Stress is the body's reaction to challenges and demands and can affect physical, mental, and social health. Stressors include illnesses, life events, and daily hassles. The body's stress response has three stages - alarm, resistance, and fatigue. Unmanaged stress can lead to physical health issues like headaches and high blood pressure as well as mental/emotional issues like mood swings and substance abuse. Managing stress involves identifying causes, planning ahead, relaxation, exercise, and seeking help for depression or suicidal thoughts which are medical conditions requiring treatment. Warning signs of suicide include verbal and behavioral signs and those at highest risk have depression, a history of abuse, or previous suicide attempts.

1. Managing Stress and
Anxiety

2. What is Stress?
 Reaction of the body and mind to
everyday challenges and demands
 Stress can affect your physical, mental,
and social health
 How much stress you feel depends upon
your perception of the event

3. What causes stress?
 Stressors is anything that causes stress
– Biological: illnesses, injuries
– Environmental: poverty, pollution, noise
– Cognitive: how you perceive a situation
– Personal Behavior: tobacco, alcohol, drugs
– Life Situation: death, divorce, friends

4. Bodies Stress Response
 Alarm: First stage, body and mind go into
high alert. Flight or Fight. Prepares Body
 Resistance: Second Stage, body adapts
and reacts.
 Fatigue: Third stage, body loses ability to
adapt and fatigue sets in. Tired feeling
takes over.

5. Stress and Your Health
 Unavoidable part of life
 Physical effects: Psychosomatic Response
– Psycho: of the mind
– Somatic: of the body
 Headache
 Asthma
 High blood pressure
 Weakened immune system

6. Stress and Your Body (cont)
 Mental/Emotional and Social Effects
– Difficulty concentrating
– Mood swings
– Risk of substance abuse

7. Managing Stress
 Identify Personal Causes
– Life events: graduation, moving, illness,
divorce
– Physical: injury, lack of sleep, drug use,
excessive dieting or exercise
– Daily Hassles: deadlines, conflicts, time

8. Ways to Manage Stress
 Plan Ahead
 Get enough Sleep
 Physical Activity
 Eat Nutritious Food
 Avoid Tobacco, Alcohol and Drugs

9. Stress Management Techniques
 Redirect Energy
 Relaxation
 Positive Outlook
 Seek help

10. Anxiety
 Condition of feeling uneasy or worried
about what may happen.
– Feelings of fear
– Perspiration, muscle tension, trembling
– Rapid heart rate, shortness of breath

11. Depression
 Prolonged feelings of helplessness,
hopelessness, and sadness.
 Reactive: response to a stressful event.
Usually goes away on its own
 Major: medical condition requiring
treatment.

12. Symptoms of Teen Depression
 Most young people do not act sad or seem
different from their friends.
 Irritable or restless moods
 Withdrawal from friends
 Change in appetite or weight
 Feelings of guilt or worthlessness
 Sense of hopelessness

13. Suicide
 The act of intentionally taking one’s own
life.
 Most thoughts of committing suicide are
impulsive and temporary, the unfortunate
consequence – death or debilitating injury-
is permanent.

14. Risk Factors
 90% of those who kill themselves are
suffering from depression or mental
disorders.
 History of physical or sexual abuse
 Alcohol or drug abuse
 History of previous suicide attempts
 Family history of emotional disorders or
suicide

15. Warning Signs
 Verbal:
– Direct statements: I want to die, I don’t want
to live anymore, I wish I where dead
– Indirect statements: They will be sorry when
I’m gone, Nothing matters, I won’t have to
put up with this much longer.
– Writing poems, songs or lyrics about death
– Suicide threats

16. Warning Signs
 Non-verbal or behavioral
– Withdrawal from friends
– Impulsive or bizarre behavior
– Preoccupation with giving personal belongings
away
– Violent actions
– Substance abuse
– Dramatic changes in personality, hygiene or
apperarance

17. Helping Others
 Initiate a meaningful conversation
– Show interest
– Listen
– Be patient and understanding
 Show support and ask questions
– Remind them that most problems have solutions
– Ask them if they are planning to kill themselves
 Try to persuade the person to seek help
– Get them to talk with a parent, teacher, counselor,
– Offer to go with them to get help