Stress Management

Stress

Stress is a normal physical and emotional response to events that make you feel threatened or upset your balance in some way. When you sense danger – whether it’s real or imagined the body’s defences kick into high gear in a rapid, automatic process known as the “fight-or-flight” reaction, or the stress response. Stress isn’t always bad, it can help you to perform under pressure and motivate you to do your best. It is what keeps you on your toes during a presentation at work or drives you to study for an exam. But when you are constantly under stress it can cause major damage to your health, your productivity, your relationships and quality of life. If a person is constantly exposed to stressful situations he or she does not get enough time to recover to function in a relaxed manner and then can go from emergency stress to chronic or toxic stress.

Common causes of stress

Some of the causes of stress include:

Major life changes
Work pressures
Relationship difficulties
Financial problems

Sometimes stress can be self-generated and might be the lack of ability to accept uncertainty, unrealistic expectations, lack of assertiveness and negative thinking.

Symptoms of Stress

Because of the damage prolonged stress may cause, it is important to know the warning signs.

Physical symptoms may include:

Tension headaches
Difficulty sleeping
Restlessness
Abdominal problems
Moodiness
Irritability
Agitation
Feeling overwhelmed
General unhappiness

Behavioural symptoms would include:

Isolating from others
Using alcohol or drugs to relax
Procrastinating
Difficulty concentrating
Anxious
Racing thoughts
Constant worrying

How can Counselling help?

Counselling can assist in stress management by identifying what is contributing to your stress levels, by helping you to better understand the symptoms both physical and psychological that are being experienced and by providing the skills and new attitudes necessary for a healthier balance in your life.