This document discusses stress, its causes, effects, and ways to manage it. Some key points: 1) 75-90% of doctor visits are for stress-related problems and stress causes the most absenteeism from work. Stress can have psychological, social, behavioral, and physiological effects. 2) Sources of stress include daily hassles, major life events, and catastrophes. Common daily hassles include interpersonal conflicts, health concerns, and financial pressures. 3) Managing stress involves recognizing when you feel stressed, identifying the cause, and changing how you react to stressful situations. Effective coping strategies include relaxation, social support, exercise, and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

1. Managing Stress

2. Understanding & Managing
Stress

3. Understanding & Managing
Stress
The time necessary to learn all the
rules for effective living now
exceeds your life expectancy!!

4. Understanding & Managing
Stress
SOME FACTS
 75-90% of adult visits to primary care
physicians are for stress related problems.
 The commonest problems world-wide are a
mixture of anxiety and depression.

5. Understanding & Managing
Stress
SOME FACTS
 MAXIMUM absenteeism on an average
workday is because of stress related
problems
 More heart attacks on Monday, 9:00 A.M.
than at any other time of the week.

6. Understanding & Managing
Stress
MORE FACTS
• Life after death is all okay but what
about life after birth?
• The only time there is a total
absence of stress is in death
• Stress is essentially the rate of all
the wear and tear caused by life

7. Understanding & Managing
Stress

8. Understanding & Managing
Stress
 Driving your car in rush hour
 Getting a last minute work assignment
 Misplacing something in the house….

9. Understanding & Managing
Stress
 Having something break while using it
 Dealing with incompetence at work
 Planning your budget
 Being blamed for something
 Waiting in a long line at the store or bank

10. Understanding & Managing
Stress
WHAT IS STRESS?

11. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Stimulus ------------- Reaction

12. Understanding & Managing
Stress
EUSTRESS
vs.
DISTRESS

13. Understanding & Managing
Stress
The BAD News :
Stress is an inescapable part of modern life
The GOOD News :
Stress isn't altogether
bad news

14. Understanding & Managing
Stress
 ADAPTATION
 Body has only a finite, non-renewable reserve of
adaptation energy
 Eventually, it is consumed and death results
 Stress is how people react to demands placed on
them
 Important is our perception and subjective

15. Understanding & Managing
Stress
WHAT ARE STRESSORS?
Stressors are events that threaten or challenge
people

16. Understanding & Managing
Stress
SOURCES OF STRESS
 DAILY HASSLES
 MAJOR LIFE EVENTS
 CATASTROPHES

17. Understanding & Managing
Stress
TOP FEW DAILY HASSLES
 INTERPERSONAL CONFLICTS
 CONCERNS ABOUT WEIGHT
 HEALTH OF A FAMILY MEMBER
 RISING PRICES OF COMMON GOODS
 HOME MAINTENANCE
 TOO MANY THINGS TO DO

18. Understanding & Managing
Stress
SOCIAL
MANIFESTATIONS ….

19. Understanding & Managing
Stress
 Experience of  Harbour
sense of isolation resentments
 Suffer from  Lash out at others
loneliness  Reduced contact
 Frequently nag with friends
others  Disturbed family
 Lack of intimacy relationships
 Often distrustful  Tend to use people
 Seldom go out with for personal gain
family

20. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Depressed
 Bored
 Urge to cry
 Urge to hide
 Suspiciousness
 Negative attitude/thoughts
 Loneliness

21. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Anxious
 Nervous
 Worry
 Nightmares
 Helplessness
 Confusion

22. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Irritable
 Feelings of unreality
 Urge to run
 Unable to concentrate
 Lethargy
 Decision making- both major &
minor- becomes difficult

23. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Excessive daydreaming about
“getting away from it all”
 Use of sleeping pills
 Thoughts trail while speaking or
writing
 Sudden outbursts of temper or
hostility

24. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Forgetfulness regarding
appointments,dates, deadlines
 Frequent spells of brooding and
a feeling of inadequacy
 Reversals in usual behaviour

25. Understanding & Managing
Stress
BEHAVIOURAL EFFECTS
 Cigarette smoking
 Impulsive behavior
 Inappropriate crying
 Aggressive
 Overeating
 Lack of initiative

26. Understanding & Managing
Stress
BEHAVIOURAL EFFECTS
 Using people
 Drug/Alcohol abuse
 Cynical
 Fault finding
 Antisocial
 Under eating
 Lowered sex drive

27. Understanding & Managing
Stress
BEHAVIOURAL EFFECTS
 Accident prone
 Blaming
 Nervous laughing
 Reclusive
 Inflexible
 Nagging

28. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Hypertension
 Coronary heart disease
 Migraine, tension headache
 Ulcers
 Asthmatic conditions
 Chronic backaches
 Arthritis

29. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Allergies
 Skin disorders
 Hyperthyroidism
 Vertigo
 More frequent infections
 Sexual dysfunctions

30. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Heart pounding
 Bowel alterations
 Stomach distress
 Dizziness
 Lingering cold
 Dry mouth
 Fatigue

31. Understanding & Managing
Stress
PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
 Weakness
 Fidgeting
 Sweating
 Anorexia
 Insomnia
 Muscle tension
 Generalized aches and pains

32. Understanding & Managing
Stress
MENTAL STRESS
 Mental attitudes generally negative
 Mental lethargy
 Rarely develop new ideas

33. Understanding & Managing
Stress
MENTAL STRESS
 Difficulty in concentration
 Confusion
 Rarely express your feelings through
music, art, dance or writing
 No intellectual relaxation
 Make negative self-statements

34. Understanding & Managing
Stress
MENTAL STRESS
 Fail to keep abreast of current events
 Mind is often in a whirl
 Rarely introduce innovations into work
 Frequently suffer from forgetfulness

35. Understanding & Managing
Stress
BURN OUT EFFECTS
 Complaints of fatigue, being overworked,
exhaustion
 Shows loss of enthusiasm, energy, drive, pep team
spirit
 Shows loss of imagination, creativity, refusal to
take risks

36. Understanding & Managing
Stress
BURN OUT
 Becomes defensive easily, has poor
relationships with key people
 Is disorganized, has poor recall, memory loss

37. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Basic Guidelines For Coping
 Recognise and admit that you are feeling
stressed and anxious

38. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Basic Guidelines For Coping
 Give yourself permission to feel anxious about
whatever it is that is bothering you. But ask “How
much anxiety is too much"
 Try to pinpoint what it is you are anxious about. If
you can't pinpoint it, don't worry too much about it
and move on
 Become aware of your body's symptoms. Don't let
them scare you, let them talk to you

39. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Basic Guidelines For Coping
 If you do know what it is that is bothering
you, what can you do to eliminate or
minimise the situation?

40. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Basic Guidelines For Coping
 Most importantly, how can you react differently so
you won't be so affected by this situation?
 Listen to the dialogue within yourself. Are you
filling yourself with negative thoughts about a
certain situation?
 Listen to the dialogue of those around you. Is
someone around you being negative and dragging
you down with them?

41. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Basic Guidelines For Coping
• Are you overwhelming yourself with "shoulds" and
high expectations? If so, which ones would you
eliminate?
 Give yourself positive reinforcement for even the
smallest accomplishments.
 Are you blaming someone else for your anxieties,
unhappiness, poor health, lack of success or
whatever?
 Take responsibility for yourself and make some
positive changes?

42. Understanding & Managing
Stress
The Ten Commandments
 Thou shalt regularly do those things that are most
enjoyable to thee without harming others or self
 Thou shalt take time to physically relax or meditate
daily
 Thou shalt exercise aerobically 3-5 times each week
 Thou shalt sleep 7-8 hours each night

43. Understanding & Managing
Stress
The Ten Commandments
 Thou shalt not take thyself so seriously
 Thou shalt grant yourself the right to make
mistakes
 Thou shalt share your feelings each day
 Thou shalt eat a healthy, balanced diet
 Thou shalt do the important things first

44. Understanding & Managing
Stress
EXPECTATIONS Vs FULFILMENT
 Realistic Vs Unrealistic Expectations
 Flexibility Vs Rigidity
 Must recognise own ability and potential

45. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Remember that …….
 In the short run, anyone, can be a
victim, even you
 In the long run,there are no victims---
only willing participants

46. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Remember that …….
The key to winning back your time is
to be more effective at being
rather than doing

47. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Remember that …….
Albert Einstein didn’t remember his
telephone number. He didn’t want to
clutter his mind with information that
could be accessed anytime.

48. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Remember that …….
 You are more resourceful than you often
acknowledge and
 You always have more options than you
know

49. Understanding & Managing
Stress
Remember that …….
 You don’t have to catch the ball
every time someone throws it at you
 Learn how to say NO!!