Class Task for the Week of 12/6:

After reading the class notes on violence prevention, go online and research "free personal safety apps." Describe a free app which you can download onto your phone, and explain how it can help keep you safe.

Log 9 - Stress Symptoms

This week we are thinking about our Stress Symptoms. What happens to each of us when we have too much distress? Sometimes even positive stress ("Eustress") can cause us to get overloaded. What happens to each of us?

Let's think about our stress symptoms in three different ways: Physical, Behavioral, and Emotional. The first two (physical and behavioral symptoms) can vary a great deal from person to person. Emotional stress symptoms have patterns that are more similar in most people.

1. Physical Stress Symptoms are what happens to our bodies when we are stressed. They include things like: headaches, back or neck pain, migraines, grinding our teeth, catching colds or flus, worsening of chronic conditions like asthma, diabetes, or allergies, skin break outs, shortness of breath, fatigue, insomnia, restlessness, etc. -

1. Behavioral Stress Symptoms are behaviors (things we do) when we are stressed. They include things like: losing our temper too easily, losing things, over eating, under eating, binge drinking or irresponsible drug use, over spending on things we don't need and/or can't afford, forgetting appointments, procrastinating, shutting ourselves away from people or constantly surrounding ourselves with people so we are never alone with our thoughts, having trouble concentrating, driving recklessly, etc.

1. Mental and Emotional Stress Symptoms are how we think and feel when we are under stress. Interestingly enough, psychology tells us that most of us are pretty similar when it comes to our thoughts and emotions under stress. This is what happens to most of us when we are under too much pressure:

• We feel like no one has ever understood us or cared about us and no one ever will
• We feel like nothing we have ever done amounts to anything
• We feel hopeless and frightened

The most important thing to understand is that these thoughts and feelings ARE NOT THE TRUTH!We feel this way because we are overwhelmed by stress. We are being dominated by our fears and doubts. All of us fear rejection, failure, isolation, loss of control, and the unknown. In our difficult moments (like now!) these fears can devastate us.

We need to learn to step back from the fears and watch them. It is OK and normal to be afraid, angry, and hopeless sometimes, but we need to remember that things are usually not quite as terrible or terrifying as our feelings may tell us. We are not worthless, unlovable, failures. We are brave people facing an imperfect world and doing the best we can. When we calm down, we find that we have inner strengths we can call on to help us get through. We may not be able to get rid of the difficult thoughts or feelings, but we can reduce their power over us.

Our stress symptoms are warnings.We need to learn to notice these symptoms, and to take action to protect ourselves. It is foolish to pretend that we are never bothered by stress, because there is no person on the planet for whom that is true. If we see these stress symptoms, we need to take action. We might need to go home and rest, talk to someone we respect, go to see a health care provider, write in a journal, or rethink what we are doing. The next time you find yourself noticing stress symptoms occurring, ask yourself what you need to do to take care of yourself.

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Log 9: Make a list of your unique physical symptoms.

Make a second list of your unique behavioral symptoms.

Make a third list of your mental and emotional stress symptoms which may include "unloved, unaccomplished, misunderstood, hopeless, and scared"

Come up with three personal antidotes to the stress-related thoughts and feelings.

1. What affirmation or affirmations can you tell yourself to help you get a sense of perspective?
2. What mental image can you use to help you make it through until these feelings are no longer so difficult? (A frequently used example is that you are sitting under a waterfall, and these feelings are like the water, just rolling off all around you and disappearing into the rushing river. - Is there another imaginary image that you can use to help yourself?)
3. Who can you call on if you are stuck in a downward spiral of negative thoughts and feelings? Who can help support you?