STRESS TRIGGERS and WHAT THEY MEAN TO YOU
Effective Stress Management starts with identifying your sources of stress and developing strategies to manage them. To make it more personal, what totally freaks you out may be what your BFF loves. Stress triggers or STRESSORS can be grouped together many ways.
They can be Emotional, or Internal such as Fears, Anxiety or in other words Worries about uncertainties at your job, or what did that new person or group think of you. They can be Personality Traits such as perfectionism, pessimism or Doom and Gloom mindset and Helplessness.
They can be considered External such as Family, a child that won't mind, financial problems, or Relationship problems. Or on the flip side, a new marriage, just bought a new house or selling yours or a pregnancy. Social like when you have a speaking engagement. Enviromental as in pollution, allergies flaring up, to cold or hot or scared of the dark. Chemical can be any drugs or alcohol, caffeine, or nicotine. Something unpredicted like unannounced guests, or the note on your door letting you know your rent just went up.
When you feel yourself starting to stress or worry, write it down so you can go to it later or show your Dr. Write down what was going on around you and where you were. If you can identify what's going on around you, or Triggers, then you will be able to avoid those things next time. I'm not saying everything that comes your way can be avoided but certainly some can. If something is keeping up late at night, consider ways to change that or to busy for ME Time, then make sure you include that in your schedule.
A Healthy diet, Exercise, and a Restful nights sleep are all necessary to reduce the effects of stress. Ask for help instead of tackling it all yourself or manage your time better.
Another is Humor. Laughter plays a big part in chemicals released in your brain or just looking at a stressful situation in a humorous way can help you overcome it.
Recognizing a problem is the first step toward solving it. By beginning to identify and understand the sources of your stress, you've taken the first step in learning to better manage it. Manage it, not eliminate it. Stress is a fact of life. And that's OK. You can learn ways to handle it.
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