What happens when you are stressed?
What can you do about stress?
How do you measure your stress level?
How can you avoid stress?
How can you relieve stress?
What happens when you are stressed?
What can you do about stress?
The good news is that you can learn ways to manage stress. To get stress under control:
* Find out what is causing stress in your life.
* Look for ways to reduce the amount of stress in your life.
* Learn healthy ways to relieve stress or reduce its harmful effects.
How do you measure your stress level?
Sometimes it is clear where stress is coming from.
It's important to figure out what causes stress for you. Everyone feels and responds to stress differently. Keeping a stress journal may help. Get a notebook, and write down when something makes you feel stressed. Then write how you reacted and what you did to deal with the stress. Keeping a stress journal can help you find out what is causing your stress and how much stress you feel. Then you can take steps to reduce the stress or handle it better.
To find out how stressed you are right now, use this Interactive Tool: What Is Your Stress Level?
How can you avoid stress?
Stress is a fact of life for most people. You may not be able to get rid of stress, but you can look for ways to lower it.
You might try some of these ideas:
* Learn better ways to manage your time. You may get more done with less stress if you make a schedule. Think about which things are most important, and do those first.
* Find better ways to cope. Look at how you have been dealing with stress. Be honest about what works and what does not. Think about other things that might work better.
* Take good care of yourself. Get plenty of rest. Eat well. Don't smoke. Limit how much alcohol you drink.
* Try out new ways of thinking. When you find yourself starting to worry, try to stop the thoughts. Work on letting go of things you cannot change. Learn to say "no."
* Speak up. Not being able to talk about your needs and concerns creates stress and can make negative feelings worse. Assertive communication can help you express how you feel in a thoughtful, tactful way.
* Ask for help. People who have a strong network of family and friends manage stress better.
Sometimes stress is just too much to handle alone. Talking to a friend or family member may help, but you may also want to see a counselor.
How can you relieve stress?
You will feel better if you can find ways to get stress out of your system. The best ways to relieve stress are different for each person. Try some of these ideas to see which ones work for you:
* Exercise. Regular exercise is one of the best ways to manage stress. Walking is a great way to get started.
* Write. It can help to write about the things that are bothering you.
* Let your feelings out. Talk, laugh, cry, and express anger when you need to with someone you trust.
* Do something you enjoy. A hobby can help you relax. Volunteer work or work that helps others can be a great stress reliever.
* Learn ways to relax your body. This can include breathing exercises, muscle relaxation exercises, massage, aromatherapy, yoga, or relaxing exercises like tai chi and qi gong.
* Focus on the present. Try meditation, imagery exercises, or self-hypnosis. Listen to relaxing music. Try to look for the humor in life. Laughter really can be the best medicine.
After you use this interactive tool, you will be better able to see how much stress life changes are causing you. Your score will appear as one of the following:
* You have low stress.
* You have mild stress.
* You have moderate stress.
* You have high stress.
If you have a moderate or high stress level, you are more likely to develop a stress-related illness in the near future.
Recommended Related to Stress Management
As with all screening tools, the results of this tool are only an estimate. The way you deal with stress depends on several things. These include your ability to cope with change (resiliency), how significant life events are to you, and how much support you get from family and friends. There may also be events that cause you stress that are not included in this tool.
Your results can give you a rough measurement of your stress level due to life changes. If you have moderate or high amounts of stress in your life, consider what you can do to avoid adding more stress to your life and what you can do to cope with current stress.