Stress Management for the Academic Professional

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Stress Management for the Academic Professional

• Gerald Gurney, Ph.D.
• Carmen Tebbe, Ph.D.
• Carla Winters, ATC

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How Stress Affects Your Body

• Fight or flight
• response
• Physiological changes
• Acute vs. Chronic
• Changes to heart
• Deterioration of arteries

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Physical Indicators of Mental Stress

• Facial tautness
• Muscle aches, stiffness, or tension
• Profuse sweating or facial flushing

• Cold, clammy hands
• Facial tics rapid eye blinking, etc.
• Tapping feet or drumming fingers

• Headaches
• Sleep problems
• Dizziness

• Back pain
• Change in appetite
• Palpitations

• Fatigue
• GI symptoms nausea, etc.
• Skin disorders rashes, hives, acne

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Mental Stress and the Development of Heart Disease
Heart Rate (gt 50 100 bpm)
Blood Pressure
Damage to Arteries
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Blood Pressure Chart
American Heart Association Guidelines
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Risk Factors for Disease

• Those you CAN control
• High blood pressure
• High cholesterol
• Cigarette smoking
• Obesity
• Diabetes/Insulin resistance
• High stress environment

• Those you CANT control
• Age
• Gender
• Heredity

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Lack of
Exercise
Proper Nutrition
Sleep
Good Sense
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WARNING SIGNS
AHA/ASA
Heart Attack Chest pain/pressure pain in one
or both arms pain in the back, neck, jaw or
stomach shortness of breath cold sweat
nausea Women shortness of breath,
nausea/vomiting, back jaw pain Stroke Sudden
numbness/weakness of the face, arm or
leg sudden confusion trouble speaking sudden
trouble seeing sudden trouble walking
dizziness loss of balance sudden severe
headache with no known cause TIA Angina
Your bodys best helpers
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The Sooner, The Better!Quick Actions Save Lives

• Call 9-1-1. Know if this is different for campus
  emergency personnel.
• Begin CPR.
• Hook up AED.
• Aspirin, if conscious.
• Be prepared to be insistent. Saving time means
  saving lives.

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To be prepared is half the victory
- Miguel De Cervantes

• Being resourceful
• CPR training
• AED (Automatic External Defibrillators)
• Location
• Training
• Purchased at discount
• Blood pressure cuffs
• Medical kit Aspirin available
• Know your staff/co-workers

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Personal Accommodations

• Some feel-good tools to help around the office
• Microwavable hot pack
• Thera Cane
• Scheduling out time
• Stretching
• Neck
• Chest
• Hands

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In Summary. . .

• Get yearly physicals
• Be honest with your physician
• Know your risk factors control those that
  you can
• Create an awareness of self
• Keep a close eye on each other

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• We are no good to others if
• we dont care for ourselves.there is a point of
  diminishing return

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Stress

• Situation x Personality Characteristics
  Perception of Stress (Lazarus)
• Personality Characteristics (Shank, 1983)
• Perfectionism high standards for self and
  others
• Lack of assertive interpersonal skills
  difficulty saying no or expressing negative
  feelings without feeling guilty
• Being other-oriented strong need to be liked
  and often sensitive to criticism
• Situation
• Athletics is highly demanding
• Slow periods are non-existent

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Fetschs (1992) Predicament Problem Continuum

• Brainstorm your stressors
• Determine how much control you have over these
  stressors
• Predicament no control
• Problem yes control
• Accept the predicaments
• Examine the problems
• What meaning have you attached to the problem
• Brainstorm ways to reframe the problem
• Determine available resources (personal,
  emotional, financial, etc) for problems

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Explore REAL Source of Stress

• Are you or coworkers resistant to change?
• Do you need to brush up on leadership/management
  skills?
• Compare short-term discomfort with long-term
  satisfaction
• Do you feel appreciated?

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Mindfulness

• Observe thoughts/emotions but allow to pass
  without judgment
• Does not change the problem or predicament, but
  does prohibit oneself from ruminating and
  creating excessive anxiety, which ultimately
  creates other stressors
• With practice, you can start accepting negative
  emotions/thoughts as natural and inevitable
  without allowing it to ruin the present moment

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Stress Responses

• Psychologist Connie Lillas
• Foot on the gas Angry, agitated, and keyed up
• Foot on the brake Withdrawn, shut down, little
  emotion or energy
• Foot on both Tense, freeze, paralyzed from
  doing any action
• Know your weaknesses/tendencies when stressed

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How to Help Others

• Recognize differences in stress responses in
  others
• Let people know how much you appreciate them and
  they will be willing to do anything for you
• Validate their experience - dont dismiss their
  complaints
• feel they can vent without being punished yet
  dont create a negative cycle
• Focus on solutions
• Be clear and realistic with your demands
• Validate others perception of stress even when
  you may not understand
• Emotional Bank Account
• Attend to key relationships
• Mutual respect and understanding of each others
  perspective can compensate for differences in
  goals/agendas

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Skills

• Lessen expectations where appropriate
• Prioritize your tasks
• Set boundaries and dont overcommit yourself
• Control the controllables and be able to have
  accurate discernment about what is under your
  control
• Decide beforehand when you will leave the office
• Take a daily break from technology you dont
  have to be accessible ALL the time

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• In terms of efficiency, it is difficult to
  maintain solid focus for much more than 2 hours. 
  
• Given the nature of Athletics, you are constantly
  interrupted with students and emails that are
  pressing and important, yet also distracting to
  the work you may be doing. 
• Set the first 2 hours of the day aside for
  focused work.no emails, limited interaction with
  others, etc. 
  OR
• Simply taking a break at the hour to answer all
  emails may be more productive than immediately
  responding and thus having to constantly redirect
  your attention.

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Symptoms of Stress

• Sleep disturbances
• Loss of self confidence
• Fatigue
• Apathy
• Irritability
• Emotional and motivational imbalance
• Appetite disturbances
• Anxiety
• Sneakier Symptoms
• Loss of typically enjoyable activities
• Substance abuse
• Diminished interest in social relationships
• Feeling less detached to the outcome
• Less idealism or passion

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Coping with Stress

• Adequate sleep, exercise, and nutrition
• Problem focused coping
• Emotion focused coping
• Time management skills
• Time-outs and breaks are not luxuries, they are
  necessities
• Improve time management skills
• Counseling and/or Journaling
• Use coping skills that reflect your stress
  response
• If overexcited, use relaxing techniques
• If underexcited, use energizing techniques
• Even small amounts of physical activity can help

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Be proactive

• Create rituals that are stress relieving
• Go straight to the gym
• Spend time in your garden after work
• Listen to music on the way to work rather than
  the news or your mental to-do list

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Use your senses

• Movement even small amounts will help
• Touch
• Petting an animal
• Warm bath
• Hugs
• Massage
• Smell
• Candles
• Flowers
• Lotion
• Fresh air
• Taste
• Favorite food or beverage (in moderation if
  unhealthy)
• Sound
• Music that is appropriate to your stress response
• Sight
• decorate your office with paint, pictures, and
  mementoes that make you feel good
• Visualization exercises

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Exercise Benefits Control of risk
factors Obesity, stress, high blood pressure,
high cholesterol Positive lifestyle changes
(better nutrition, smoking cessation, sense
of control, enhanced self image) Physiological
Benefits Lungs take in and expel greater volume
of air Heart becomes accustomed to pumping more
blood in a single stroke Fewer beats per
minute Enables the body to burn more fat as fuel
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How Much is Enough? ACSM Guidelines Frequency
3 5 days/week Intensity Measured in heart
rate 220 age (60 - 90) Duration 20 60
minutes
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