1. Balancing life’s issues, inc.
Managing Stress
Balancing life’s issues, inc.

2. Objectives Identifying Triggers How do you know you are stressed?
Good Stress – Bad Stress
Best Practices
Visual Exercise

3. Identifying Triggers Questions to ask: Inner Stresses Outer Stresses
What sets you off?
What are your worries?
Inner Stresses
Comparing yourself to others
Unrealistic expectations
Fear of failure/success
Outer Stresses
Money
Weight
Children
Family

4. How you know you’re stressed
Trigger happens, nervous system responds with increased adrenaline and cortisol
Body ready for action
Heart pounds faster
Muscles tighten
Blood pressure rises
Breath quickens
Senses sharpen
Example: You were just cut off in your car – what does your body feel like? That is an adrenaline rush.

5. Good Stress – Bad Stress
The only “stress free” people are deceased
Adrenaline sharpens our senses
Helps us get it done
If we get too stressed it lowers our immune system
When you push it onto your co-workers or family members
This is why an adrenaline rush makes us accomplish a lot –
However our bodies cannot take this state for long.
How do you know if it is too much?
Everyone is individual and can handle different levels of stress

6. Best Practices Attitude Nutrition – Healthy Body Mass Index Exercise
Sleep
Friends and family – support system
Time management
Finances
Volunteerism

7. Attitude Mind over matter
Having a positive outlook is key to managing stress
Remove or suppress negative people in your life and work
Know what your personal goals are and focus on moving in a positive direction

8. Nutrition – Weigh Control
Accept that there may be an issue
Brainstorm all the choices you have
Realize there is not one answer
Understand there will be set-backs - acknowledge it is hard work
Try something new, if it does not work try something else
Do it with a friend or join a weight loss group
The way we feel about our body effects everything else.
The connection is when we physically don’t feel your best it is much harder to deal with stress.
Good nutrition and weight effect all the same systems of the body influenced by stress. Cardio, nervous system, immune system, blood sugar and blood pressure. Stress will take its’ toll much quicker if a person is overweight.
It takes hard work and is even more difficult because challenging behavior is always going to be all around us.
Give suggestions to the group and ask what solutions have worked for them.

9. Exercise How much is enough? Many benefits!
Aim for 5 minutes more a day.
Many benefits!
Health
Weight
Appearance
Reduced Stress
You don’t have to join a gym - increase your physical activity by changing how you do your daily tasks.
Take stairs not the elevator
Park farther from your office or when you shop
Walk at lunchtime, after dinner instead of watching TV
Studies now recommend that minutes DAILY is a minimum requirement for exercise.
You must do an activity that increases your heart rate to 60-80% of your max. heart rate.

10. Sleep Keep a regular bedtime
Have a bedtime routine, including relaxation
Aim for at least 6-8 hours uninterrupted sleep
Avoid drinking or eating 3-4 hours before bedtime
Stop hitting the snooze button
Improve your sleep environment (dark, quiet)
Curtail watching upsetting TV or news before going to sleep

11. Friends and Family Spend quality time with family
Focus on quality – make it big
Make sure to have couple time
Keep your friends and family in the loop when making healthy changes.
Create a “fun” list
10 things that you do with your loved ones that involve no food or money.

12. Time Management Get a BIG calendar Mark down “Can’t Miss” events
Add in down time
Say “no” as many times as you say “yes”
Learn to prioritize
Get unpleasant tasks done first.
It is a skill – take a time management class or course
Stop procrastinating!

13. Finances Know what your goals are and set them
Have a plan to specifically achieve your goals
Get the tools and help you need to implement your plan
Re-visit your goals and your progress often
Financial worries do stress us out.
We can handle it by learning what we need to learn to deal with financial dilemmas one step at a time.
It is not easy!! This is hard work and you may not be good at it and you may not like it, but you can get control over it.
There are many resources out there to educate you on financial issues now.
There is no excuse, take care of free services and advice from your local bank.

14. Volunteerism Giving back and helping others will help you
Sets a good example for children
Focuses attention outside of yourself
Provides perspective
May also include spirituality

15. Visual Exercise
You are standing at the bottom of an escalator, you can make the situation worse by taking the escalator up or make it better by taking the escalator down.
You cannot change the trigger, but you can make the situation better or worse by your response.