What is Stress Management?
During the course of our life, we encounter stress, some in high levels, some in low. But what exactly is stress? Stresscan be the result of placing undue expectations or desire on ourselves, creating images of ourselves and trying to live up to the image that has been created by others.
Stress management is how we can learn to handle times in our lives when living a stressful life is beginning to get the better of us.
What causes stress?
Research has proven that the experiences that we have encountered over the years are likely to cause diseases which do not manifest until later on in life. The death of a spouse or a truly loved one causes the highest level of stress, followed by divorce and a marital separation. Stress management is crucial to help you manage feelings that arise from these situations.
Occupational StressManagement
As humans, more of our time is spent working compared to any other awake activity. Effective stress management is therefore an important part of our working life.
Occupational stress is a result of a factor or combinations of factors at work. It impacts the worker, disrupting their psychological or physical wellbeing. It can be caused by a number of factors including work overload and stimulus under load. Work overload results from the burden of excess work. It may also be caused by the ambiguity of the task required of the worker. Stimulus underload happens when there are not enough tasks for the worker to undertake. It can cause job dissatisfaction, post-traumatic stress syndrome, and increase the level of cholesterol and the heart rate. Good stress management takes time to develop and consulting with a professional trained in helping you to learn these techniques is crucial.
Social Networks Disintegration
Relationships have been proved to be one of the more important aspects of our human life, especially to our psychological and physical well-being. Therefore if someone who you truly cherish passes away, your social network begins to disintegrate as feelings of loneliness start to take over. This is because as humans, we need the warmth and love that relationships bring to us and the removal of one of these relationships can be heartbreaking. Stress management can help you deal effectively with these situations.
Why do I need Stress Management?
Often people are reluctant to get help with stress management until it has developed further. Stress that is not treated can lead to serious illness. A person who feels ongoing and unresolved stress may go on to develop significant medical illnesses or an anxiety disorder.
Stress occurs when the demands being made on a person are greater than their ability to cope. When stress turns into a serious illness, it is important to get stress management from a professional as soon as possible.
There is growing evidence that stress may contribute to physical illness such as cardiovascular disease (although this link remains controversial and research is ongoing). Whatever the cause, physical diseases need appropriate medical management before any attempt is made at stress management. Discuss with your doctor how stress management may be used to support more conventional forms of treatment. Often stress management is the key to preventing further disease.
Almost everyone experiences some anxiety. This is normal. Anxiety disorders are different from everyday anxiety because they are more severe, can persist and may interfere with a person’s daily life. The good news is that anxiety disorders can be successfully treated, and stress management can be one way to prevent an anxiety disorder. Call Bright Ideas Psychology today to book an appointment for stress management.