UTMB Work School Programs

UTMB Work School Programs

Creating Educational Opportunities for Employees

STRESS MANAGEMENT

STRESS - It is the way your mind and body react to any situation that is new, threatening, or exciting. As a student, employee, parent, spouse, adult child, caretaker, etc. you have multiple opportunities to experience stress. It is unavoidable and normal. However, stress can take a toll on the mind and body if it is ignored. Feeling stressed? It can be managed. Take some steps to be the manager of your stress.

First recognize the sources of stress:

    Worrying about situations we cannot control
    Failure to see choices
    Failure to assess importance of outcome
    Perfectionism - expecting too much from ourselves or others
    The stance of "all-or-nothing"
    Turning situations into win/lose
    Low tolerance for ambiguity/uncertainty
    Focusing on faults rather than strengths - self-critical
    Ignoring positive feedback
    Failing to be responsible for emotional security
    Expectation that problems can be solved neatly
    Idealization of roles

There are probably many more sources, but the point is that many times we can make changes in ourselves to reduce stress, when we have no control over circumstances. Working smart is often more productive than working hard. Sometimes energy is wasted if we do not stop to think about what our goals are and what is within our control. It is a myth that anxiety and tension are bad. Often these feelings can force us to slow down and use our heads. Endurance is not easy. It takes skill. The good news is we can all develop skills and practice skills we already have.

Everyone knows that Babe Ruth set records hitting home runs. However, he also struck out many more times. After hundreds of trials and more than a year of steady work, Thomas Edison developed the high-resistance carbon thread filament which lead to the invention of the light bulb. The key is to recognize that every experience is a learning experience. Any time a circumstance seems beyond control, stop and ask one question - "what can I learn from this?" It is possible that there is not just one answer, but many that can be applied to various situations in your life. If you take the risk to get up to bat (like the Babe) there are many possibilities. Whatever the outcome, take it and use it to grow. Sometimes your self-talk may be - "Well, I blew it that time, what will I do different the next time?" or "Wow, that went really well, I listened more and talked less. I will try to remember to do that again."

In addition to talking to yourself in a positive way there are other self management skills to build resistance and change perceptions:

Attend to Body/Mind/Spirit
Exercise, rest, learn, eat healthy, play
Add Spice to Your Life
Get a hobby, learn to laugh, do something different, enjoy friends
Activate Your Reward System
Find ways to reward yourself and build them into your daily life
Attempt the Realistic
Write down your expectations. Scale down overambitious projects.
Adjust Your Priorities
          Plan each day.
          Decide what is most important to you and do it.
          Make yourself your first priority.

TAKE ACTION - ALTER OR AVOID STRESS

These action words can help you be in control of your own stress:

DELEGATE
Sometimes others can do a job or function that is frustrating to you.

APPROACH
Routine tasks with creativity

USE
Time management skills

FACE
interpersonal conflicts directly

OBTAIN
training to increase skills in areas of deficiency

ASSUME
work and study with a realistic assessment of resources

INCREASE
or decrease structure

MODIFY
your self-statements

Wanted an easy fix for stress, right? Well the truth is it takes some work. There is a little pill you can take - it's called "self-awareness". The good news is - it is not bitter - unless you coat it that way. You take it with deep, slow breaths that make you aware of every fiber of your body. There are numerous positive side effects. The best one is that when you use positive stress management skills, those around you notice, especially the young and impressionable. It actually spills out onto others - you cannot stop it. They will smile and wonder how you are so "together".

These links may be helpful to you:

www.mindtools.com/

www.stressfree.com/

www.relaxintuit.com/tips.asp

www.emotiontoolkit.com

www.sla.purdue.edu/studentserv/learningcenter/