Don’t be afraid of stress

Proven content

If not for him – your great ancestor would have been eaten by a bear. And if it wasn’t for him – you would probably have passed your driving test the first time. I’m talking about stress. In order to mobilize instead of overpowering us, the Stresozaradni action is to help us.

Fight or run

Let’s go back to the past. Once upon a time, stress made our lives easier. Without adrenaline, noradrenaline, elevated heart rate, rapid breathing and dilated pupils, our ancestor would not have hunted a moose. And he probably wouldn’t have sprinkled before a bear. The “fight or flight” response that automatically arises in times of terror has always helped man cope with dangers, including deadly dangers lurking in the outside world. Today, stress, unfortunately, paralyzes us, takes the floor away during a public speech and prevents us from sleeping at night. Some try to run out, others reach for a box of ice cream or a bottle of wine.

Few meditate, seek help or face difficult situations. Most of the time, we close in on ourselves and pretend that everything is fine. We are covering a problem that grows unbearably. And, contrary to what we commonly hear, we need stress very much! At any moment, you may find yourself in a dangerous situation that will be released alive thanks to your instant, instinctive response. Moreover, stress makes our life more interesting. It allows you to motivate yourself to act before an important exam and remember more than a whole week in one night. Without the adrenaline rush, bungee jumping, mountain climbs or regular blind dates would completely lose their flavor and charm.

Pole’s stress

As Dr. Ewa Jarczewska-Gerc from SWP University emphasizes: – We all experience moments of tension, overload or difficulties in our lives. What makes us very different is the way we deal with stress. The range of behaviors undertaken by people is very wide. We can talk about three types of behavior: confronting a problem, seeking support from relatives or running away. Unfortunately, pretending in front of ourselves and the whole world that a difficult situation does not matter most often leads to a growing problem and chronic difficulties in the sphere of emotions and actions.

According to the GFK Polonia survey “Poles and stress” – 98 percent. of us experience stress in everyday life, and almost every fifth respondent lives in constant tension. Most often we are worried about private life (46%) – mainly financial problems, illness of a loved one, budget, renovation and the sheer volume of housework. The child’s illness and the burden of household chores are more frequently mentioned by women as the main sources of stress. The upcoming holidays are also a stress factor for many of us. In our professional life, we are killed by work under time pressure and its improper organization. The negative effects we experience are fatigue (78%), resignation (63%), uncontrolled reactions (61%), distraction (60%), and worse results (47%). Every fifth Pole does not notice the positive effects of stress at all, and only 13 percent. assesses his own ability to benefit from it at a good or very good level. Fortunately, most of us (9/10 people) want to change our minds and learn to turn stress to our advantage.

According to Dr. Ewa Jarczewska-Gerc from SWPS University: – Changing the perspective to a more positive one will help turn stress into action that will bring benefits in the form of finding passion, professional success and deepening relationships with people. The only question is: how to do it and where to start?

Become a «stressor-free»

The ticket to the club “Stresozaradnych” is in the hands of each of us. How stressful we are in everyday situations is a derivative of the nervous system. But this does not mean that people with high reactivity to stimuli, stressed by trivialities, are not able to change their approach. Predisposition is one thing, and working on yourself is another. The aim of the “Stresozaradni” campaign is to show you how to take control of stress and use it for your own purposes. In “stressomorphosis” the most important thing is daily practice, which may consist in mindfulness, openness to new phenomena, experiences or situations. Perhaps some of us will have to leave our comfort zone and open up to the world. Research shows that people who like challenges and take risks are less likely to bear the cost of stress. Let’s face it – it won’t be easy. Each change requires effort, and it will take time for us to develop the appropriate responses and behaviors. However, the game is worth the candle, we can gain better mood, effectiveness in action and distance to the gray reality.

As Dr. Ewa Jarczewska-Gerc from the SWPS University says: – The first stage of “stressomorphosis” is the so-called pre-contemplation. It consists in the fact that we begin to realize that the way we react so far burns us out and makes us unhappy, although we still defend ourselves against making a decision to change. In the next phase – contemplation – we already admit to ourselves and to the world that the current way of reacting to stress was harmful to us, and that change is not only necessary, but also possible. Whether we perceive a given situation as a challenge or a threat depends largely on us. The stressors try to approach problems in a task-oriented manner and solve them on an ongoing basis. In the third phase of the process, we plan changes. We determine what exactly needs to be improved, implement new resolutions and observe their positive effects. It can be an honest conversation with your employer or partner about what has been hurting you for a long time. Or a decision to quit a hated job in a corporation and start your own business. As always, consistency is decisive for success. Crises will always come back to us, so our actions cannot be one-off. They should enter our bloodstream and become a habit.

Theory in practice

Suppose you are behind the stage of pre-contemplation and contemplation. Are you ready for a change, but you wonder what will help you spread your stress over your shoulder blades? Unfortunately, there is no universal method, no recipe that is effective for everyone. Each of us has to find our own way. Here are some suggestions. If the cause of stress is bad work organization, learn to manage your time. And measure your intentions. Not everything is always achievable, but creating a to-do list on a piece of paper, in a calendar or phone increases productivity. Write your goals in the correct order, from the “mousses” that are absolutely important to things that, as Scarlett Ohara said, can wait. You don’t even know how much satisfaction checking out subsequent items will give you. Write down one of them now and it is best to discard it – TIME FOR RELAXATION.

There are only 24 hours in a day and you have to find a moment for yourself outside of work. You are not a machine, and distraction from your daily rush will allow you to see many things with greater distance. Spending time with family and friends gives you a sense of belonging and acceptance that works better than Xanax. Similarly, regular physical activity or passion. By engaging in favorite activities, we forget about problems and give the body time to regenerate. The easiest way to deal with stress is to talk. For some, it is enough for them to confess their worries and feel better immediately. Others cannot open up and may try to write down problems on a piece of paper. Psychologists recommend this method – it turns out that worries written on paper are easier to control and help reduce stress levels. You can also use other mental techniques such as meditation, hypnosis or visualization. Breathing exercises will be great for regaining balance. By controlling the inhalation and exhalation, we easily lower the level of internal tension.

Cocoa instead of percentages

Any personal trainer will tell you that training without proper diet and supplementation is less effective. It is similar with “stress-resourcefulness”. And smoking, alcohol abuse, unhealthy eating or lack of sleep only lower mental immunity. Therefore, if you want to take control of your stress, invest in a healthier life. One of the negative effects of stress is the increased loss of magnesium. In turn, magnesium deficiency increases susceptibility to stress and depression. We have the so-called vicious circle.

For this reason, proper diet and supplementation can definitely help you make a positive change. The daily requirement for magnesium in an adult is 300–400 mg. Therefore, it is worth including products such as pumpkin seeds (100 g – 520 mg of magnesium), bitter cocoa (100 g – 420 mg of magnesium), almonds (100 g – 257 mg of magnesium), white beans (100 g – 169 mg of magnesium) in your daily menu. ), buckwheat (100 g – 218 mg of magnesium) and oat flakes (100 g – 129 mg of magnesium). Unfortunately, most often we do everything the other way around and use percentages to alleviate the effects of chronic stress. Indeed, once in a while drinking alcohol reduces tension, but in the long run the “cure” becomes a problem instead of a cure. Why? Large amounts of alcohol, like an argument with the mother-in-law or the upcoming session, are a stress factor for the body. In addition, the percentages and the accompanying “after-oms” strong coffee effectively rinse magnesium out of the body. “Cleaning up” after a long night takes many hours and manifests itself in a killer hangover. Conclusions: instead of an evening beer, reach for cocoa and start on the path of «stressomorphosis».

Dr. Ewa Jarczewska-Ger – psychologist at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities. He specializes in the psychology of motivation. He deals with the issue of effectiveness and persistence in action and the influence of mental stimulation on the performance of tasks. He studies the relationship between various forms of thinking and imagining and the effectiveness and persistence in action. At the SWPS University, he conducts a master’s seminar and classes in the psychology of emotions and motivation, psychology of individual differences and behavioral health. In the work of an academic lecturer, the most important thing is the possibility of transferring knowledge, which is an important factor in a better understanding of the world.