Stress Managmeent Essays - Stress, Eustress,

Stress Managmeent Stress management is something we as people should take a lot more seriously than we really do. Whenever I tell someone that they need to learn how to control their stress they always tell me they need their stress. They are right, they do need their stress, we all need a certain amount of stress in our lives. No stress is almost just as unhealthy as too much stress. Just the right amount of stress is called Eustress. Eustress is a healthy stressor because it helps to keep us motivated. Unhealthy stress is called Distress. Distress is unhealthy because it can cause all sorts of health problems such as anxiety attacks or high blood pressure. There are two different kinds of stressors, an internal stressor and an External stressor. An internal stressor is self-generated stress. For example, spending more money than you have therefore getting yourself into debt, or procrastination. An external stressor is something that stresses you out that you have no control over. For example, sick o r dying relatives or your car breaking down. Since most of the stress we suffer from is internal distress we usually think that its something that a pill can fix. Hey isnt that Americas answer to everything, Take a pill. Did you know that 80% of health care is spent on stress related disorders every year? (According to the centers for disease control and prevention.) You can easily avoid going to the doctors due to a stress-related disorder by simply learning to manage or relieve your stress. This is very important for students because stress will cause a vicious cycle of unhealthy behavior patterns. Once you become distressed it can cause sleeping disorders, unhealthy eating patterns, and immune deficiency. These will all cause a student to become quite unproductive in their studies. Here are some stress management strategies that one can implement quickly and without turning to a doctor. Exercise regularly Nothing beats aerobic exercise for relieving stress. The stress reaction i n the body consists of tightened muscles, increased heart rate, Increased blood pressure, and heavier breathing . The result is our bodies go into a state of high energy but there is usually no place for that energy to go. Exercise is the most logical way to dissipate this excess energy. In turn relieving stress. Humor Humor is the best medicine. Laughter reduces the heart rate and arterial blood pressure to below their original levels and causes the chest, abdomen, and shoulder muscles to contract, thus providing release from stress. Do the quiz in one of my humor potential quiz books located in the back of this report to test yourself and see if you should be laughing more than you do. Realistic Expectations A common source of stress is unrealistic expectations. People often become upset about something not because it is innately stressful but because it is not what they expected. For example, If you get caught in slow moving traffic during rush hour you may not like it but it w ont surprise you or necessarily upset you. However if it occurs on a Sunday afternoon it is more than likely to stress you out considerably. When expectations are realistic life seems more predictable and therefore more manageable because you can plan ahead and prepare yourself. As for expectations of others; expect less from people who cannot give you what you want. It makes it easier- not great, just less upsetting. Reframing Reframing is a technique used to change the way you look at the things in order to feel better about them. The key to reframing is to recognize that there are many ways to interpret the same situation. Its like the question, Is the glass half empty or half full? The answer depends on how you look at it. If the glass is half full you are an Optimist. An optimist is someone who usually sees the positive side in a given situation. If you see the glass as half empty you are a Pessimist. A pessimist is someone who usually sees the negative side in a given situati on. The purpose to reframing is to be an optimist in any given situation. Therefore as