STRESS AND HEALTH: BALANCING OPTIONS

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STRESS AND HEALTH BALANCING OPTIONS

• At your desk and anywhere
• K. Hathaway, Ph.D., L.P.
• Health Psychology
• Center for Spirituality and Healing
• University of Minnesota

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TO NOTESTRESS IS NOT ALL BAD!

• POSITIVES OF STRESS
• Alertness
• Challenge-based increases self-confidence
• Learning occurs and coping improves
• Interpersonal problem-solving

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COMPONENTS OF STRESS RESPONSES

• PHYSICAL
• Heart rate, breathing, muscle
• Move or freeze, yell or cower
• COGNITIVE
• Intense concentration on target (stressor)
• EMOTIONAL
• Less access to emotional reactions (except fear
  and sometimes anger)
• SOCIAL
• More inward-focused, withdrawal from social
  interactions

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ENVIRONMENT STRESSORS PARTICULAR TO WOMEN

• Multiple role and related demands
• Other views of roles and demands
• Differences in emotional needs
• Less training/modeling in assertiveness
• Different physical needs (ergonomics, breaks,
  etc)
• Flexibility needs
• Conflict mediation skills
• Satisfaction with work community
• Physical safety, discrimination, glass ceilings

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PHYSICAL STRESS RESPONDING IN WOMEN

• Emotional responsivity differences?
• Cortisol production
• Hormone fluctuations
• Oxytocin and estrogen (different brain responses
  to stress during ovulation)
• Tend-Befriend (vs Fight-Flight)

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FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE WORKPLACE BURNOUT

• Role overload
• Role ambiguity
• Role boredom
• Lack of control (perceived or real)
• Lack of challenge, diversity or sense of purpose

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ITS UP TO

• Stress management, then, is an individual
  challenge
• No one solution works for everyone
• The environment may supply the stressor the
  individual supplies the coping

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COMPONENTS OF STRESS REDUCTION

• PHYSICAL
• Relaxation, BREATHING
• Build health status Increase resistance
• COGNITIVE
• Re-framing, re-interpreting
• Staying in the moment
• EMOTIONAL
• Access to feelings
• Peace-giving
• SOCIAL
• Family and friendship support

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BUILDING RESISTANCE (VS MANAGING CRISES)

• Increase physical strength
• Increase physical adaptability
• Increase energy
• Decrease toxins
• Build antitoxins
• Decrease heart rate, GI distress

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PHYSICAL At Your Desk

• STRETCH!
• POSTURE CORRECTION
• FACIAL MUSCLE RELAXATION
• BREATHING
• LIGHTING
• SOUND
• AROMATHERAPY
• NUTRITION, WATER

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PHYSICAL, Anywhere Take care of self (treat
illness, balance eating, balance sleep, get
exercise, avoid mood-altering drugs)

• EXERCISE
• Walk at breaks? Lunch?
• Less sedentary activity (decrease TV/computer?)
• SLEEP
• 8 hours? naps?
• GET OUTSIDE!!
• Fresh air, new visual stimuli
• NUTRITION
• 4-6 times per day, nutritionally sound
• Vitamins?

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COGNITIVE At Your Desk

• INCREASE I CAN SENSE OF CONTROL DECREASE I
  CANT STATEMENTS
• DECREASE WOULDVE, COULDVE, SHOULDVE
• PLAN, RE-ORGANIZE, PRIORITIZE
• DECREASE JUDGMENT, INCREASE ACCEPTANCE
• INCREASE PERMISSION FOR OPTIONS
• INCREASE PLASTICITY IN THINKING
• DECREASE ALL OR NOTHING
• ELIMINATE THE WORD BUT
• MAKE VALUE-BASED DECISIONS

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• For a mind burdened with fear, with conformity,
  with the thinker, there can be no understanding
  of that which may be called the original
• J. Krishnamurti, On Fear

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COGNITIVE Anywhere

• Work on ACCEPTANCE (this is not the same as
  judging it to be good)
• There has never been a time without war, without
  hunger, without suffering
• Our colleagues are not perfect either
• Life is busy, confusing and distracting
• ADMIT OWN INFLUENCE
• Unglue opinions from facts
• Make VALUE-BASED decisions

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COGNITIVE Anywhere

• ATTENTION AND INTENTION MINDFULNESS
• Observe self, observe thoughts
• Be aware of sensation (body posture, washing
  dishes)

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EMOTIONAL At Your Desk

• PRACTICE OPTIMISM
• FIND SMALL WAYS TO INCREASE JOY (PICTURES, TEAS,
  ETC.)
• ACCESS MEMORIES ESPECIALLY OF TIME IN NATURE
• PRACTICE GRATITUDE
• PRACTICE KINDNESS AND GENEROSITY
• BE MINDFUL PRACTICE STAYING IN THE MOMENT
• IDENTIFY FEELINGS WITHOUT JUDGMENT
• PRACTICE JOY

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• We consider bibles and religions divine I say
  they have all grown out of you, and may grow out
  of you still
• It is not they who give the life it is you who
  give the life.
• Will you seek afar off? You surely come back at
  last, in things best known to you, finding the
  best, or as good as the best
• Happiness, knowledge, not another place, but this
  place not for another hour, but for this
  hour Walt Whitman

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EMOTIONAL Anywhere

• IMAGINE PEACE
• Remember that the body and the spirit do not know
  the difference between what is imagined and what
  is real.
• FOCUS MORE ON CREATIVITY, LESS ON PRODUCTIVITY
• INCREASE SOCIAL SUPPORT
• PRACTICE KINDNESS AND GENEROSITY
• ATTEND TO PURPOSE
• HAVE MORE FUN!!!!! LAUGHTER IS A GREAT STRESS
  REDUCER

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PULLING IT TOGETHER LIFE DE-STRESS SKILLS

• Build mastery and competence with new work and
  social skills
• Focus on what works
• Play by the rules
• Attend to relationships
• Approach things you are afraid of
• Learn distress tolerance

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DISTRESS TOLERANCE SKILLS

• Activities Hobbies, play games, walk, sports
• Contribute Volunteer, make something for some
  one else
• Comparison Compare self to less fortunate or
  dont compare at all
• Distraction Count to 10
• Self-soothe Use five senses

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SUM STRESS MANAGEMENT OPTIONS

• THINK ABOUT BALANCE
• STRESS MANAGEMENT MUST HAVE A PHYSICAL, COGNITIVE
  AND EMOTIONAL COMPONENT
• Additional benefits from breathing!!!
• NO TIME PARAMETERS
• VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE
• BE MINDFUL, BE PRESENT

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OPTIONS FOR STRESS REDUCTION

• Relaxation exercise
• Yoga
• Meditation
• Self-hypnosis
• Daily rituals Prayer, candle-lighting, water
  rituals
• Music, sound
• Laughter
• Volunteering

• Light treatments
• Time in nature nature images
• Story-telling or story-listening
• Mindfulness
• Social support
• Animals, children
• Attention to the present moment

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Center for Spirituality and Healing

• ONLINE Taking Charge of Health
• Coursework SEE www.csh.umn.edu
• MBSR training, options for learning alternative
  ways of healing and health-building
• Art of Healing
• Plants and Health
• Music, Art and Health
• Healing Environments
• Peacemaking and Health

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• Look to this day!
• For it is life, the very life of life
• In its brief course
• Lie all the verities and realities of your
  existence
• The bliss of growth
• The glory of action
• The splendor of achievement
• For yesterday is but a dream,
• And tomorrow is only a vision
• But today, well lived, makes every yesterday
• a dream of happiness
• And every tomorrow a vision of hope!
• Look well, therefore, to this day!
• Kalidasa, ancient Sanskrit poem