Nevertheless, there are many stressful moments in our lives. How do we best deal with them? People cope with stress by applying various coping strategies most often: problem-focused coping or emotion-focused coping.
Coping strategies for stress:
- Taking control of one's own life:
Those who have an external locus of control believe that chance or external forces determine their fate.
Those who have an internal locus of control believe that they have their fate in their own hands.
- Self-control:
It is the ability to control impulses and delay short-term gratification in favor of greater long-term rewards.
The exercise of willpower temporarily depletes the mental energy needed for self-control in other tasks. Self-control requires attention and energy, but it predicts good adjustment, better grades, and social success.- Optimism:
Optimists can work well under stress and have good health.
- Social support:
Social support helps combat diseases in two ways.
It calms the cardiovascular system, which lowers blood pressure and stress hormone levels. It also combats diseases by strengthening immune function.
Close relationships offer us the opportunity for a "therapy of the open heart." It is a chance to confide painful feelings.
- Physical activity:
Sustained activity increases the fitness of the heart and lungs and reduces stress, depression, and anxiety. It can mitigate the influence of genetic risk for obesity and increases the quality and duration of life.
Slightly depressed female students who participated in an aerobic program showed significantly lower depression than those who did relaxation exercises or received no treatment.
- Relaxation:
More than 60 studies have shown that relaxation techniques can provide relief for headaches, high blood pressure, anxiety, and insomnia. Mindfulness meditation: A reflective practice where people perceive current experiences in a non-judgmental and accepting way.
- Factor Faith § Religious:
Religiously active people tend to live longer than those who are not religiously active. Possible explanations include the effects of intervening variables, such as the healthy behaviors, social support, or positive emotions that are often found in people who regularly attend services.
- Sleep and sleep hygiene:
When we are stressed, we often sleep less, and when we sleep less, we are stressed. It's exhausting just to think about it. If you have survived a stressful day, getting enough good sleep (especially REM sleep) can be an important recovery strategy. Chronic sleep deprivation can disrupt our stress response system and reduce our ability to cope with stressors.
- Progressive muscle relaxation:
In progressive muscle relaxation, different muscle groups (e.g., legs, abdomen, back) are tensed and relaxed in succession. In addition to many benefits, it has been found that progressive muscle relaxation lowers cortisol levels in saliva, anxiety, heart rate, and blood pressure.
- Guided imagery interventions
They have been shown to reduce stress and help in the treatment of depression. Guided imagery practices activate the senses and evoke memories or images of calm places. These positive mental images induce a peaceful state of mind.
- Humor
Other researchers have found that students who approach work stress with more humor felt better able to cope and reported greater job satisfaction.
- Breathing exercises:
Deep breathing techniques help calm the physiological systems in the body, lower heart rate and blood pressure, increase activation of the parasympathetic nervous system, and reduce cortisol levels;
- Reframing:
Reframe your thinking: One of the most research-supported treatments for stress and anxiety is cognitive behavioral therapy or CBT. At the root of this therapy is the understanding that our thoughts influence our emotions, which in turn influence our behavior.
- Pets:
You may already know that pets are one of the most effective means against stress. And science is now saying that too. Washington State University conducted a study in 2019 that confirms this. The organizers of the study gathered 249 students for an activity: petting dogs and cats for 10 minutes. They measured cortisol levels, the hormone associated with stress. The result?: Cortisol (and thus stress) was significantly reduced in a short time.
Sources: https://www.apa.org/topics/stress; Psychology - C. Nathan DeWall, David G. Myers, 2021; McCann & Holmes, 1984; Suchecki, Tiba & Machado, 2012; Suchecki et al., 2012; Varvogli & Darviri, 2011; Booth-Butterfield, Booth-Butterfield, & Wanzer, 2007; Perciavalle et al.,2017; https://news.wsu.edu/press-release/2019/07/15/study-demonstrates-stress-reduction-benefits-petting-dogs-cats/
