Kaplan University stress management guide

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KAPLAN UNIVERSITY
HW410 Stress: Critical Issues in Management and
Prevention
StressManagementand
Prevention Program
ResourceGuide

K A P L A N U N I V E R S I T Y
Stress Management and Prevention
Program Resource Guide
By
Taylor Hahn
Kaplan University
HW410: Stress: Critical Issues in Management and Prevention
December 15, 2015

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U N I T 1 T H E N A T U R E O F S T R E S S
Information to Remember.....................................................................................................................4
Self-Assessment Exercises .....................................................................................................................4
Journal Writing......................................................................................................................................4,5
U N I T 2 T H E P H Y S I O L O G Y O F S T R E S S
Journal Writing......................................................................................................................................6,7
U N I T 3 P S Y C H O L O G Y O F S T R E S S
Journal Writing......................................................................................................................................8,9
U N I T 4 P E R S O N A L I T Y T R A I T S A N D T H E H U M A N S P I R I T U A L I T Y
Information to Remember...................................................................................................................10
Self-Assessment Exercises ...................................................................................................................10
Journal Writing.............................................................................................................................10,11,12
U N I T 5 D E A L I N G W I T H S T R E S S : C O P I N G S T R A T E G I E S
Journal Writing..................................................................................................................................13,14
U N I T 6 R E L A X A T I O N T E C H I Q U E S 1 : B R E A T H I N G , M E D I T A T I O N , A N D M E N T A L
I M A G E R Y
Journal Writing..................................................................................................................................15,16
U N I T 7 N U T R I T I O N A N D S T R E S S

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U N I T 8 P H Y S I C A L E X E R C I S E A N D A C T I V I T Y
Journal Writing..................................................................................................................................18,19
U N I T 9 A P P L Y I N G S T R E S S : C R I T I C A L I S S U E S F O R M A N A G E M E N T A N D
P R E V E N T I O N T O Y O U R P R O F E S S I O N A L L I F E
A D D I T I O N A L I N F O R M A T I O N
…………..………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………21
R E F E R E N C E S
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Unit 1: The Nature of Stress
Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Loss of emotional control is how the Western culture views stress. However,
the East views stress as one’s inner peace. Overall, stress can be caused by any change in one’s
life (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Stress greatly effects ones physiological system. Examples of responses from
the system are high blood pressure and decrease immune response (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Technology has greatly increased one’s pace of life. Instead of technology
being a leisure activity, technology causes stress by one feeling forced to keep up with the
evolution (Seaward, 2015).
Self-Assessment Exercise:
The first self-assessment had me assess my current life’s mandala (Seaward, 2015). The
mandala consisted of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual concepts. I ranked each category of
importance based on my current life situations and explained why. At this time, my mandala is still
ranked from physical being my strongest, mental, then emotional, and lastly spiritual.
Journal Writing:
For the first journal, I wrote out different stressful situations. Then, I ranked them based on how
stressful they were before and after they occurred (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).
Situation Start Midway End
When I have multiple assignments due for each class 9 6 3
When I have to meet a sales quota at work 9 7 4
When I get less than 7 hours of sleep 7 4 2
Coming up on my mom’s 1 year anniversary of her death 10 7 5
When a piece of equipment breaks at work 7 4 2
When I am in a fight with my dad 8 5 3
When I eat out a lot 8 4 2
When I am late to work because of traffic 9 5 3
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Thinking about inheriting the disease that runs in my family 10 9 9
Struggling to make enough money to pay my mortgage 9 8 7

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Unit 2: The Physiology of Stress
Key Learning Point: Our body has several backup systems in order to insure survival. Different
systems can last seconds or even weeks. Also, each system is involved in other metabolic
pathways (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Borysenko’s model described how stress-related diseases have two categories.
One category is overresponsive autonomic nervous system such as migraines, and the other is
dysfunctional immune system such as cancer (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Relaxation techniques have been shown to decrease symptoms of stress disease.
An example of a relaxation exercise would be yoga or meditation (Seaward, 2015).
This week’s self-assessment exercise was to describe five disease that occur from the nervous
system in response to stress. Plus, identify one disease that occurs from the immune system as well.
Bronchial asthma, tension headaches, migraines, temporomandibular joint dysfunction, and irritable bowel
syndrome were the five nervous system disease I wrote about and asthma was the one I chose for the
immune system (Seaward, 2015).
Journal Writing
How is stress or anxiety about people affecting your life?
Stress and anxiety about people are greatly affecting my life right now. My father has a new
girlfriend since my mother has died not even a year ago. This is very hard for me to process. Also, I
have pressure from all three of my brothers to be okay with my father’s relationship and show them
my feelings are not hurt. Lastly, I have pressure and anxiety from my friends to see them more, but it
is hard when all our schedules are different.
How is stress or anxiety about work affecting your life?
Work stress and anxiety is affecting my life because new owners just bought the gym I
manage. These owners will not let me perform the tasks I once was. For example, I have to
determine if I want to be the personal trainer or the membership coordinator because I can no longer
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have both roles. It is also stressful to be a work when I know I have so much school work to
complete.
How is stress or anxiety about the world affecting your life?
Currently, the world is affecting me too. I have been wondering why Americans spend more
time at work than they do with their family. It is stressful to have to work full time, go to school, and
have time for family. But the American mentality is to work our lives away. Also, all the latest
shootings are making me uneasy. It makes me remember that life is too short and you never know
what can happen. I find myself paying attention to my surroundings more.
How is stress or anxiety about food and eating habits affecting your life?
Food does not affect my stress or anxiety too much. The only time it does is when I am out
and about and need to eat. I eat very healthy because I am a personal trainer and really care about
properly fueling my body. So, when I am out of the house and do not have any food present I am
forced to make a decision. I wish there were more to go restaurants that had healthier options.
Instead, when this does happen I end up at a grocery store buying sushi or a salad. Overall, I always
try to bring food from home or meals that I have prepared to avoid this problem.
How is stress or anxiety about sleep and sleeplessness affecting your life?
Sleep stress and anxiety affects my life tremendously. Caring so much about my body I need
at least eight hours of sleep a night. If I do not get eight hours of sleep my whole mood and body is
out of sync. So, if I go to bed at night and I cannot get eight hours, it really stresses me out, and I
count the maximum amount of hours I can get. Work, school, and family once again make this task
hard to achieve each night, but that does not stop me from trying.
How is stress or anxiety about exercise or lack of physical activity affecting your life?
Exercise actually does not cause any stress or anxiety for me. Being a personal trainer, I love
working out and have a plan each week that I follow. I rarely have a day where I struggle getting to
the gym. In fact, I struggle taking rest days to let my body recover. So, to me working out is my
stress relief and I look forward to rewarding my body each day.
Summary
Overall, it was important to recognize where my stress and anxiety comes from. I need to
remember to take time to do mindful check-ins. For example, before jumping out of bed each
morning, I could take five minutes to collect my thoughts and start with a calm self before rising
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). Also, I need to learn to block things out when I am able to. Another
example would be turning off my work email when having dinner with my family (Stahl & Goldstein,
2010). Last but not least, I definitely need to focus more on being in the moment. I need to recognize
when my mind is racing thinking about everything I need to accomplish for the rest of the day or
week. It is at times like that I need to refocus on the present (Seaward, 2015). In the end, it was eye
opening to complete this journal to realize where all my stress is placed, and how I can overcome it
daily by being in the moment.

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Unit 3: Psychology of Stress
Key Learning Point: Problems and unexpected situations are bound to occur in one’s life. However,
many theories have shown that self-awareness and self-acceptance are becoming the most
beneficial coping skills one can have (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Fear occurs due to actual or imagined exposure to physical or mental pain.
Coping and relaxation techniques are encouraged to help one manage fear because if fear is left
unresolved it can slowly build up to depression (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: There are several communication techniques, now-a-days technology causes one
to use screens to communicate and lacks face to face. Since, one cannot hear voice tone behind a
screen, miscommunications are more likely to occur. One may even use texting to avoid voice
conversations (Seaward, 2015).
This week’s self-assessment dealt with how the Tibetan culture uses the mind perspective to deal
with stress. The Tibetan culture believes that a devoted mind can ignore the desire and find his or her
higher self, and negative stress is the mind desiring something that it simply cannot have (Seaward, 2015).
Also, I assessed how to improve my own communication in order to avoid miscommunication and stress
with others.
Journal Writing:
By completing the five minute mindfulness meditation, I learned a lot about myself and my
personality. First, I started the mindfulness meditation sitting up, but I realized that I was more
focused on my back and posture than my breathing. So, I decided to lie down. This was much more
comfortable and beneficial for me. At first, I had a hard time focusing. I would take four mindfulness
breaths and then start thinking about how much more homework I had to complete. But, following
the guidelines, I acknowledged where my thoughts went and regained focus on my breathing (Stahl &
Goldstein, 2010). Throughout the meditation, my thoughts also went to work and family stress as
well. But, about half way thorough, I had total focus on my breath. After the meditation, I felt so
relaxed and at peace with my current life.
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I would like to perform the meditation more, but for now I have set a goal of at least three
times a week. Now, I have noticed when I have anxiety at work or stress with family, I tend to
gravitate towards mindfulness meditation at that given moment. By doing this, I am controlling my
body to not stress out or say something I don’t mean. These benefits have caused me to have a more
positive vibe when at work or home when I would normally be uneasy.
Learning to focus on myself brings me to the present and makes me question what truly
matters at this given moment. I enjoyed having the beach reference of waves during the meditation
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). I have always correlated the beach with my happy spot because it is so
breath-taking. There is something so calming about those waves and that ocean that seems to go on
forever. By doing this mindfulness meditation, referencing the ocean, and focusing on my breath it
makes me remember these “problems” I think I am having are irrelevant in the grand scheme of
things. Overall, I greatly enjoyed this exercise and plan to continue it as because it has calmed my
nerves and brought me to the present moment. I have noticed a tremendous difference in my health in
such a short amount of time by performing the meditation.

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Unit 4: Personality Traits and the Human
Spirituality
Key Learning Point: One can either have a stress prone or stress resistant personality. An example of
stress prone would be Type A personality and stress resistant would be sensation seeker
(Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Spirituality is becoming a more accepted term in the Western culture. Centering,
emptying, grounding, and connecting are themes to help one grow his or her spirituality. These
themes can also be connected to the changing seasons (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Behavior modification programs are designed to help one achieve assertiveness.
Once assertiveness is achieved, self-esteem will increase. It is important one understands relapse
may occur, but one should then restart the program where he or she left off (Seaward, 2015).
This week I researched how people who have self-punishing tendencies lower their self-esteem or
have low self-esteem by practicing excessive sleeping, drinking, sleeping and even cutting themselves
(Seaward, 2015). If one is down on themselves, he or she may not be practicing stress management
techniques, and when the stress becomes worse so does his or hers self-esteem. But, those who have high
self-esteem are more apt to realize when stress is occurring and take measures to reduce it because he or she
does not like when self-esteem lowers (Seaward, 2015). Relationships, values, and purpose are all affected
by stress and those with higher self-esteem were more resilient. Lastly, I applied Prochaska’s stages of
change model to help one overcome a sedentary lifestyle (Seaward, 2015).
Journal Writing:
FEAR: apprehension, anxiety, distress, edginess, jumpiness, nervousness, panic, tenseness,
uneasiness, worry, fright, feeling overwhelmed.
For fear, I feel these feelings in my heart, mind, and stomach sometimes simultaneously. I get
a pit in my stomach, my heart feels heavy, and my mind is running in circles. Just reading the words
made those parts of my body feel the emotions. School and work stress is what comes to mind when I
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read those traits. Since I am so close to graduating, these feelings are definitely more present than
usual. Overall, I have definitely felt every one of those emotions at one point in time.
CONFUSION: bewildered, uncertain, puzzled, mystified, perplexed, chaotic, foggy, or unaware.
Uncertain and puzzled are the ones that I could relate to the most out of the confusion list.
Those feelings are felt mainly in my mind. My mind changes its direction or intention a lot and at
those moments, I feel puzzled and uncertain. Also, I find my eyebrows constantly raised when these
emotions occur. The time that comes to mind, is when I wanted to change my major when I only had
one year left in dental hygiene school. I felt all those emotions for a while debating if I made the right
choice or not.
ANGER: aggravation, agitation, annoyance, destructiveness, disgust, envy, frustration, irritation,
grouchiness, grumpiness, rage.
Once again, I have felt all of those emotions at one point or another. The time or image that
comes to mind is when I lost my job. I was envious of everyone that still got to keep theirs, and I was
irritated that I felt like I had to start my life over. These emotions were felt in my entire body. For
example, my hands, shoulders, and fist clenched together and tensed up. I could also feel my heart
begin to beat abnormally fast. Lastly, my mind was constantly wandering and my limbs were all so
tense while feeling these emotions.
SADNESS: alienation, anguish, despair, disappointment, gloom, grief, hopelessness, insecurity,
loneliness, misery, unhappiness, rejection.
For the emotions of sadness, I have felt each of these emotions too. The time that comes to
mind was losing my mom to a brutal disease. It took me a while to grieve and no longer feel all these
emotions at once. The main body part I felt these emotions was in my heart and mind; however, I
also felt my shoulders droop and eyes water constantly. I just felt lethargic and couldn’t believe this
happened to me while I was grieving.
SHAME: guilt, embarrassment, humiliation, invalidation, regret, remorse, mortification.
Again, I felt all these emotions when I lost my job. These feelings resonated in my mind. I
thought everyone felt embarrassed and humiliated for me because of the situation. Because I thought
that’s what others felt for me, I began to feel them for myself too and felt I couldn’t speak with any of
my old coworkers. As far as other parts of my body, I noticed I would cross my arms and close off
my entire body.
LOVE: affection, arousal, attraction, caring, compassion, desire, fondness, infatuation, kindness,
liking, longing, warmth, sympathy, sentimentality.
These emotions are always felt towards my partner and my dog. That is the exact image that
comes to mind when I read these emotions. I feel these emotions mainly in my heart and soul. Since
they are embedded in my heart for my partner and my dog, I then do physical and emotional acts to
let them know how much they mean to me. I also long to feel these feelings in return as well. My
body language is never tense when these emotions are present. Plus, I am constantly smiling when
these emotions take over.
JOY: amusement, bliss, contentment, eagerness, elation, enjoyment, enthusiasm, excitement,
exhilaration, hope, optimism, pleasure, satisfaction.
Emotions of joy resonate in my mind. I have felt all of these too at one point or another.
Recently, I felt them at the charity event I hosted. The charity event is for a disease close to my
family, and without any previous experience or knowledge of charity events, I planned and executed
one. It was just our third annual bowl-a-thon last weekend and was once again was a huge success.
When people show these feelings towards me, the feelings are resonate in my heart. For these
emotions as well, my body language is welcoming and a smile is always plastered on my face.

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SUMMARY
This body scan was very interesting to conduct on myself. I have felt majority of the emotions
listed above at one point in my life. Some have difficulty understating where his or her emotions lie
in their body (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). But I do not think I have that problem. I feel I am in touch
with where my emotions come from and where they resonate in my body. Majority of the emotions I
feel in my heart and mind but then based on the emotion my body language is affected.
One thing that this body scan and chapter taught me, is how to use the body scan to stop these
emotions from snowballing into something larger (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). For example, when I
feel my fists and shoulder clench during angry emotions, I should take the time to back away and take
some deep breaths. By doing so, I don’t let the emotions of anger control me and potentially make
me regret something I say or do.
Also, the body scan reminded me not to confuse thoughts with emotions (Stahl & Goldstein,
2010). I cannot let myself say “I am unworthy” and then begin to feel those emotions. Since my
family did not show or discuss emotion a lot, that made want me to do the opposite even more. So, I
have always been known as the black sheep in the family because I refuse to allow my emotions to be
bottled up. I wear my emotions on my sleeve because I do not think it is healthy to not express
yourself, but of course doing so in an appropriate manner.

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Unit 5: Dealing with Stress: Coping Strategies
Key Learning Point: Toxic thoughts can suppress one’s immune system. So, it is important that one
tries to adopt a new perspective when possible. But, if a new perspective cannot be adopted, one
should focus on acceptance of the situation and simply go with the flow (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Studies suggest that laugher and health have an established positive relationship.
This is due to humor and laugher promoting mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being
(Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Calendars and time were created to promote organization. However, now
people feel like they are constantly booked and working which is causing stress. It is important
people realize personal satisfaction is very important, and time should be made for that as well
(Seaward, 2015).
Journal Writing:
For the unit five journal, I chose to participate in the walking meditation exercise. This exercise
consisted of a ten minute CD, nature, my emotions, and my physical body (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). The
benefit of this exercise is for one to slow down and truly experience the movement of walking one step at a
time.
I chose to walk outside in my backyard. My backyard buts up to a nature preserve, so as I was
walking out a family of deer passed by. Also, since it is fall time, the smell of crisp leaves filled my
nostrils. I did not taste anything in particular, but I did notice my attention wanted to be placed on school
and work. Plus, other things I had to accomplish for the day. Next, it was my job to focus on feeling my
body shift the weight to get one foot in front of the other. The CD wanted me to feel the force it took to
plant each foot in front of the other. A tingling sensation over took each foot because of how cold it was
outside when I was performing the exercise. I also noted I prefer my hands to be freely at my sides when I
walk. When I got to the point where I had to turn around and walk back, I felt prepared. It was about 30
steps one way, and I began to feel in touch with my emotions for the next 30 steps. I felt more aware of the
nature around me and aware of how my body was moving.
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I noticed the first 30 steps were the hardest. I had to work to push all my stressful thoughts out of
my mind and body. However, I do believe it was easier to do that because I was focusing on feeling my
body move and the nature around me. Before I did this exercise, I read the chapter, and learned the
acronym STOP. STOP stands for stop, take a breath, observe, and proceed (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). So,
that is exactly what I followed when I had unwanted thoughts take over. I greatly enjoyed performing this
exercise in a scenic and nature’s location. By doing so, I gained my more respect for what my body does
for me each day. Also, how easy it is to lose your mind when outside in nature. Overall, I have never
performed something like walking meditation before, but I felt a mind body benefit and will definitely
perform it again.

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Unit 6: Relaxation Techniques 1: Breathing,
Meditation, and Mental Imagery
Key Learning Point: In every culture, breathing is seen as a relaxation technique. Diaphragmatic
breathing or “belly breathing” promotes forced concentration and in return decreases stress and
chronic pain. This breathing can be performed anywhere for any amount of time (Seaward,
2015).
Key Learning Point: Regular meditation has been shown to decrease resting heart rate, blood
pressure, and resting ventilation. Meditation also reduces stress and may prevent diseases.
Lastly, meditation is involved in all relaxation techniques (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: Studies show that mental imagery has been shown to decrease chronic pain,
especially in combination with other stress reduction techniques. This is due to mental imagery
promoting healing of the mind, body, and soul (Seaward, 2015).
This week I described and attempted diaphragmatic breathing. This breathing is best described as
controlled breathing which starts in the lower stomach or diaphragm. Diaphragmatic breathing is said to
restore one’s energy effortlessly. Combined with meditation and images, one can achieve a positive mind
and body connection (Seaward, 2015). With today’s world being constantly filled with technology and
stress, it is recommended one take at least five minutes a day to perform meditation or diaphragmatic
breathing, by doing that one will begin to notice reduced stress levels (Seaward, 2015).
Journal Writing:
Mindful of how you interact with yourself?
I am way too hard on myself. For example, I have worked very hard to achieve a 3.98 grade
point average, but when people congratulate me I say thanks, but I should have a 4.0. Why am I not
overjoyed with a 3.98 grade point average? I work full time, go to school full time, and I still spend
time with my family. Also, I have just started a new work position and am very nervous. Instead of
reminding myself I am qualified and I can do this, I am already going into it with a negative attitude.
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I have accomplished a lot in my life for only being 22. So, when people remind me of these
accomplishments, I have a hard time accepting their compliment. I need to realize it is okay to say I
am awesome and I am rocking at life. These negative thoughts definitely take place due to stress.
When these thoughts occur, I instantly feel more lethargic. It is my goal to start appreciating myself
much more. Even if that means writing a positive note on a post-it and putting it on my mirror. It is
the little things that will help in the long run.
Seeds of suffering?
I am guilty of watering my suffering seeds. If I did not water these seeds, I think my mindset
would definitely be different. For example, if I stopped watering my own seeds, I think a more
positive attitude would come about (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). I think I would tell myself more
positive and encouraging words. Then, I think my positive attitude would translate to my attitude
towards others as well. I am going to try to catch when I am watering my own seeds and attempt to
change the attitude as soon as it starts.
Day-to-day life feelings of resentment?
An example of a person I have had difficulty with is my father’s new girlfriend. She is not
very polite to me, and I believe it is because of how close my father and I are. I’m sure it challenges
her to have a great relationship with me because it is what my dad really wants. In her defense, I am
sure it is hard to communicate with me because she knows she will never replace my mom. I bet
these challenges stress her out and cause a behavior she normally would not have towards me. Plus, I
am sure she has other challenges she is dealing with all at the same time as trying to form a
relationship with me.
Someone that presses my buttons would be my boss. I feel like I am constantly talked down
to, when in fact I have years more of experience. I need to bring an open heart when I have
conversations with him (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). I believe he is intimidated because I am much
younger, and he just started a trade he has no prior experience with. He might even feel that I will not
respect his authority, but that is definitely not the case. I need to bring a beginner’s mind and realize
how much pressure he is probably under. I will put myself in his shoes, rather than just being
frustrated with him. It is simply not necessary to resent him for doing his job.
Reflection on writing?
By doing this exercise, it helped me realize where my negative feelings arise from. I should
not let these feelings dictate or direct my attitude. It is my responsibility to be mindful of my feelings
and turn them around. For example, by writing and summarizing my day-to-day resentment, I realize
the approach I should take towards someone I might find to be difficult (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).
Also, I am aware that some may find me difficult as well. By watching how my mind interacts I can
avoid fueling unhappy thoughts. This will also help to get rid of my lethargic feeling that comes over
when unhappy feelings occur. Overall, this exercise has really helped me to assess my feelings.
In the end, there is no reason for me not to be proud of myself. I should take time to reflect on
how far I have come and where I am going. It is important to reward my mind and body with positive
thoughts because I deserve it. There is no need for me to compare myself to anyone else because I am
truly unique to the universe.

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Unit 7: Nutrition and Stress
Key Learning Point: Physical exercise mimics the body’s flight or fight response for survival.
Frequency, intensity, time, and type of exercise are very important factors in order to see results.
Body benefits can take between six to eight weeks to see after starting physical activity (Seaward,
2015).
Key Learning Point: Exercise has been shown to reduce heart rate, blood pressure, muscle tension
and much more. Also, regular exercisers see a reduction of depression and are said to have
higher self-esteem (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: It is common for people to use food as a stress escape mechanism. Food is fuel
for the body, so proper nutrients should be consumed. One should resort to other relaxation
techniques when stress occurs, not over eating (Seaward, 2015).
This week I learned mindful lying yoga. Mindful lying yoga is a combination of breaths,
movements, posture, thoughts, and emotions. A few of the poses I thoroughly enjoyed were supine
twist, bridge pose, child’s pose, and lastly corpse pose. These poses were so easy to remain mindful
in and greatly stretched my body (Stahl and Goldstein, 2010). After practicing mindful lying yoga, I
would definitely participate in it again because of the mind, body, soul connection I felt.
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Unit 8: Physical Exercise and Activity
Key Learning Point: Yoga refers to the union of the mind, body, and spirit. Hatha yoga balances the
sun and the moon. This yoga is the most common practiced in the United States, and combines
meditation and physical exercise (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: T’ai Chi ch’uan causes universal energy flow through physical activity. The
Chinese believe that this type of activity reduces blockages and congestion. Then in return, it
reduces the risk to pathogens (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: In order to increase one’s health, consumption of caffeine, sugar, sodium, and
fats should be reduced or eliminated. By doing this, the body’s immune system will increase and
stress will reduce. One is encouraged to eat a variety of fruit, vegetables, and grains to benefit the
mind and body (Seaward, 2015).
Self-Assessment Exercises:
For the last self-assessment exercise, I developed a workplace wellness plan. My workplace
wellness plan consisted of establishing a relationship with a local gym. The gym could help develop a
weight loss goal for the company to achieve together, or even a workout for the company to perform each
day. Last but not least, the gym could provide employees with nutritional advice such as nutritious lunches
to have at work. The employees are encouraged to find coworkers to workout with either before or after
work and even better on lunch break. By working out several times a week, the employees stress level will
be reduced and many disease can be prevented such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and much more
(Seaward, 2015). Last but not least, employees are also less likely to have an energy crash, stress out less,
and have a better attitude towards themselves and others (Stenson, 2005). All in all, those benefits are well
worth establishing a wellness company for to promote a better environment.
Journal Writing:
OPENNESS: When I think of openness, I think of being able to see another person’s point of view
or perspective. For example, I may find someone difficult, but I still need to see how he or she came up
with their perspective. By opening up my heart and mind, I may even change my perspective, too. It is
very important to not be standoffish to anyone.
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EMPATHY: One person I really care about is my girlfriend, and empathy was one of the traits that drawn
me to her. I love to talk, and she effortlessly understood my feelings and shared some advice. Whether the
topic was school, work, or family she would truly listen and felt what I was feeling. You could just see it in
her heart and soul, and she taught me how to express my own empathy as well.
COMPASSION: Once again, my girlfriend’s compassionate attitude caught my eye right away. She
participates in tons of charity events and helps out at the homeless shelter. She has a huge concern for the
misfortune of others, and now I attend the charity events as well. I feel it is part of my responsibility as a
human being. A compassionate personality is contagious, and I try to pass that on to others as well now.
LOVING-KINDNESS: For this quality, some find it hard to express to those who he or she may have
difficulties with. I do not find this hard because I could never wish harm or fear no matter how difficult
someone is. Like the example said, imagine the difficult person as your child or family member (Stahl &
Goldstein, 2010). Could you still not show loving-kindness to them? If more people thought like than more
kindness would appear.
SYMPATHETIC JOY: This quality is the opposite of jealousy or resentment (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). I
think of my mom for this quality because she grew up very poor and was made fun of a lot. For example,
for prom, she had to wear her mom’s old wedding dress because the family just had no money. She was so
thrilled. She did not have jealousy over any of the girls that got to buy a new dress because she was so
humbled to wear her mom’s. This is just an example of how anyone can have inner joy. It is a choice one
should chose.
EQUANIMITY: This quality is to give balance in understanding someone else (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).
Once again, if I don’t find myself practicing this quality to someone, I need to imagine him or her as my
child or family. There is no need to treat someone differently based on my judgement of them. An
unpleasant attitude could transfer onto another person very easily. So, instead I need to practice
consideration for everyone I encounter each day.
In the end, it was easy to think of someone I love when assessing these characteristics. That is
something I need to do each time I encounter someone I find difficult. The truth is I do not know what
anyone is going through and I do not need to add any stress. Thinking about these traits made me
remember times loved ones showed these characteristics. By my loved ones showing these characteristics,
they transferred to me as well. All in all, channeling these traits from past experiences and this exercise will
cause me to have healthier relationships.

20
Unit 9: Applying Stress: Critical Issues for
Management and Prevention to your
Professional Life
Key Learning Point: It is important for one to have a group of supportive friends he or she can rely
on. This will help with one’s health in regards to having someone to lean on during stressful
situation, and for times of laughter. Also, it is important for technology to be eliminated when in
the company of these supportive friends (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: A hobby is an interest one likes to pursue outside of his or her normal routine.
An example of a hobby could be photography, gardening, and much more. Hobbies are said to
boost ones confidence by transferring chaos and focusing on something else (Seaward, 2015).
Key Learning Point: One may view his or her dreams as bizarre, but dreams consist of information
received during the previous or current day. Reoccurring dreams represent unresolved issues in
one’s life, so one may consider recording a dream journal to reflect upon (Seaward, 2015).
Unit
9

21
Additional Information
The article “exercise may make you a better worker” was very resourceful for informative
studies related to the benefits of exercise and working. It showed how important it is to have a mind,
body, and soul connection. Also, it showed ways exercise can be fit into the work day in order to gain
health benefits (Stenson, 2005). This was a secondary source.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website was a very useful resource for
overcoming barriers to exercise. Also, it was a useful reference for how many disease could be
prevented by exercise. Lastly, this website gave up-to-date statistics on the obesity epidemic (Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). This was also a secondary source.
Another beneficial secondary website is the American Health & Wellness Association. Their
overall goal is to raise the importance of a healthy lifestyle by educating, providing a membership,
and giving tips on health and wellness solutions. Without paying for a membership, there are still
plenty of complimentary articles on how to include physical fitness and meditation into one’s lifestyle
(American Health and Wellness Association, 2012).
The ‘Fit To Be Well’ book was also a secondary source that had a wealth of information in
regards to stages of change. It gave specific step by step examples of what someone goes through
when wanting to get rid of a negative behavior. Lastly, the book showed just how one can recover
from a temporary relapse (Thygerson & Thygerson, 2013).
Lastly, the Aerobic and Fitness Association of America provides very useful articles and
videos for all things mind, body, and soul related. The videos range from meditation, muscle
strengthening, yoga, and cardiovascular activities. The videos also provide explanation for why the
activities are beneficial. One can also become specialized in different health and wellness
certifications through this secondary website (Aerobic and Fitness Association of America, 2015).

22
References
Aerobic and Fitness Association of America. (2015). Fitness: Theory & Practice. Retrieved from
iiiiiiiii http://www.afaa.com/
American Health & Wellness Association. (2012). About us. Retrieved from http://us-ahwa.org/
iiiii membership.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011, February 16). Overcoming barriers to physical
activity. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/getactive/barriers.html
Seaward, B. (2015). Managing stress: Principles and strategies for health and well-being (8th ed.).
Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.
Stahl, B. & Goldstein, E. (2010). A mindfulness-based stress reduction workbook. Oakland, CA: New
Harbinger Publications, Inc.
Stenson, J. (2005, July 12). Exercise may make you a better worker. Retrieved from
iiiiiiihttp://www.nbcnews.com/id/8160459/ns/health-fitness/t/exercise-may-make-you-better-
worker/#.VjwGU7erTIU
Thygerson, A. L., & Thygerson, S. M. (2013). Fit To Be Well (3rd ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones &
Bartlett Learning.

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