Coping with Stress
Blake is a new nurse who recently graduated from her institution and just got a wonderful opportunity to work as an LVN in one of Fresno’s most prestigious level 1 trauma centers at Community Regional Medical Center. On her first day she had to jump right in! Taking heavy workloads, charting, long hours; all of this was new to her and she became very stressed, very early on. To cope with that stress she would drink every night when she got home and get very agitated when things were not going as planned? Are these responsible and effective coping mechanisms that Blake has taken on, or can she cope in a different way? Coping Mechanisms
Coping mechanisms are the strategies people often use in the face of stress and/or trauma to help manage difficult and/or painful emotions (Goodtherapy.org 2017). These mechanisms help people adjust to stressful situations while still being able to maintain their emotional well-being. There are negative and positive ways of coping, but you want to find more positive ways to deal with your stress fore it is the healthiest for the body, mind, and spirit.
Positive Coping Mechanisms1
Positive coping is more than just a behavior. This form of coping is a skill that you develop to get through the tough times so don’t be too down on yourself if you don’t grasp it right away. Naturally we want to be down on ourselves and drown in our own self pity but we must adapt to a new way of living to keep our minds free of stress by any means
Coping mechanisms are used almost as a buffer to provide comfort to an otherwise uncomfortable situation. They act usually as a small dose of normal in a strange situation.
Some people may yell and fight, while other want to sit and cry. Many people use coping skills to deal with the stress. Coping skills are methods a person uses to deal with stressful situations. Obtaining and keeping good coping skills needs practice, therefore, using these coping skills will become easier over time. These coping skills can help toward good mental health
2.1. What is effective about these strategies for coping with stress, and why did they work?
Coping strategies include the use defense mechanisms, controlling behavior, use of repetition, humor and exercise.
Thinking positively can be a difficult task, no matter the circumstance. When negativity fills you up like helium in a balloon you should always try to find the light in the darkness. Thinking positively doesn’t make the hard times disappear, it helps you survive negativity and the daily conflicts that challenge you. Looking on the bright side of things increases attentiveness, improves your ability to think, and leads to happier thoughts (Psychology Today). No matter what you are going through, you should always stay optimistic. “Man’s Search for Meaning” and “Dear Miss Breed” are great examples of how having a bright outlook can help you survive conflict.
Positivity is something that I have always been looking for but we all know that one cannot go through life being happy or positive at all times, with so many bad happening in the world or even just people in our lives trying to put us down due to them not being happy about themselves. The way that the strategies of coping are put in my assignment; I thought were perfect for myself due to my interpersonal style.
Defense mechanisms are a way help cope with stressors in our life in a protective way. They can be healthy and unhealthy. They form a barrier from those who want to harm us, protect us from anxiety, and are a tension reducer. Defense mechanisms change unacceptable impulses into acceptable ones by unconsciously blocking impulses, which reduces anxiety.
One coping mechanism that I will be using is from the chapter 9 in our book Cognitive Restructuring: Reframing. I am choosing this technique because I need to change the way perceive my stressors. I am someone who makes mountains out of molehills, and I often have anxiety attacks that affect my psychologically and physiologically well-being. I have reached a point where I can no longer continue living my life feeling physically and emotionally drained. I know something has to change. Therefore, to rid myself of the toxic thoughts that rule my life I have decided to make a change by applying the cognitive restructuring steps into my everyday life.
How well people cope depends on the number of factors such as health .People who are healthy are better able to deal with stressful situations. Further these factors play an important role in handling stress effectively namely positive attitude about ones abilities to resolve the situation, problem solving abilities –explore various options to find a solution, social skills and social support.
Bryant, R. A., Sackville, T., Dang, S. T., Moulds, M., & Guthrie, R. (1999). Treating acute stress disorder: An evaluation of cognitive behavior therapy and supportive counseling techniques. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 156(11), 1780-6. Retrieved from http://p2048-www.liberty.edu.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login?urlhttp://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/docview/220486913?accountid=12085
Throughout this Wellness program, I learned many valuable tools and tips on how to administer emotional first aid and how to bounce back from unexpected events. Among these tools and tips, I took an interest in one category in particular; coping skills and techniques managing stress and/or anxiety. These coping skills and techniques include journaling,
This essay discusses coping, a complex process exercised by people to suppress, change, or eliminate stress or threat. This essay also discusses copers, that is, people who exhibit certain personality characteristics, known as distress resistant personality patterns, which can significantly influence whether they stay healthy or become ill. Also covered are coping strategies, -strategies people draw upon to solve life’s stressors, some
Coping strategies refer to the specific efforts, both behavioral and psychological, that people employ to master, tolerate, reduce or minimize stressful events. There are two general coping strategies which have been distinguished. Problem-focused strategies are efforts to do something active to alleviate stressful circumstances, where as emotion-focused coping strategies involve efforts to regulate the emotional consequences of stressful or potentially stressful events. Typically, people use both problem-focused and emotion-focused coping in their stressful episodes, which suggests that both types of coping are useful for most stressful events (Folkman & Lazarus, 1980).
There are many challenges that we face and have to handle every single day. And, as women, we frequently have to balance the demands of work, family, children, parents, finances, and health—to name just a few. These demands are frequently referred to as “stressors” and achieving a balance is “stressful.” But multiple demands on our time and energy are a part of everyone’s life. Stress is not how many demands you have in your life, but rather how you and your body respond to these demands. For some, racing to meet a tight deadline or complete a long “ToDo” list can be positive and energizing. It’s important to learn what stress is, at what point it becomes harmful, and options for how you can respond to it. Finding the right balance is
Psychological and physical well-being and the overall quality of life are under a constant threat of stress and thus, psychological and medical sciences have long been concerned with studying stress response. Cox (1979) claimed that because of the poor understanding and defining it, the concept of stress tends to be rather elusive. The term, “stress”, commonly describes any physchological or physical alteration that deranges the organism’s homeostasis (or balance). This essay reviews some of the biological factors involved in stress and it has been organized in the following way. The paper begins by briefly introducing the concept of stress. It will then go on to discus and describe the automatic response (fight or flight reaction),