stress. Internal stress - Have you ever caught yourself worrying about things you can do nothing about or worrying for no rea-son at all? This is internal stress and it is one of the most important kinds of stress to understand and manage. Internal stress is when people make themselves stressed. This often happens when we worry about things we can't control or put ourselves in situations we know will cause us stress. Some people become addicted to the kind of hurried, tense, lifestyle that results from being under stress. They even look for stressful situations and feel stress about things that aren't stressful. Environmental stress - This is

Many different things can cause stress - from physical (such as fear of something dangerous) to emotional (such as worry over your family or career.) Identifying what may be causing you stress is often the first step in learning how to better deal with your stress. Some of the most common sources of stress are: Survival stress - You may have heard the phrase "fight or flight" before. This is a common response to danger in all people and animals. When you are afraid that someone or something may physically hurt you, your body naturally responds with a burst of energy so that you will be better able to survive the dangerous situation (fight) or escape it all together (flight). This is survival

a response to things around you that cause stress, such as noise, crowding, and pressure from school, work or family. Identifying these environmental stresses and learning to avoid them or deal with them will help lower your stress level. Fatigue and overwork - This kind of stress builds up over a long time and can take a hard toll on your body. It can be caused by working too much or too hard at your job(s), school, or home. It can also be caused by not knowing how to manage your time well or how to take time out for rest and relaxation. This can be one of the hardest kinds of stress to avoid because many people feel this is out of their control. We may think of stressful events as unpleasant ones, such as losing

What cause stress?

Top 10 S tressful L i fe E vents

a job or having difficulties at home or at school. But changes for the better can also cause stress, like a new baby, a wedding, and a new house. In an ideal world, maybe we could get away from stressful situations, or change them. Too often we can't do that - but we can learn to control our response to those situations. And we can develop techniques that will reduce the effects of stress on

our mental and physical health. Top Ten Stressful Life Events 1. Spouse’s death, loss of a significant other 2. Divorce or break-up 3. Marriage or relationship separation 4. Jail term 5. Death of a close relative 6. Injury or illness 7. Marriage

8. Fired from job 9. Marriage reconciliation 10. Retirement Source: Holmes-Rahe Life Stress Inventory The potential causes of stress are numerous and highly individual. What you consider stressful depends on many factors, including your personality, general outlook on life, problem-solving abilities,

Stress Causes

Survival stress

Internal stress

Environmental stress

Fatigue and overwork

Major life changes

Daily hassles and demands

Guide 2: Causes of Stress

Stress Diary Journal Your Guide

Stress Diary Journal Guides Guide 2: Causes of Stress

‘A stressors has

a tendency, when taking

hold, to accumulate

manifold, until it is too late!

and social support system. Something that's stressful to you may not faze someone else, or they may even enjoy it. For example, your morning commute may make you anxious and tense because you worry that traffic will make you late. Others, however, may find the trip relaxing because they allow more than enough time and enjoy listening to music while they drive or travel. The pressures and demands that cause stress are known as stressors. We usually think of

stressors as being negative, such as an exhausting work schedule or a rocky relationship. However, anything that forces us to adjust can be a stressor. This includes positive events such as getting married, moving to a higher academic level or receiving a promotion. Regardless of whether an event is good or bad, if the adjustment it re-quires strains our coping skills and adaptive resources - the end result is stress.

Major life changes Major life events are stressors. Whether it be a divorce, a child leaving home, a planned pregnancy, a move to a new town, a career change, graduating from college, or a diagnosis of cancer, the faster or more dramatic the change, the greater the strain. Furthermore, the more major life changes you’re dealing with at any one time, the more stress you’ll feel.

office politics, and conflicts with your boss or co-workers. Learning stressors include: the need to perform, attention and focus, time, deadlines, costs and authority. Social stressors – Your social situation can cause stress. For example, poverty, financial pressures, racial and sexual discrimination or harassment, unemployment, isolation, and a

action rebellious, or caring for a chronically-ill family member or a child with special needs, can all send stress levels skyrocketing. Learning or Work stressors – In our career-driven society, work can be an ever-present source of stress. Work stress is caused by things such as job dissatisfaction, an exhausting workload, insufficient pay,

lack of social support all take a toll on daily quality of life. Internal Causes of Stress Not all stress is caused by external pressures and demands. Your stress can also be self-generated. Internal causes of stress include: Uncertainty or worries Pessimistic attitude

Daily causes of stress include: Environmental stressors – Your physical surroundings can set off the stress response. Examples of environmental stressors include an unsafe neighbourhood, pollution, noise (sirens keeping you up at night, a barking dog next door), and uncomfortable living conditions.

For people living in crime-ridden areas or war-torn regions, the stress may be unrelenting. Family and relationship stressors – Problems with friends, romantic partners, and family members are common daily stressors. Marital disagreements, dysfunctional relationships, someone close

Daily hassles and demands While major life changes are stressful, they are also relative rarities. You may battle traffic, argue with your family members, or worry about your finances on a daily basis. Because these small upsets occur so regularly, they end up affecting us the most.

Page 2 Stress Diary Journal

Daily stressors

Internal causes of stress

M ajor L i fe C hanges

“ Because

these small

upsets

occur so

regularly,

they end up

affecting us

the most”

Self-criticism Unrealistic expectations or beliefs Perfectionism Low self-esteem Excessive or unexpressed anger Lack of assertiveness Effects of chronic stress Chronic stress wears you down day after day and year after year, with no visible escape. Under sustained or severe stress, even the most well-adjusted person loses the

ability to adapt. When stress overwhelms our coping resources, our bodies and minds suffer. Health effects Recent research suggests that anywhere from 60 to 90 percent of illness is stress-related. The physical wear and tear of stress includes damage to the cardiovascular system and immune system suppression. Stress compromises your ability to fight off disease and

infection, throws your digestive system off balance, makes it difficult to conceive a baby, and can even stunt growth in children. Stress and Your Health Many medical conditions are caused or exacerbated by stress, including: Chronic pain Migraines Ulcers Heartburn High blood pressure

your mental health, causing emotional damage in addition to physical ailments. Long-term stress can even rewire the brain, leaving you more vulnerable to everyday pressures and less able to cope. Over time, stress can lead to mental health problems such as: Anxiety Depression

Heart disease Diabetes Asthma PMS Obesity Infertility Autoimmune diseases Irritable bowel syndrome Skin problems Emotional effects Chronic stress grinds away at

Eating disorders, Substance abuse. Personality changes Severe stress and trauma Severe stress reactions can result from sudden, catastrophic events or traumatic experiences such as a natural disaster, sexual assault, life-threatening accident, or participation in

known as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Common symptoms of PTSD include: Flashbacks, intrusive thoughts, or nightmares about the trauma Avoidance of places and things associated with the trauma Hyper-vigilance for signs of

danger Chronic irritability and tension Depression. PTSD is a serious disorder that requires professional intervention

combat. After the initial shock and emotional fallout, many trauma victims gradually begin to recover from its effects. But for some people, the stress symptoms don't go away, the body doesn’t regain its equi-librium, and life doesn’t return to normal. This severe and persisting reaction to trauma is

Page 3 Guide 2: Causes of Stress

P ost-Traumatic S tress D isorder

S tress and your health

E ffects of Chronic stress

“ Many medical

conditions are

caused or

exacerbated by

stress”

Page 4 The Stress Diaries we have available

The Stress Diary Journal This 4 week programme to complete stress mastery, is an invaluable tool to effectively manage your stress - to gain insight and explore self understanding. The Stress Diary Journal allows you to record your daily stress incidents & to monitor these incidents and analyse them – on a daily basis, for a period of 4 weeks. Divided into 4 weekly sections for you to master your stress progressively and more competently, it helps you review your initial appraisals, stress responses, your reactions & to identify your stress triggers, to then restructure your thoughts, your attitude and subsequent behaviours. You will be able to easier identify negative behaviour patterns, to increase your stress awareness, to learn new coping skills and to let you adapt new & alternative strategies. You will learn renewed self management skills, inner control, effective goal setting, time management skills, to overcome obstacles and increased perseverance to complete set tasks and to instil newfound routines, competencies and behaviours. It helps you to know yourself and manage your life more completely. This is an invaluable tool to gain unique insight, explore self-understanding, learn stress management skills and effectively manage your stress – in 4 weeks!

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Stress Diary: Daily Recorder Journal A companion guide to the Stress Diary Journal in a handy size to carry about , and for you to easily record your daily stress entries. Each Stress entry is individually presented for ease of recording ‘on the go’ and to then transfer these entries to your Stress Diary Journal, or this Stress Diary: Reflection Journal, at the end of your day. Making remembering these Stress incidents/events much easier and keeping you in touch with managing your stress more effectively.

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Stress Diary: Reflection Journal This Stress Reflection Diary Journal is a companion guide to the Stress Diary/Journal and used as an additional tool to further enhance your insight and understanding of your stress. You are to choose 1 significant Stress Entry per day, from your Stress Diary Journal for the length of your 4 week programme, that you may want to elaborate and focus on. Using the guideline questions and answer spaces that are provided, and you can add your personal notes or thoughts about your day or progress. Weekly summaries of your progress are included, to advance and monitor your progress and by answering these questions and adding your own observations, you will increase your skills at understand, managing your reactions and responses to your daily stress triggers and stressors. The Reflection Journal is an easy way to record and focus on how to reflect on your experiences and how you can learn from it. Get these Stress Diary Journals at www.stressdiaries.com

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