Less Stress More Care Lesson 10 Understanding the self pptx

Understanding the self-Lesson 10

1. Less Stress, More Care

2. Self-care “Since stress is inevitable to life, we have to learn how to handle and cope up with it. More so, we have to be familiar with other approach to a healthy lifestyle, which is self-care.” 2

3. H ans Selye •Austrian Endocrinologist •Father of Stress Theory “Stress is the body’s non-specific response to any demand” 3

4. Let’s start with the first set of slides

5. Big concept Bring the attention of your audience over a key concept using icons or illustrations 6

6. Stage 1: Alarm It represents a mobilization of the body’s defensive forces. The body is preparing for the “fight or flight” syndrome. This involves a number of hormones and chemicals excreted at high levels, as well as an increase in heart rate, blood pressure, perspiration, and respiration rate, among others. 7

7. The body becomes adaptive to the challenge and even begins to resist it. The length of this stage is dependent upon the body’s innate & stored adaptation energy reserves and upon the intensity of the stressor. • Sooner or later, the body will become the victim of this constant wear or tear process. •The acquired adaptation is lost if the individual is subject to still greater exposure to the stressor. The organism then enters into the third and final stage. Stage 2: Resistance 8

8. Stage 3: Exhaustion If stressor continues beyond body’s capacity, organism exhaust resources and becomes susceptible to disease and death. 9

9. Relaxation Response - Dr. Herbert Benson- •Deep abdominal breathing, focus on a soothing word, visualization of tranquil scenes, repetitive prayer, yoga, and tai chi. The results of this response may be worth trying, although it is not a cure at all. 10 Techniques to Counter Chronic Stress

10. Techniques to Counter Chronic Stress Physical Activity - Dr. Herbert Benson- •People can use exercise to stifle the buildup of stress in several ways. •Exercise after feeling stressed, not only deepens breathing but also helps relieve muscle tension. •Movement therapies such as yoga, tai chi, and qi gong combined with fluid movements, with deep breathing, and mental focus, all of which can induce calm. 11

11. Techniques to Counter Chronic Stress Social Support - Dr. Herbert Benson- •Confidants, friends, acquaintances, co-workers, relatives, spouses, & companions all provide a life-enhancing social net, and may increase longevity. 12

12. The Cultural Dimension of Stress and Coping 13 The findings of Ben Kuo’s research study revealed that; • A person’s internalized cultural values, beliefs, and norms affect the appraisal process of stressors and the perceived appropriateness of coping responses. These cultural factors delimit the coping options available to an individual in the face of stress. •The prevalence of emotion-focused, indirect, passive, or covert, internally target, or secondary control coping among individuals of Asian backgrounds, as well as, to a lesser extent, among the African and Latino backgrounds.

13. The Cultural Dimension of Stress and Coping • Emotion-focused coping has been shown to be beneficial when it comes in reducing distress for Asian-Americans and Asian-Canadians in dealing with various stressors, including family conflict and racial discrimination. • Problem-focused coping also found effective for Asian-Americans and Asian-Canadians when it comes to responding in male gender conflicts, racial discrimination, and cross-cultural adjustment. Note: For non-Asians, emotion-focused coping was shown to be negative increasing stress of African-American adult caregivers, but problem-focused coping was shown to be negative in exacerbating stress for Hispanic-American College students in facing family conflicts. 14

14. Self-care Therapy It is one of the positive way in coping stress. These are the steps in achieving self-care according to Nancy Apperson; Stop, breathe, and tell yourself: “This is hard and I will get through this one step at a time.” Acknowledge to yourself what you are feeling. All feelings are normal, so accept whatever you are feeling. Find someone who listens and is accepting. You do not need advice, you need to be heard. Maintain your normal routine as much as possible. 15

15. Self-care Therapy Allow plenty of time for a task. Take good care of yourself by way of getting enough rest and sleep, eating regularly, and making healthy choices, knowing your limits and when you need to let go, identifying or creating a nurturing place in your home, practicing relaxation or meditation and lastly, escaping for a while through meditation, reading a book, watching a movie, or taking a short trip. 16

16. Self-compassion Therapy According to the article that was written by Kristin Neff; Self-compassion entails being warm and understanding toward ourselves when we suffer, fail, or feel inadequate, rather than flagellating ourselves with self-criticism. We cannot always get what we want same goes to we cannot always be who we want to be and when this reality was being denied or resisted stress, frustration, and self-criticism arises. However, if this will be accepted with benevolence, we generate positive emotions of kindness and care that help us cope. Self-compassion recognizes that life challenges and personal failures are part of being human, an experience we all share. 17

17. Self-Compassion Phrases This is a moment of suffering. Suffering is a part of life. May I be kind to myself. May I give myself the compassion I need. 18

18. Self-Compassion and Emotional well-being One of the most consistent findings in the research literature is that greater self-compassion is linked to less anxiety and depression. Self-compassion is a protection against anxiety and depression when controlling for self-criticism and negative effect. 19

19. Self-Compassion and Emotional well-being Self-compassionate people recognize when they are suffering, but are kind toward themselves in these moments, acknowledging their connectedness with the rest of humanity. Self-compassion is associated with greater wisdom and emotional intelligence. It appears to bolster positive states of being as well. By wrapping one’s pain in the warm embrace of self-compassion, positive feelings are generated that help balance the negative ones (Neff 2012) 20

20. Self-compassion, motivation and Health Research supports the idea that self-compassion enhances motivation rather than self-indulgence. For instance, while self-compassion is negatively related to perfectionism, it has no association with the level of performance standards adapted for the self. Self-compassionate people aim just as high, but also recognize and accept that they cannot always reach their goals. Self-compassion is also linked to greater personal initiative-the desire to reach one’s full potential. Self-compassionate people have been found to have less motivational anxiety and engage in fewer self-handicapping behaviors such as procrastination than those who lack self-compassion. 21

21. Self-compassion vs. Self-esteem Research indicates that self-compassion is moderately associated with at levels of self-esteem. Self-compassion still predicts greater happiness and optimism as well as less depression and anxiety when controlling for self-esteem. Self-esteem had a robust association with narcissism while self-compassion had no association with narcissism. In contrast to those with high self-esteem, self-compassionate people are less focused on evaluating themselves, feeling superior to others, worrying about whether or not others are evaluating them, ending their viewpoints, or angrily reacting against those who disagree with them. 22

22. Self-compassion Letter Steps in doing the self-compassionate letter exercise as provided by Neff (2012): Candidly describe a problem that tends to make you feel bad about yourself. Next, think of an imaginary friend who is unconditionally accepting and compassionate. Finally, write a letter to yourself from that perspective. What would your friend say about your perceived problem? What words would he or she use to convey deep compassion? How would your friend remind you that you are only human? If your friend were to make any suggestions, how would they reflect unconditional understanding? When you are done writing, put the letter down for a while and come back to it later. Then read the letter again, letting the words sink in allowing yourself to be soothed and comforted.

23. Less Stress, More Care We should be in control of the stress that confronts us every day. Otherwise, when we are overwhelmed by stress, it can be detrimental to our health. Self-care and self-compassion are two ways to positively confront stress. We should low and care for our self-more and more each day.