Audrey is running from poverty. Life was not a bed of roses while growing up.

She and her mother

lacked the basic necessities of life. Audrey knew what it was to go to bed hungry at night and with no
hope for breakfast the next morning.

Good morning Toastmasters and guests.

These experiences shaped her childhood, she vowed that her children will never have experience such
difficulties. So from a full time occupation as a nurse, to running her side business, to taking care of her
three sons, husband and mother while working to maintain her physical, emotional and spiritual health,
Audrey was known to be super active. Did I forget to mention, she was also a recovering perfectionist.
Things came to a halt one day when she suddenly collapsed in the office. She was taken to the hospital,
a battery of test were conducted. Apart from her elevated blood pressure, all other results were normal
and the doctor concluded that it could have occurred as a result of chronic stress. With all she had in her
plate daily, this did not come as a surprise to her or her family members.

Donald Tubesing said about spices that “too little produces a bland, dull meal: too much may choke
you”. This same saying can be applied to stress too. Stress is a normal part of life. It is caused by any
change in the environment that requires the body to react and adjust in response. This response can be
physical, emotional and mental. Stress is so much like spice; in the right proportion it enhances the
flavor of a dish. Scientifically this is known as Eustress that is good stress. An example of Eustress is
getting a good paying job or being given greater responsibility. Eustress keeps us alert and ready to
avoid danger.

There is also the bad stress known as Distress. This occurs when an individual faces continuous changes
without relief or relaxation between challenges. If it is chronic; it has a wearing effect on people that can
become a very serious health risk. Distress can lead to physical symptoms such as headaches, stomach
upset, elevated blood pressure, heart problems, low immune system with increasing susceptibility to
infections and problems sleeping. Severity varies from person to person, and also gender difference can
be an underlying factor. Women are able to take longer durations of stress than men without showing
the same maladaptive changes.

Everyone has different stress triggers otherwise known as stressors. According to the American institute
of stress, the top causes if stress in the US and which we can all relate with, are:

Job pressure- work overload, coworker tension

Money- loss of job, medical expenses

Health - terminal or chronic illness

Relationships- divorce, death of a spouse

Poor nutrition- processed foods, inadequate nutrition

Media overload- television, radio, social networking

Sleep deprivation- inability to release adrenaline and other stress hormones

In 2017 article in WebMD, Dr Jennifer Robinson stated that, 43% of all adults suffer adverse health
effects from stress. 75-90% of all doctor’s office visits are for stress related ailments and complaints.
Also the lifetime prevalence of an emotional disorder is more than 50% often due to chronic untreated
stress reactions.

The question that begs to be answered is how stress can be managed. In a research done in 1984 by
Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman, they stated that in order to develop an effective stress
management program, it is first necessary to identify the factors that are central to a person controlling
his or her stress and to identify the intervention methods which effectively target these factors. Also the
health realization model of stress that is founded on the idea that stress does not necessarily follow the
presence of potential stressor but that a persons’ thought processes determine the response to
potentially stressful external circumstances. This model proposes that helping stressed individuals
understand the nature of thought especially providing them with the ability to recognize when they are
in grip of insecure thinking, to disengage from it and access natural positive feelings, will reduce their
stress. Some other techniques for stress management are; Physical exercise, listening to relaxing music,
getting a hobby, deep breathing, journaling our thoughts and experience, engaging in purposeful social
activity and time management.

Echart Tolle said “stress is caused by being ‘here’ but wanting to be ‘there’. Fellow toastmasters and
guests, I will suggest that we cultivate the habit of living and enjoying every minute of our lives, that way
we will be able to manage any form of stress.