Coping With Stress - Identifying Your Sources of Stress
Stress is something that we will always experience during our lives. Whatever we do, it is always there and will probably stay. Most of us think that we cannot control and manage stressors especially those that involve major problems in life such as financial difficulty and yes, debts do not just go away. There are a lot of ways to handle and cope with stress. This article can be a guide or enlightenment on how you may handle and cope with stress.
Before proceeding on how to cope with stress, knowing and identifying the source of the stress or simply the stressor, will help in finding ways to cope and it will also let you understand your stressors. Now identify the stresses that you experience on a daily basis. It is helpful to keep a journal or a record of these stresses, along with what triggers them, how you react to it, including your physical and emotional responses and the things that you do to cope with these stresses. Record these things for a period of time until you think that you have sufficient data on your stress.
When you have established the baseline of your stresses, look over them and pick one to focus your attention on first. Try to analyze the trigger for the stress and try to modify or avoid the trigger. Then look at your current coping habits. Determine if these habits are unhealthy or healthy. Unhealthy ways of coping include smoking, drinking alcohol, over or under eating, watching too much TV, etc. These habits reduce stress temporarily not to mention that they could eventually lead to diseases.
Avoid these habits and handle stress properly by avoiding, altering, adapting or accepting. These four keys are ways to help you cope with stress. Firstly simply avoid the stress trigger. By doing this you can eliminate a number of unnecessary stresses in your day. Second try to alter a stressful situation. You can do this by anticipating an upcoming stressor and find ways of preventing it or minimizing it.
For example, you have homework to do yet your roommate is there with his friends talking noisily, confront them or try to find another place. Third is adapt to the situation and instead of seeing it as stressful, try to view it in a more positive perspective. Think of the other things focus on the positive side of things. The last is accepting the stress. Not all things in life can be changed, instead of trying to change the unchangeable, try to change the things that you can. Adjust your attitude towards the stressful situation.
When faced with stressful situations it is important to think positive and be positive!
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