KAPLAN UNIVERSITY

HW410 Stress: Critical Issues in

Management and Prevention

Stress
Management and
Prevention

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Program Resource
Guide

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 KA P L A N U N I V E R S I T Y

Stress Management and Prevention

Program Resource Guide

By

Melissa Rushman

Kaplan University

HW410: Stress: Critical Issues in Management and Prevention

September 3, 2017
Table of Contents
UNIT 1 THE NATU RE OF STRESS

Information to Remember........................................................................3
Self-Assessment Exercises.........................................................................
Journal Writing...........................................................................................

UNIT 2 THE PHYSIO LOGY OF STRESS

Information to Remember........................................................................5
Self-Assessment Exercises.........................................................................
Journal Writing...........................................................................................

UNIT 3 PSYCHOLOGY OF STRESS

Information to Remember........................................................................7
Self-Assessment Exercises.........................................................................
Journal Writing...........................................................................................

UNIT 4 PERSONAL ITY TRAITS AND THE HUM AN SPIRITUAL ITY

Information to Remember........................................................................9
Self-Assessment Exercises.........................................................................
Journal Writing...........................................................................................

UNIT 5 DEAL ING WITH STRESS: COPING STRATE GIES

Information to Remember......................................................................11
Journal Writing...........................................................................................

UNIT 6 REL AXATIO N TECHI QUES 1 : BREATHI NG , M EDITATI ON,

AND M ENTAL IM AGE RY

Information to Remember......................................................................13
Self-Assessment Exercises.........................................................................
Journal Writing...........................................................................................

UNIT 7 NUTRITI ON AND STRESS

Information to Remember......................................................................15
Self-Assessment Exercises.........................................................................
UNIT 8 PHYSIC AL EXERCISE AND ACTIV ITY

Information to Remember......................................................................17
Self-Assessment Exercises.........................................................................
Journal Writing...........................................................................................

UNIT 9 APPLYING STRESS: CRITICAL ISSUES F OR M ANAGEM EN T

AND PREVE NTIO N TO YOUR PROF ESSI ONAL L IF E

Information to Remember......................................................................18

ADDITI ONAL INF ORM ATIO N

REF EREN CES

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 1
Unit

Unit 1: The Nature of Stress

Information to Remember:
What is Stress: Stress is a feeling of being threatened (real or imaginary) to the spirit, body, emotions or
mind. This can also be described as a change an individual experience that feels abnormal and
requires greater amount of coping skills than what you normally use. Stress activates the “fight or
flight response in the body that distributes cortisol into the bloodstream, which is linked to many
medical conditions including a suppressed immune system. (Seaward, 2015).
Types of Stress: There are 3 types of stress that effect people on different scales. Identifying with what
type of stress you have can help be aware of stressors and how to cope with them. Eustress (good) is
a stress that creates excitement and a euphoric feeling that is needed for major organs to function at
optimal performance. Neustress is stress that remains neutral, the event doesn’t sway your emotions.
Distress(bad) initiates the stress response in the body from immediate threat. Stress can be Acute
(High intensity over a short time) or Chronic (low intensity over a duration of time). Any amount of
stress over the neustress stage is unhealthy to the body and mind. (Seaward, 2015).
Effects of Stress: Stress has been directly linked to many different medical conditions and also a factor in
the development of Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Stress can be felt physically, behaviorally or
psychologically. Physical symptoms of stress include headaches, gastrointestinal issues, increased BP
and heartrate, Insomnia and nervous tics. Psychological effects from stress are fatigue, panic attacks,
forgetfulness, irritability, low self -esteem and anxiousness. Behavioral symptoms include, anger,
yelling, drugs/alcohol abuse, eating disorders and withdrawal from friends and family, loss of interest
in social events. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
During this unit I was able to identify with what types of stress can affect me and
how important it is to be able to figure out what the stressors are. Once you are
able to identify with these stressors the process to reducing your stress level has
started. Stress can affect people in so many different ways but the sooner we are
able to learn tools that will help us process the stress in our days instead of

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 reacting to it the better the chances are that we will create a more positive
environment that stress isn’t allowed to interfere. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:

Having house chores done before I go to work each day is 5 3 1

important to me because I have other arrangements after
work that will keep me from completing my stuff and it will
get out of control quickly if I slack on it.
Making sure dinner is finished by 5:30 so I can focus on my 6 4 2
school work
My oldest has just graduated high school and is staying out 8 6 2
with his friends a lot. This is hard for me to get used to
Taking timed quizzes in my classes 7 4 2
Making sure the garbage ends out at the curb on Thursday’s 4 2 1
Have a small oil leak in the car and constantly need to check 5 3 2
the level and add oil each trip.
I take 2 classes in school and I get really over whelmed 6 3 1
when I have multiple big assignments due by the end of the
week.
Having to drive on the highways in Dallas. I cry every time 10 8 5
and make myself physically sick when I can’t avoid the trip
or find an alternative route. My stress level doesn’t decrease
to a 1 until I am home and not going anywhere else. (This is
my biggest stressor)
On hot days keeping the dogs water bowl full is a stressor of 4 2 1
mine. It stays filled on normal temperature days.

(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

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Unit 2: The Physiology of Stress

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Unit

Information to Remember:
Stress and its effect on the body systems: Physiology is the study of how living things function internally
instead of focusing directly on the shape, size of the subject. Physiology of stress focuses on the
effects stress has on the human body and the reaction the body when it becomes stressed. In one way
or another all of the systems (nervous, musculoskeletal, renal, digestive, endocrine, immune,
pulmonary, reproductive, cardiovascular) in the body are effected by stress. (Seaward, 2015).
Chakra system: Our bodies have an electromagnetic energy field that is known as our Chakra system.
This electromagnetic energy exists throughout our whole body and is the illuminating factor behind
our “aura’s”. This energy is used to detect and diagnose diseases and conditions in the body through a
MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). Each layer of this energy field is a representation of a stage of
consciousness. Intuition, intellect and emotions). When our chakra’s become clogged the energy field
doesn’t flow smoothly which affects the function of the vital organs in that particular chakra.
(Seaward, 2015).
Meridian System: The meridian system is 12 canals that connect to the vital organs in our bodies. When
an interference occurs the energy isn’t able to move smoothly from meridian to meridian effecting the
organs in that region. Unresolved stress and clogs in our energy flow result in illness, damage to vital
organs and can be fatal if it ignored. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
In this assessment I was able to learn about the structure and functions of the
nervous system and the brain (neuroscience). The body has so many functions but
this helps them to fully understand the conversation between the body systems
and the brain. Behavior, communication, influence, perception, emotional
regulation, goal setting, ability to stay focused, resilience, motivation and many
others are the areas that neuroscience covers. Also was able to gain knowledge
on neuroplasticity and the ability of our brains to form new connections when it
experiences any change in our lives. The brain is able to re modify itself after it
experiences trauma or any type of damage. (Seaward, 2015).

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Journal Writing:

3
Unit

(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

Unit 3: Psychology of Stress

Information to Remember:
Psychological Stress: Psychological stress is created by how a person is perceiving a given situation.
Negative feelings that leave a person to feel threatened leads to anxiety or panic which quickly
changes the thinking pattern in the person. Some of the psychological consequences of stress are
indecisions, worrying, impaired judgement, negativity, boggled thinking, decreased self -esteem
(Seaward, 2006).
Key Learning Point: Our minds have two different sides theoretically speaking, The conscious and the
unconscious. The conscious mind is described as being “awake” or “aware” and sleeps when we
sleep. The unconscious mind is always working and limitless. The unconscious mind is where we
store all of our knowledge and memories over our life span. (Seaward, 2006).
Key Learning Point: When the conscious mind and the unconscious mind aren’t on the same page this is
where stress is created due to the miscommunication or misunderstanding between them. Our
expectations and not meeting up to standards of specific goals are also factors in what causes stress.
When a person experiences stress fear, anxiety and anger are emotions exhibited during these times
that can easily cloud your judgement. (Seaward, 2006).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
In this assessment we learned that our minds are extremely powerful and that we
create stress in our mind that effects all other aspects in our lives. When we set
unrealistic goals this leads us to become let down and can have side effects that
alter our behavior, self- esteem and our courage to face like situations. Also
seeing that claiming the victim mentality only back fires on the person who
refuses to take the responsibility for their actions and they will never find

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 happiness. We need to have positive thoughts to create positive moments.
Nothing positive can come from a negative attitude and if we can’t express

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Unit

empathy and compassion to our neighbors, family and friends we can’t love
ourselves the right way either. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

Unit 4: Personality Traits and the Human

Spirituality
Information to Remember:
Personality traits: Our personalities are formed from a very young age and its deciding factors are the
type of environment we are exposed to, genetics, social influences, family influences, and our peers
outside of the home. Self -esteem is a very good indicator as to which type of personality you will
develop and how well they will in fact handle stress and respond to it. Type A, Codependent,
helpless- hopeless all have one similarity which is low self- esteem and sensation seeker and hardy
personalities are high in self-esteem which is often driven by over confident ego. (Seaward, 2015).
Stress and our spirits: Our purpose in life, values, and our relationships including the personal
relationship we have with ourselves are all factors in how healthy our spirit is and how strong our
belief/faith is. By being able to set your ego aside and give up the controlling aspect that creates fear
and anxiousness and bring your spirit to the front this helps to motivate you through compassion and
love. When you are motivated by positivity you grow spiritually. (Seaward, 2015).
Recognizing stressors: Our ability to identify with the things that cause us stress is imperative to our
wellbeing, and it also determines the level of stress we feel. By learning to cope with daily stressors
we are able to let go easier and be at peace in our spirits so that nothing can interfere with your path
without your consent. This is faith that you are assisted and guided in each moment of your day.
(Seaward, 2015).

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Self-Assessment Exercise:

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Unit

Self -esteem is a direct link in how we resolve or promote stress in our lives, and
is also a determining factor in stress prone personalities. Low self- esteem being
associated with stress prone personalities and high self-esteem being associated
with stress resistant personalities. A person’s self -esteem is measured by the
total amount of compassion, love, respect and confidence one has within
themselves for themselves. People with low self -esteem lack these factors and
aren’t very good at giving themselves the necessary motivation to deal with
stressful encounters and low self- esteem usually creates a domino effect of
negative outcomes for the person due to their lack of self -worth. High self-esteem
is a very good thing to have when it comes to self -assurance but if the ego is too
big this will more likely to become over confident and boastful. Having high self-
esteem helps people to set positive goals, be good role models and to deal with
stress. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

Unit 5: Dealing with Stress: Coping Strategies

Information to Remember:
Humor Therapy: Humor, and laughter are used as tools to reduce stress and also heal the body and mind
of disease. Different types of humor are (parody, black, slapstick, absurd) and depending on your
preference defuses, stress, anger and fear. (Seaward, 2015).
Positive Thinking: Positive thinking is one of the most effective tools for reducing stress in your life and
deactivating these perceived threats that cause stress. Reframing and restructuring the mind helps us
to look at the negative and the positive aspects of a situation and focusing more on the positive side.
(Seaward, 2015).

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 Reframing: Reframing is a sense of empowerment and doesn’t allow you to pick up a victim mentality.
Never play the victim and as you adapt to changes around you that you are making always keep a

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Unit

positive mind set. This sets a pace for you to follow and the longer you practice being positive the
easier it will be for you when stressors reveal themselves. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

Unit 6: Relaxation Techniques 1: Breathing,

Meditation, and Mental Imagery
Information to Remember:
Conscious Breathing: Being conscious of your breathing is a disciplined approach to opening the body
and mind into a deep relaxation. In order for humans to reach homeostasis we must learn to “tummy”
breathe aka diaphragmatic breathing versus “chest” breathing aka thoracic breathing. Learning to
breath properly will take patience and time especially for Americans who are chest breathers and the
shallow breathes of chest breathing causes muscle tightness that intensifies when we stress. (Seaward,
2015).
Relaxation Techniques: To calm the loud noises in our minds and release muscle tension we must activate
the relaxation response. Relaxation response is triggered when you sit in a comfortable, quiet place
with eyes closed. Taking in slow deep diaphragmatic breathes through the nose, this relaxes the
muscles to allow you to release the stress and let go. Continue this for 20 minutes while concentrating
on breathes. Other ways of relaxation are yoga, music therapy, humor therapy, visualization
(Seaward, 2015).
Visualization and Mental Imagery: Mental Imagery is the creation of images in the unconscious mind that
are usually calm and peaceful settings, mental pictures that are replaced with a more acceptable
picture that brings happiness. Also imagining the damaged tissue in the body being repaired and
healed and returning to a healthy state. Visualization is being conscious of the images that create
healing, success and relaxation to improve oneself. (Seaward, 2015).

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Self-Assessment Exercise:

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Unit

This assessment explains the importance of learning to take deep breaths from
the diaphragm. When we breathe deep and properly we create the best amount of
oxygen that is needed in the body for us to reach our relaxation point. When we
breathe deep our heart rate slows and our blood pressure decreases so this is
important when trying to deactivate the fight or flight response that happens
when we are stressed. People hyperventilate due to lack of blood flow and oxygen
to the brain from taking shallow breathes during stressful periods when they
aren’t educated on diaphragmatic breathing. Meditation and imagery are
excellent ways to start learning how to breathe properly and also create an
environment that will allow you to obtain inner peace. (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

Unit 7: Nutrition and Stress

Information to Remember:
Foods and stress: Stress reduces the nutrients that we have in our bodies. Vitamins and minerals are
needed for the production of energy and these nutrients are used to prepare for “fight or flight”
response. The foods being eaten have a huge impact on whether the body is receiving replenishment
of the depleted nutrients. Fast foods, junk foods and processed foods do not have the proper nutrients
to restore the used or deficit nutrients, vitamins and minerals needing to be replaced. (Seaward,
2015).
Foods that reduce stress: Once we realize that the foods we eat determine how well the body functions
the sooner we begin to reverse deficiencies and damage from stress. Foods that help reduce stress are
nuts, seeds, berries, carrots, fruits, avocados and fish. Eating healthier will not delete stress from your
life completely but it will start to balance out areas in the body that have been disrupted to help
respond to stress better. (Seaward, 2015).

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 Foods to avoid: When we stress this activates a craving center in the brain that looks for sweets, starchy,
salty, high fat content, empty calories, caffeine which actually promote stress when consumed.

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Unit

Comfort eating that is associated with this craving is also responsible for obesity, diabetes, depression
and other conditions. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
Yoga and guided meditation was the focus this assessment. I was finally able to
meditate without having some type of anxiety when I tried to quiet my mind. With
all of the different yoga poses I was able to find specific poses that allowed me to
be comfortable and to become proud of myself due to my ability to complete the
exercise without any trouble at 41. You are definitely able to see what muscles
and areas of the body need to be stretched and utilized more. After completing
the assessment my mood had improved drastically and my confidence level was
on cloud 9. I was very proud of myself after this assessment. (Seaward, 2015).

Unit 8: Physical Exercise and Activity

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Physical activity and exercise are one of the best approaches to stress relief available
to us. When we exercise endorphins are released in the brain that are beneficial for the systems in the
body to create the hormones needed to improve our mental and physical wellbeing. The same
endorphins that we release during exercise is also released when we meditate, receive acupuncture,
and even focusing on your deep breaths. (Seaward, 2015).
Stress reducing exercises: Even though the stress hormones that are released mimic the same hormones
released during exercise after the body is done performing the physical activity or exercise the body
returns to homeostasis. Exercise is one of the powerful antidepressants and stress reducers available
to humans, and its free. Swimming, jogging, brisk walking, tennis, mowing the lawn, gardening,
raking, lifting weights, aerobics, Zumba, are all ways we can get physical activity in our lives and
start a journey to a healthy lifestyle. (Seaward, 2015).

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 Types of exercise: There are 6 types of exercise that can benefit each area of the body by oxygenating the
blood to our muscles that produces ATP for energy and stabilize the physiological system. Agility,
cardiovascular, flexibility, muscular strength and endurance, balance, and power. Each exercise has a
different approach and should be carefully selected based on your health status and ability to
complete them. (Seaward, 2015).

Self-Assessment Exercises:
A wellness program for the workplace to reduce stress is what was addressed in
this assessment. When the employer takes special efforts in making the
employees day easier and by creating a more positive environment for their
employees they have less issues to worry about and the workers are able to work
together instead of against one another. Whether it be through a gym
membership or company meetings each week to express your worries or to show
gratitude for a co -worker that helped you get through a tough day, this creates a
comfortable working environment and your employees will want to do a good job
and also this reduces the stress related illnesses that keep you from going to
work, that many businesses deal with each day (Seaward, 2015).

Journal Writing:
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

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Unit 9: Applying Stress: Critical Issues for

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Unit

Management and Prevention to your

Professional Life
Information to Remember:
Integrative medicine: Integrative medicine is a healing medicine that see’s the person as a whole (mind,
body, spirit) and is utilized with conventional medicine so that all areas of the body are focused on.
This will also include all of the aspects of the patient’s lifestyle. (Seaward, 2015).
Combined treatment: Healing with a whole body approach allows the doctor to in theory treat you and
not focus directly on the disease or illness. Integrative medicine is now being used all over the nation
due to research and study results of combining CAM with Conventional medicine. The research
available shows overwhelming evidence that emotional wellbeing, spiritual wellbeing and physical
wellbeing are all connected and must be in sync with one another for the body to fight off illness .
(Seaward, 2015).
Types of treatments: Acupuncture, massage therapy, reflexology, chiropractic, hypnosis, herbs, prayer,
can all be combined with conventional methods or used in place of medication or surgery depending
on severity of the condition. Conditions that are treated with integrative medicine are headaches,
smoking habits, gastrointestinal issues, cancer, chronic pain, anxiety, depression, phobias,
neurological stress related issues, etc. (Seaward, 2015).

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References

Seaward, B. (2015). Managing stress: Principles and strategies for health and well-being (8th ed.).

Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

Stahl, B. & Goldstein, E. (2010). A mindfulness-based stress reduction workbook. Oakland, CA: New

Harbinger Publications, Inc.

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