How Do You Handle Stress? | victoria health services. Traffic jams, paying bills, & deadlines are some of the unpleasant or challenging situations that create stress in our lives. So why is it some people deal with stressful situations better than others? The answer is complex and includes many factors from genetics to weather condition.

Nearly one in three people view their lives moderately to severely stressful, and more than 50% felt that stress had a moderate to severe impact on their health problems.  Communicating with your health practitioner about dealing with stress is the starting point, and you might be surprised to find that your health practitioner is full of sound advice on ways to effectively deal with stress in your life.

How Do You Handle Stress? | victoria health services

Stress is a fact of life. It can come from any life change or unexpected event, even a happy one such as a promotion. You need a certain amount of stress to keep you focused and motivated, but when the stress level gets too high, it has the opposite effect – you feel upset and have trouble concentrating. If this continues over the long term, it can increase your risk of health problems including heart disease, depression, infections and sleep problems.

That’s why it is so important to learn how to cope with stress. Everyone responds to stress in their own way. There is no “right” way to handle stress – you need to find out what works for you.

Take our quiz to find out how you handle stress.  Choose the answer that fits you best.

In a stressful situation, what are you most likely to do first?

a) Deal with my feelings about the situation first.
b) Analyze the situation and deal with it right away.
c) Do something unrelated to the stressful situation to take my mind off of it for a while.

How do you act when you’re under stress?

a) I may get impatient, but I’m pretty much my usual charming self.
b) I’m an open book. You can see how stressed I am by the way I look.
c) I keep a stiff upper lip and hold it all in. The stress doesn’t show.

When you’re stressed, how do you relate to your friends and family?

a) I just want everyone to go away and leave me alone.
b) I want to talk to someone, but also need to be alone some of the time.
c) I really don’t want to be alone – I need to have people around me most of the time.

How do you treat yourself when life gets stressful?

a) I put my nose to the grindstone and push myself harder.
b) I may work a little harder, but I make sure that I still take care of myself.
c) I indulge myself in my favorite treats (food, shopping, cigarettes, alcohol, etc.)

When everything is changing around you, how do you react?

a) I try to stay in control of everything and keep things the way they used to be.
b) I go with the flow and adapt to the way things are now.
c) I don’t really care about the change – nothing I do has any effect on the way things are.

Have you noticed any of these signs of stress

Answering yes to questions A, B or C.

(a) You have trouble expressing your emotions. You need to find some outlet that will help you deal with stressful situations.
(b) You deal with stress in a healthy and productive manner.
(c) You are feeling helpless (nothing you do will make any difference).

How to handle stress

Having stress is not necessarily bad, but you need to be aware of your sources of stress and have a way to cope.

Take care of yourself

• Exercise at least three times a week. Exercise can relieve tension and put you in a better mood. The body makes “stress hormones” that can lead to health problems if they are allowed to build up. Exercise helps bring stress hormones back to normal levels.
• Eat well. Good nutrition can improve your mood and your ability to handle stress.
• Get enough rest, but don’t stay in bed to avoid problems; you’ll just end up with more stress.
• Try to avoid using caffeine, cigarettes, or alcohol as a way of dealing with stress. These may make you feel better for a while, but in the long run, they will cause you more stress than they’re worth. They can also lead to health problems.
• Be sure to schedule some “quiet time” for yourself. Use this time to do something you enjoy, such as reading or listening to music, and don’t let anything intrude on it.

Talk to a friend, family member, or health practitioner; even if you like to deal with your problems alone, don’t let yourself become isolated.

Simplify your life by setting priorities for yourself. Organize your time so that you spend it on what is most important to you, and learn to say “no”.  Don’t try to do everything yourself, and if someone else can do it, then delegate!

When to check with your health practitioner:

If you have any of these symptoms, [ Depressed mood,  sleep problems,  major difficulty concentrating,  loss of interest and pleasure,  unexpected weight loss or gain,  heartbeat that is fast or erratic,  chest pain,  feeling of worthlessness or guilt,  or even thoughts of death or suicide] talk with your health practitioner,  you may be suffering from a more serious medical condition.

How Do You Handle Stress? | victoria health services