Managing Stress
CHAPTER 3
Do Now
 What are some feelings you have when you feel
stressed?
What is Stress?
 Stress is the response of your body and mind to
being challenged or threatened
 Experience stress when situations, events or people
make demands on your body and mind.
 People view stress as negative but stress can be
positive as well – stress is positive when it helps you
escape from dangerous situations, promotes
personal growth, helps you accomplish goals.
Types of Stress
 Positive stress is called Eustress.
 Negative stress is referred to as Distress.
 List 3 examples of Eustress and Distress
Many Causes of Stress
 Event that causes stress is called a Stressor.
 Types of stressor’s in your day?
 Four general types of stressors
 Major life changes
 Catastrophes
 Everyday problems
 Environmental Problems
Examples of Major Life Changes?
 Graduating High School
 Experiencing death of a family member
 Divorce/Remarriage
 Serious illness
 Newborn brother or sister
 Accepted to College
 Parent loses job
 Not making team
 Moving to new school
 Recognized for a achievement
Catastrophes
 Event that threatens lives and may destroy property
 Examples:
 Natural Disasters – hurricanes, floods, tornadoes
 Violent Crimes , terrorism, war
 People who deal with catastrophes usually
experience a psychological effect years after event.
Everyday Problems
 Common stressor's sometimes called hassle’s.
 Types of daily stressor’s?
 Misplacing a key
 homework
 conflicts between friends/family
 clothes to wear
 chores
 game/practice
 Job
 Pressure to succeed
Environmental Problems
 Conditions in your immediate surroundings affect
your level of stress.
 Examples?
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Where you live – unsafe, crowded
Noise – highway, airport, railroad
Pollution
Weather- sunny, cloudy, heat wave, snow storm
School environment – unsafe, crowded
Commute
Dialogue
 Pair students up in groups of 2-3. Have students
write a dialogue between two teens who are
discussing a major life change, such as leaving home
for college. The dialogue should show how the life
change is both positive and negative. Be creative,
make up a scenario, names, etc.
Coping with Stress
 Many people think stress is out of there control, not
true. You can do many things to be more stress free.
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Time management – wish there were more hours in a day? Do
you put things off until the last minute? Poor time
management is one of the leading cause of stress.
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Mental Rehearsal - practice/prepare for a event before it
happens. Go through it in your head before it actually happens.
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What are some other ways to cope with stress?
Coping with Stress
 Physical activity – lift weights, run
 Relaxation techniques – yoga, deep breathing,
isolating yourself to think
 Humor
 Avoid negative thinking –
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Close your eyes, think of the last time you were stressed, what
thoughts were going through your head?
“I can’t do it” “Everyone is better then me” “Not as good as
others”
Managing Stress
How Stress Affects the Body?
 Direct Correlation between risk of illness and stress.
More stress you have, increased chance of being sick.
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Reduces immune system, flare certain diseases or make them
harder to control
Stomachaches – stress can disrupt food through your digestive
system – to fast or to slow. Stress can increase stomach acid –
sores, ulcers
Asthma - air passages when respiratory system narrows
which can result in a asthma attack.
Headaches – Tension in your muscles around the head. Neck
can produce a headache. Migraine is when blood vessels going
to the brain narrow decreasing oxygen to brain. BV open to
create migraine.
How stress affects the body?
 Lowered Resistance to disease
 Prolonged stress can affect your immune system from
functioning properly
 Heart Disease
 Some effects of prolonged stress don’t show until later in life.
Stress can cause your heart to beat faster, prolonged stress can
damage lining of blood vessels in heart and muscle fibers.
Responses to Stress?
 What is the proper way to react to a stressful
situation?
 Stress and Personality
 Your personality has a lot to do with how you react to a
stressful situation.
 Optimism – is the tendency to focus on the positive of a
situation.
 Pessimism – is the tendency to focus on the negative and
expect the worst.
 Perfectionist – who accepts nothing less than excellence. Sets
unrealistic goals.
Resilience
 Some people seem to tolerate high levels of stress
and look at them as challenges.
 The ability to recover or “Bounce back” from extreme
or prolonged stress is resilience.
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Factors – family/friends support
Characteristics - knows there strengths and have confidence.
Set realistic plans and goals and carry them out. Good
communication with peers, good at problem solving.
Control/Recognize feelings. Change is a normal part of life/
put things into perspective. Bounce back.
Exit Question/HW
 Take something in your day that makes you stressful.
Try and see if you can overcome it or get through it
with techniques you learned in class today. Record
how felt, reaction to the situation and outcome.