Stress Management,
Part TwoThis is here to help you realize how you feel and react when you are under stress. Note the importance of words in dealing with things like stress, as I use an example from the medical field. If the doctor tells you that you are responding to the medication, that sounds like good news. If the doctor tells you that you are reacting to the medication, that sounds like bad news. Why? What was the difference? Reactions are not controlled, nor desired, but responses are both controlled AND desired. By the way, the definition of being able to respond is 'responsibility'. Please answer the questions honestly and with depth and thought so that the information will be useful to you. Right now my web knowledge is such that the only way I know how to help you use this set of questions is to recommend that you print this frame. That way you'll be able to go over the information and go through the forms. This will also protect your privacy in that no computer will be able to collect the data and do any type of analysis or data gathering into some database. Let's go! Think back to a time you were under a lot of pressure for about a week. Briefly describe the situation going over the following: who, what, how you reacted, etc. Be as specific as you can. . . . . . . . . . Now try to recall how you felt and how you got along with others. Make a note of any of the things that seemed typical of your reactions to stress (for example, loss of appetite, arguing, withdrawing, etc.). Again, dig as deeply as you can. . . . . . . . . . . STRESS REACTION QUESTIONNAIRE: Now that you have delved into a situation, let's see if we can put some of that information into a format we have already discussed. Since we are looking at reactions to stress in three categories, let's learn a few things about stress in your life in these categories. Let's see which one is the most prominent in your life. Let's also see what the top three reactions in each area are for you. Once you go through these three lists, and see which way you deal with stress, you will have a better idea of how to identify and deal with excessive stress in your life. PHYSICAL REACTIONS: Answer the following questions. Circle the number that best indicates how often you experienced the feeling when you were under stress. 0=Never 1=Rarely 2=Occasionally 3=fifty% 4=Often 5=Usually 6=Always When I was under pressure, I ... 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt worn out and tired. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt my heart race. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had tension headaches. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had trouble sleeping. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... developed skin rashes and hives. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... twitched and my muscles became sore. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... could not sit still; I kept tapping my feet and fingers. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... ate more or less than usual (my appetite changed). 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... caught colds more easily. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had trouble with bowel movements. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had an upset stomach. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had difficulty swallowing because my throat was dry. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had gas pains. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... experienced chest pains. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... was short of breath. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt dizzy at times. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... was told by my doctor that my blood pressure was high. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... woke up in a cold sweat. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt tired all the time. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had more little accidents injuring myself. __+__+__+__+__+__+__ Add each column underneath it. ______________ Add the column scores and put the total here and at the end of the document. PSYCHOLOGICAL REACTIONS: Answer the following questions. Circle the number that best indicates how often you experienced the feeling when you were under stress. 0=Never 1=Rarely 2=Occasionally 3=fifty% 4=Often 5=Usually 6=Always When I was under pressure, I ... 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... bit my nails. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... smoked more. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt tense, I was always 'on'. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... seemed unable to slow down, I tried to do too much at once. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... worried that things would never get better. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt that life was all work and no play. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... nervous and jittery. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... frustrated and irritable. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... wanted to explode with anger. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt that things were out of my control. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had an "I-don't-give-a-damn" attitude. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... was angry at myself, and felt guilty. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had nightmares. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... forgot things. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... worried that something bad was going to happen. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... was unable to concentrate; felt 'spaced out', and was unable to get things done. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt preoccupied, unable to get a particular thought out of my mind. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... worried that everything I did was being criticized. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had trouble making decisions. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... kept busy to avoid thinking about certain things. __+__+__+__+__+__+__ Add each column underneath it. ______________ Add the column scores and put the total here and at the end of the document. SOCIAL REACTIONS TO STRESS: Answer the following questions. Circle the number that best indicates how often you experienced the feeling when you were under stress. When I was under pressure, I
0=Never 1=Rarely 2=Occasionally 3=fifty% 4=Often 5=Usually 6=Always 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... was short-tempered 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had very little patience with others. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... avoided talking with others. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... drank more alcohol / used more drugs. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... saw my spouse/best friend less than I wanted to 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had dificulty supervising subordinates effectively; I was either too tight or too friendly. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... over-reacted to minor things that other people did. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt my job interferred with my personal life. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... didn't want to meet new people 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt alone even when with others. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt I had too much responsibility and not enough authority. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... worried about receiving negative feedback from a superior. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... worried about things at home. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt unsure about my ability to do my job. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... missed old friends. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... was concerned about the health of someone close to me. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... felt others were intentionally not cooperating. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... had several fights with my spouse/best friend. 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... my sex-drive increased or decreased 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... was impulsive about spending money. __+__+__+__+__+__+__ Add each column underneath it. ______________ Add the column scores and put the total here and at the end of the document. MY STRONGEST REACTIONS TO STRESS: List below the top three stress symptoms for each category. If you have any 'ties', you be the judge and decide which three are the top three. This will give you a heads-up on your major stress reactions. You will use this to focus your stress-management strategies. (Coping, Cooperating or Changing, remember?) PSYCHOLOGICAL 1____________________________________________________________ 2____________________________________________________________ 3____________________________________________________________ PHYSICAL 1____________________________________________________________ 2____________________________________________________________ 3____________________________________________________________ SOCIAL 1____________________________________________________________ 2____________________________________________________________ 3____________________________________________________________ That gave you the three biggest reactions in each area. Below you will find which area is the toughest for you. I recommend you review possible strategies discussed earlier and match them with the biggest challenges you discovered. If doing this alone isn't enough, it would be a cooperating strategy to get someone to help you. I wish you well. Psychological:__________ Physical:________ Social:_________ Highest Overall Stress Score:______________ A web site dedicated to dealing with stress, with some very good information is at www.the-stress-site.com | 
