Let us continue our discussion of stress and anxiety. It is a growing concern, and therefore will be a focus for us in this forum in the weeks to come. Information will be provided here about stress, anxiety, and coping. There will be information provided regarding what we can do for ourselves, as well as how we can support our children and students as they learn what helps them. The intention is to provide information and resources, which will be available if and when it is needed. Please know that if you need more information or more support at any time, you can contact your social emotional learning specialist or counselor in the counseling office, your family doctor, mental health professional in the community, or other support person whenever you need to do so. As we explore this topic in this way this year, let’s start by remembering one very important fact: stress is not inherently negative. I am concerned that this fact has gotten lost in our concern about rising rates of anxiety. While rising rates of anxiety are concerning, and we need to consider this trend, we don’t want to lose sight of the fact that stress is a natural and necessary part of our lives. Understanding the need for stress and how it enriches our lives can offer important perspective that actually helps us when we are facing stressful situations. The graphic to the left, from Cornell University, reminds us that we need some tension to perform. Without any measure of stress, there is no performance. Of course, too much leads to imbalance and the possibility of breakdown, but too little provides no opportunity for performance and growth. It can be immediately helpful to remember that stress provides the impetus for us to challenge ourselves and to learn new things. Without it, growth would slow. Growing coping skills and learning to move through stress and employ strength in the face of stressful situations can help to inoculate us to the more negative impacts of stress and build greater resilience. Stress does not become unhealthy until it is more than we can handle. Dr. Lisa Damour states, “Whether or not a stressor harms well-being has surprisingly little to do with the source of the stress and much more to do with whether adequate resources - personal, emotional, social, or financial - are available to address the problem.” Therefore, it is important for each of us to concentrate on growing strength, resources, and resilience. This will enable us to weather the stressors we face in our daily lives. As we think about growing strengths and coping skills, we may want to start thinking about growing the things that have worked for us before and trying new things that feel like they could be helpful. What are the things that help us to weather daily and other life stressors? The list of strengths and coping skills is a long one, thankfully, and everyone’s list will look a little different, but a few things to consider that are supported by research include:
These are but a few of the ways that we can increase our capacity to meet the challenges and opportunities of our days. We will continue to think about resources and coping skills as we continue to consider this topic. Comments are closed.
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April 2022
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