Healthy Relationships and Social Support

1) Be a Good Listener
• Askpeople about their feelings and really
pay attention to what they say
• Reflect
back what you hear, so the other
person knows you genuinely understand
• Focus your questions, comments, and
attention on the other person

https://youtu.be/X7IXfoQIsZk
https://youtu.be/8acQ1l-FIC4
 2) Pay attention to your communication style

Passive Aggressive Assertive

communication communication communication

https://youtu.be/Iahd11Z8pL0
 Tips for communicating assertively
• Useconfident body language – stand up straight, look
people in the eye
• Use a firm and pleasant tone
• Don’t assume that you know what other people are going to
say or do – let them explain before you react
• Thinkwin-win – look for a compromise or a way for
everybody to get their needs met
 Healthy lifestyle choices
1) Physical activity
• Elevates people’s moods
• The intensity doesn’t need to be too
high
• Individuals who exercise tend to have a
milder physical stress reaction to
typical stressors
 Ex) Yoga, t’ai chi, and Pilates
Healthy lifestyle choices
2) Eating habits
• A nutrient-rich
diet keeps you healthy
by supporting your immune system
and controlling your blood pressure
• Limit caffeine intake
• Sodium and sugar in the diet can
make sleep difficult
Healthy lifestyle choices
3) Sleep
• Sleeping less than 6 or 7 hours a night leads to a host
of health problems
• Sleep deprivation (less than about 4 or 5 hours of
sleep) makes you function as if you were drunk
• Lack of sleep  reduced concentration
• Increase risk of short-term and long-term health
problems
• People who sleep less than 6 hours are more likely to
die prematurely than those who sleep 6-8 hours a night
 Insomnia
• A sleepdisorder characterized by persistent difficulty falling sleep,
staying asleep, or waking too early, impairing a person’s ability to
function normally.
• Insomniacs are unable to rest their mind for more than a few
minutes at a time
• College students  due to fear, anxiety, and overall stress
• Emotional stress is the primary cause of insomnia
• A lack of sleep  increased stressed levels
Strategies to ensure a good night's sleep

Maintain a regular sleep schedule

Create a sleep-friendly environment
Avoid caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine
Establish relaxing bedtime rituals
Exercise regularly
 Relaxation techniques to manage stress
• The relaxation response is a physiological state of deep rest that changes
the physical and emotional responses to stress

Breathing and posture

Progressive muscle relaxation
Meditation
Visualization/mental imagery
Other strategies for relaxation
 1) Breathing and posture
• Breathing
 relaxes muscles
 quiets the mind
 gets oxygen into the blood
• Good posture
 radiates ease and confidence
 can immediately make you feel
better about yourself
 2) Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR)

• Involves tensing muscles and

then actively reducing that
tension
• Concentrates on your body and
not your stressors

1 minute https://youtu.be/kdLTOurs2lA

6 minutes PMR https://youtu.be/9x3tl81NW3w

3) Meditation

• Meditationis an internal state of

relaxed awareness
• Long-lastingemotional and
physical benefits
• Two types of meditation:
oExclusive meditation
oInclusive meditation
 4) Visualization/ mental imagery
• A techniqueusing all the senses to
imagine a place or scene that is
comfortable, soothing, and relaxing
• Temporarily removes us from reality,
providing a respite from the daily grind,
some mental rest and relaxation
• Canbe used as a performance booster in
sports and other activities  “mental
rehearsal”
 Keep a journal

Read
Other
strategies for Get a massage
relaxation
Spend time with a pet

Take a humor break