The consistency of stress
I find that stress comes in waves. Then, somehow, you manage to resolve all the issues, and for a time there is very little stress. Then it comes again. Being able to prepare other parts of your life ahead of time seem to help offset the degree to which the stress has an impact. I find it I make a timeline for a project, I'm not only able to see the linear steps required to accomplish it, I can also see (to some degree) the "stress points" that will come along at certain points. If I can identify these, then I'll try to mentally prepare for them and also do what I can to put a reward in after them. An example would be that if I know the end of the week is going to be intense with meetings and deadlines, I'll lock off three hours to go to a concert or a movie. Knowing that I have something good to come to at the other end helps me to offload the intensity of the stress.
That is good thinking. Planning something relaxing in the middle of what could be a stressfull time period. I like that, it's something I've never tried. But will.
Einor,
Sometimes, we experience stress when our expectations are violated – when there is a disparity between what we expect to happen and what actually happens.
When you look at your project timeline and mentally prepare for “stress points,†you seem to set reasonable expectations for yourself in the future. I can understand how this helps you cope with these “stress points†as they arise. “Stress points†are likely to be much easier for you to deal with when they do not catch you by surprise.
I like the idea of scheduling rewards and relaxation in the same way that you would schedule important tasks. Having definite rewards and relaxation to look forward to can give you the positive outlook that you need to continue your work during stressful times.
Stress in my opinion is one of our biggest issues on campus. It comes from instructors as well as students. When someone comes to me about issues and the underlying issue is stress. I feel stress in alot of ways is the secret killer of students and instructors if they don't see the signs or how to deal with the cause.
Most of the students I work with have full time jobs, family, and career. In addition to this they have a full time school load. So the question is, How do we work through this juggling act?
Hopefully admissions is able to recognize a student that is going through stress and can appropriately pass this information on to instructors, program heads or to the deans attention.
With information on hand, flyers, classes, outside resources, students can pick up the information and use to their benefit. I feel that once the student recognizes that they have control over the situation and have power to control anger, emotions, thoughts, they control how the stress affects them. At this point we can then discuss appropriate ways of letting go of the stress.
I can not agree more with Einar. You can have periods in which the stress at work or at home is almost unbearable. Then again, you can have periods in which everything seems to be running smooth again. The thing is, what did you do to make it run smooth? If you repeat it, would it be smooth all the time?
In my own experience, I have identified that in order to not feeling too stressed about one specific area of life or work, I have to finish one thing at a time. After finished a task, a little time for debrief is needed to concentrate in the new task to be finished. Why does that happen?
giving yourself little rewards is a great way to get around stress.
always knowing in the long run that if i complete this task then i reward myself
Unfortunately, it is difficult to balance personal and workplace stress. The workplace is usually not very concerned with your personal life, and the people in your personal life may not fully understand your work stress. We have to switch gears and priorites several times each day depending on where we are at the time. You may be at work wishing you were at home taking care of personal business, or at home thinking about work matters. This also causes internal conflict.
Great points Dee! The workplace can be quite stressful, particularly when faculty and students to not fully understand what we’re going through. One method that can help is clearly communicating your busy status as well as setting clear expectations on what can and cannot be accomplished. Doing so can help the people who you work with understand where you are coming from and accommodate your needs.
Tennis is how I reward my self
Tennis can be a great reward, particularly when you get to play with a friend.
