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There are
many challenges that we face and
have to handle every single day.
And as women, we frequently have
to balance the demands of work,
family, children, parents,
finances, and health—to name
just a few. These demands are
frequently referred to as
“stressors” and achieving a
balance is “stressful.” But
multiple demands on our time and
energy are a part of everyone’s
life. Stress is not how many
demands you have in your life,
but rather how you and your body
respond to these demands. For
some, racing to meet a tight
deadline or complete a long “To
Do” list can be positive and
energizing. But in other cases –
such as Rosa’s – it can be
negative to the point of being
harmful to one’s health. It’s
important to learn what stress
is, at what point it becomes
harmful and options for how we
can respond to it. Finding the
right balance is essential.
Stress: A “Fight or Flight”
Response
When you find yourself in a
threatening situation—such as
when a car suddenly cuts you off
in traffic—your body responds
with physical, mental and
emotional changes. You may
notice that your heart races,
your mouth gets dry or your skin
becomes clammy. This is called a
“fight or flight” response. Your
body’s immediate and natural
response is to re-direct blood
flow to deliver more oxygen to
your arms and legs, speed up
your digestion, and release a
variety of hormones such as
adrenaline. These changes are
designed to protect you and give
you the energy you need to
respond, physically and
emotionally, to the situation
that you are facing. But when a
“fight or flight” response is
prolonged or when it occurs
frequently in response to
everyday demands and events,
this protective energizing
response can have negative
effects and result in stress and
anxiety.
Your body is not designed to
endure ongoing stress. Having
your body continually “on alert”
can have harmful consequences,
including:
• Physical:
headache, tight muscles, sleep
problems, dry mouth.
• Emotional/Mental: sadness,
fear, anger, confusion,
increased anxiety, depression,
eating problems.
• Addictive: alcohol, tobacco or
drug abuse.
Learn Your “Stress Triggers”
There are two key approaches to
manage stress:
1)
decrease your stressors and
2)
learn to manage and respond to
stressors in a healthy,
productive way.
Decrease Your Stressors
There are many ways to reduce
the number of stressors in your
life. The following is a list of
suggestions from individuals and
counselors who have successfully
learned how to identify and
manage stress triggers.
Manage Your Time
Time and time management issues
are common stressors. Stress is
generated when there are tight
deadlines or there is limited
time to complete projects or
tasks. Some basic suggestions
for gaining more control of your
time include:
• Wake up 15 minutes earlier or
at least on time. You’ll start
the day with enough time and
won’t feel that you have to “catch-up.”
• Allow extra time. By planning
a tightly packed schedule, you
can't be flexible when events
run late.
• Schedule breaks and take them.
Working toward breaks can be an
incentive to complete a project;
breaks can also be a time
cushion throughout the day.
Get Organized
• Make a list. A visual reminder
of what needs to get done can
help decrease a fear that you
will forget to complete an
important task and decreases the
list of mental “To Do’s” that
can feel overwhelming.
• Prioritize the list and break
projects into small pieces. You
can only do one thing at a time.
Do the most important tasks
first and check them off your
list. Recognizing that you are
making progress will help you
feel a sense of accomplishment.
• Set goals for each day. Your
list is likely to be longer than
you could ever accomplish in a
day. Create a list of reasonable
goals for each day.
• Delegate tasks. Remember, you
aren't responsible for
everything. Don’t be afraid to
ask for help from family, co-workers,
and friends.
 Focus
on Your Priorities
• Allow yourself to say "no."
Know your limits and don’t over-extend
yourself. If you cannot say
“no,” then negotiate a
reasonable timeframe for
completing a task or a project.
• Accept that there are some
things you cannot change. Your
time is valuable. Do not waste
it taking on projects that are
unlikely to be successful or
trying to influence things that
you cannot change.
• Balance your personal and
professional priorities.
Evaluate each dimension of your
life separately—family, career,
friends, hobbies—and identify
the key priorities in each
dimension. Learn the difference
between what you need and what
you want. Make sure that
priorities from each dimension
are at the top of your list.
Learn To Manage and Respond To
Your Stressors
Everyone has stressors in their
lives even with good time
management and organizational
skills. You can learn how to
respond to stressors in a
healthy way and how to avoid the
uncomfortable feelings
associated with stress or
anxiety.
Change Your Attitude
You have control over whether
you have a positive or negative
attitude on life events. While
your attitude may seem like a
core part of your personality,
you can take steps to change
your perspective.
• Visualize success for
“stressful” events and
activities. This helps you
mentally prepare for the event
with positive, effective self-talk.
Think ahead to the outcome and
to the sense of accomplishment
that you will feel when you
achieve your goal.
• Challenge yourself to see the
positive. View crises or
problems as opportunities or
learning experiences and
eliminate negative self-talk.
Don’t allow yourself to feel
like a victim of a project list.
Stop saying “I can’t” or other
similar phrases.
• Learn to be flexible.
Anticipate that things won’t go
as planned all the time and
accept that there are other
equally acceptable ways to do
things.
• Don’t focus excessively on
past decisions. Eliminate the
phrase “I should have” from your
vocabulary. Learn from—but do
not dwell on—the past. Learn
from your experiences and move
on.
Improve Your Health
A healthy lifestyle may make you
more likely to respond to stress
with energy to tackle challenges
successfully, thereby avoiding
stress.
• Eat a balanced, nutritious
diet, rich in fruits and
vegetables. A healthy diet gives
your body the proper vitamins
and minerals it needs to
function at its best
• Get an adequate amount of
sleep every night. Your attitude
and perspective are naturally
more positive when you are well
rested.
• Limit caffeine and alcohol,
and if you smoke, quit. It takes
extra energy to process the
chemicals in these substances.
• Exercise. Not only does
exercise improve your
cardiovascular health, but
exercise results in the release
of naturally occurring chemicals
(endorphins) that help you
maintain a positive attitude.
• Learn relaxation techniques.
Learning to relax with deep
breathing techniques is a simple
immediate way to have a positive
impact and can be accomplished
while you are sitting at your
desk. Consider taking a yoga
class or practice meditation.
Don’t Go It Alone
Managing stressors is an
individual process; so you need
to find the strategies that work
for you. But that doesn’t mean
you have to deal with it alone
or in secret. A supportive
network of friends, family and
colleagues can listen, offer
advice and may help you see a
situation from a new point of
view.
Some people struggle to find
stress management techniques
that work for them, or they find
that what has worked before is
no longer effective. If you try
these techniques and find that
you are still feeling
overwhelmed or stressed, take a
moment to call your doctor or a
mental health professional.
Dr. Archelle Georgiou is
executive vice president of
Strategic Relations with
Specialized Care Services (SCS).
By
Archelle Georgiou, M.D.
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