In challenging times, it is not hard to imagine many peoples’ stress levels being high, some extremely high. Everyone is talking about it. The media is relentlessly analyzing it and there are times you are probably having a conversation with yourself that goes something like this, “I really need to get a grip on my stress.” You are not alone.
I would like to pivot the conversation away from the down aspects of stress and talk about the positive sides of stress.
Let’s admit to ourselves that the so-called stress-free life sounds pretty boring, is not a great motivator, and probably unattainable. It also is not good for our health, mental or physical.
Kathleen Gunthert, a Professor of Psychology at American University, put it this way. “The things that we are most proud of and bring the most meaning in our lives are hard,” she says. “If we wipe out the stress, we’d also likely wipe away a lot of the meaning in our lives.”
Daniela Kaufer, Associate Professor of Integrative Biology at the University of California, Berkeley, agrees. Summarizing it this way, “Some amount of stress is good to push you just to the level of optimal alertness, behavioral and cognitive performance.” On the other hand, he cautions, “chronically elevated levels of stress hormones have an impact on the entire body, such as increasing the risk of chronic obesity, heart disease, and depression.” Not good.
The Harvard Business Review article, “Stress Can be a Good Thing If You Know How to Use It,” made the HBR Ten Best List the year it was published. Its authors, Alia Crum, an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Stanford University, and Thomas Crum, an author, seminar leader, and performance coach, focused their research on the many “wonderful attributes” of stress. They outlined a simple three step process to tackle and get the most from situations of stress. They recommend the following.
- See Your Stress. Avoid denial, stop ruminating, name it. “Word is out that layoffs are being considered” or “My boss is a jerk and takes up all of my time and energy.” Bringing information to a point of awareness, through mindfulness, changes where your brain processes the information. Suddenly the thoughts are going from the emotional region of your brain to your conscious and executive part. You are now prepared to do something. Success will help you address a similar challenge in the future. It also prevents counterproductive avoidance, which allows you to under or overreact.
- Owning Your Stress. Admit what is stressing you is important and that the outcome matters. “I am worried I’m not getting the promotion,” (owning it). “I‘m going to increase my focus and put in the effort, despite the long hours and more work, because I really want and deserve the position,” (owning it with a game plan). You are reframing the anxiety into excitement and your brain and the rest of your body responds in a healthy way.
- Using Your Stress. A reasonable amount of stress feeds the body. It boasts functioning and the immune system. Hormonal surges “fuel the brain and the body giving you increased energy, heightened alertness and the ability to focus.” Crum reports researchers call this effect physiological thriving. Sounds and works a lot better than operating on the premise you are “just stressed out.”
Using stress in a productive, positive, way has many advantages. This is not to say there are times when stressful situations can be overwhelming. The challenge is to recognize it and take appropriate actions.
The Center for Disease Control offers these simple tips. They call it:
Be Kind to Your Mind
1
PAUSE and breathe. Notice how you feel. Be mindful.
2
TAKE BREAKS from the situation. Curbing the amount of news and social media you consume.
3
MAKE TIME to sleep and exercise. Book the time as you would any other important task.
4
REACH OUT and stay connected to family, friends, and colleagues.
5
SEEK HELP if overwhelmed or unsafe. Work with a professional.
For signs and symptoms of damaging stress, go to the CDC site.
We all have and need stress. The challenging times of today are even more stress producing. Take charge. Determine if your stress is acute (in the moment) or chronic (ongoing). Try the system Crum and Crum suggest — see it, own it, use it. If it continues, professional intervention might be a good solution.
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