Stress is a Current Phenomenon in Our Daily Lives

Journal 6 – My Personal Stress Management Plan
Take the online "How Do You Know You're Stressed (Links to an external site.)" Quiz from Berkeley.
Using the materials covered in class and the "How Do You Know You're Stressed" Quiz, determine your personal level of stress and write a journal on your personal stress management plans. List changes you could make to reduce and/or combat the stress in your life. Complete or end your essay (min. 500 words) with intention/discover statements: “Stress Management: I discovered…” and “Stress Management: I intend…”
(I already took the quiz here is my results as follows)
Stress and Anxiety Quiz Results
Your score is 3 out of 48, which suggests that you experience very little stress and anxiety in your life.
You find it easy to relax, which allows you to be calm and engage positively with daily challenges. When certain situations make you anxious, you show good control over your physical reaction.
Your ability to cope with life’s stresses has positive benefits for both the body and the mind. Here are some suggestions for continuing to lead a life low in stress and anxiety.
Work through difficult feelings. The practice of Expressive Writing allows you to give voice to your deepest emotions and thoughts surrounding a challenge you’re going through, which can help reduce stress and boost happiness in the long term.
Find the Silver Lining. Although it might be cliche, the habit of looking on the bright side of a situation may actually counter pessimism and depression.
Take care of yourself. Practicing self-compassion rather than self-criticism in the face of difficult situations leads to better outcomes. Consider writing a Self-Compassionate Letter to help you develop compassion, understanding, and acceptance toward a part of yourself that you dislike. If you have trouble, ask yourself: How would you treat a friend?
Find activities to de-stress. Spend time in nature, exercise, or meditate.
Lower stress at home with Christine Carter’s tips.
Overcome a Fear. If a mild, everyday fear is at the heart of your anxiety, this practice of slowly confronting it may help you cope.
Personal Mental Health Support at BC
Emotional stress can be very draining. Even though you may not need the help, there is free help at BC with the Mental Health Counselors. They help with lots of things including stress, anxiety, grief, and depression among other issues. Just know they are there if you ever want to talk to someone confidentially.
In a confidential atmosphere, let us help you explore your potential. Research supports that healthy behavior, thoughts, and emotions are part of a good education.
What are My Personal Rights?
Personal rights are not legislated. However, personal rights are easily overlooked by ourselves and others. Now is the time to practice reclaiming your personal rights by allowing yourself (and others) the following:
The right to be treated with respect
The right to express your feelings
The right to be heard and taken seriously
The right to set your own priorities and say “no” without feeling guilty
The right to make mistakes
The right to assert yourself
The right to tell someone else what your needs are, even if the other person feels your needs are illogical, doesn’t want to hear about your needs, feels hurt or upset about your needs, or feels that it isn’t appropriate that you have these needs.
Practice these rights and share them with your family and friends.
Recognize your inherent value.
First, it’s important to note that not all experts agree on the value of self-esteem. Many take issue with the concept because it’s often misinterpreted. Having self-esteem does not mean that you have to earn love and acceptance or that you are better than others. Loving and accepting yourself and feeling good about your actions and the direction of your life are two different things. Before you think about self-esteem, it’s important that you recognize that you have inherent value independent of what you do. You deserve love, happiness, and acceptance simply because you exist. None of those things are dependent on living up to certain standards or achieving certain goals. Achieving your goals is great, but it’s not the basis of self-worth.
Don’t compare yourself to others.
A sure way to destroy your self-esteem is to compare yourself to others, either favorably or unfavorably. First, comparing yourself to others is always misleading. No one starts from the same place, has the same strengths or weaknesses, or has the same goals. While it’s great to be inspired by peers who have overcome addiction and found meaning in recovery, your own journey will look very different and comparing will only discourage you. On the other hand, it also doesn’t help to prop yourself up by comparing yourself to others who don’t seem to be doing as well. Those comparisons are equally arbitrary and they put you in a competitive state of mind when it’s much better to cooperate. The only comparison that matters is whether you’ve done a little better today than you did yesterday.
Practice self-care.
One of the best ways to feel better about yourself and increase your capacity to do good things is to take good care of yourself. Eat healthy, get enough sleep, and exercise regularly. Take a break when you need it and ask for help sometimes. Self-care makes you feel better and look better and it shows you value your health and well-being.
Set goals.
It’s hard to feel good about the direction of your life if you don’t feel like you’re working toward meaningful goals. Practice setting goals, even small ones and work toward them consistently. Every time you reach a goal, you will feel like you have made measurable progress, and more importantly, you will feel like you have more control over your life. Every goal increases your confidence and makes you willing to try something a little more audacious.
Connect with people who care about you.
Connecting with positive people is essential for improving your self-esteem. Our friends and loved ones can lift us up, keep us from overreacting, and reassure us when bad things happen.
Strategies to “Relieve Stress”
Any activity can make stress go away!
Figure out what is causing the stress.
Pay attention to how and where it is affecting your body.
Don’t worry about things you can’t control
Prepare to the best of your ability
Try to look at change as a positive challenge
Work to resolve conflicts with others
Talk with a trusted friend, family member or counselor
Set realistic goals at home and at work
Exercise on a regular basis
Eat well-balanced meals
Get enough sleep
Meditate
Participate in something you don't’ find stressful (sports, social events or hobbies)
How Do You Know You're Stressed?
Your own Stress Warning Signals could be revealed in the online "How Do You Know You're Stressed?" quiz (Links to an external site.), as well as, suggestions for how to reduce stress.
Additional Strategies to Relieve Stress
1. Associate with people whom you enjoy and who support you.
2. Learn and practice relaxation or meditations skills
3. Engage in a vigorous physical exercise that is convenient and pleasurable.
4. Sometimes it helps to bring a friend to exercise with you.
5. Don’t let one thing dominate you, such as schoolwork, relationships, jobs, sports, etc.
6. View life as challenges to seek, not obstacles to avoid.
7. Take responsibility for your life and your feelings, but never blame yourself.
8. Maintain a reasonable diet and sane sleep habits.
9. Avoid the use of sleeping pills, tranquilizers, and other drugs to control stress.
10. Protect your personal freedoms and space.
–Do what you want and feel, but respect the rights of others.
–Don’t tell others what to do, but if they intrude, let them know.
11. Find a time and place each day where you can have complete privacy.
–Take time off from others’ added pressures.
–Short time-outs during the day can help improve efficient functioning the rest of the day.
12. Don’t drift along in troublesome and stressful situations or relationships.
–Take action to change rather than trying to avoid the problem.
–Taking chances is the key to emotional well-being.
13. Surround yourself with cues from positive thoughts and relaxation.
14. Review your obligations from time to time and make sure they are still good for you.
–If they’re not, let them go.
15. Open yourself to new experiences.
–Try new things, new foods, new places.
16. When worries start to build up, talk to someone.
College of Saint Benedict | Saint John’s University
Strategies for relieving stress include:
Read and discuss
Do a guided imagery
Develop and write down positive affirmations and practice several times a day
Recognize negative self-talk, distorted thinking habits
Pay attention to what you eat and drink-develop a healthy nutrition regimen
Eliminate the “should”
Laugh more
Self-acceptance, self-compassion, self-love
Live in the present moment
Pray
Deep breathe