STRESS
MANAGEMENT
By Akpan Inimfon and Eburuche O C Banito
Modern life is full of
tussle, deadlines, frustrations, and demands. For many people, stress is so
commonplace that it has become a way of life. But when you’re constantly
running in emergency mode, your mind and body pay the price. You can protect
yourself by understanding what stress is and how to manage it effectively.
Let
start with what stress is?
.Stress is a normal physical
response to events that make you feel threatened or upset your balance in some
way. When you sense danger—whether it’s real or imagined—the body's defenses
kick into high gear in a rapid, automatic process known as the
“fight-or-flight” reaction, or the stress response.
Can Stress be positive?
The stress response is the body’s
way of protecting you. When working properly, it helps you stay focused,
energetic, and alert. In emergency situations, stress can save your life giving
you extra strength to defend yourself, for example, stress can spur you to slam
on the brakes to avoid an accident. The stress response also helps you rise to
meet challenges. Stress is what keeps you on your toes during a presentation at
work, or drives you to study for an examination when you'd rather be watching
TV. In essence, a well-managed stress can make you highly productive. But
beyond a certain point, stress stops being helpful and starts causing major
damage to your health, mood, productivity, relationships, and your quality of
life.
Symptoms
Of Stress
Cognitive
symptoms:
Memory problems, Inability to concentrate, Poor judgment, Seeing
only the negative, Anxious or racing thoughts, Constant worrying
Emotional
symptoms:
Moodiness, Irritability or short temper, Agitation,
inability to relax, Feeling overwhelmed, Sense of loneliness and isolation,
Depression or general unhappiness
Physical
symptoms:
Aches and pains, diarrhea or constipation, nausea,
dizziness, chest pain, rapid heartbeat, loss of sex drive and frequent colds
Behavioral
symptoms:
Eating more or less, sleeping too much or too little, isolating
yourself from others, procrastinating or neglecting responsibilities, using
alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs to relax and nervous habits (e.g. nail biting,
pacing)
Common
Causes Of Stress
The situations and pressures
that cause stress are known as stressors. We usually think of stressors as
being negative, such as an exhausting work schedule or a bad relationship.
However, anything that puts high demands on you or forces you to adjust can be
stressful. This includes positive events such as getting married, building a
house, going to college, or receiving a promotion.
Common external causes of
stress could be; major life changes, work (which may be resulting from job
ambiguity, lack of satisfaction, poor motivation, poor ergonomics), relationship
difficulties, financial problems, being too busy, children and family.
Common internal causes of
stress
Stress can also be
self-generated for instance inability to accept uncertainty, pessimism, negative
self-talk, unrealistic expectations, perfectionism and lack of assertiveness
among others.
Effects Of Stress
The effects of stress can
either be chronic or acute. Chronic stress is long-termed and produces an
unexpected effect over time. Such stress
might not really present themselves immediately as you’ re working but over accumulated time, it
expresses itself. Acute stress is a short-termed stress and can be very
harmful. It’s effects are immediate and can claim lives within a twinkle.
Although this is very seldom in workplace with good employee safety programmes
and environment.
Chronic stress
Long-term exposure to stress
can lead to serious health problems. Chronic stress disrupts nearly every
system in your body. It can raise blood pressure, suppress the immune system,
increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, contribute to infertility, and
speed up the aging process. Long-term stress can even rewire the brain, leaving
you more vulnerable to anxiety and depression.
Many health problems are
caused or exacerbated by stress, these include; pain of any kind, heart disease,
digestive problems, sleep problems, depression, obesity, autoimmune diseases, skin
conditions, such as eczema among others.
How
To Manage Stress
You
may feel like the stress in your life is out of your control, but you can
always control the way you respond. Managing stress is all about taking charge;
of your thoughts, emotions, schedule, environment, and the way you deal with
problems. Stress management involves changing the stressful situation when you
can, changing your reaction when you can’t, taking care of yourself, and making
time for rest and relaxation.
Learn how to relax:
You can’t completely eliminate stress from your life, but
you can control how much it affects you. Relaxation techniques such as yoga,
meditation, and deep breathing activate the body’s relaxation response, a state
of restfulness that is the opposite of the stress response. When practiced
regularly, these activities lead to a reduction in your everyday stress levels
and increase your ability to stay calm under pressure.
Exercise :
exercise has been
proven to have a beneficial effect on a person's mental and physical state. For
many people exercise is an extremely effective stress buster.
Division of labor :
Try to delegate your responsibilities at work, or share
them. If you make yourself indispensable the likelihood of your feeling highly
stressed is significantly greater.
Assertiveness :
Don't say yes to everything. If you can't do something
well, or if something is not your responsibility, try to seek ways of not
agreeing to do them.
Alcohol and drugs :
Alcohol and drugs
will not help you manage your stress better. Either stop consuming them
completely, or cut down. Actually, they allow you for a break over a particular
stress. Best advice: stop using them as a means to control stress.
Caffeine:
If your consumption
of coffee and other drinks which contain caffeine is high, cut it down. High
concentration of caffeine and its relatives can easily put someone on flight
mode.
Nutrition:
Eat plenty of fruit and
vegetables for more of vitamins and minerals that helps in the control and
secretion of hormones such as adrenalin, this in essence will promote hormonal
balance. Make sure you have a healthy and balanced diet.
Adopt effective schedule:
Scheduling your activities/tasks before setting for each
event in a day and controlling your schedule is a major tool for controlling
stress. Learn to do the things that must be done and not the things you can do.
You will surely experience stress doing everything you can do. In your
schedule, make sure you set aside some time in between tasks each day just for
yourself; to monitor, control and review your schedule and to have rest.
Breathing:
There are some effective breathing techniques which will
slow down your system and help you relax. Always learn to breathe through your
nose no matter what. It helps you regain consciousness and control faster.
Talk aloud:
This does not mean you should start shouting when you
experience stress but it simply means sharing those things that get you
stressed with your family, friends, work colleagues and your boss if need be.
Express your thoughts and worries; do not happen them too long, they can lead
to chronic stress.
Seek professional help :
If the stress is affecting the way you function; go and
see your doctor. Heightened stress for prolonged periods can be bad for your
physical and mental health.
Develop a guiding principle:
Identify the possible things that can get you
stressed in an environment and decide how to handle them. For instance in a
workplace, your boss may be a wacky person but you can decide not to get
annoyed no matter what he does or says. Or perhaps, you decide that nobody can
control your temperament. You can decide not to take alcohol and drugs in the
bid to control stress and whatever your decision may be but with this you
actually take charge of situations. It makes
you smart, productive and stainless.
About
The AuthorsAkpan Inimfon
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Akpan, Inimfon is a Health, Safety and Environment
consultant specializing in occupational safety and health. He has over three
years experience in occupational safety consulting and the chief-consultant of
Joint Professionals Training and Support International (JPTS). He has special
skills in First-Aid, Crisis and Crime management. He had consulted for major
firms and government bodies
in Nigeria and his results have weight. He is also a practicing chemical
engineer and seeks to explore more in his career.
Eburuche O. C. Banito is a
multi-talented consultant having specialized skills in the areas of Human
Resource Management, Project Management, Occupational Safety and Corporate
Management and ICT. He is an online entrepreneur and he is seriously delivering
his mandate. He is
also an integrator of consultants. His passion is to help his
clients accomplish faster through the application of expertise knowledge. He is
a human developer, author and life-transforming speaker. He had trained
unnumbered in project management, health safety and environment and he is
earnestly preparing to launch his HRM online courses soon. He had featured in
many seminars, conferences, workshops and lectures. He enjoys working in a team
and has excellent motivating and influencing skills.