Integrative and Holistic Specialist Program Blog on Adaptogens

Adaptogens are great and natural herbs and supplements to help one manage stress and anxiety.  They are natural but still need to be utilized under care of a specialist due to the fact certain levels can be counter productive or mix poorly with other medications.  Integrative Holistic Specialists can help one find the best herbal supplement for an individual when dealing with stress.

Adaptogens help individuals with stress. Please also review AIHCP’s Integrative and Holistic Health Specialist Program

 

The article, “What Are Adaptogens and Are They Healthy?” from Cleveland Clinic’s Healthessentials takes a closer look at a variety of adaptogens.  The article states,

“Adaptogens can affect how much cortisol is released in your body when you’re stressed. Less cortisol can mean less of a physical stress reaction. As stress is connected to your nervous, endocrine and immune systems, it can cause physiological changes like an increased heart rate. Again, adaptogens can help how your body responds physically to stress.”

To read the entire article, please click here

Please also review AIHCP’s Integrative and Holistic Specialist Program, as well as AIHCP’s Stress Management Program.  The programs are online and independent study and open to qualified professionals seeking a four year certification as a Holistic Nurse or Stress Management Consultant.

Meditation Instructor Program Article on Yoga Positions for Headache Relief

Yoga has an ability to help calm the mind and body. In calming the body it can help the body relax and be free of various aches and pain. Certain yoga poses are designed for even more headache and migraine relief.  Learning to utilize them can be very helpful.

Yoga can help alleviate stress and help muscles relax to reduce headaches. Please also review AIHCP’s Meditation Instructor Program

 

The article, “9 Yoga Poses That Just Might Cure Your Headaches” by Sarah Yang looks at a multiple yoga positions specifically designed to help with headaches.  She states,

“Yoga movement can help you mindfully release and become aware of patterns of muscular tension, Leonard explains. Conscious breathing can help ease the stress and contribute to detoxification. And a regular meditation practice can contribute to overall lower stress, anxiety, and depression, which can lead to fewer headaches that are associated with these conditions, she adds.”

To read the entire article, please click here

Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management and Meditation Instructor Programs and see if they meet your academic and professional goals.  The programs are online and independent study and are open to qualified professionals seeking a four year certification as a Stress Management Consultant or Meditation Instructor.

Stress Management and Pastoral Thanatology Article on Primary Caregiver Stress Reduction

Helping an aging family member is difficult.  Primary caregivers suffer from numerous struggles and stresses.  They give up time but also time to care for themselves.  This lack of time to care for oneself can lead to anger, grief, and guilt later.  Being there for a loved one is important and becoming a caregiver for a family member is the ultimate statement of love but one needs to ensure proper health and care for oneself.

Primary caregivers deal with stress they sometimes conceal. Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consulting Program

 

Many times, the primary caregiver forgets to care about oneself spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically.  This leads to their own illness or mental breakdown.  It is important then primary caregivers understand that they are only as healthy to care for the loved one as they allow themselves to be.  So it is imperative to ensure better self care and stress reduction.  Sometimes that means taking a day off.

The article, “CAREGIVER STRESS PREVENTION GUIDE” by Jessica Thomas takes a closer look at how primary caregivers can reduce stress on themselves.  She states,

“Caregiving for a family or loved one can be an extremely stressful experience for the caregiver. This stress can have a devastating impact on the caregiver’s physical and mental health and can also generate a wide range of conflicted emotions. Often caregivers find themselves feeling hopeless, as if the situation that they are in is an endless series of days and sad tasks. However, caregivers should not feel this way. There is a wide range of resources and strategies that can help caregivers successfully navigate their stress, no matter what type of caregiver situation they find themselves in”

To read the entire article, please click here

Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consulting Program as well as AIHCP’s Pastoral Thanatology Program.   Both programs are online and independent study and open to qualified professionals seeking four year certifications.

 

Anger Management and Stress Management Article on Emotions and Control

Emotions are part of life.  They arise from intense reactions to situations or people and can overtake an individual.  They can be good and bad depending on how the person harnesses them.  Individuals who are able to balance their emotional reactions with their intellect and reason are better able to cope with issues and utilize the emotion in a positive way.

Stoic traditions tried to suppress the idea of emotion and worship reason.  Star Trek’s Mr. Spock and Mr. Data both were characters that forever immortalized the idea of emotion and reason.  The Vulcan, Mr Spock trying to suppress his emotion and enhance logic at all cost.  The character saw emotion as something detrimental to the pursuit of logical exploration of situations.  As the character evolved, the good of emotion was viewed when used in proper balance.  Mr. Data, an android, pursued emotion and wished to experience it.  His character eventually was able to experience emotion through an “emotion chip” that allowed him to feel anger, frustration and fear.  He had to learn to channel these emotions with his reason.

Emotion is natural and good but it can be used against us. It is important to balance emotion with reason and not allow extremes to cause chaos in our lives. Please also review AIHCP’s Anger Management Program, as well as Stress Management and Meditation programs

 

In both cases,  the value of emotion is expressed as something important to the human condition.  Emotion can be detrimental to logic, it can cause havoc, but when utilized in balance with reason and logic it is a very important part of human existence.

Sadness, anger, love and other feelings are all critical to humanity.  Humanity cannot exist without these emotions.

Sadness is a key emotion that lets others know when something is not right with someone.  It is a reaction to loss and is experienced through grief and mourning.   It is forever tied to the emotion of love.  Love is an important emotion because it expresses attachment and need.  As social beings, attachments are key.  Every relationship has attachment and mutual need.  When this attachment is broken, grief results.  So as one can see grief and love are tied together in this fallen world.

Anger is an emotion that reacts to injustice or at least perceived injustice.  It is critical in balancing right and wrong and protecting others.  It is again important to relationships and maintaining them.  Of love and sadness, anger receives more negative press because it is the emotion that is most misused.  It leads to fighting, violence and war when not properly balanced yet its importance to awaken an individual to awareness of something wrong or harmful to a situation is critical in human evolution.

These three emotions are all important to maintaining and keeping relationships and understanding their role in society.   Without them, attachments and relationships are merely cold calculations.  There are no true enduring connections.  However, when these emotions are not balanced with reason, they can cause despair, lust, and rage.  Hence balance is the key to emotions and reason in everyday life.

Learning to balance emotions are no easy task.  Mr Data in Star Trek had to learn this.  He once told Captain Picard that he wished he could turn off the emotion chip and marveled how human beings were able to act with emotions such as anger and fear and still perform their duties.   It is the essence of being human to be able to balance emotional reaction with reason and intellect and avoid the extremes of emotion that lead to devastation.  Emotions are hence great assets but also when misused great detriments.

Learning to control emotions involves balancing the heart and the mind. It involves Stress Management, Anger Management and Meditation to learn to control impulses

 

Emotions can be controlled through a variety of practices in life.   The virtue of temperance looks to balance the passions.  In many religious traditions, the passions are seen as out of control.  These traditions teach the inability to control one’s passions is due to sin.  Other traditions see the disconnect from the ultimate reality that causes this imbalance.  Whether imbalance or sin, humanity looks for many ways to control emotion.  Temperance is one such virtue that balances the desires.  Balance is the key word.  It does not look to eliminate the passions or emotions or desires, but control them within the acceptable extreme.

Meditation, Stress Management, Anger Management are all paths to learn to better control external pressures with internal guides.   Meditation naturally calms the mind and body and teaches it how to relax.  Stress Management teaches individuals how to respond to stressful stimuli in a beneficial way.  Anger Management teaches individuals how to identify triggers that lead to anger.

There are many individual strategies within this fields and it is important to train the mind, body and soul to use them in productive ways to learn to control emotion.  Various breathing techniques as well as cognitive strategies to train the mind in how it reacts to bad situations are extremely useful in dealing with emotional outbursts.   It is good to be mindful of emotions and what triggers them in private.  Cooling down sometimes involves walking away and expressing emotions in a  less destructive method that harms no-one.  The ability to do so takes conscious effort.  It takes willingness to identify triggers, study one’s past and natural inclinations and be steadfast in correcting bad habits.

If one does not take steps to control emotions, then life will be far more difficult.  Emotions while good can also destroy one’s life with broken relationships, abuse, assaults and eventually jail.   Even simple outbursts that carry no true legal issues can be detrimental to work, school and family life.  Controlling emotions within a safe and acceptable norm is crucial to emotional development.

If you would like to learn more about controlling emotion or are a professional seeking certification to enhance one’s knowledge on these subjects, then please review AIHCP’s programs on Meditation Instructor, Anger Management and Stress Management Consultants.  The programs are online and independent study and open to qualified professionals seeking four year certifications.

 

To learn more, please review

AIHCP’s Meditation Instructor Program, please click here

AIHCP’s video on Anger, please click here

Healthline’s Article on “How to Control Anger: 25 Tips to Help You Stay Calm”, please click here

Healthline’s Article on “16 Simple Ways to Relieve Stress”, please click here

 

5 Best Stress Management Techniques for Students

Smiling woman with laptop giving thumb up

By Shristi Patni 

Students today experience a significant amount of stress that takes a toll on their grades, health and happiness.

A study conducted by the American Psychological Association found that teenagers have similar stress results as adults.

This means teenagers experience chronic stress and have little means to cope effectively. They feel sad, depressed or overwhelmed and don’t know how to reduce stress.

Stress also affects health-related behaviors such as exercise, diet and sleep patterns which when combined, takes a larger toll.

Causes of Students Stress

Another study was conducted to find the most common causes of stress among students. It was found that most of the stress is caused by school and their activities.

Chronic stress, if untreated, can persist into college years leading to mental health issues and academic disengagement.

The most common causes of stress among students include:

  • Work
  • Relationships
  • Transitions (living independently, moving out, graduating)
  • Social challenges
  • Extracurricular activities
  • Homework
  • School

High school students are the worst hit amongst all the students. They have to take up challenging courses, face intense competition, participate in extracurriculars, study, ace placement tests and plan for their future.

College is another place that causes a lot of stress amongst students. Once a student is accepted, the stress continues. The need to make new friends, fit in, handle the challenging workloads and live independently. Romantic relationships cause an extra layer of stress.

Students don’t understand how they can manage stress and navigate their life better.

With a full schedule of lectures, activities and assignments it’s difficult to dissipate stress.

This is why we bring you the 5 Best Stress Management Techniques for Students.

 

Tired Black Girl Waking Up In Bed With Sleep Mask

#1. Get Proper Sleep 

The number one mistake you make as a student is compromise on your sleep.

And it’s okay to stay up a night or two when you’re having fun but maintaining a proper sleep schedule is crucial to keep stress at bay.

When you deprive your body of sleep, you reduce your productivity. You feel sluggish and disoriented throughout the day.

This hinders your learning abilities and causes additional stress of missing out on your studies.

Have a strict sleep schedule. Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep every night. Don’t shy away from taking naps either.

 

Beautiful sunset run

#2. Exercise

The easiest (and cheapest) way to blow off some steam is to start exercising.

You can easily incorporate a small exercise routine into your daily schedule.

Walk or bike to school or college or do Yoga in the morning.

Exercising as little as 15 minutes a day will have a major impact on your overall health and well being.

 

 

 

#3. Start Visualizing

You can use guided imagery to reduce stress. It’s effective, easy and doesn’t require a lot of time.

Visualizations help you calm down, detach from everything and relax.

It’s also an excellent way to prepare yourself for the things that causing you the most stress.

For instance, if you’re nervous about giving a speech, sit down, light your favorite scented candle and visualize yourself giving the speech.

You’ll feel less stressed when you see yourself performing just like the way you wanted to and will by being able to prepare early on.

 

Woman relaxing on a sofa listening to music

#4. Listen to Your Favorite Music

Research suggests that listening to music can help reduce stress.

It helps you calm your mind and stimulate it as the situation demands.

Relax with your favorite melodies, “wake up” mentally by listening to upbeat music and play classical music when studying.

 

#5. Get Organizedyoung man start up working on desk

Clutter can cause immense stress, decrease your productivity and can also cost you money.

Most students are guilty of living in cluttered spaces which often leads to negative effects on their grades.

One of the best dress management techniques is to stay organized.

Ensure that your study area is a soothing, minimalist space that’s devoid of clutter and distractions.

This helps reduce stress and saves time in finding lost items and keep you positive.

A clean and tidy space will encourage you to study more and get better grades.

It’s actually worth the effort.

 

The Takeaway

Stress is a part of human life and the sooner you understand how to deal with it, the better it is.

The best stress management techniques still pretty much remain the same: eat well, exercise regularly, get proper sleep and do things that make you happy.

Other than that, self-talk and use affirmations to help you stay happy and stress-free.

Which stress management techniques work for you? Do you have any other techniques that help combat stress? Tell us in the comments section below.

 


Author Bio: Shristi Patni

Picture of Shristi Patni

Shristi is a content writer and owner of F and B Recipes. She enjoys creating a list of “Things That Make Happy” or coming up with creative Food Blog Names. Formerly the Chief Content Officer at Raletta, she is currently working on her second cookbook.

Facebook: F and B Recipes

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consultant Certification and see if it matches your academic and professional goals.  The program in online and independent study and open to qualified professionals.

Stress Management Consultant Article on Stress and Weight Gain

If stress is not bad enough, it is also connected to weight gain because of the chemicals the body produces in the Flight or Fight Response.  Cortisol primarily is a leading culprit in weight gain.  If someone is constantly stressed, this hormone helps the body increase sugar and slows your metabolism.  In addition stress is indicative to unhealthy habits.  Stressed individuals rarely work out or walk in the open sun but instead eat unhealthy and lay in bed worrying.  These things prevent the regular day to day activities that help burn fat.

If Stress was not bad enough, it also leads a myriad of health issues, including high blood pressure, heart issues and weight gain.
Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consultant Program

 

The article, “Stress and Weight Gain: What’s the Connection?” by Grant Tinsley takes a closer look at stress and weight gain connections.  He states,

“Cortisol releases glucose into your bloodstream to give you the boost of energy it thinks you’ll need to react to this. Prolonged or chronic stress can keep your cortisol levels on the rise. That can lead to an overload of glucose. If it’s left unmanaged, all of this extra glucose in your blood could lead to obesity.”

To read the entire article, please click here

Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consulting Program.  The program is online and independent study and open to qualified professionals seeking a four year certification as a Stress Management Consultant

Stress Management Consulting Program Article on Stress and High Blood Sugar

If diabetic, stress is not good for your sugar.  How so?  Adrenaline when pumped into the system due to the body’s fight or flight response to stress, induces glucogen, which in turn extracts glucose from the cells for sugar to burn in a fight or flight situation.  With modern life, the situation is rarely life or death but our body does not know that and only responds to stress as it has for millions of years.  This creates from this domino effect, a higher blood sugar which is not burned for fight or flight but merely flows in your blood hence raising the sugar.

It is important to limit the damage the body’s stress response can do to the body and this is why Stress Management is so important.  Limiting the stress response only to legitimate threats is important.

Extra worry can cause more stress which can raise blood sugar. Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consulting Program

 

The article, “How Stress Is Connected to Diabetes” by Ashley Braun takes a closer look at this connection between diabetes and stress induced higher sugar numbers.  She states,

“If you are wondering if stress is affecting your blood sugar levels, you can try comparing your stress levels to your blood sugar levels. One study recommended rating your perceived stress, try a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being the most stressed), and recording your blood sugar level.4 After a few weeks of this, you may be able to notice a trend in your stress and blood sugar.”

To read the entire article, please click here

Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consulting Program and see if it matches your academic and professional goals. The program is online and independent study and open to qualified professionals seeking a four year certification as a Stress Management Consultant.

 

Tips for Healthcare Workers Wishing to Hone their Fitness

woman exercising By Lucy Peters

Compared to other professions, staff in some healthcare professions (for instance, nurses) have a six times higher prevalence of back pain. Tasks such as transferring patients and operating in awkward postures can cause lumbar tissue damage and back pain, but this is only one of many health risks associated with the health profession. Employees working in healthcare can also face high rates of stress and tiredness owing to factors such as long working hours, shift work, and working in times of risk (as is the case during the global health crisis). How can physical activity help quell stress and pain and reduce injury and how can healthcare workers ensure they get the recommended number of minutes of exercise per week?

Exercise Reduces Pain and Stress

As stated in a study by Ann-Kathrin Otto and colleagues, published in the journal BMJ, the efficiency of ergonomic training and exercise when it comes to reducing pain, is well-documented. Previous studies have shown that moderate exercises (including cardiovascular and stretching exercises) reduce musculoskeletal problems, boost muscular strength, and enhance cardiovascular fitness among nursing staff. Research published by the Mayo Clinic shows that employees in medical centers report high levels of stress. Of the many natural modes of quelling this stress, just a few found to be particularly effective include general physical activity, mindfulness-based activities such as yoga, and time spent in nature.

Exercise and the Immunity

A 2020 study by researchers at the University of Bath found that regular, daily exercise benefits one’s immunity, even during tough times. It helps the immune system “find and deal with pathogens, slowing down changes that happen to the immune system with aging.” Equally important is diet. Certain foods strengthen the immune system. These include healthy Omega-3 fats, fiber-rich fruits and vegetables, and probiotic and fermented foods. When you eat is equally important; the gut has a memory and when it is expecting food, it ramps up the activity of immune cells to attack incoming ‘bad bacteria’. Sticking to regular meal times ensures these cells are able to exercise their function.

Exercise at Work

Over 50% of employees report that they have little time to exercise because of their busy work and home lives. As stated in a recent study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, one solution is to include more activity at work. In one study, ‘treadmill workstations’ – in which employees were made to work while walking, significantly increased fitness levels and BMI measurements. Another study assigned participants a mandatory activity of middle-to-high intensity workouts for around 2.5 hours a week during work hours. These incentives clearly need to be offered and organized by work organizations, but what can you do if your place of work does not adopt programs that boost employee fitness?

Individual Efforts

The key to making the most of the little time you may have is to do as much as you can. Did you know that running for just 15 minutes a day can reduce the risk of major depression by 26%? Official recommended guidelines stipulate that all individuals should complete at least half an hour of moderate intensity exercise every day. The good news is that these 30 minutes do not need to be continuous. That is, you can complete 10 minutes on your way to work, 10 minutes at lunchtime, and 10 minutes at the end of the day. You can also embrace activity in small but significant ways – including taking the stairs instead of the lift when you can. For extra health benefits, engage in vigorous activity (think cycling, jogging, or interval training) for half an hour at least three times a week. Vigorous exercise is particularly effective because it improves the efficiency of your heart and lungs, and more oxygen is delivered to your muscles.

Even if you are very inactive, becoming slightly more active can help you reap big benefits in terms of fitness and pain reduction. At the very least, aiming for around 30 minutes of moderate activity per day can help strengthen your cardiovascular system. So, too, can finding practical ways to be more active – including walking while working when possible, stretching throughout the day, and taking advantage of work breaks to be more active instead of taking a sedentary pause.

 

 

 

Please also review AIHCP’s Stress Management Consultant Certification and see if it matches your academic and professional goals.  The program in online and independent study and open to qualified professionals.

Stress Management Consulting Article on Working Temporarily at Home

Working at home can be a blessing and a curse.   With epidemics and national crisis those blessed enough to still work will have more experiences with working from home.   Those who work from home for a living naturally will have different experiences than those who do not regularly work at home.   This is because those who work from home are set up permanently not temporary.   Those who have to learn to adjust to the changes may experience some stress in adjusting to the new existence.

BUT first, before we discuss the many issues and coping strategies of working from home, we must first acknowledge that still having a job and the ability to earn a paycheck is a blessing during crisis.  Many individuals during pandemics or crisis are laid off or lose their job.  They have to worry about bills and food.   So before, individuals moan and gripe over issues that may be annoying or stressful, it is important to recognize the far more superior stress of those who have no income during crisis.

Working from home in times of crisis can be stressful but is a blessing instead of unemployment

 

This is perhaps the most important mindset one must possess.  If one enters into the temporary work from home paradigm as grateful instead of angry, then many stresses while annoying can be dismissed.  Annoyances and stress of change of scene are real but in comparison to having no job during crisis properly puts things into perspective.   A feeling of gratitude should exist despite some of the annoyances.

One of the first struggles to identify for those just starting to work at home is structure and regularity.  The comforts of home and distractions can be overwhelming for some personalities.  For those who need structure to function it is essential that a consistent schedule exists.  If one awakens at a certain hour and starts at a certain hour, then this should be maintained for these types of individuals.   Daily, weekly and monthly projects should be written into a time plan and crossed off as completed.   Certain times for lunch and break should remain consistent as well.

For those who are more able to focus, some of the luxuries of home can be afforded.  Those more focused can still accomplish the goals of the day and put in the necessary time.  They can be taken away from a task and still be honest, dedicated and responsible enough to complete the task  later.  To them the comforts, familiarity, peace and solitude may be very conducive to productivity.  Ultimately it depends on your personality and what type of schedule permits you to honestly perform your duties and fulfill the needs of the company.

This does not mean the home environment is equally peaceful for everyone.  Larger families will deal with children.  Sometimes a diaper may need changed, or children will need told to allow father or mother to work in privacy.  Pets will need fed or let out.   So the situation is not ideal and there will be times needed to step out as required.   Do not feel guilty for this but be sure to put the honest time and effort in throughout the day.  Accomplishing tasks are beyond an 8 hour restriction if home.  This can permit a lunch break that involves a brisk walk or run, or even a lunch break to

Stress will find anyone though in a different environment.   The practical and efficient office environment cannot be replicated at home.  Productivity can be close but truly cannot equal being in the office.   The office itself has the records, the files, the machines, and the supplies needed.   The temporary home office hopes to take the most essential to function.  The most pertinent paper work, files and supplies are taken.  Many who experience a pandemic will undoubtedly spend the last day in the office collecting a variety of tools and papers needed to function at home.  One can only try one’s best to collect everything needed.

Offices to function away from the the business site will deal with a variety of preparation stress.   They will need to forward office phones to a tracker phone, or set up alternate numbers.  They will also need to set up a remote access so that office computers can be accessed from the employee’s home computer.   These adjustments are necessary but also come with minor inconveniences.   The remote access has a slight delay in transmitting information.  While extremely slight it is not as instant as in the office.   This can also lead to delayed typing by a split second.  The font on some program can also be smaller.  Another issue is printing.  Most programs will not print remotely to the employee’s home printer.   This involves emailing printable forms to the employee’s home email and then printing it from the home computer itself.   This slows the process of printing and in itself becomes a project.

Working from has its advantages and disadvantages. Please also review our Stress Management Program

 

Another stress is dealing with customers.   Not being able to have complete access or mail certain things may cause irritation to impatient customers.   Customers need to be more aware of national crisis but not all are so understanding.   Patience and care need taken when dealing with impatience.

Managers under law are able to deal with issues of payroll, mail, and maintenance of computers or machinery in the office.   Through emails and comunication, managers can ensure that “stay at home employees” are given the necessary documents that arrive in the mail, as well as monitor any issues that may occur technologically.   Office computers could turn off affecting remote access, or the phone service may not transfer calls to a tracker phone.   The fax may jam or a host of other technical issues could occur at the office affecting the workers at home and their ability to complete tasks.  Managers under the law can ensure that the business continues to flow with a short visit to the office.

In continuing with continuity and communication, remote access meetings can be planned.  Software and technology allow meetings to take place among multiple employees over the phone with digital viewing.   A meeting room can be set up with certain software that allows all to meet and report status of reports and production.

While less than ideal, it is better to stay in business than to go out of business in difficult times.  Despite some issues and new dynamics of stress, technology allows companies to stay in business but ultimately it lies in the hands of good employees to become dedicated to the change and perform at a even higher level.  This involves new challenges and stresses but all can be overcame flexibility, responsibility and honesty.

To learn more about Stress Management Consulting and coping with stress, please review our program and see if it meets your academic and professional goals.  In the meantime, be safe and continue to control stress and be productive at home.

 

Stress Management Consulting and Anger Management Article on The Deeper Understanding of Stress

Stress is a natural part of life.  Stress occurs daily but its universal impact is a subjective experience.  Many people succumb to stress and allow it to affect them while some are able to deal with stress and minimize its effects.  Some individuals respond as an extrovert, while others allow stress to eat them within as an introvert.   Some respond with rage, while others enter into isolation and depression.

Stress can originate from our daily schedule and the nature of one’s life.   If one understands his or her position in life and what comes with it, these natural stresses come less as a surprise.  Someone who commutes to New York City everyday, naturally expects the stress of heavy traffic and road rage scenarios.   While the stress is real and present, its effect is determined by the individual’s outlook on life and what he or she expects for that day.   The stress of this traffic can build over time but someone who has developed stress coping strategies can more effectively deal with the traffic and minimize its impact on daily life.

One can expect certain stresses on a daily and weekly life but how we handle unexpected stress and multiple stressors is key as well

The same is true for an individual who may work in a office.   One should expect numerous phone calls interrupting assignments, as well as multiple deadlines and potentially obnoxious co-workers.  These stresses while unpleasant are nevertheless expected stresses.   An individual who identifies stressors that are indigenous to one’s daily life will more successfully navigate the day and cope with the stresses that may confront them.

Likewise is the nature of one’s vocation in life.  Parents experience different stresses that single people never can imagine.  Parents are not only concerned with meeting the expectations of what need done in their own personal lives, but also must be concerned with the child’s needs.  Whether that stress is a crying baby, ensuring the children arrive at school, or take children to extracurricular activities, parents understand that certain stresses manifest throughout the day.  These potential stresses are certainly not foreign ideas that can emerge throughout the day but are sometimes expected or not entirely a surprise if they do occur.

Natural stresses that are part of one’s daily life are balanced to some extent.  They are expected.  One knows what to expect on Monday through Friday and what particular challenges come with those days.   The balancing act of coping with those stresses in a mild way and still managing the day is a very precarious balance though.   The degree of the stress or an unexpected stress can totally unravel one’s neatly planned day.  One may plan on heavy traffic on their way to the commute, but not be prepared for a fender bender.  One may be ready for the challenge to have all the children arrive to school on time, but not be ready to receive a call a from a teacher that your child skipped class or misbehaved.   These issues can unravel one already dealing with the everyday notion of stress.

One can identify stressors that are common and have a plan but when unexpected stressors occur, they can induce a panic, rage, or break down.   In addition to unplanned stress, multiple stressors can also play a role.   One may be fine with a rude honk from behind in traffic, but later, not be so fine with the person who cuts in front, or even later, the person at work who parks in one’s favorite spot.  Simply then add a spilled coffee on one’s favorite shirt and a lack of emotional control could emerge.   Certain singular stresses may be manageable but for many, multiple stressors, merely build up to a volcanic eruption.

So while individuals deal with natural stressors, they must also learn to deal with unexpected stressors and multiple stressors at once.   While one can expect certain stress to exist naturally within one’s day, one must be also able to cope with the unexpected and multiple issues that may appear uninvited on one’s schedule.

Life has order but it always does not keep to order.  This may be very difficult for an OCD person to accept but plans change.   One needs to have a plan, a set daily, weekly and monthly schedule, but stress, life itself and issues arise that deviate from anyone’s plan.   One can estimate what type of stress or difficulty may occur with a given project, day, or week, but to truly cope with stress, one must be ready to deviate from the path planned if necessary.

While life has general guideline, one can never plan completely without a few bumps and stresses in life. How one handles those detours is the key to living a physical and emotional healthy life

This goes beyond basic Anger Management and Stress Management which identifies issues that arise and teach trained responses to them, but goes a step even farther back basic recognition, and teaches expectations of not only the expected but unexpected as well.   One must be flexible in response and able to cope with new unexpected stressors in a better and healthy way.

Of course emotion is a key.  Emotion can be irrational and it can over react to stressors and various imperfections within one’s personality can emerge.   One truly must learn to know oneself, if one wishes to handle stress and anger on a given day.  This goes beyond expecting what stress goes with a day.  It goes beyond realizing that plans rarely go to plan.   It is even more than realizing that somedays are just bad days filled with multiple stresses at once.  It entails, one honestly examining one’s personality and identifying emotional responses to past stress and where personality defects exist within oneself.

This examination of self asks questions regarding oneself.  It asks if one is patient, if one is kind, if one is mature, if one is reserved as opposed to impatience, rudeness, immaturity and anger.  How we cope truly defines oneself.  One naturally likes to see the best of oneself.  One who rises to the occasion, controls emotion, and has intelligent responses to situations that are managed by reason not emotion, but this is not always the case.

A person who possesses these traits and is able to handle anger and stress is not only trained but also disciplined.  It probably did not occur by accident or over night, but was a skill that was painfully worked on everyday.  It was a virtue forged in fire, perfected over numerous falls and conscious restraint in stressful and angry situations.   Training one’s will and mind to respond a certain way that is not immature, rash, or angry is a difficult task.

So while it does ensue identifying stressors, preparation and expectation of the unexpected, it also revolves around spiritual and mental betterment.  It involves a conscious decision to change one’s response and emotional self to life situations.  It is a new spiritual outlook on life that accepts stress, not just daily stress, but every type of cross that may fall upon oneself.  It is a universal reaction to every situation that surrounds itself with patience, understanding, and kindness.

So Stress Management and Anger Management is more than just a few sessions of recorded response but is also a re-awakening of self to the world and how it works.  It is an acceptance of the temporal reality and how one is going to allow that reality to shape oneself.  One can go about as a crazed and AN unhealthy maniac reacting to stress in unhealthy and unsocial ways, or one can start to see the world in a less selfish way that puts others first and emphasizes vocation of life and giving back whatever troubles may occur from it.

Stress Management is more than a few key responses but also a change in life outlook. It is a spiritual awakening about the reality of life. Please also review our Stress Management Consulting Program

This giving back can be a spiritual one where everything is given to God, or for non religious, a giving back to society and its betterment.  If one is able to turn stress and how one reacts to it into a more positive spin, where one overcomes it and is able to make society better, or for religious and spiritually minded, offering to God, then one can truly start to see that all stress is natural to this world and no plan is concrete.   The plan that matters most is God or the universe’s plan and how one properly plays one’s role.

If one submits to the universal plan of life and starts seeing one’s unique role in the bigger picture, one can become more aware of reality and how stressors are merely noises taking one away from the bigger picture.  One needs to deal with stressors effectively.  In dealing effectively, one will experience a more calm, healthy, and quiet life.

Please also feel free to review AIHCP’s numerous certification programs in Stress Management Consulting, Anger Management Consulting and Spiritual, as well Christian Counseling Certifications.  These training programs can help anyone receive the training, and also information, to live and teach others a less stressful and angry way of living life.

 

 

Mark Moran, MA