenal glands secrete adrenaline • Muscles tense up • Blood pressure increases and heart beats faster and contracts harder

7. Stress can make you sick • If the stress is not released it can lead to sickness • Estimated 60-80% of all physical and mental disorders are related to stress. • Not all are caused by stress, but many are made worse by stress • Long-term stress can lead to weakening your immune system

8. Sickness and disorders related to stress • Cold and Flu • Weaken immune system can’t fight infection • Also, longer time to heal once sick • Tension Headaches • Stress causes muscles in neck and head to tense up • Backache • Frequent tension in muscles on back • TMJ Syndrome • Stress can cause the clinching or grinding of teeth, resulting in the joint connecting upper jaw to lower (temporomandibular joint) to have pain. • Coronary Heart Disease • Higher levels of cholesterol can occur, which can lead to a heart attack • High Blood Pressure • Part of the stress response • Eventually lead to rupture of blood vessel in brain • Chronic Fatigue • Prolonged stress can cause a person to feel tired all the time, long-term loss of energy • Different then being tired after exercise • Depression • Prolonged stress can wear a person down to a point of “Burnout” or exhaustion • This is just an advance stage of “burnout” .

9. Signs of Stress: Mental/Emotional SignsPhysical Signs Anxiety Headaches Frustration Dry mouth Mood swings Teeth grinding Depression Shortness of breath Irritability Pounding of heart Nightmares Indigestion Nervous laugh Diarrhea Worrying Constipation Confusion Muscle aches Forgetfulness Weight change Poor Concentration Fatigue Loneliness Insomnia

10. How to manage stress: The Stress Model • You can stop yourself from progressing from one step to the next. • When this occurs you have used a Stress Intervention

11. Stress Intervention: Any action that prevents a stressor from resulting in negative consequences. • Relaxation Techniques • Stress Intervention of Step 3 • Engage is some method to relieve the stress • Anything that changes the focus of the mind • Meditation • Focusing on something repetitive or unchanging • Progressive Relaxation • Tense up muscles in one part of body • Then relax the muscles • Then move through out entire body tensing and relaxing muscles • Body Scanning • Searching body for that one relaxed body part • Once it’s found, imagine that feeling throughout rest of the body • Autogenic Training • Thinking of a relaxing image or place • Laughing • One of the easiest and most natural relaxation techniques • Yelling or Crying • Allows feelings of being more relaxed and able to deal with a stressor • Physical Exercise • Intervention from step 4 • Takes advantage of the body readiness to do something physical • Uses the stress response in a positive way Eliminate the stressor Anticipate a common stressor and find a way to remove it from your life Stress intervention in front of Step 1 Change your interpretation of a Stressor Road block to intervention ofStep 2 Selective awareness: Focusing on the aspects of a situation that help a person feel better

12. Managing Stress is Lifelong Many of the negative consequences of stress can be avoided through proper physical health. Eat balanced diet Exercise regularly Get enough rest/sleep Use one of the relaxation techniques Don’t use alcohol, tobacco or other drugs Find a support group (group of people who trust each other and are able to talk to each other about their problems) Allows you to discuss your stressors Have a spiritual life (sense of connection with something greater than oneself). Helps you get through high levels of stress Get professional help Whenever you feel you can’t deal with the stress in your life.