Take the Stress

Test

Do any of these
apply to you?
 Work Load
1. Always too much work; never
able to relax
2. High Pressure periods;
deadlines, test come all at
once
3. One or two difficult courses
take all my time; no time left
for anything else
4. Efforts often seem for nothing
– Don’t get satisfying
results
5. Seems like I have a lot more
work than roommate, friends
6. I have to work harder than
roommate and friends to get the
same results
7. My job takes up too much time;
I can’t afford to cut back
8. My stress is complicated by
commitments I can’t get out of
 If you said yes to many
work stressors…
…you might consider one of the
following:

• Consult with a counselor about

time management and/or
priority setting
• Seek out a tutor or other study
skills help
• Talk to the career center about
work style
 People
1. Tension with family, friends
or romantic partner
2. Incompatibility with
roommate’s habits, schedule,
lifestyle
3. Change in relationship; love
lost/gained new romantic
partner
4. Death of a close friend or
family member
5. Parents divorce, separation or
conflicts. Adjustment to
parents new partner.
6. Interpersonal conflict; trouble
expressing needs or standing up
for rights
7. Reluctant to ask for help
8. Trouble saying no
If you said yes to many
people stressors…
…you might consider one of the
following:

• Talk to a friend, RA or
counselor about the problem
• Go to a program on
assertiveness training and/or
conflict
• Take an interpersonal
communication class
 Mind
1. Worry about what people
think?
2. More time spent thinking
about what can go wrong than
what can go right
3. More time spent thinking
about what DID go wrong
than where you can go from
here
4. No time to think, always
having to do
5. Motivation problems, difficulty
getting started
6. Tendency to get too worked up
when under pressure or in a
crisis
7. Tendency to get down, dwell
on how bad things are
8. Often feel guilty
If you said yes to many
mind stressors…
…you are experiencing a lot of
internally generated stress.

• Information or counseling on
self talk, irrational beliefs and
reinterpretation might be a good
place to start.
 Body
1. Insufficient sleep
2. Frequent colds, sickness
3. Negative effects from
caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, etc.
4. Uncomfortable chair, poor
posture, excessive time
hunched over book or
computer.
5. Eye Strain (wrong glasses, poor
lighting, computer screen
overload)
6. Inadequate nutrition, missed
meals, reliance on junk food
7. Lack of exercise
8. Aversive environment
 If you said yes to many
body stressors…
…then try the following:

- Exercise regularly
- Choose healthy foods
- Change your environment
(lighting, space, etc.)
- Reduce or eliminate caffeine,
nicotine and alcohol intake
- Get enough sleep
So…
What can
you do to
alleviate
excessive
stress?
Become Aware of Your
Stressors and Emotional
and Physical Reactions

- Notice when you are stressed,

don’t ignore it
- Find out what stresses you out
and what they might be telling
you
- Learn how it affects your body
(sweats, stomach ache, etc)
Recognize what you can
change

• Can you change your stressors

by avoiding or eliminating
them?
• Can you reduce their intensity
(manage them over time instead
of immediately)
• Can you shorten your exposure
to stress (take a break, leave)
• Can you devote the
time necessary to make
a change?
 Reduce the intensity of
your emotional reactions

• Are you expecting to please

everyone?
• Are you overreacting and
viewing things as absolutely
critical and urgent?
Work at adopting moderate
views, see stress as something
you can cope with, not something
that overpowers you
Do not labor on the negative
and/or the “what ifs”
 Learn to moderate your
physical reactions to stress
Slow, deep breathing will bring
your heart rate and respiration
back to normal
Relaxation techniques can
reduce muscle tension.
Medications, when prescribed
by a physician can help in the
short term.
 Build your
physical reserves.
• Exercise for cardiovascular
fitness 3 – 4 times a week
• Eat well-balanced, nutritious
meals
• Maintain your ideal weight
• Avoid nicotine, excessive
caffeine and other stimulants
• Mix leisure with work. Take
breaks and get away.
• Get enough sleep. Be consistent
with your sleep schedule.
 Maintain your
emotional reserves
Develop mutually supportive
friendships/relationships.
Pursue realistic goals which are
meaningful to you, rather than
goals other have for you that
you do not share.
Expect some frustrations,
failures and sorrows.
Always be kind and gentle with
yourself – be a friend to
yourself.
Eliminating Stress From
Your Environment
• A poorly organized living space
can be a major source of stress.
• If your environment is well
organized and pleasant, then it
can help to reduce stress and
increase productivity.
• Some people under stress need
a calm environment, others may
enjoy the raised levels of arousal
associated with the 'buzz' of a
busy space.
To improve air quality:

• Ban smoking
• Open windows
• Use an ioniser
• Have plants in the
room.
• Bad lighting can cause eye
strain and increase fatigue,
as can light that is too bright,
or light that shines directly
into your eyes. Fluorescent
lighting can also be tiring.
What you may not appreciate
is that the quality of light may
also be important.
• Try experimenting with
working by a window or using
full spectrum bulbs in your
desk lamp. You will probably
find that this improves the
quality of your working
environment.
 Decoration and
Tidiness
• A chaotic and cluttered living
or work space adds to stress.
• Don’t be dogmatic, but keep
the area you are working in
free of clutter.
• Have calming and happy
decorations.
Large amounts of background
noise during the day can cause
irritability, tension and headaches
in addition to loss of
concentration.

Solutions:

 use of quiet rooms when

concentration is needed
 Use earplugs
 Try a pleasantly assertive approach.
Ask that music is turned down or
that the person use headphones
It is important for people to feel
that they have sufficient
personal space at work and at
home.

 Where no personal space is

available, then you can establish
some feeling of ownership by
bringing personal objects such as
small plants or photographs of
loved-ones.
 Block off a space using furniture,
sheet or divider when you
need some space.
• The essence of meditation is to
quiet your thoughts by focusing
completely on just one thing.
• Unlike hypnosis, which is more of
a passive experience, meditation
is an active process which seeks
to exclude outside thoughts by
concentrating all mental faculties
on the subject of meditation.
• Keep your body relaxed. It
should be in a position that you
can comfortably sustain for a
period of time (20 - 30 minutes is
ideal).
• Focus your attention on your
breathing.
• Concentrate on breaths in and out.
Count your breaths using the
numbers 0 to 9.
• Visualize images of the numbers
changing with each breath.
• Alternatively, visualize health and
relaxation flowing into your body
when you inhale, and stress or pain
flowing out when you exhale.
 Focusing on an object

• Completely focus
attention on examination
of an object.
• Look at it in immense
detail for the entire
meditation. Examine the
shape, color differences,
texture, temperature and
movement of the object.
• Objects often used are
flowers, or flowing
designs. However you
can use other objects
equally effectively (e.g.
alarm clocks, desk lamps,
or even coffee mugs!)
Some people like to
focus on sounds. The
classic example is the
Sanskrit word 'Om',
meaning 'perfection'.
 Create a mental image of a
pleasant and relaxing place
in your mind. Involve all your
senses in the imagery: see
the place, hear the sounds,
smell the aromas, feel the
temperature and the
movement of the wind. Enjoy
the location in your mind.