stress management solution essay

Essay on Stress Management

500 words essay on stress management.

Stress is a very complex phenomenon that we can define in several ways. However, if you put them together, it is basically the wear and tear of daily life. Stress management refers to a wide spectrum of techniques and psychotherapies for controlling a person’s stress level, especially chronic stress . If there is effective stress management, we can help one another break the hold of stress on our lives. The essay on stress management will throw light on the very same thing.

Identifying the Source of Stress

The first step of stress management is identifying the source of stress in your life. It is not as easy as that but it is essential. The true source of stress may not always be evident as we tend to overlook our own stress-inducing thoughts and feelings.

For instance, you might constantly worry about meeting your deadline. But, in reality, maybe your procrastination is what leads to this stress than the actual deadline. In order to identify the source of stress, we must look closely within ourselves.

If you explain away stress as temporary, then it may be a problem. Like if you yourself don’t take a breather from time to time, what is the point? On the other hand, is stress an integral part of your work and you acknowledging it like that?

If you make it a part of your personality, like you label things as crazy or nervous energy, you need to look further. Most importantly, do you blame the stress on people around you or the events surrounding you?

It is essential to take responsibility for the role one plays in creating or maintaining stress. Your stress will remain outside your control if you do not do it.

Strategies for Stress Management

It is obvious that we cannot avoid all kinds of stress but there are many stressors in your life which you can definitely eliminate. It is important to learn how to say no and stick to them.  Try to avoid people who stress you out.

Further, if you cannot avoid a stressful situation, try altering it. Express your feelings don’t bottle them up and manage your time better. Moreover, you can also adapt to the stressor if you can’t change it.

Reframe problems and look at the big picture. Similarly, adjust your standards and focus on the positive side. Never try to control the uncontrollable. Most importantly, make time for having fun and relaxing.

Spend some time with nature, go for a walk or call a friend, whatever pleases you.  You can also try working out, listening to music and more. As long as it makes you happy, never give up.

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Conclusion of the Essay on Stress Management

All in all, we can control our stress levels with relaxation techniques that evoke the relaxation response of our body. It is the state of restfulness that is the opposite of the stress response. Thus, when you practice these techniques regularly, you can build your resilience and heal yourself.

FAQ of Essay on Stress Management

Question 1: What is the importance of stress management?

Answer 1: Stress management is very efficient as it helps in breaking the hold which stress has on our lives. Moreover, you can also become happy, healthy and more productive because of it. The ultimate goal should be to live a balanced life and have the resilience to hold up under pressure.

Question 2: Give some stress management techniques.

Answer 2: There are many stress management techniques through which one can reduce stress in their lives. One can change their situation or their reaction to it. We can try by altering the situation. If not, we can change our attitudes towards it. Remember, accept things that you cannot change.

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What is stress management?

Tip 1: identify the sources of stress in your life, tip 2: cut out unhealthy ways of dealing with stress.

• Tip 3: Practice the 4 A's of stress management

Tip 4: Get moving

Tip 5: connect to others, tip 6: make time for fun and relaxation, tip 7: manage your time better, tip 8: maintain balance with a healthy lifestyle, tip 9: learn to relieve stress in the moment, stress management: how to reduce and relieve stress.

While it may seem like there’s nothing you can do about stress at work and home, there are steps you can take to destress and regain control.

It may seem like there’s nothing you can do about stress. The bills won’t stop coming, there will never be more hours in the day, and your work and family responsibilities will always be demanding. But you have a lot more control than you might think.

If you’re living with high levels of stress, you’re putting your entire well-being at risk. Stress wreaks havoc on your emotional equilibrium, as well as your overall physical and mental health. It narrows your ability to think clearly, function effectively, and enjoy life.

Effective stress management helps you break the hold stress has on your life, so you can be happier, healthier, and more productive. The ultimate goal is a balanced life, with time for work, relationships, relaxation, and fun—and the resilience to hold up under pressure and meet challenges head on. But stress management is not one-size-fits-all. That’s why it’s important to experiment and find out what works best for you. The following stress management tips can help you do that.

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Stress management starts with identifying the sources of stress in your life. This isn’t as straightforward as it sounds. While it’s easy to identify major stressors such as changing jobs, moving, or going through a divorce, pinpointing the sources of chronic stress can be more complicated. It’s all too easy to overlook how your own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors contribute to your everyday stress levels.

Sure, you may know that you’re constantly worried about work deadlines, but maybe it’s your procrastination, rather than the actual job demands, that is causing the stress.

To identify what’s really stressing you out, look closely at your habits, attitude, and excuses:

• Do you explain away stress as temporary (“I just have a million things going on right now”) even though you can’t remember the last time you took a breather?
• Do you define stress as an integral part of your work or home life (“Things are always crazy around here”) or as a part of your personality (“I have a lot of nervous energy, that’s all”)?
• Do you blame your stress on other people or outside events, or view it as entirely normal and unexceptional?

Until you accept responsibility for the role you play in creating or maintaining it, your stress level will remain outside your control.

Start a stress journal

A stress journal can help you identify the regular stressors in your life and the way you deal with them. Each time you feel stressed, make a note of it in your journal or use a stress tracker on your phone. Keeping a daily log will enable you to see patterns and common themes. Write down:

• What caused your stress (make a guess if you’re unsure).
• How you felt, both physically and emotionally.
• How you acted in response.
• What you did to make yourself feel better.

Many of us feel so stressed out, we resort to unhealthy and unproductive ways to cope. A lot of these unhelpful strategies can temporarily reduce stress, but in the long run, they actually cause even more damage:

• Smoking, drinking too much, or using drugs to relax.
• Bingeing on junk or comfort food.
• Zoning out for hours in front of the TV or phone.
• Withdrawing from friends, family, and social activities.
• Sleeping too much.
• Filling up every minute of the day to avoid facing problems.
• Procrastinating.
• Taking out your stress on others (lashing out, angry outbursts, physical violence).

[Read: Self-Medicating Depression, Anxiety, and Stress]

If your methods of coping with stress aren’t contributing to your greater emotional and physical health, it’s time to find healthier ones that leave you feeling calm and in control.

Tip 3: Practice the 4 A’s of stress management

While stress is an automatic response from your nervous system, some stressors arise at predictable times: your commute to work, a meeting with your boss, or family gatherings, for example. When handling such predictable stressors, you can either change the situation or change your reaction.

When deciding which option to choose in any given scenario, it’s helpful to think of the four A’s: avoid , alter , adapt , or accept .

Avoid unnecessary stress

It’s not healthy to avoid a stressful situation that needs to be addressed, but you may be surprised by the number of stressors in your life that you can eliminate.

Learn how to say “no.” Know your limits and stick to them. Whether in your personal or professional life, taking on more than you can handle is a surefire recipe for stress.

Avoid people who stress you out. If someone consistently causes stress in your life, limit the amount of time you spend with that person, or end the relationship.

Take control of your environment. If the evening news makes you anxious, turn off the TV. If traffic makes you tense, take a longer but less-traveled route. If going to the market is an unpleasant chore, do your grocery shopping online.

Avoid hot-button topics . If you get upset over religion or politics, cross them off your conversation list. If you repeatedly argue about the same subject with the same people, stop bringing it up or excuse yourself when it’s the topic of discussion.

Pare down your to-do list. Analyze your schedule, responsibilities, and daily tasks. If you’ve got too much on your plate, distinguish between the “shoulds” and the “musts.” Drop tasks that aren’t truly necessary to the bottom of the list or eliminate them entirely.

Alter the situation

If you can’t avoid a stressful situation, try to alter it. Often, this involves changing the way you communicate and operate in your daily life.

Express your feelings instead of bottling them up. If something or someone is bothering you, communicate your concerns in an open and respectful way. If you don’t voice your feelings, resentment will build and the stress will increase.

Be willing to compromise. When you ask someone to change their behavior, be willing to do the same. If you both are willing to bend at least a little, you’ll have a good chance of finding a happy middle ground.

Be more assertive.  Don’t take a backseat in your own life. Deal with problems head on, doing your best to anticipate and prevent them. If you’ve got an exam to study for and your chatty roommate just got home, say up front that you only have five minutes to talk.

Find balance. All work and no play is a recipe for burnout. Try to find a balance between work and family life, social activities and solitary pursuits, daily responsibilities and downtime.

Adapt to the stressor

If you can’t change the stressor, change yourself. You can adapt to stressful situations and regain your sense of control by changing your expectations and attitude.

Reframe problems. Try to view stressful situations from a more positive perspective. Rather than fuming about a traffic jam, look at it as an opportunity to pause and regroup, listen to your favorite radio station, or enjoy some alone time.

Look at the big picture. Take perspective of the stressful situation. Ask yourself how important it will be in the long run. Will it matter in a month? A year? Is it really worth getting upset over? If the answer is no, focus your time and energy elsewhere.

Adjust your standards. Perfectionism is a major source of avoidable stress. Stop setting yourself up for failure by demanding perfection. Set reasonable standards for yourself and others, and learn to be okay with “good enough.”

Practice gratitude. When stress is getting you down, take a moment to reflect on all the things you appreciate in your life , including your own positive qualities and gifts. This simple strategy can help you keep things in perspective.

Accept the things you can’t change

Some sources of stress are unavoidable. You can’t prevent or change stressors such as the death of a loved one, a serious illness, or a national recession. In such cases, the best way to cope with stress is to accept things as they are. Acceptance may be difficult, but in the long run, it’s easier than railing against a situation you can’t change.

Don’t try to control the uncontrollable. Many things in life are beyond our control, particularly the behavior of other people. Rather than stressing out over them, focus on the things you can control such as the way you choose to react to problems.

Look for the upside. When facing major challenges, try to look at them as opportunities for personal growth. If your own poor choices contributed to a stressful situation, reflect on them and learn from your mistakes.

Learn to forgive. Accept the fact that we live in an imperfect world and that people make mistakes. Let go of anger and resentments. Free yourself from negative energy by forgiving and moving on.

Share your feelings. Expressing what you’re going through can be very cathartic, even if there’s nothing you can do to alter the stressful situation. Talk to a trusted friend or make an appointment with a therapist.

When you’re stressed, the last thing you probably feel like doing is getting up and exercising. But physical activity is a huge stress reliever—and you don’t have to be an athlete or spend hours in a gym to experience the benefits. Exercise releases endorphins that make you feel good, and it can also serve as a valuable distraction from your daily worries.

While you’ll get the most benefit from regularly exercising for 30 minutes or more, it’s okay to build up your fitness level gradually. Even very small activities can add up over the course of a day. The first step is to get yourself up and moving. Here are some easy ways to incorporate exercise into your daily schedule:

• Put on some music and dance around.
• Take your dog for a walk .
• Walk or cycle to the grocery store.
• Use the stairs at home or work rather than an elevator.
• Park your car in the farthest spot in the lot and walk the rest of the way.
• Pair up with an exercise partner and encourage each other as you work out.
• Play ping-pong or an activity-based video game with your kids.

Deal with stress with mindful rhythmic exercise

While just about any form of physical activity can help burn away tension and stress, rhythmic activities are especially effective. Good choices include walking, running, swimming, dancing, cycling, tai chi, and aerobics. But whatever you choose, make sure it’s something you enjoy so you’re more likely to stick with it.

While you’re exercising, make a conscious effort to pay attention to your body and the physical (and sometimes emotional) sensations you experience as you’re moving. Focus on coordinating your breathing with your movements, for example, or notice how the air or sunlight feels on your skin. Adding this mindfulness element will help you break out of the cycle of negative thoughts that often accompanies overwhelming stress.

There is nothing more calming than spending quality time with another human being who makes you feel safe and understood. In fact, face-to-face interaction triggers a cascade of hormones that counteracts the body’s defensive “fight-or-flight” response. It’s nature’s natural stress reliever (as an added bonus, it also helps stave off depression and anxiety). So make it a point to connect regularly—and in person—with family and friends.

[Read: Social Support for Stress Relief]

Keep in mind that the people you talk to don’t have to be able to fix your stress. They simply need to be good listeners. And try not to let worries about looking weak or being a burden keep you from opening up. The people who care about you will be flattered by your trust. It will only strengthen your bond.

Of course, it’s not always realistic to have a pal close by to lean on when you feel overwhelmed by stress, but by building and maintaining a network of close friends you can improve your resiliency to life’s stressors.

Tips for building relationships

• Reach out to a colleague at work.
• Help someone else by volunteering .
• Have lunch or coffee with a friend.
• Ask a loved one to check in with you regularly.
• Call or email an old friend.
• Go for a walk with a workout buddy.
• Schedule a weekly dinner date.
• Meet new people by taking a class or joining a club.
• Confide in a clergy member, teacher, or sports coach.
• Join a support group—either in-person or via on online therapy platform .

Beyond a take-charge approach and a positive attitude, you can reduce stress in your life by carving out “me” time. Don’t get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of life that you forget to take care of your own needs. Nurturing yourself is a necessity, not a luxury. If you regularly make time for fun and relaxation, you’ll be in a better place to handle life’s stressors.

Set aside leisure time. Include rest and relaxation in your daily schedule. Don’t allow other obligations to encroach. This is your time to take a break from all responsibilities and recharge your batteries.

Do something you enjoy every day. Make time for leisure activities that bring you joy, whether it be stargazing, playing the piano, or working on your bike.

Keep your sense of humor. This includes the ability to laugh at yourself. The act of laughing helps your body fight stress in a number of ways.

Take up a relaxation practice. Relaxation techniques such as yoga, meditation, and deep breathing activate the body’s relaxation response , a state of restfulness that is the opposite of the fight or flight or mobilization stress response. As you learn and practice these techniques, your stress levels will decrease and your mind and body will become calm and centered.

Poor time management can cause a lot of stress. When you’re stretched too thin and running behind, it’s hard to stay calm and focused. Plus, you’ll be tempted to avoid or cut back on all the healthy things you should be doing to keep stress in check, like socializing and getting enough sleep. The good news: there are things you can do to achieve a healthier work-life balance.

Don’t over-commit yourself. Avoid scheduling things back-to-back or trying to fit too much into one day. All too often, we underestimate how long things will take.

Prioritize tasks. Make a list of tasks you have to do, and tackle them in order of importance. Do the high-priority items first. If you have something particularly unpleasant or stressful to do, get it over with early. The rest of your day will be more pleasant as a result.

Break projects into small steps. If a large project seems overwhelming, make a step-by-step plan. Focus on one manageable step at a time, rather than taking on everything at once.

Delegate responsibility. You don’t have to do it all yourself, whether at home, school, or on the job. If other people can take care of the task, why not let them? Let go of the desire to control or oversee every little step. You’ll be letting go of unnecessary stress in the process.

In addition to regular exercise, there are other healthy lifestyle choices that can increase your resistance to stress.

Eat a healthy diet . Well-nourished bodies are better prepared to cope with stress, so be mindful of what you eat. Start your day right with breakfast, and keep your energy up and your mind clear with balanced, nutritious meals throughout the day.

Reduce caffeine and sugar. The temporary “highs” caffeine and sugar provide often end with a crash in mood and energy. By reducing the amount of coffee, soft drinks, chocolate, and sugar snacks in your diet , you’ll feel more relaxed and you’ll sleep better.

Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs. Self-medicating with alcohol or drugs may provide an easy escape from stress, but the relief is only temporary. Don’t avoid or mask the issue at hand; deal with problems head on and with a clear mind.

Get enough sleep. Adequate sleep fuels your mind, as well as your body. Feeling tired will increase your stress because it may cause you to think irrationally.

When you’re frazzled by your morning commute, stuck in a stressful meeting at work, or fried from another argument with your spouse, you need a way to manage your stress levels right now . That’s where quick stress relief comes in.

The fastest way to reduce stress is by taking a deep breath and using your senses—what you see, hear, taste, and touch—or through a soothing movement. By viewing a favorite photo, smelling a specific scent, listening to a favorite piece of music, tasting a piece of gum, or hugging a pet, for example, you can quickly relax and focus yourself.

[Read: Quick Stress Relief]

Of course, not everyone responds to each sensory experience in the same way. The key to quick stress relief is to experiment and discover the unique sensory experiences that work best for you.

More Information

• Stress Management - Learn to manage your stress. (American Heart Association)
• Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School. (Harvard Health) - Special Health Report from Harvard Medical School. (Harvard Health)
• Tolerating Distress - Workbook and information sheets to help you manage feelings of distress. (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Building Your Resilience - Learn how to increase your resilience in the face of stress and hardship. (American Psychological Association)
• How To Relax: 8 Relaxation Tips for Your Mental Health
• Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorders. (2013). In Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders . American Psychiatric Association. Link
• Can, Yekta Said, Heather Iles-Smith, Niaz Chalabianloo, Deniz Ekiz, Javier Fernández-Álvarez, Claudia Repetto, Giuseppe Riva, and Cem Ersoy. “How to Relax in Stressful Situations: A Smart Stress Reduction System.” Healthcare 8, no. 2 (April 16, 2020): 100. Link
• Norelli, Samantha K., Ashley Long, and Jeffrey M. Krepps. “Relaxation Techniques.” In StatPearls . Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing, 2021. Link
• Toussaint, Loren, Quang Anh Nguyen, Claire Roettger, Kiara Dixon, Martin Offenbächer, Niko Kohls, Jameson Hirsch, and Fuschia Sirois. “Effectiveness of Progressive Muscle Relaxation, Deep Breathing, and Guided Imagery in Promoting Psychological and Physiological States of Relaxation.” Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2021 (July 3, 2021): e5924040. Link
• Unger, Cynthia A, David Busse, and Ilona S Yim. “The Effect of Guided Relaxation on Cortisol and Affect: Stress Reactivity as a Moderator.” Journal of Health Psychology 22, no. 1 (January 1, 2017): 29–38. Link
• Singh, Karuna. “Nutrient and Stress Management.” Journal of Nutrition & Food Sciences 6, no. 4 (2016). Link
• Katsarou, Alexia L., Marios M. Vryonis, Athanassios D. Protogerou, Evangelos C. Alexopoulos, Apostolos Achimastos, Dimitrios Papadogiannis, George P. Chrousos, and Christina Darviri. “Stress Management and Dietary Counseling in Hypertensive Patients: A Pilot Study of Additional Effect.” Primary Health Care Research & Development 15, no. 1 (January 2014): 38–45. Link
• Errisuriz, Vanessa L., Keryn E. Pasch, and Cheryl L. Perry. “Perceived Stress and Dietary Choices: The Moderating Role of Stress Management.” Eating Behaviors 22 (August 1, 2016): 211–16. Link
• Choi, Dong-Woo, Sung-Youn Chun, Sang Ah Lee, Kyu-Tae Han, and Eun-Cheol Park. “Association between Sleep Duration and Perceived Stress: Salaried Worker in Circumstances of High Workload.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 15, no. 4 (April 2018): 796. Link
• Blaxton, Jessica M., Cindy S. Bergeman, Brenda R. Whitehead, Marcia E. Braun, and Jessic D. Payne. “Relationships Among Nightly Sleep Quality, Daily Stress, and Daily Affect.” The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 72, no. 3 (May 1, 2017): 363–72. Link
• Saleh, Dalia, Nathalie Camart, Fouad Sbeira, and Lucia Romo. “Can We Learn to Manage Stress? A Randomized Controlled Trial Carried out on University Students.” PLOS ONE 13, no. 9 (September 5, 2018): e0200997. Link
• Loprinzi, Paul D., and Emily Frith. “Protective and Therapeutic Effects of Exercise on Stress-Induced Memory Impairment.” The Journal of Physiological Sciences: JPS 69, no. 1 (January 2019): 1–12. Link
• Salmon, P. “Effects of Physical Exercise on Anxiety, Depression, and Sensitivity to Stress: A Unifying Theory.” Clinical Psychology Review 21, no. 1 (February 2001): 33–61. Link

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How to Relax in Stressful Situations: A Smart Stress Reduction System

Yekta said can.

1 Computer Engineering Department, Bogazici University, 34342 Istanbul, Turkey; [email protected] (N.C.); [email protected] (D.E.); rt.ude.nuob@yosre (C.E.)

Heather Iles-Smith

2 Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust/University of Leeds, Leeds LS1 3EX, UK; [email protected]

Niaz Chalabianloo

Javier fernández-Álvarez.

3 General Psychology and Communication Psychology, Catholic University of Milan, 20123 Milan, Italy; [email protected] (J.F.-Á.); [email protected] (C.R.); [email protected] (G.R.)

Claudia Repetto

Giuseppe riva.

Stress is an inescapable element of the modern age. Instances of untreated stress may lead to a reduction in the individual’s health, well-being and socio-economic situation. Stress management application development for wearable smart devices is a growing market. The use of wearable smart devices and biofeedback for individualized real-life stress reduction interventions has received less attention. By using our unobtrusive automatic stress detection system for use with consumer-grade smart bands, we first detected stress levels. When a high stress level is detected, our system suggests the most appropriate relaxation method by analyzing the physical activity-based contextual information. In more restricted contexts, physical activity is lower and mobile relaxation methods might be more appropriate, whereas in free contexts traditional methods might be useful. We further compared traditional and mobile relaxation methods by using our stress level detection system during an eight day EU project training event involving 15 early stage researchers (mean age 28; gender 9 Male, 6 Female). Participants’ daily stress levels were monitored and a range of traditional and mobile stress management techniques was applied. On day eight, participants were exposed to a ‘stressful’ event by being required to give an oral presentation. Insights about the success of both traditional and mobile relaxation methods by using the physiological signals and collected self-reports were provided.

1. Introduction

Stress constitutes a complex process that is activated by a physical or mental threat to the individuals’ homeostasis, comprising a set of diverse psychological, physiological and behavioral responses [ 1 ]. Although it is usually considered a negative response, stress actually constitutes a key process for ensuring our survival. However, when a stress response is repeatedly triggered in the absence of a challenging stimulus, or if there is constant exposure to challenging situations, stress can become harmful. Evidence suggests that, in either of these two contexts, stress is a persistent factor for the development of psycho-pathological conditions [ 2 , 3 ].

When faced with stressful events, people make autonomic and controlled efforts to reduce the negative impact and maximize the positive impact that every specific situation may provoke. Generally, this process is denominated as emotion regulation, formally defined as the process by which individuals can influence what emotions they have, when they have them and how they experience and express those emotions [ 4 ]. It has been suggested that the term emotion regulation can be understood as a broad tag that comprises the regulation of all responses that are emotionally charged, from basic emotions to complex mood states as well as regulation of everyday life [ 5 ].

Failure to address triggers of stress has been shown to lead to chronic stress, anxiety and depression, and attributed to serious physical health conditions such as cardiovascular disease [ 6 ]. The World Health Organization concluded that psychological stress is one of the most significant health problems in the 21st-century and is a growing problem [ 7 ]. There are various interventions to minimize stress based on individual preferences and requirements. Stress management techniques including ancient practices such as Tai Chi [ 8 ] and yoga [ 9 ] as well as other physical activities [ 10 ] are often cited as being helpful in combating stress. Likewise traditional meditation, mindfulness [ 11 ] and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) [ 12 ] all have established benefits. These techniques are not applicable in office or social environments, or during most daily routines. Therefore, a smart device based stress management application may be of benefit. Recently, smartphone applications such as Calm, Pause, Heartmath and Sway have been developed for indoor environments. However, these applications are not individualized nor do they include biofeedback and studies that validate their effects are limited [ 13 ].

In this study, we used the stress level detection scheme using physiological signals and added a physical activity based context analyzer. When the user experiences a high stress level, the system suggests appropriate stress reduction methods (traditional or mobile). We further compare the effects of traditional and mobile stress alleviation methods on physiological data of 15 international Ph.D. students (participants) during eight days of training. In addition, 1440 h of physiological signals from Empatica E4 smart bands were collected in this training event. Stress management techniques based on the emotion regulation model of James Gross [ 4 ] were applied to reduce participant stress levels. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first one suggesting appropriate stress reduction methods based on contextual information and comparing both traditional and mobile stress management interventions in the real-life environment using a commercial smart-band based automatic stress level detection system that eliminates motion artifacts. Using such a system is essential because these offline stress level detection algorithms could be used in real-time biofeedback apps.

Application of our stress level detection algorithm, in a real world context, could allow individuals to receive feedback regarding high stress levels along with recommendations for relaxation methods. Additional continued monitoring may also enable the individual to better understand the effectiveness of any stress reduction methods. However, for our stress detection algorithm to be applied in daily life, the smart device should be unobtrusive (i.e., should not be comprised of cables, electrodes, boards). Our system works on smart-bands which are perfect examples of this type of unobtrusive wearable device.

This paper describes emotion regulation in the context of stress management and how yoga and mindfulness can be used for regulating emotions ( Section 2 ). Methods of detecting stress and analyzing context based on physical activity are described ( Section 3 ) and data are presented related to our method for stress level detection with the use of smart-bands ( Section 4 ). Experimental results and discussion are also presented ( Section 5 ) and we present the conclusions and future works of the study ( Section 6 ).

The major research contributions of this study are the following:

• Developing a physical activity based context analyzer and relaxation method suggestion system
• Comparison of stress reduction methods (mobile mindfulness, traditional mindfulness and yoga) and their effectiveness in the context of stress management with the use of an unobtrusive smartwatch based stress level detection system
• Application of James Gross’s prominent emotion regulation model in the context of stress management and measuring the physiological component with smart bands.

2. Background

2.1. emotion regulation in the context of stress management.

Stress is a normal part of daily life. However, its effects often vary across individuals and despite similar circumstances, some people do not feel under strain while others may be severely affected. Multiple reasons exist for these differences between individuals, including how people perceive reality and how they respond to the numerous stimuli to which they are exposed. When a person believes that a certain situation surpasses their available coping mechanisms, it is referred to as perceived stress. Thus, perceived stress varies from person to person depending on the value that an individual gives to a situation and their self-recognition of the resources to deal with it.

Numerous psychological scientists have investigated perceived stress. Individuals who display a mismatch between contextual demands and perceived resources constantly (rather than during a specific moment in time) are referred to as experiencing chronic stress. Chronic stress has not only been shown to be very relevant in people’s well-being and quality of life, but also important in the appearance and maintenance of several physical and mental diseases [ 14 ].

As a consequence, mounting research has focused on the mechanisms that people implement in order to alleviate the physical and cognitive burden associated with that perceived stress. Coping styles, stress management techniques, self-regulation, or emotion regulation techniques are different labels that define the way people implement certain behavioral, cognitive, or emotional strategies to maintain allosteric load [ 15 ]. In other words, every living organism needs to vary among plasticity and stability in order to survive. Human beings are not the exception to the rule and the complex system that applies to every single person and the necessity of reaching a constant level of regulation permits the individuals to pursue their goals.

Specifically, emotion regulation has been defined as the study of “the processes by which we influence which emotions we have when we have them, and how we experience and express them” [ 4 ]. A large body of evidence has shown that there are very different consequences depending on the effectiveness people achieve to regulate their emotions. Naturally, both at an implicit or explicit level, people regulate emotions in order to maintain those allosteric levels previously mentioned. Therefore, when there are specific stressors that demand a particular cognitive or physical response, the emotional reactivity may be stronger and the need for a proper regulation more relevant. Indeed, emotion regulation has shown to be a transdiagnostic factor that is present at a wide range of mental disorders. In other words, the way people initiate, implement and monitor their emotional processes, in order to reach more desirable states, has a significant impact on the stress levels. Some emotion regulation (ER) strategies have shown to be correlated with mental health issues. Among these strategies, cognitive reappraisal, problem-solving, or acceptance shall be mentioned as strategies that are negatively correlated with psychopathology, while rumination, experiential avoidance, or suppression are positively correlated with psychopathology [ 16 ]. In this regard, hinging on the different ER strategies deployed, ER can constitute a protective factor to face stress responses that all individuals experience after minor or major stressors [ 17 ]. Additionally, an adaptive regulation of emotions, by managing stress, may also be beneficial for clinical populations, such as people suffering from affective disorders [ 18 , 19 ].

Therefore, from whole psychotherapeutic treatments to single self-applied applications, studies in the literature have focused on how people can better regulate their emotions and manage their stress levels. Among many other techniques, cognitive behavioral therapy, autogenic training, biofeedback, breathing exercises, relaxation techniques, guided imagery, mindfulness, yoga, or Tai-Chi, are some of the stress management interventions that have received attention from researchers [ 20 , 21 ].

2.2. Yoga and Mindfulness: As Tools for Emotion Regulation

2.2.1. yoga.

Yoga is an ancient Eastern practice that developed more than 2000 years ago. Although its original creator and source are uncertain, the earliest written word ‘Yoga Sutra’ describes the philosophy of yoga focussing on growing spirituality, regulating emotions and thoughts. Initially, the focus was on awareness of breathing and breathing exercises ‘pranayama’ to calm the mind and body, ultimately reaching a higher state of consciousness.

As yoga evolved, physical movement in the form of postures was included and integrated with yogic breathing ‘prana’ and elements of relaxation. The underlying purpose is to create physical flexibility, reduce pain and unpleasant stimuli and reduce negative thoughts and emotions to calm the mind and body, thereby improving well-being. In the healthcare literature, the benefits are reported to be far-reaching both for mental and physical health conditions such as anxiety, depression, cardiovascular disease, cancer and respiratory symptoms. It is also reported to reduce muscular-skeletal problems and physical symptoms through increasing the awareness of the physical body.

Yoga has become a global phenomenon and is widely practiced in many different forms. Generally, all types of yoga include some elements of relaxation. Additionally, some forms include mainly pranayama and others are more physical in nature. One such practice is vinyasa flow which involves using the inhale and exhale of the breathing pattern to move through a variety of yoga postures; this leads to the movement becoming meditative. The practice often includes pranayama followed by standing postures linked together with a movement called vinyasa, (similar to a sun salutation) which helps to keep the body moving and increases fitness, flexibility and helps maintain linkage with the breath. The practice also often includes a range of seated postures, an inversion (such as headstand or shoulder stand) and final relaxation ‘savasana’.

2.2.2. Mindfulness

Mindfulness involves being more present at the moment by acknowledging the here and now, often referred to as ‘being present’ rather than focussing on the past or future [ 8 ]. Being present may include being aware of our surroundings and the environment, or of what we are eating and drinking and physical sensations such as the sun or wind on our skin.

Acknowledging the thoughts and body are also aspects of mindfulness. Each day humans experience thousands of thoughts, the majority being of no consequence. In some instances, these thoughts are repetitive and negative in nature which can lead to increased stress and the related unpleasant physical symptoms such as feeling anxious, nausea and tension headaches. Being mindful includes an awareness of our thinking and whether we are caught up with our thoughts rather than being aware of the moment. Additionally, on a daily basis, awareness of the physical body may be minimal; being mindful includes increasing this awareness through becoming more connected with the sensations in the body. This might include experiencing the legs moving when walking, or feeling the ground under the feet or the natural way of the body whilst standing.

Mindfulness has been shown to be of benefit to physical and mental health. It is currently recommended by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence [ 22 ] as adjunctive therapy to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) for the prevention of relapse depression.

However, it may be challenging for some individuals to do this with a multitude of distractions around them and, therefore, they may choose to identify a particular time and place when and where they can sit in a comfortable position to start to become aware of their breathing and bodily sensations.

2.2.3. Mobile Mindfulness Inspired By Tai-Chi—Pause

Tai-Chi is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for both its defense training, its health benefits and meditation. There is good evidence of benefits for depression, cardiac and stroke rehabilitation and dementia [ 23 ]. The term Tai-Chi refers to a philosophy of the forces of yin and yang, related to the moves. An iPhone application Pause inspired by Tai-Chi is used for guided mindfulness which draws upon the principles of mindfulness meditation to trigger the body’s rest and digest response, quickly restoring attention [ 24 ].

3. Related Work

Researchers have created the ability to detect stress in laboratory environments with medical-grade devices [ 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 ]; smartwatches and smart bands started to be used for stress level detection studies [ 29 , 30 , 31 ]. These devices provide high comfort and rich functionality for the users, but their stress detection accuracies are lower than medical-grade devices due to low signal quality and difficulty obtaining data in intense physical activity. If data are collected for long periods, researchers have shown that their detection performance improves [ 32 ]. During movement periods, the signal can be lost (gap in the data) or artifacts might be generated. Stress level detection accuracies for 2-classes by using these devices are around 70% [ 29 , 30 , 33 , 34 ].

After detecting the stress level of individuals, researchers should recover from the stressed state to the baseline state. To the best of our knowledge, there are very few studies that combine automatic stress detection (using physiological data) with recommended appropriate stress management techniques. Ahani et al. [ 35 ] examined the physiological effect of mindfulness. They used the Biosemi device which acquires electroencephalogram (EEG) and respiration signals. They successfully distinguished control (non-meditative state) and meditation states with machine learning algorithms. Karydis et al. [ 36 ] identified the post-meditation perceptual states by using a wearable EEG measurement device (Muse headband). Mason et al. [ 37 ] examined the effect of yoga on physiological signals. They used PortaPres Digital Plethtsmograph for measuring blood pressure and respiration signals. They also showed the positive effect of yoga by using these signals. A further study validated the positive effect of yoga with physiological signals; researchers monitored breathing and heart rate pulse with a piezoelectric belt and a pulse sensor [ 21 ]. They demonstrated the effectiveness of different yogic breathing patterns to help participants relax. There are also several studies showing the effectiveness of mobile mindfulness apps by using physiological signals [ 20 , 38 , 39 ]. Svetlov et al. [ 20 ] monitored the heart rate variability (HRV), electrodermal activity (EDA), Salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) and EEG values. In other studies, EEG and respiration signals were also used for validating the effect of mobile mindfulness apps [ 38 , 39 ]. When the literature is examined, it could be observed that the effect of ancient relaxation methods and mobile mindfulness methods are examined separately in different studies. Ancient methods generally require out of office environments that are not suitable for most of the population, since, in the modern age, people started to spend more time in office-like environments. On the other hand, some smartphone applications such as Pause, HeartMath and Calm do not require extra hardware or equipment and be applicable in office environments. Hence, an ideal solution depends on the context of individuals. A system that monitors stress levels, analyzes the context of individuals and suggests an appropriate relaxation method in the case of high stress will benefit society. Furthermore, mobile methods along with the ancient techniques should be applied in stressful real-life events and their effectiveness should be compared by investigating physiological signals. When the literature is examined, there is not any study comparing the performance of these methods in real-life events (see Table 1 ). Another important finding is that these methods should be compared with unobtrusive wearable devices so that they could be used for a biofeedback system in daily lives. Individuals may be reluctant to use a system with cables, electrodes and boards in their daily life. Therefore, a comparison of different states with such systems could not be used in daily life. There is clearly a need for a suggestion and comparison of ancient and mobile meditation methods by using algorithms that could run on unobtrusive devices. An ideal system should detect high stress levels, suggest relaxation methods and control whether users are doing these exercises right or not with unobtrusive devices. Our algorithm is suitable to be embedded in such daily life applicable systems that use physiological signals such as skin temperature (ST), HRV, EDA and accelerometer (ACC). In this paper, we present the findings of our pilot study that tested the use of our algorithm during general daily activities, stress reduction activities and a stressful event.

Comparison of our work with the studies applying different types of meditation techniques for stress management in the literature.

4. Methodology

4.1. unobtrusive stress detection system with smart bands.

Our stress detection system developed in [ 32 ] allows users to be aware of their stress levels during their daily activities without creating any interruption or restriction. The only requirement to use this system is the need to wear a smart band. Participants in this study wore the Empatica E4 smart band on their non-dominant hand. The smart band provides Blood Volume Pressure, ST, EDA, IBI (Interbeat Interval) and 3D Acceleration. The data are stored in the memory of the device. Then, the artifacts of physiological signals were detected and handled. The features were extracted from the sensory signals and fed to the machine learning algorithm for prediction. In order to use this system, pre-trained machine learning models are required. For training the models, feature vectors and collected class labels were used.

4.1.1. EDA Preprocessing Artifact Detection and Removal Methods

The body sweats when emotional arousal and stress are experienced and, therefore, skin conductance increases [ 40 ]. This makes EDA a promising candidate for stress level detection. Intense physical activity and temperature changes contaminate the SC (Skin Conductance) signal. Therefore, affected segments (artifacts) should be filtered out from the original signal. In order to detect the artifacts in the SC signal, we used an EDA toolkit [ 41 ] which is 95% accurate on the detection of the artifacts. While developing this tool, technicians labeled the artifacts manually. They trained a machine learning model by using the labels. In addition to the SC signal, 3D acceleration and ST signals were also used for artifact detection. We removed the parts that this tool detected as artifacts from our signals. We further added batch processing and segmentation to this tool by using custom software built-in Python 2.7.

4.1.2. EDA Feature Extraction Methods

After the artifact removal phase, features were extracted from the EDA signal. This signal has two components phasic and tonic; features from both components were extracted (see Table 2 ). The cvxEDA tool [ 42 ] was used for the decomposition of the signal into these components. This tool uses convex optimization to estimate the Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) activity that is based on Bayesian statistics.

EDA features and their definitions.

Tonic Component Features

The tonic component in the EDA signal represents the long-term slow changes. This component is also known as the skin conductance level. It could be regarded as the indicator of general psychophysiological activation [ 43 ].

Phasic Component Features

The phasic component represents faster (event-related ) differences in the SC signal. The Peaks of phasic SC component as a reaction to a stimulus is also called Skin Conductance Response [ 43 ]. After we decompose the phasic component from the EDA signal, peak related features were extracted.

4.1.3. Heart Activity Preprocessing (Artifact Detection and Removal) and Feature Extraction Methods

Heart activity (or, more specifically, HRV) reacts to changes in the autonomic nervous system (ANS) caused by stress [ 44 ] and it is, therefore, one of the most commonly used physiological signal for stress detection [ 40 ]. However, vigorous movement of subjects and improperly worn devices may contaminate the HRV signal collected from smartwatches and smart bands. In order to address this issue, we developed an artifact handling tool in MATLAB programming language [ 45 ] that has batch processing capability. First, the data were divided into 2 min long segments with 50% overlapping. Two-minute segments were selected because it is reported that the time interval for stress stimulation and recovery processes is around a few minutes [ 46 ]. The artifact detection percentage rule (also employed in Kubios [ 47 ]) was applied after the segmentation phase. In this rule, each data point was compared with the local average around it. When the difference was more than a predetermined threshold percentage, (20% is commonly selected in the literature [ 48 ]), the data point was labeled as an artifact. In our system, we deleted the inter-beat intervals detected as the artifacts and interpolated these points with the cubic spline interpolation technique which was used in the Kubios software [ 47 ]. The time-domain features of HRV are calculated. In order to calculate the frequency domain features, we interpolated the RR intervals to 4 Hz. Then, we applied the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). These time and frequency domain features (see Table 3 ) were selected because these are the most discriminative ones in the literature [ 30 , 49 , 50 ].

HRV features and their definitions [ 32 ].

4.1.4. Accelerometer Feature Extraction Methods

Research has shown that movements of the human body and postures can indeed be employed as a means to detect signs of different emotional states. The dynamics of body movement were investigated by Castellano et al. who used multimodal data to identify human affective behaviors. Specific movement metrics, such as the amount of movement, intensity and fluidity, were used to help deduct emotions, and it was found that the amount of movement was a major factor in distinguishing different types of emotions [ 51 ]. Melzer et al. investigated whether movements comprised of collections of Laban movement components could be recognized as expressing basic emotions [ 52 ]. The results of their study confirm that, even when the subject has no intention of expressing emotions, particular movements can assist in the perception of bodily expressions of emotions. Accelerometer sensors may be used to detect these movements and different types of affect. The accelerometer sensor data are used for two different purposes in our system. Firstly, we extracted features from the accelerometer sensor, for detecting stress levels. We also selected the features to be used as described in Table 4 [ 53 ] and, as mentioned above, this sensor was also employed to clean the EDA signal in the EDAExplorer Tool [ 41 ].

ACC features and their definitions.

4.1.5. Skin Temperature

A skin temperature signal is used for the artifact detection phase of the EDA signal in the EDAExplorer Tool [ 41 ]. After we divide our data into segments, different modalities were merged into one feature vector. The heart activity signal started with a delay (to calculate heartbeats per minute at the start) and all signals were then synchronized. We included start and end timestamps for each segment, and each modality was merged with a custom Python script.

4.1.6. Machine Learning Classifier Algorithms

The Weka machine learning toolkit [ 54 ] is used for identifying stress levels. The Weka toolkit has several preprocessing features before classification. Our data set was not balanced when the number of instances belonging to each class was considered. We solved this issue by removing samples from the majority class. We selected random undersampling because it is the most commonly applied method [ 55 ]. In this way, we prevented classifiers from biasing towards the class with more instances. In this study, we employed five different machine learning classification algorithms to recognize different stress levels: MultiLayer Perceptron (MLP), Random Forest (RF) (with 100 trees), K-nearest neighbors (kNN) ( n = 1–4), Linear discriminant analysis (LDA), Principal component analysis (PCA) and support vector machine (SVM) with a radial basis function. These algorithms were selected because they were the most commonly applied and successful classifiers for detecting stress levels [ 30 , 48 ]. In addition, 10-fold stratified cross-validation was then applied and hyperparameters of the machine learning algorithms were fine-tuned with grid search. The best performing models have been reported.

4.1.7. Dimensionality Reduction

We applied correlation-based feature selection (CBFS) technique which is available in the Weka machine learning package for combined signal [ 56 ]. The CBFS method removes the features that are less correlated with the output class. For every model, we selected the ten most important features. This method is applied for MLP, RF, kNN and LDA. In order to create an SVM based model, we applied PCA based dimensionality reduction where the covered variance is selected as 0.95 (the default setting).

4.1.8. Insights from the Feature Selection Process

The CBFS method computes the correlation of features with the ground truth label of the stress level. Insights about the contribution of the features to the stress detection performance can be obtained from Figure 1 and Figure 2 . Three of the best features (over 0.15 correlation) are frequency domain features. These features are high, low and very-low frequency components of the HRV signal (see Figure 1 ). When we examine the EDA features, peaks per 100 s feature are the most important and distinctive feature by far. Since the EDA signal is distorted under the influence of the stimuli, the number of peaks and valleys increases. Lastly, when the acceleration signal is investigated, the most discriminative feature is mean acceleration in the z -axis (see Figure 2 b). This could be due to the nature of hand and body gestures which are caused by stressed situations.

Top-ranking features selected for the HRV signal.

Top-ranking features selected for the EDA and ACC signals.

4.2. Relaxation Method Suggestion by Analyzing the Physical Activity-Based Context

Context is a broad term that could contain different types of information such as calendars, activity type, location and activity intensity. Physical activity intensity could be used to infer contextual information. In more restricted environments such as office, classrooms, public transportation and physical activity intensity could be low, whereas, in outdoor environments, physical activity intensity could increase. Therefore, an appropriate relaxation method will change according to the context of individuals.

For calculating physical activity intensity, we used the EDAExplorer tool [ 41 ]. The stillness metric is used for this purpose. It is the percentage of periods in which the person is still or motionless. Total acceleration must be less than a threshold (default is 0.1 [ 41 ]) for 95 percent of a minute in order for this minute to count as still [ 41 ]. Then, the ratio of still minutes in a session can be calculated. For the ratio of still minutes in a session, we labeled sessions below 20% as still, above 20% as active and suggested relaxation method accordingly (see Figure 3 ).

The whole system diagram is depicted. When a high stress level is experienced, by analyzing the physical activity based context, the system suggests the most appropriate reduction method.

4.3. Description of the Data Collection Procedure

The proposed stress level monitoring mechanism, for real-life settings, was evaluated during an eight day Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Training Network (ITN) training event in Istanbul, Turkey, for the AffecTech project. AffecTech is a program funded by Horizon 2020 (H2020) framework established by the European Commission. The AffecTech project is an international collaborative research network involving 15 PhD students (early stage researchers (ESR)) with the aim of developing low-cost effective wearable technologies for individuals who experience affective disorders (for example, depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder).

The eight-day training event included workshops, lectures and training with clearly defined tasks and activities to ensure that the ESR had developed the required skills, knowledge and values outline prior to the training event. At the end of the eight-day training, ESRs were required to deliver a presentation about their PhD work to two evaluators from the European Union where they received feedback about their progress (see Figure 4 for raw physiological signals at the start of the presentation). For studying the effects of emotion regulation on stress, yoga, guided mindfulness and mobile-based mindfulness, sessions were held by a certified instructor.

Sample data belong to a presentation session. The increase in EDA, ST and IBI could be observed when the subject started the presentation.

During the training, physiological and questionnaire data were collected from the 16 ESR participants (9 men, mean age 28); 15 ESRs and one of the AffecTech project academics, all of whom gave informed consent to participate in the study. Participants were from different countries with diverse nationalities (two from Iran, two from Spain, two from Italy, one from Argentina, one from Pakistan, one from China, one from Switzerland, one from Belarus, one from France, one from England, one from Barbados, one from Turkey and one from Bulgaria). Due to the fault of one of the Empatica E4 devices, it was not possible to include data from one participant. The remaining 15 participants completed all stages of the study successfully.

During the eight days of training and presentations, psychophysiological data were collected from 16 participants during the training event from Empatica E4 smart band while they are awake. For studying the effects of emotion regulation on stress, yoga, guided mindfulness and mobile-based mindfulness sessions were held by a certified instructor. The timeline of the event is shown in Figure 5 .

Time-line depicting eight days of the training event. Presentations, relaxations and lectures are highlighted.

4.3.1. Physiological Stress Data

The psychophysiological signal data were collected using the Empatica E4 smart band whilst participants were awake throughout the eight days of the AffecTech training. Physiological data included IBI, EDA, ACC (Accelerometer) and ST and stored in different csv files. In addition, 27.39% of the data are obtained from free times (free day and after training until subjects slept 5:00 p.m.–10:00 p.m.), 43.83% of the data comes from lectures in the training, 11.41% is the presentation session and relax sessions consist of 17.35% of the data. As mentioned previously, we randomly undersampled (most commonly applied method [ 55 ] ) the data to overcome the class imbalance problem. The participants’ blood pressure (BP) was also recorded using CE(0123) Harvard Medical Devices Ltd. automated sphygmomanometer prior to and after each stress reduction event (yoga and mindfulness), in order to demonstrate whether the participants stress levels were modified. On each occasion that the participants’ BP was recorded, the mean of three recordings was used as the final BP. A reduction in the participants’ blood pressure and/or pulse rate may be seen, which demonstrates a reduction in stress level.

4.3.2. Ethics

The procedure used in this study was approved by the Institutional Review Board for Research with Human Subjects of Boğaziçi University with the approval number 2018/16. Prior to data acquisition, each participant received a consent form describing the experimental procedure and its benefits and implications to both the society and the subject. The procedure was also explained verbally to the subject. All of the data are stored anonymously.

4.3.3. Questionnaire Self-Report Stress Data

A session-based self-report questionnaire comprised of six questions based on the Nasa Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) [ 57 ]. The frustration scale was specifically used to measure perceived stress levels [ 32 ]. We asked the following question to the participants for each session:

How irritated, stressed and annoyed versus content, relaxed and complacent did you feel during the task?

Questionnaires were completed daily (at the end of the day) and, after each presentation, lecture and stress reduction event (such as yoga and mindfulness).

4.3.4. Stress Management Scheme Using Yoga and Mindfulness

During the eight day training, it is assumed that the participants’ stress levels are likely to have increased day by day because they were required to give a presentation (perceived as a stressful event) reporting their PhD progress to the EU project evaluators at the end of the training.

Underpinned by James Gross’s Emotion Regulation model (see Figure 6 ) [ 4 ], we modified the situation to help the participants to reduce their thoughts of the end of the training presentation. To help participants manage their stress levels, we applied Yoga and mindfulness sessions on two separate days (day three and day four, respectively). These sessions lasted approximately 1 h and, throughout the sessions, participants wore an Empatica E4 smartband. In addition to the physiological signals coming from the Smartbands, participants’ blood pressure values were also recorded before and after the yoga and mindfulness sessions.

Application of James Gross’s Emotion Regulation model [ 4 ] in the context of stress management.

5. Experimental Results and Discussion

5.1. statistical data analysis, 5.1.1. validation of different perceived stress levels by using the self-reports.

In order to validate that the participants experienced different perceived stress levels in different contexts (lecture, relaxation, presentation), we used the Frustration item (see Section 4.5) from the NASA-TLX [ 57 ]. The distribution of answers is demonstrated in Figure 7 . Our aim is to show that the perceived stress levels (obtained from self-report answers) differ in relaxation sessions considerably when compared to the presentation session (high stress). To this end, we applied the t -test (in R programming language) to the perceived stress self-report answers of yoga versus presentation, mindfulness versus presentation and pause (mobile mindfulness) versus presentation session pairs. The paired t -test is used to evaluate the separability of each session. The degree of freedom is 15. We applied the variance test to each session tuple; we could not identify equal variance in any of the session tuples. Thus, we selected the variance as unequal. We used 99.5% confidence intervals. The t -test results’ ( p -values and test statistics) are provided in Table 5 . For all tuples, the null hypothesis stating that the perceived stress of the relaxation method is not less than the presentation session is rejected. The perceived stress levels of participants for all meditation sessions are observed to be significantly lower than the presentation session (high stress).

Visual representation of the frustration scores collected in different types of sessions.

T -test results for session tuple comparison of perceived stress levels using self-reports.

5.1.2. Before and After Physiological Measurements for Evaluating Performance of Yoga and Mindfulness with Blood Pressure

In this section, we compared the effect of stress management tools such as yoga and mindfulness on blood pressure. It is expected that blood pressure sensors will be part of unobtrusive wrist-worn wearable sensors soon. We plan to integrate a blood pressure (BP) module to our system when they are available. Therefore, by using the measurements of a medical-grade blood pressure monitor, we provided insights about how stress reaction affects BP. We further applied and tested the prominent emotion regulation model of James Gross by analyzing these measurements in the context of stress management. We measured the diastolic and systolic BP and pulse using a medical-grade blood pressure monitor before and after the yoga and mindfulness sessions. In order to ensure that the participants were relaxed and that an accurate BP was recorded, BP was measured three times with the mean as the recorded result. A one-sample t -test was applied to the difference between mean values. The results are shown in Table 6 .

The difference between the mean diastolic blood pressure, the mean systolic blood pressure and the mean pulse, before and after sessions of guided mindfulness and guided yoga. (* p < 0.05).

Mindfulness decreased the systolic BP, –1.13% (ns), increased diastolic BP, +1.75% ( p < 0.05) and decreased the pulse –5.75% ( p < 0.05). Medicine knows that systolic blood pressure (the top number or highest blood pressure when the heart is squeezing and pushing the blood around the body) is more important than diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number or lowest blood pressure between heartbeats) because it gives the best idea of the risk of having a stroke or heart attack. In this view, the significant reduction of systolic BP after mindfulness is an important result.

Moreover, the difference between systolic and diastolic BP is called pulse pressure. For example, 120 systolic minus 60 diastolic equals a pulse pressure of 60. It is also known that a pulse pressure greater than 60 can be a predictor of heart attacks or other cardiovascular diseases, while a low pulse pressure (less than 40) may indicate poor heart function. In our study, pulse pressure was lower after mindfulness (we had both a significant reduction in systolic BP and an increase in diastolic BP), but its value was higher than 40 (42.69 mean difference before the mindfulness and 40.48 mean difference after the mindfulness), suggesting that this result can also be considered clinically positive.

During yoga, there was a decrease in systolic BP by −5.81% ( p < 0.05), diastolic BP by −1.93% (ns) and increase in pulse +8.06% ( p < 0.05). Yoga appears to be more effective than mindfulness at decreasing systolic and diastolic blood pressure, although mindfulness seems to be more effective than yoga for decreasing the pulse due to the activity involved in yoga.

5.2. Physiological Stress Level Detection with Wearables by Using Context Labels as the Class Label

We tested our system by using the known context labels of sessions as the class label. We used Lecture (mild stress), Yoga and Mindfulness (relax) and Presentation in front of the board of juries (high stress) as class labels by examining perceived stress self-report answers in Figure 6 . We investigated the success of relaxation methods, different modalities and finding the presenter.

5.2.1. Effect of Different Physiological Signals on Stress Detection

We evaluated the effect of using the interbeat-interval, the skin conductance and the accelerometer signals separately and in a combined manner on two and three class classification performance. These classes are mild stress, high stress and relax states from mindfulness and yoga sessions. The results are shown in Table 7 , Table 8 and Table 9 . For the three-class classification problem, we achieved a maximum accuracy of 72% by using MLP on only HRV features and 86.61% with only accelerometer features using the Random Forest classifier and 85.36% accuracy combination of all features with LDA classifier (see Table 7 ). The difficulty in this classification task is a similar physiological reaction to relax and mild stress situations. However, since the main focus of our study is to discriminate high stress from other classes to offer relaxation techniques in this state, it did not affect our system performance. We also investigated high-mild stress and high stress-relax 2-class classification performance. For the discrimination of high and mild stress, HRV outperformed other signals with 98% accuracy using MLP (see Table 8 ). In the high stress-relax 2-class problem, only HRV features with RF achieved a maximum accuracy of 86%, whereas ACC features with MLP achieved a maximum of 94% accuracy. In this problem, the combination of all signals with RF achieved 92% accuracy which is the best among all classifiers (see Table 9 ). For all models, EDA did not perform well. This might be caused by the loose contact with EDA electrodes in the strap due to loosely worn smartbands.

Effect of different modalities and their combination on the system performance. Note that the number of classes is fixed at 3 (high stress, mild stress and relax).

Effect of different modalities and their combination on the system performance. Note that the number of classes is fixed at 2 (high stress and mild stress).

Effect of different modalities and their combination on the system performance. Note that the number of classes is fixed at 2 (high stress and relax).

5.2.2. Effectiveness of Yoga, Mindfulness and Mobile Mindfulness (Pause)

We applied three different relaxation methods to manage stress levels of individuals. In order to measure the effectiveness of each method, we examined how easily these physiological signals in the relaxation sessions can be separated from high stress presentations. If it can be separated from high stress levels with higher classification performance, it could be inferred that they are more successful at reducing stress. As seen in Table 10 and Table 11 , mobile mindfulness has lower success in reducing stress levels. Yoga has the highest classification performance with both HR and EDA signals.

The classification accuracy of the relaxation sessions using stress management methods and stressful sessions using EDA.

The classification accuracy of the relaxation sessions using stress management methods and stressful sessions using HRV.

6. Conclusions

In this study, by using our automatic stress detection system with the use of Empatica-E4 smart-bands, we detected stress levels and suggested appropriate relaxation methods (i.e., traditional or mobile) when high stress levels are experienced. Our stress detection framework is unobtrusive, comfortable and suitable for use in daily life and our relaxation method suggestion system makes its decisions based on the physical activity-related context of a user. To test our system, we collected eight days of data from 16 individuals participating in an EU research project training event. Individuals were exposed to varied stressful and relaxation events (1) training and lectures (mild stress), (2) yoga, mindfulness and mobile mindfulness (PAUSE) (relax) and (3) were required to give a moderated presentation (high stress). The participants were from different countries with diverse cultures.

In addition, 1440 h of mobile data (12 h in a day) were collected during this eight-day event from each participant measuring their stress levels. Data were collected during the training sessions, relaxation events and the moderated presentation and during their free time for 12 h in a day, demonstrating that our study monitored daily life stress. EDA and HR signals were collected to detect physiological stress and a combination of different modalities increased stress detection, performance and provided the most discriminative features. We first applied James Gross ER model in the context of stress management and measured the blood pressure during the ER cycle. When the known context was used as the label for stress level detection system, we achieved 98% accuracy for 2-class and 85% accuracy for 3-class. Most of the studies in the literature only detect stress levels of individuals. The participants’ stress levels were managed with yoga, mindfulness and a mobile mindfulness application while monitoring their stress levels. We investigated the success of each stress management technique by the separability of physiological signals from high-stress sessions. We demonstrated that yoga and traditional mindfulness performed slightly better than the mobile mindfulness application. Furthermore, this study is not without limitations. In order to generalize the conclusions, more experiments based on larger sample groups should be conducted. As future work, we plan to develop personalized perceived stress models by using self-reports and test our system in the wild. Furthermore, attitudes in the psychological field constitute a topic of utmost relevance, which always play an instrumental role in the determination of human behavior [ 58 ]. We plan to design a new experiment which accounts for the attitudes of participants towards relaxation methods and their effects on the performance of stress recognition systems.

Acknowledgments

We would like to show our gratitude to the Affectech Project for providing us the opportunity for the data collection in the training event and funding the research.

Author Contributions

Y.S.C. is the main editor of this work and made major contributions in data collection, analysis and manuscript writing. H.I.-S. made valuable contributions in both data collection and manuscript writing. She was the yoga and mindfulness instructor in the event and contributed the related sections regarding traditional and mobile methods. She also led the blood pressure measurement efforts before and after relaxation methods. D.E. and N.C. contributed equally to this work in design, implementation, data analysis and writing the manuscript. J.F.-Á., C.R. and G.R. contributed the experiment design and provided valuable insights into both emotion regulation theory. They also contributed to the related sections in the manuscript. C.E. provided invaluable feedback and technical guidance to interpret the design and the detail of the field study. He also performed comprehensive critical editing to increase the overall quality of the manuscript. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

This work has been supported by AffecTech: Personal Technologies for Affective Health, Innovative Training Network funded by the H2020 People Programme under Marie Skłodowska-Curie Grant Agreement No. 722022. This work is supported by the Turkish Directorate of Strategy and Budget under the TAM Project number DPT2007K120610.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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18 Effective Stress Relief Strategies

How to Relieve Stress Now and in the Future

Elizabeth Scott, PhD is an author, workshop leader, educator, and award-winning blogger on stress management, positive psychology, relationships, and emotional wellbeing.

Rachel Goldman, PhD FTOS, is a licensed psychologist, clinical assistant professor, speaker, wellness expert specializing in eating behaviors, stress management, and health behavior change.

• Short-Term Strategies
• Long-Term Strategies
• Problem-Focused Coping
• Next in How Stress Impacts Your Health Guide 5 Types of Self-Care for Every Area of Your Life

From minor challenges to major crises, stress is part of life. And while you can't always control your circumstances, you can control how you respond to them. When stress becomes overwhelming or chronic, it can affect your well-being. That's why it's essential to have effective stress relievers that can calm your mind and body. 

Some effective stress management techniques include:

• Guided imagery
• Progressive muscle relaxation
• Deep breathing
• Going for a walk
• Aromatherapy
• Healthy diet
• Stress relief supplements
• Leisure activities
• Positive self-talk
• Evaluating priorities
• Social support
• Eliminating stressors

Highly Effective Tips for Relieving Stress

There isn't a one-size-fits-all option when it comes to stress relief, however. What works for one person might not work for another.

And what works for you at home might not be an option when you're at work or in the community (dancing around your living room might be helpful but dancing in the grocery store might not be). 

So it's important to have a variety of stress relief tools at your disposal. Then, you'll be able to pick a strategy that works best for your current circumstances. 

Fast-Acting Stress Relief Strategies

What strategies can relieve stress fast? A number of helpful techniques, such as deep breathing and meditation, are fast-acting tools that you can do anywhere, anytime.

Whether you're about to be interviewed for a job or you're feeling overwhelmed by your child's behavior at the playground, it's important to have some stress reduction tools that can lower your stress right now.

The best short-term strategies:

• Can be performed anywhere
• Take very little practice to master
• Provide immediate relief

Try Guided Imagery

Guided imagery is like taking a short vacation in your mind. It can involve imagining yourself being in your "happy place"—maybe picturing yourself sitting on a beach, listening to the waves, smelling the ocean, and feeling the warm sand underneath you.

Guided imagery can be done with a recording where you listen to someone walk you through a peaceful scene. Or, once you know how to do it yourself, you can practice guided imagery on your own. 

Simply close your eyes for a minute and walk yourself through a peaceful scene. Think about all the sensory experiences you engage in and allow yourself to feel like you're really there. After a few minutes, open your eyes and return to the present moment.

Meditation brings short-term stress relief as well as lasting stress management benefits. There are many different forms of meditation to try–each one is unique and brings its own appeal.

You might develop a mantra that you repeat in your mind as you take slow deep breaths. Or, you might take a few minutes to practice mindfulness, which involves being in the moment. Simply pay attention to what you see, hear, taste, touch, and smell.

When you're focused on the here-and-now, you won't be able to ruminate about something that already happened and you can't worry about something in the future. Meditation and mindfulness take practice, but it can make a big difference in your overall stress level as it brings you back to the present.

Practice Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Progressive muscle relaxation involves relaxing all the muscles in your body, group by group. To practice, you can start with a few deep breaths.

Then, practice tightening and relaxing each muscle group, starting with your forehead and moving down to your toes. 

With practice, you'll learn to recognize tension and tightness in your muscles and you'll be able to relax more easily. Each time you practice, however, you should experience a feeling of relaxation sweeping through your body. 

Focus on Breathing

Just focusing on your breath or changing the way you breathe can make a big difference to your overall stress level. Breathing techniques can calm your body and your brain in just a few minutes.

The best news is that no one around you will know you're doing them. So whether you're in a stressful meeting or you're sitting in a crowded theater, breathing exercises could be key to reducing your stress.  

While there are many different breathing exercises, like karate breathing , a few simple ones include:

• Breathe in through your nose and watch your belly fill with air. Count slowly to three as you inhale. Hold for one second, and then slowly breathe out through your nose as you count to three again.
• Breathe in through your nose and imagine that you're inhaling peaceful, calm air. Imagine that air spreading throughout your body. As you exhale, imagine that you're breathing out stress and tension. 

Take a Walk

Exercise is a fantastic stress reliever that can work in minutes. Taking a walk allows you to enjoy a change of scenery, which can get you into a different frame of mind, and brings the benefits of exercise as well.

So whether you just need to take a stroll around the office to get a break from a frustrating task or you decide to go for a long walk in the park after work, walking is a simple but effective way to rejuvenate your mind and body.

Get a Hug From a Loved One

Physical touch can do a lot to relieve your stress. Hugging a loved one can be especially beneficial.

When you hug someone, oxytocin (also known as the "cuddle hormone") is released. Oxytocin is associated with higher levels of happiness and lower levels of stress.

Oxytocin also causes a reduction in blood pressure. It reduces the stress hormone norepinephrine and can produce a sense of relaxation. 

So don't be afraid to ask a loved one for a hug if you need it. It's good for both of you and it can be one of the simplest forms of stress relief available.

Enjoy Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy has real benefits for stress relief—it can help you to feel energized, more relaxed, or more present in the moment.

Emerging research suggests certain scents can alter brain wave activity and decrease stress hormones in the body.

So whether you enjoy candles, diffusers, or body products, consider incorporating some aromatherapy into your day. 

Create Artwork

Getting in touch with your creative side may have been easy for you during childhood, but it's not too late to pick it up again if you’ve lost touch with your penchant for artwork.

If you aren't into drawing or painting, consider coloring in a coloring book. Adult coloring books have risen in popularity, and for good reason—coloring can be a great stress reliever.

Research consistently shows that coloring can have a meditative effect. One study found that anxiety levels decline in people who were coloring complex geometric patterns, making it a perfect outlet for stress reduction.

Long-Term Stress Relief Strategies

What can you do to calm mental stress over the long term? Certain habits can promote resilience to stress and increase overall wellness. For example, those who  exercise  or meditate regularly tend to become less stressed in the face of a difficult challenge.

So it's important to create a lifestyle that will help you ward off stress and deal with challenges in a healthy way. 

Eat a Balanced Diet

A poor diet can bring greater reactivity toward stress.  Emotional eating and reaching for high-fat, high-sugar foods can provide a temporary sense of relief that adds to your long-term stress.

Refined carbs, like cookies and potato chips, can cause a spike in blood sugar. When your blood sugar crashes, you might experience more stress and anxiety.

Consuming a healthy diet can help you combat stress over the long haul. Foods like eggs, avocado, and walnuts support mood regulation and energy balance. 

Try Stress Relief Supplements

Some vitamins and supplements may have benefits for stress relief. What vitamins help with stress? A daily multivitamin may help address nutritional deficits and ensure you get the necessary vitamins and minerals to feel your best. Other supplements that may help relieve stress include:

• Melatonin : This natural hormone can help regulate your body's circadian rhythm. Improving sleep can help you feel less stressed.
• Ashwagandha : This adaptogenic herb is thought to help improve the body's resilience to mental and physical stress.
• L-theanine : This amino acid has been shown to help reduce stress, promote relaxation, and improve sleep quality.
• B vitamins : Some research indicates that B vitamins may help lower homocysteine levels, reduce stress, and improve mood.

Make Time for Leisure Activities

Leisure activities can be a wonderful way to relieve stress. Yet, many people feel as though their lives are too busy for hobbies, games, or extra fun.

But building time for leisure into your schedule could be key to helping you feel your best. And when you feel better, you'll perform better, which means leisure time may make your work time more efficient.

Whether you find joy in caring for a garden or you like making quilts, hobbies and leisure are key to living your best life.

Develop a Positive Self-Talk Habit

The way you talk to yourself matters. Harsh self-criticism, self-doubt, and catastrophic predictions aren't helpful. If you're constantly thinking things like, "I don't have time for this," and "I can't stand this," you'll stress yourself out.

It's important to learn to talk to yourself in a more realistic, compassionate manner. When you call yourself names or doubt your ability to succeed, reply with a kinder inner dialogue.

Positive self-talk can help you develop a healthier outlook. And an optimistic and compassionate conversation can help you manage your emotions and take positive action. 

Practice Yoga

Yoga combines physical movement, meditation, light exercise, and controlled breathing—all of which provide excellent stress relief.

And while you're likely to reap immediate benefits from a single yoga session, you're likely to receive long-term benefits if you incorporate it into your life in a consistent way. 

Yoga offers a variety of physical, psychological, and spiritual benefits. To get started, you might take a class, enroll in an online program, or use an app to help you begin practicing.

Express Gratitude

Gratitude helps you recognize all the things you have to be thankful for. Whether you're grateful for a sunny day or thankful you arrived at work safely, think about all the good things you have in life.

Gratitude also reminds you of all of the resources you have to cope with stress, which can be quite empowering. 

Studies  also show grateful people enjoy better mental health, lower stress, and a better quality of life.

So whether you decide to make it a habit to identify what you're grateful for as you sit around the dinner table or you decide to write down three things you're grateful for in a gratitude journal every day, make gratitude a regular habit. 

Prioritize Exercise

Physical activity is key to managing stress and improving mental health. And the best news is, there are many different kinds of activities that can reduce your stress.

Join a gym, take a class, or exercise outside. Keep in mind that there are many different ways to get more physical activity in your day too.

Walking, strength training, kayaking, hiking, and spin class are just a few different examples of ways you can get stress relief.

Problem-Focused Coping Stress Relief.

Most stress relievers focus on changing your emotions. But sometimes, you won't necessarily get relief until you change the environment. 

This is referred to as problem-focused coping (as opposed to emotion-focused coping ). Problem-focused coping involves taking steps to remove the stressor from your life (as opposed to changing how you feel about the stressor).

Reassess Your To-Do Lists

If you're trying to squeeze 20 hours worth of work into 16 hours, you're going to feel stressed. Reducing your workload could be key to helping you get through the day feeling better.

Whether that means stepping away from a committee you joined or it involves hiring someone to complete some of your household chores for you, 

Honing your time management skills can allow you to minimize the stressors that you experience, and better manage the ones you can't avoid.

When you are able to complete everything on your "to do" list without the stress of rushing or forgetting, your whole life feels easier.

Obtain Social Support

Having supportive people in your life is the key to stress management. If you lack emotional support and friendship, it's important to get it.

That may mean reaching out to your existing network. Perhaps confiding in a family member or distant friend can help you become closer and it may give you the social support you need.

You may also need to expand your network. Join an organization, attend a support group, or get professional help if you lack supportive people in your life. 

Cut out Things That Add to Your Stress

Sometimes, the best way to reduce your stress is to cut something out of your life. Get rid of the things that are adding to your stress so you can experience more peace. 

Watching the news, being constantly connected to your digital devices, drinking alcohol, and consuming too much caffeine are just a few of the things that may add more stress to your life. Making some changes to your daily habits could be instrumental in helping you feel better.

A Word From Verywell

Finding the best stress relief strategies may take some experimenting. Some strategies may take practice too.

But it's important to keep looking for the tools that will help you manage life's inevitable ups and downs in a healthy way. Keeping stress at a manageable level is important for your overall well-being.

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Burke A, Lam CN, Stussman B, Yang H. Prevalence and patterns of use of mantra, mindfulness and spiritual meditation among adults in the United States. BMC Complement Altern Med . 2017;17(1):316. doi:10.1186/s12906-017-1827-8

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Baba Y, Inagaki S, Nakagawa S, Kaneko T, Kobayashi M, Takihara T. Effects of l-theanine on cognitive function in middle-aged and older subjects: A randomized placebo-controlled study . J Med Food . 2021;24(4):333-341. doi:10.1089/jmf.2020.4803

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By Elizabeth Scott, PhD Elizabeth Scott, PhD is an author, workshop leader, educator, and award-winning blogger on stress management, positive psychology, relationships, and emotional wellbeing.

Workplace Stress Management: 11 Best Strategies & Worksheets

An American Psychological Association survey found that 31% of staff felt stressed out during their workday (cited in Tetrick & Winslow, 2015).

Help is available. Workplace stress management and wellness programs can help reduce the degree and impact of stress and restore an employee’s depleted psychological resources (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015).

This article explores what we mean by workplace stress management and introduces mechanisms and activities that can provide relief and help staff cope.

Before you continue, we thought you might like to download our three Stress & Burnout Prevention Exercises (PDF) for free . These science-based exercises will equip you and those you work with with tools to manage stress better and find a healthier balance in your life.

This Article Contains:

What is workplace stress management, how to prevent stress at work: 3 strategies, 2 helpful coping mechanisms for employees, stress relief at work: 3 worksheets to reduce stress, 3 activities & worksheets to cope with stress, how to craft prevention programs & workshops, assessing stress: 4 questionnaires & scales, best stress-relief tools from positivepsychology.com, a take-home message.

The relationship between the workplace and our psychological, cognitive, and physiological responses to stress is complex, impacted by “a broad set of occupational and work demands as well as environmental stressors” (Quick & Henderson, 2016, p. 2).

And yet, our stress response at work can typically be attributed to one of the following four workplace demands (Quick & Henderson, 2016):

• Task demands Job insecurity, workload, occupation, etc.
• Role demands Role conflict and ambiguity
• Physical demands Workplace, lighting, and temperature
• Interpersonal demands Staff density, leadership style, and personality conflicts

Workplace stress management (WSM) has been significantly influenced by the theory of preventive stress management, introduced in 1979, which proposes that it is not the stimuli that decide the degree of stress experienced by the individual, but the individual’s response to those stressors (Hargrove, Quick, Nelson, & Quick, 2011).

Over the years, many theoretical frameworks and organizational wellness programs that fall under the umbrella term of WSM have been proposed to understand occupational stress and employee wellbeing. WSM aims to understand specific stressors and take positive steps to reduce their effects (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015).

WSM interventions are typically divided into three types:

• Primary Proactive and involved in preventing stress and promoting employee wellbeing (including wellness programs, conflict management, etc.)
• Secondary Proactive and reactive, to help remove risk factors (including coping skills, employee fitness programs, job redesign)
• Tertiary Reactive, for employees who need help (including counseling, employee assistance programs, and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy)

Stress interventions include (modified from Tetrick & Winslow, 2015):

• Cognitive-behavioral interventions Primary and secondary interventions. Changing cognitions and reinforcing active coping skills .
• Relaxation techniques Secondary and tertiary interventions. Physical and mental relaxation techniques to help cope with the consequences of stress.
• Multimodal programs Secondary interventions. Acquiring passive and active coping skills. They consist of a combination of approaches, including relaxation and cognitive-behavioral skills.
• Organization-focused interventions Mostly primary interventions, but some considered secondary. Organizational development and job redesign.
• Individual-level interventions Secondary or tertiary interventions, including relaxation, meditation, and cognitive-behavioral skills training.
• Organizational-level interventions Primary and secondary interventions, including changing working conditions and employee participation.
• Systems approach Primary and secondary, combining individual and organizational interventions.

Such interventions are often used in combination to prevent, reduce, and cope with stress.

While many of the following strategies appear simple, they require focus and commitment. Others foster a new mindset and change how we relate to work and occupational stress.

1. Controlling your stress

Our brains are constantly flooded with increasing demands and information, causing us stress and reducing our ability to focus and solve problems.

There are many steps we can take to avoid or reduce stress, including promoting positive emotions, taking physical care of our brain, and becoming more organized (modified from Hallowell, 2014).

• Ensure you get adequate sleep (don’t eat late at night and reduce caffeine and alcohol intake).
• Enjoy a balanced diet and stay hydrated.
• Exercise throughout the week and get time away from your desk, preferably in nature.
• Schedule regular catch-ups with people you value.
• Break large tasks into smaller ones.
• Maintain a tidy work environment.
• Schedule some ‘think time’ in your busy schedule.
• Allocate time for lunch and take it away from your desk.
• Recognize when you do your best work. Plan your most demanding tasks for those times.
• Walk around more, stand, or listen to music, depending on what works best for you.
• Set reminders for a ‘hard stop’ at the end of the workday.

2. When you feel overwhelmed

• Slow yourself down. When stressed, we often move into panic mode.
• Take time to perform a calming exercise.
• Move around. Walk outside or head to the break room/kitchen.
• Ask for help. Seek out people you trust.

3. Managing your energy

Demanding jobs, long hours, and increasing workloads can leave us feeling emotional, disengaged, stressed, and exhausted (Schwartz & McCarthy, 2014).

Creating a series of habits , practices, and rituals can promote your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual energy (modified from Schwartz & McCarthy, 2014).

Physical energy

• Recognize times in the day when you feel tired or unable to concentrate. Step away from the desk, meet colleagues, or perform something interesting.
• Aim to focus for 90 to 120 minutes at a time, taking regular breaks.
• Eat smaller, lighter meals during the day to maintain energy.

Emotional energy

• Practice abdominal breathing to manage negative emotions , such as irritability, anxiety, and impatience.
• Express gratitude and appreciation for others while adopting self-compassion for yourself.
• Use a reverse lens to see a situation from the other person’s point of view. Use a long lens to consider how we might look at the issue in six months. Use a wide lens to consider the bigger picture.

Mental energy

• Switch off email and move phones away to perform high-concentration tasks.
• Schedule specific times in the day to answer and respond to emails.
• At the end of each day, make a list of key actions for tomorrow.

Spiritual energy

• Identify when you perform at your best. What strengths do you enjoy using, and how can you use them more often?
• On your commute home, or the last 20 minutes of your day when working remotely, relax. This may mean sitting mindfully or listening to music before returning to home life.
• Recognize your core values. Reflect on whether you are using and showing them to others around you. Find opportunities to be your authentic self.

We all have finite limits before reducing energy levels and increasing stress interrupt what we can achieve. Investing in healthy work habits can maintain productivity and performance throughout the day.

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How we experience and handle stress changes its cognitive, emotional, and behavioral impact (Crum & Crum, 2018). The following two coping mechanisms offer practical approaches for managing stress in the workplace and can be implemented with little training.

Mindfulness

Research has confirmed the success of mindfulness at reducing perceived stress and emotional exhaustion, and improving sleep quality and job satisfaction (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015).

While we may sometimes think of mindfulness as passive and accepting, it is often the first step toward growth and change. While incredibly valuable for handling life stresses, it is also powerful enough to enrich positive and happy times in our lives (Shapiro, 2020).

Mindfulness expert Shauna Shapiro (2020) considers three points essential to mindfulness:

• Intention – why we pay attention
• Attention – attending to the present
• Attitude – how we pay attention (compassion, kindness, etc.)

A review of the literature confirms that mindfulness is a powerful and cost-free approach to coping with stress (Shapiro, 2020).

Reframing stress

While we are familiar with the negative impacts of stress, we sometimes forget that achieving a stress-free life is unlikely and, perhaps, impossible (Crum & Crum, 2018).

We must recognize that some degree of stress is crucial to our personal and professional growth. Stress reminds us that something is important to us, that we care.

People who adopt a “stress is enhancing” mindset rather than a “stress is debilitating” mindset perform better and experience fewer negative health consequences (Crum & Crum, 2018).

But how do we see stress differently?

We can rethink stress using the following three steps (Crum & Crum, 2018; Crum, Salovey, & Achor, 2013):

• See it Rather than deny stress, you must recognize and name the stress you are facing.

“I am stressed about my job interview.” “I am stressed about finals.”

Acknowledging stress can help you move brain activity from being automatic and reactive to conscious and deliberate.

• Own it Recognize that what you are stressing about must be important to you. “Owning this realization unleashes positive motivation” (Crum & Crum, 2018, p. 73).
• Use it Stress is not designed to kill us, but to boost our mind and body, and prepare for the challenge ahead. By reframing your stress response as something positive, such as eustress , you can use your heightened energy and awareness to improve your performance.

Even with long-term, chronic stress at work, you can recognize opportunities for learning, growth, or the motivation to change yourself or your situation. While it may not always be possible, if you can find a way to embrace stress, it can become a “powerful tool for helping you overcome the inevitable challenges that can – and will – arise” (Crum & Crum, 2018, p. 75).

Identifying Your Stress Resources

Your resources (internal and external) provide a potentially limitless amount of support that will sustain you during challenging times and stressful situations (Niemiec, 2019).

The Identifying Your Stress Resources worksheet helps you recognize your resources and identify how they can support your strengths.

Stress Decision Framework

Decision-making takes time. The effect of weighing up pros and cons uses up precious resources and risks adding to an already stressful workload.

The Stress Decision Framework worksheet helps you put decision-making in context, aiming for a good enough , not perfect , decision (Armstrong, 2019).

Vicious Versus Virtuous Stress Thinking

Stress is a choice, yet it is often perpetuated by negative (vicious) cycles of thinking (Armstrong, 2019).

It doesn’t have to be this way.

Using a cognitive-behavioral approach, it is possible to reframe unhelpful beliefs and thinking, and adopt a virtuous cycle of thinking.

The Vicious Versus Virtuous Stress Thinking worksheet helps you compare unhelpful and helpful thinking regarding an event (Armstrong, 2019).

The cost of workplace stress – and how to reduce it – Rob Cooke

Coping with stress can often be about gaining control of what is – or, more importantly, what we perceive to be – within our control. The following activities and exercises can help.

One-Hour Stress Plan

When we feel overwhelmed, we get stressed, which can damage our focus and cloud our thinking. “Working within a limited time frame is important because the race against time keeps you focused” (Bregman, 2014, p. 157).

Use the One-Hour Stress Plan worksheet when stressed to plan and work through what you can in 60 minutes. At the end of the hour, you will have progressed and can repeat the exercise as many times as you like (modified from Bregman, 2014).

Stress as a Stimulus for Change

Sometimes stress is a good indication that something in your life needs to change.

The Stress as a Stimulus for Change worksheet can capture what you wish to change in your life and begin the transformation process .

Workplace Mindfulness

Mindfulness can be a powerful way to adopt a state of loving-kindness about yourself and others, and has significant benefits to how you handle stress (Shapiro, 2020; Tetrick & Winslow, 2015).

The Workplace Mindfulness worksheet can help decrease stress and improve workplace satisfaction through a series of simple questions asked when relaxed and present.

Instead, a multimodal approach should be considered when crafting prevention programs and workshops (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015).

Most likely, it will be necessary to put in place learning and education that are both proactive and reactive.

Proactive interventions

Focus on preventing stress (removing risk factors) and promoting positive actions for all employees.

Interventions are likely to include:

• Conflict management
• Employee wellness
• Job redesign and the organization of work
• Coping skills
• Employee fitness programs (for employees with known risk factors)

Reactive interventions

Focus on helping employees who need assistance.

• Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy
• Rehabilitation after illness or returning to work
• Employee assistance programs

A multimodal approach combines multiple intervention styles and techniques, and can be rolled out across the organization while focusing on the individual (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015).

The following questionnaires measure a respondent’s current degree of stress and assess their risk of experiencing future stress.

Perceived Stress Scale

The Perceived Stress Scale is one of the most widely used measures of the perception of stress (Cohen, 1994; Cohen & Williamson, 1988).

The 10 questions are answered with a rating between 0 (never) and 4 (very often).

For example:

In the last month, how often have you been upset because of something that happened unexpectedly?

In the last month, how often have you felt nervous and “stressed”?

Life Events and Difficulties Schedule (LEDS) and Stress and Adversity Inventory (STRAIN)

LEDS is a structured interview used to assess stressor exposure over a lifetime. It has since been turned into an online version known as STRAIN (Crosswell & Lockwood, 2020).

“Both measures provide a comprehensive assessment of stressor exposures across the lifespan” (Crosswell & Lockwood, 2020, p. 2) and can be valuable for research and therapy.

Stress Mastery Questionnaire (SMQ)

The American Institute of Stress offers the SMQ as an online self-assessment of stress risk.

The results, plus a 66-page Stress Mastery Guide and Workbook , provide a personalized stress risk profile that can help you lead a less stressed, more enjoyable life.

You’ll find a range of powerful stress-related interventions and assessment tools available throughout our site. Check out the following for some of our favorites:

• Radical Acceptance of a Distressing Situation This worksheet presents a sequence of eleven questions to help clients reflect on a current or past distressing situation and work toward radically accepting the reality of that event.
• Changing Physical Habits This worksheet helps clients reflect on their vulnerabilities and routines surrounding aspects of their physical health and consider steps to develop healthier habits.
• Coping With Stress This two-part exercise invites clients to list experienced physiological and emotional symptoms of stress and brainstorm strategies to reduce, cope with, or eliminate these sources of stress.
• Coping: Stressors and Resources This worksheet helps clients identify past, present, and future stressors and link them with coping resources they can use to overcome them.
• Squeeze and Release This group activity helps participants discover the energizing potential of positive stress, known as eustress , which can help improve motivation, performance, and emotional wellbeing.
• 13 Stress-Relief Books About the Science of Managing Anxiety This article provides an excellent selection of stress-relief books .
• 17 Stress & Burnout Prevention Exercises If you’re looking for more science-based ways to help others manage stress without spending hours on research and session prep, check out this collection of 17 validated stress-management tools for practitioners . Use them to help others identify signs of burnout and create more balance in their lives.

Our physical and mental wellbeing, work environment, and the demands of our job all impact our degree of stress. They also influence our performance and productivity in the workplace.

Reducing stressors and managing their impact by adopting effective coping mechanisms help us regain a sense of control (Quick & Henderson, 2016).

According to Angela Armstrong (2019), stress is a choice. Appropriate workplace stress management (personal and organizational) helps us identify ways to control what we can and learn how to see things differently when we cannot.

With the right mindset, seeing stress as enhancing, we can increase our motivation and see challenges as opportunities for growth rather than debilitating obstacles (Crum et al., 2013).

There are powerful tools to help. In recent years, mindfulness in particular has become increasingly popular for stress reduction, helping individuals to confront situations “in an accepting, nonjudgmental manner” (Tetrick & Winslow, 2015, p. 8).

Why not review some strategies, techniques, and tools in this article and identify what can help you, your employees, or your clients manage the impact of stress or turn it into something positive and life enhancing?

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Stress & Burnout Prevention Exercises (PDF) for free .

• Armstrong, A. (2019). Resilience club: Daily success habits of long-term high performers . Rethink Press.
• Bregman, P. (2014). A practical plan when you feel overwhelmed. In HBR guide to managing stress at work (pp. 27–50). Harvard Business Review Press.
• Cohen, S. (1994). Perceived Stress Scale . Mind Garden. Retrieved September 1, 2021, from https://www.mindgarden.com/documents/PerceivedStressScale.pdf
• Cohen, S., & Williamson, G. (1988). Perceived stress in a probability sample of the United States . In S. Spacapan & S Oskamp (Eds.), The social psychology of health . Sage.
• Crosswell, A. D., & Lockwood, K. G. (2020). Best practices for stress measurement: How to measure psychological stress in health research. Health Psychology Open , 7 (2).
• Crum, A., & Crum, T. (2018). Stress can be a good thing if you know how to use it. In HBR’s 10 must reads: On mental toughness (pp. 71–75). Harvard Business Review Press.
• Crum, A. J., Salovey, P., & Achor, S. (2013). Rethinking stress: The role of mindsets in determining the stress response. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology , 104 (4), 716–733.
• Hallowell, E. M. (2014). Overloaded circuits. In HBR guide to managing stress at work (pp. 27–50). Harvard Business Review Press.
• Hargrove, M. B., Quick, J. C., Nelson, D. L., & Quick, J. D. (2011). The theory of preventive stress management: A 33-year review and evaluation. Stress and Health: Journal of the International Society for the Investigation of Stress , 27 (3), 182–193.
• Niemiec, R. (2019). Strength-based workbook for stress relief: A character strengths approach to finding calm in the chaos of daily life . New Harbinger.
• Quick, J., & Henderson, D. (2016). Occupational stress: Preventing suffering, enhancing wellbeing. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health , 13 (5), 459.
• Schwartz, T., & McCarthy, C. (2014). Manage your energy not your time.  Harvard Business Review Press.
• Shapiro, S. L. (2020). Rewire your mind: Discover the science + practice of mindfulness . Aster.
• Tetrick, L. E., & Winslow, C. J. (2015). Workplace stress management interventions and health promotion. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior , 2 (1), 583–603.

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What our readers think.

I’m looking for an active stress avoidance / proactive approach to a stress-free work experience. This article appears to focus on alleviating the effects of stress rather than designing a work experience that removes it, and/or deals with those in positions of power in the workplace who rely on others for results and enforce this through control techniques, resulting in high employee stress, since the techniques are seldom nice, polite, sustainable or implemented with the employee’s long term well being in mind. I need workplace strategies that negate those manipulations and exploitations put in place by the hierarchy to simply get more work from employees, no matter what. Engagement surveys, annual reviews, and many workplace methodologies are in fact trojan horses. Please advise, many thanks Alvin Zest

Thanks for your comment; I completely understand where you’re coming from. Many of the dominant approaches to addressing strain, stress, and high work demands in organizations are largely reactive and center on ‘undoing’ the harm (i.e., stress) done to employees after it’s already done, rather than being proactive and creating conditions that prevent the harm in the first place. However, more research is coming out that’s looking at these proactive strategies.

Research is a long way from identifying a complete solution, but I would encourage you to look into the research and efforts by a researcher named Sharon Parker and her colleagues at the Center for Transformative Work Design. Some of the videos on this page might begin pointing you in the right direction and highlight the path research has taken so far.

I hope this helps.

– Nicole | Community Manager

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Stress Management Essays

Stress is now a major problem in many countries around the world. What are some of the factors in modern society that cause this stress, and how can we reduce it? In present times, stress has become a very common problem that people are facing all over the world. This essay will examine its potential causes and possible ways of reducing it. The predominant factor for leading a stressful life is work pressure. As industries are growing rapidly, the competition among them is also increasing day by day, thus enforcing employees to work harder and harder to maintain their company's reputation and position in the competitive world. Consequently, in order to meet their task deadline, people always feel constant pressure upon them. For instance, it is evident that due to work pressure many IT professionals face problems related to mental health such as depression and anxiety. The other factor responsible for this tension is nuclear families. For working couples, managing both work and home at the same time is a challenging job especially when they are leaving away from their parents, and hence, they do not have anyone at home to depend upon for small assistance. There can be a number of ways to release this anxiety and pressure. Firstly, people need to learn to maintain work-life balance which is essential for leading a happy and fulfilling life. There are many stress management programs available these days that are very helpful in handling mental pressure. Secondly, physical activities are considered as a stress buster by many medical professionals. For example, yoga and power yoga have proven to be successful in improving both mental and physical health. Thus people can join some sports or physical activity on a regular basis to reduce their day to day life stress. In conclusion, work-related stress and fast-paced life are the main reasons for stress among people. However, people can manage it effectively by doing physical exercises and meditation as a daily practice.

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Stress in Modern Society

Hi can someone review my writing for this change in society essay and give it a band score if possible please? In some societies, stress is now regarded as a major problem, and it is thought that people suffer from more stress than they did in the past. However, others feel that the amount of stress people have today is exaggerated. They say that previous generations were under more pressure, but the idea of suffering from stress did not exist. Discuss both these views and give your own opinion. It is undeniable that life has been upgraded remarkably for the last decades. People live an easier and more convenient life, yet are put under a lot of of pressure, which is now one of societies' biggest issues. However, some people argue that people today do not suffer from as much stress there was in the past when the concept of stress did not exist. I personally think that each generation deals with different kinds of pressure. To begin with, people in modern societies tend to have numerous concerns whilst pursuing a high living standard. Employees are forced to work longer hours which results in a large amount of stress. Modern problems in finance, business, education and relationships usually put people in distress as well. Moreover, pollution caused by technology development has brought about a lot of serious diseases adding up to the endless list of today's concerns. On the other hand, life of the previous generations was no less stressful. Without the help of technology, people in the past would have a lot of difficulties in doing everything on their own. Furthermore, as a result of war and ages of economic depression, poverty and diseases became the largest problems most people had to face. However, they were not likely to suffer from emotional instability from pressures. Common today's mental illness resulting from stress such as bipolar, eating disorder, social anxiety did not exist. In conclusion, I think that the pressure that each generation is under aredistinct and incomparable. Nevertheless, unlike us, our ancestors had learned to manage it quite well.

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Causes of and Solutions to Stress

by Fizza (Pakistan)

Stress is now a major problem in many countries around the world. What are some of the factors in modern society that cause this stress, and how can we reduce it? In the contemporary world, the issue of stress has been found to affect almost everyone at some point in their lives. This essay will look into the precedents of rising stress levels in society, and potential measures that can be taken to avoid or reduce it. The reasons of stress can either be physiological or psychological. Among the former, the use of screens is the leading factor. In the present information age, the lifestyle of people and the nature of their jobs have altered. One of the most notable changes is a very high tendency of screen use in the form of desktops, laptops and mobile phones among others. Spending long hours focusing on screen causes the muscles to stiff and boost the stress level. If we talk about the latter, people belonging to almost all age groups residing across the globe face tensions about various matters related to education and jobs due to heightened competition in these fields. Such worries coupled with uncertainly about future lead to increased stress levels. Although the problem of stress is definitely prevalent in current context, there are a number of stress management techniques that can be learned to tackle this issue. First, one must take short breaks for simple exercises while doing office work or while studying to relax the muscles and avoid stress. Second, consultation with a sincere friend or a psychiatrist for catharsis can turn out to be helpful when someone is facing high stress level. In addition to these, one must also try to stay away from certain situations that cause stress for example toxic relationships, dishonest friendships and political environments. In conclusion, due to changes in overall society, people are more likely to experience stress. Although it is a pressing issue, it can be solved easily through adopting some crucial yet uncomplicated measures.

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• Stress management

Stress relievers: Tips to tame stress

Stress getting to you? Try some of these tips for stress relief.

Is stress making you angry and grouchy? Stress relievers can help bring back calm and peace to your busy life. You don't have to put a lot of time or thought into stress relievers. If your stress is getting out of control and you need quick relief, try one of these tips.

Almost any form of physical activity can act as a stress reliever. Even if you're not an athlete or you're out of shape, exercise can still be a good stress reliever.

Physical activity can pump up your feel-good endorphins and other natural neural chemicals that boost your sense of well-being. Exercise also can refocus your mind on your body's movements. This refocus can improve your mood and help the day's irritations fade away. So go on a walk, take a jog, work in your garden, clean your house, bike, swim, weight train, vacuum or do anything else that gets you active.

Eat a healthy diet

Eating a healthy diet is an important part of taking care of yourself. Aim to eat many fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

Avoid unhealthy habits

Some people may deal with stress with unhealthy habits. These may include drinking too much caffeine or alcohol, smoking, eating too much, or using illegal substances. These habits can harm your health and increase your stress levels.

During meditation, you focus your attention and quiet the stream of jumbled thoughts that may be crowding your mind and causing stress. Meditation can give you a sense of calm, peace and balance that can help both your emotional well-being and your overall health. Meditation can empower us to enhance our well-being.

You can practice guided meditation, guided imagery, mindfulness, visualization and other forms of meditation anywhere at any time. For example, you could meditate when you're out for a walk, riding the bus to work or waiting at your health care provider's office. Try an app to show you how to do these exercises. And you can try deep breathing anywhere.

A good sense of humor can't cure all ailments. But it can help you feel better, even if you have to force a fake laugh through your grumpiness. When you laugh, it lightens your mental load. It also causes positive physical changes in the body. Laughter fires up and then cools down your stress response.

So read some jokes, tell some jokes, watch a comedy or hang out with your funny friends. Or give laughter yoga a try.

Connect with others

When you're stressed and irritable, you may want to isolate yourself. Instead, reach out to family and friends and make social connections. Even one good friend who listens can make a difference.

Social contact is a good stress reliever because it can offer distraction, give support, and help you put up with life's up and downs. So take a coffee break with a friend, email a relative or visit your place of worship.

Got more time? Try volunteering for a charity and help yourself while helping others.

Assert yourself

You might want to do it all, but you can't, at least not without paying a price. Learning to say no or being willing to delegate can help you manage your to-do list and your stress. Healthy boundaries are important in a wellness journey. Everyone has physical and emotional limits.

Saying yes may seem like an easy way to keep the peace, prevent conflicts and get the job done right. But instead, it may cause you inner conflict because your needs and those of your family come second. Putting yourself second can lead to stress, anger, resentment and even the wish to take revenge. And that's not a very calm and peaceful reaction. Remember, you're a priority.

With its series of postures and breathing exercises, yoga is a popular stress reliever. Yoga brings together physical and mental disciplines that may help you reach peace of body and mind. Yoga can help you relax and ease stress and anxiety.

Try yoga on your own or find a class — you can find classes in many areas. Hatha yoga, especially, is a good stress reliever because of its slower pace and easier movements.

Get enough sleep

Stress can cause you to have trouble falling asleep. When you have too much to do — and too much to think about — your sleep can suffer. But sleep is the time when your brain and body recharge. Most adults need about 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night.

And how well and how long you sleep can affect your mood, energy level, focus and overall functioning. If you have sleep troubles, make sure that you have a quiet, relaxing bedtime routine. For example, listen to soothing music, make sure the area you sleep in is cool, dark and quiet, put phones and tablets away, and stick to a regular schedule.

Keep a journal

Writing down your thoughts and feelings can be a good release for otherwise pent-up feelings. Don't think about what to write — let it happen. Write anything that comes to mind. No one else needs to read it. So don't aim for perfect grammar or spelling.

Let your thoughts flow on paper, or on the computer screen. Once you're done, you can toss out what you wrote or save it to think about later.

Get musical and be creative

Listening to or playing music is a good stress reliever. It can provide a mental distraction, lessen muscle tension and lower stress hormones. Turn up the volume and let your mind be absorbed by the music.

If music isn't one of your interests, turn your attention to another hobby you enjoy. For example, try gardening, sewing, reading or sketching. Or try anything that makes you focus on what you're doing rather than what you think you should be doing.

Seek counseling

If new stressors are making it hard for you to cope or if self-care measures aren't relieving your stress, you may want to think about therapy or counseling. Therapy also may be a good idea if you feel overwhelmed or trapped. You also may think about therapy if you worry a great deal, or if you have trouble carrying out daily routines or meeting duties at work, home or school.

Professional counselors or therapists can help you find the sources of your stress and learn new coping tools.

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• How stress affects your health. American Psychological Association. http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/stress.aspx. Accessed Jan. 24, 2023.
• Relaxation techniques: What you need to know. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. https:// www.nccih.nih.gov/health/relaxation-techniques-what-you-need-to-know. Accessed Jan. 23, 2023.
• Meditation and mindfulness: What you need to know. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/meditation-and-mindfulness-what-you-need-to-know. Accessed Jan. 23, 2023.
• Yoga: What you need to know. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/yoga-what-you-need-to-know. Accessed Jan. 23, 2023.
• Stress and your health. U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. https://www.womenshealth.gov/mental-health/good-mental-health/stress-and-your-health. Accessed Jan. 23, 2023.
• I'm so stressed out! Fact sheet. National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/so-stressed-out-fact-sheet. Accessed Jan. 24, 2023.
• Seaward BL. Essentials of Managing Stress. 5th ed. Jones & Bartlett Learning; 2021.
• Creagan ET (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic. Feb. 8, 2023.
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110 Stress Management Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

Stress is a common problem that affects people of all ages and backgrounds. Whether it's due to work, school, relationships, or other factors, stress can have a negative impact on our physical and mental health if not managed properly. To help you better understand and cope with stress, here are 110 stress management essay topic ideas and examples:

• The impact of stress on physical health
• The relationship between stress and mental health disorders
• Effective ways to manage stress in the workplace
• The benefits of exercise in reducing stress
• The role of mindfulness and meditation in stress management
• How diet and nutrition can affect your stress levels
• The importance of sleep in coping with stress
• The connection between stress and chronic illnesses
• The impact of stress on academic performance
• Strategies for managing stress during exams
• The role of social support in stress management
• How time management can help reduce stress
• The benefits of relaxation techniques in stress relief
• The link between stress and substance abuse
• Coping with stress in a fast-paced society
• The impact of stress on relationships
• How to communicate effectively to reduce stress
• The benefits of journaling in stress management
• The role of laughter in stress relief
• The impact of technology on stress levels
• Strategies for managing stress in the digital age
• The benefits of nature in reducing stress
• The role of hobbies and interests in stress relief
• The connection between stress and perfectionism
• Coping with stress in a competitive environment
• The benefits of volunteering in stress management
• The impact of financial stress on mental health
• Strategies for managing stress in times of uncertainty
• The benefits of self-care in stress relief
• The role of positive thinking in coping with stress
• The impact of stress on creativity and productivity
• How to set boundaries to reduce stress
• The benefits of setting realistic goals in stress management
• The connection between stress and self-esteem
• Coping with stress in a multicultural society
• The role of cultural practices in stress relief
• The impact of stress on parenting
• Strategies for managing stress as a caregiver
• The benefits of pets in reducing stress
• The link between stress and sleep disorders
• Coping with stress in the LGBTQ+ community
• The role of therapy in stress management
• The benefits of art therapy in stress relief
• The connection between stress and trauma
• Strategies for managing stress after a traumatic event
• The impact of stress on the immune system
• The benefits of mindfulness-based stress reduction programs
• The role of exercise in stress management for older adults
• Coping with stress in retirement
• The link between stress and memory loss
• The benefits of cognitive-behavioral therapy in stress relief
• The connection between stress and social media
• Strategies for managing stress in a virtual world
• The impact of stress on decision-making
• The benefits of deep breathing exercises in stress management
• The role of music in reducing stress
• Coping with stress during a crisis
• The link between stress and eating disorders
• The benefits of aromatherapy in stress relief
• The connection between stress and chronic pain
• Strategies for managing stress in chronic illness
• The impact of stress on the cardiovascular system
• The benefits of biofeedback in stress management
• The role of resilience in coping with stress
• Coping with stress in the military
• The link between stress and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• The benefits of peer support in stress relief
• The connection between stress and addiction
• Strategies for managing stress in recovery
• The impact of stress on decision-making in organizations
• The benefits of emotional intelligence in stress management
• The role of conflict resolution in reducing stress
• Coping with stress in a toxic work environment
• The link between stress and burnout
• The benefits of career counseling in stress relief
• The connection between stress and job satisfaction
• Strategies for managing stress in a remote work setting
• The impact of stress on team dynamics
• The benefits of team-building activities in stress management
• The role of leadership in reducing stress in the workplace
• Coping with stress in a high-pressure job
• The link between stress and turnover rates
• The benefits of flexible work arrangements in stress relief
• The connection between stress and job insecurity
• Strategies for managing stress in a global workforce
• The impact of stress on work-life balance
• The benefits of mindfulness training in stress management
• The role of emotional regulation in reducing stress
• Coping with stress in a diverse workplace
• The link between stress and discrimination
• The benefits of diversity training in stress relief
• The connection between stress and job performance
• Strategies for managing stress in a competitive industry
• The impact of stress on job satisfaction
• The benefits of career development programs in stress management
• The role of mentorship in reducing stress at work
• Coping with stress in a fast-paced industry
• The link between stress and creativity in the workplace
• The benefits of employee wellness programs in stress relief
• The connection between stress and absenteeism
• Strategies for managing stress in a high-stress job
• The impact of stress on team morale
• The benefits of conflict resolution training in stress management
• The role of communication in reducing stress at work
• Coping with stress in a toxic organizational culture
• The link between stress and turnover rates in nonprofits
• The benefits of self-care programs in stress relief
• The connection between stress and job burnout
• Strategies for managing stress in a non-profit organization
• The impact of stress on employee engagement and retention

These essay topic ideas and examples can help you explore different aspects of stress management and provide valuable insights on how to cope with stress effectively. By addressing these topics in your essays, you can raise awareness about the importance of stress management and help others lead healthier and happier lives.

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How to handle stress at work

If you're currently working, you probably know what it feels like to be stressed on the job. A must-do project arrives without warning. Three emails stack up for each one you delete. Phones ring, meetings are scheduled, a coworker drops the ball on a shared assignment.

How does your body react to work stress?

Imagine for a moment that your boss has emailed you about an unfinished assignment (a stressor). Your body and mind instantly respond, activating a physical reaction called the fight-or-flight response. Your heart beats faster, your breath quickens, and your muscles tense. At the same time you might say to yourself, "I'm going to get fired if I don't finish this." Then to manage your anxiety and negative self-talk, you work late into the night to complete the task.

Over the course of our evolutionary history, humans developed this coordinated fear response to protect against dangers in our environment. For example, a faster heart rate and tense muscles would help us escape from predators. In the modern era, fear continues to serve an important function. After all, the fight-or-flight response can provide the necessary energy to pull an all-nighter and keep your job.

But what happens if you encounter stressful experiences at work every day? Over time, chronic work stress can lead to a psychological syndrome known as burnout . Warning signs of burnout are overwhelming exhaustion, cynicism, and a sense of inefficacy. Certain work-related stressors are closely linked with burnout. Examples are having too much work or too little independence, inadequate pay, lack of community between coworkers, unfairness or disrespect, and a mismatch between workplace and personal values.

How can work stress affect well-being?

Long-term exposure to work-related stressors like these can affect mental health. Research links burnout with symptoms of anxiety and depression. In some cases, this sets the stage for serious mental health problems. Indeed, one study shows younger people who routinely face heavy workloads and extreme time pressure on the job are more likely to experience major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder.

High levels of stress at work –– and outside of it –– can affect physical health, too. Repeated activation of the fight-or-flight response can disrupt bodily systems and increase susceptibility to disease. For example, repeated release of the stress hormone cortisol can disturb the immune system, and raise the likelihood of developing autoimmune disorders, cardiovascular disease, and Alzheimer's disease . Chronic stress can also affect health by interfering with healthy behaviors, such as exercise, balanced eating, and sleep.

Work stress can also harm companies or organizations. Burnout reduces job productivity and boosts absenteeism and job turnover, and also leads to conflict between coworkers, causing stress to spread within a workplace.

How can you cope with work stress?

All of us can benefit by learning skills to manage fear and anxiety on the job. Several skills taught in cognitive behavioral therapy may help, including these:

• Relaxation strategies.  Relaxation helps counter the physiological effects of the fight-or-flight response. For example, progressive muscle relaxation helps reduce muscle tension associated with anxiety. To practice this skill, sit comfortably with your eyes closed. Working from your legs upward, systematically tense and relax each major muscle groups. Hold the tension for 10 seconds; release tension for 20 seconds. Each time you release muscle tension, think "relax" to yourself. This skill and many other relaxation strategies can help reduce symptoms of anxiety.
• Problem-solving.  Problem-solving is an active coping strategy that involves teaching people to take specific steps when approaching a roadblock or challenge. These steps include defining the problem, brainstorming potential solutions, ranking the solutions, developing an action plan, and testing the chosen solution.
• Mindfulness. Mindfulness is the ability to pay attention to the present moment with curiosity, openness, and acceptance. Stress can be exacerbated when we spend time ruminating about the past, worrying about the future, or engaging in self-criticism. Mindfulness helps to train the brain to break these harmful habits. You can cultivate mindfulness skills through formal practice (like guided meditation) and informal exercises (like mindful walking), or try mindfulness apps or classes. Mindfulness-based therapies are effective for reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety .
• Reappraising negative thoughts.  Chronic stress and worry can lead people to develop a mental filter in which they automatically interpret situations through a negative lens. A person might jump to negative conclusions with little or no evidence ("my boss thinks I'm incompetent") and doubt their ability to cope with stressors ("I'll be devastated if I don't get the promotion"). To reappraise negative thoughts, treat them as hypotheses instead of facts and consider other possibilities. Regularly practicing this skill can help people reduce negative emotions in response to stressors.

About the Authors

Nicole J. LeBlanc, MA , Contributor

Luana Marques, PhD , Contributor

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Stress and Its Effects on Health Essay

Introduction, physical effects, psychological effects, behavioral effects.

Stress is the emotional strain or tension experienced by an individual due to a reaction toward various demanding and influential situations. The challenging or compelling situations are termed stressors. Stressors can be internal or external and include life changes such as losing a significant figure, low socioeconomic status, relationship problems, occupational challenges, and familial or environmental factors. An individual’s response to stressors influences the outcome of their life. Health is a state of complete social, emotional, and physical well-being and not merely the absence of disease. Stress is a common risk factor for negative health status secondary to negative adaptation and coping with the stressors. Stressors can create a strain on one’s physical, psychological and behavioral well-being, leading to lasting effects that are detrimental to one’s health.

Stress is associated with various physical health impacts on an individual. In an online cross-sectional survey by Keech et al. (2020) to determine the association between stress and the physical and psychological health of police officers, the findings illustrate that stress negatively impacts physical and psychological well-being. One hundred and thirty-four police officers were involved in the study (Keech et al., 2020). The findings demonstrate that stress resulted in various short and long-term physical effects that included increased heart rates, sweating, high blood pressure, and long-term development of the cardiac condition. In addition, stress resulted in the development of gastrointestinal disorders such as peptic ulcer and irritable bowel syndrome. Keech et al. (2020) note that stress’s associated physical health effects are explained by various mechanisms that include overstimulation of the sympathetic nervous system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis.

Overstimulation of the sympathetic nervous system results in increased sympathetic actions on the peripheral body organs leading to increased sweat production, heart rate, respiration rate, and urinary and bowel elimination. The study notes that chronic stress without positive adaptation measures results in the progressive development of hypertension, peptic ulcers, and irritable bowel syndrome as long-term effects (Keech et al., 2020). Within the gastrointestinal tract, chronic stress activity on the sympathetic nervous system results in increased parietal cell action. Overactivity of the parietal cells results in excessive gastric acid production, gradually eroding the mucosa, and ulceration occurs.

The effects of stress on the cardiovascular system are explained in a review by Kivimäki & Steptoe (2017) to determine the impact of stress on the development and progression of cardiovascular diseases. In the review, stress is identified to cause cardiovascular conditions secondary to the effects of sustained sympathetic action on heart contractility and peripheral vascular resistance (Kivimäki & Steptoe, 2017). The sympathetic nervous system contributes to normal heart and blood vessel contractility. However, when the system is overstimulated, a surge in contractility above the normal limits ensues, leading to the progressive development of heart conditions.

Psychological well-being incorporates a positive mental health status evidenced by an individual’s satisfaction with life, happiness, rational thinking and decision-making, and positive mood patterns. Stress has been associated with alterations in an individual’s psychological wellness. An explanation for alteration in an individual’s psychological well-being secondary to stress is negative adaptation. Keech et al. (2020) note that an individual’s response to a stressor determines whether stress results in positive or negative effects. In the online cross-sectional survey by Keech et al. (2020), the findings illustrate that pressure resulted in the development of anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorders as long-term effects among the participants. Exposure to stressful situations resulted in progressively developing anxiety among the individual secondary to persistent worry over the issue. The anxiety results in other physical manifestations, including increased heart rate, palpitations, sweating, and altered mobility. Depression and bipolar conditions were also associated with chronic stress secondary to the impacts of stress on neurotransmitter function and nerves.

Similar findings are noted in a cross-sectional study by Zhang et al. (2020) to compare the prevalence and severity of stress-associated mental health symptoms, including anxiety, depression, and insomnia among healthcare workers during the COVID pandemic. Five hundred and twenty-four healthcare workers were involved in the study. The study findings illustrate that 31.3% of the participants developed depression secondary to the stressful working environment, 41.2% reported anxiety, and 39.3% reported sleep disturbances (Zhang et al., 2020). The scientific explanation for the relationship between stress and depression was attributed to the effects of stressful periods on neurotransmitter homeostasis. Chronic stress results in the altered regulation of neurotransmitters in the central nervous system. Alterations in serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine resulted in the progressive development of depression and anxiety. Sleep disturbances reported by the participants are attributed to alterations in cortisol hormone homeostasis secondary to overstimulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis.

Stressful situations can also lead to alterations in the behavioral patterns of an individual. The most common behavioral effects secondary to stress include the development of eating disorders, altered sleeping patterns, impaired concentration, and drug abuse especially alcohol. Alterations in sleep and eating patterns are linked to stress’s effects on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis (HPA). Exposure to stressful events leads to increased activation of the HPA axis with a net effect of increased catecholamine production (adrenaline and noradrenaline) (Moustafa et al., 2018). Increased adrenaline and noradrenaline production results in dysregulation in the eating and sleeping patterns. Sustained high levels of cortisol results in difficulty falling asleep and increased metabolic processes. The biological clock regulates the typical sleeping pattern that relies on producing the sleep hormone melatonin. Melatonin production by the pineal gland is regulated indirectly by the concentration of serum cortisol levels and directly by light perception. Imbalances in the serum concentration cycle secondary to stress results in imbalanced melatonin production and concentration with a net effect of sleeping difficulties.

The emotional strain caused by stress increases the risk of alcohol and other illicit drug use and dependence. Moustafa et al. (2018) conducted an integrative literature review to determine the relationship between childhood trauma, early-life stress, alcohol and drug use, addiction, and abuse. The review findings illustrate that stress increases the risk of alcohol and drug use, addiction, and abuse among the victims. An explanation for the increased risk is the individuals’ lack of identification and implementation of effective coping strategies (Moustafa et al., 2018). Lack of effective coping strategies results in maladaptive measures such as illicit drug use and alcohol consumption. Extensive use of the maladaptive measures results in progressive addiction and drug abuse among individuals with an increased predisposition to other health effects. Alcohol consumption and other illicit drug use over time increase the risk of developing cardiac, respiratory, and liver conditions.

Stress is the emotional strain or tension experienced by an individual due to a reaction toward various demanding and influential situations. Individual response to stressors influences their health. Maladaptive response to stress results in various physical, psychological, and behavioral negative effects. Negative effects of stress on physical health include increased heart rates, sweating, high blood pressure, and long-term development of the cardiac condition. Psychological effects include the development of anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorders. The behavioral effects of stress on an individual include the development of eating disorders, altered sleeping patterns, impaired concentration, and abuse of alcohol and other drugs. Based on the research findings, it is essential for healthcare providers to identify strategic measures and health initiatives to educate and sensitize the community members on effective stress management approaches in all settings to aid in combating the health effects.

Keech, J. J., Cole, K. L., Hagger, M. S., & Hamilton, K. (2020). The association between stress mindset and physical and psychological well being: Testing a stress beliefs model in police officers . Psychology & Health , 35 (11), 1306-1325. Web.

Kivimäki, M., & Steptoe, A. (2017). Effects of stress on the development and progression of cardiovascular disease . Nature Reviews Cardiology , 15 (4), 215–229. Web.

Moustafa, A. A., Parkes, D., Fitzgerald, L., Underhill, D., Garami, J., Levy-Gigi, E., Stramecki, F., Valikhani, A., Frydecka, D., & Misiak, B. (2018). The relationship between childhood trauma, early-life stress, and alcohol and drug use, abuse, and addiction: An integrative review . Current Psychology , 40 (2), 579–584. Web.

Zhang, X., Zhao, K., Zhang, G., Feng, R., Chen, J., Xu, D., Liu, X., Ngoubene-Italy, A. J., Huang, H., Liu, Y., Chen, L., & Wang, W. (2020). Occupational Stress and Mental Health: A comparison between frontline medical staff and non-frontline medical staff during the 2019 novel Coronavirus Disease outbreak . Frontiers in Psychiatry , 11 . Web.

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Stress Management

Table of Contents

Introduction

Everyone faces the problem of stress in their daily life and hence people look for assistance to reduce them and to deal with the situations, circumstance and stressors that even impose a negative impact over them both physically and emotionally. Therefore, considering these issues in the present scenario, people have a facility to gather education and information thereby reducing their high level of pressure by using appropriate stress management techniques. Moreover, by gathering education and information on stress, people possess the potential to learn the manner, in which they can respond to stress using proactive and practical means. Thus, the major principle to facilitate stress management is to utilize the benefits of reducing tensions and pressures through relaxation techniques, which can be best observed after they have been experienced frequently over a particular time period (Klinic Community Health Centre, 2010).

Besides, stress management is one of the important requirements for dealing with the allocated tasks of one’s daily life in the present world of immense competition. The management technique hence includes psychological understanding behind the cause of stress and facilitates the strategies to handle or eradicate them in the long run. Moreover, due to stress people often find themselves in negative situations. However, stress management enables people to take actions for developing a plan and to find solution for living life happily. All these actions therefore assist people to experience control over the circumstances and their life as well (Jadoun, Kushwah, Barodiya & Holani, 2012). The primary objective of the paper is to highlight the importance of stress management and identify the manner, in which the Christians deal with stress related issues.

Definition of Stress Management

In today’s society, there are several definitions of stress that might be creating confusion in defining the exact meaning of stress. Although, it can be stated that stress occurs when peace of mind is broken and people are unable to handle them properly. This has the potential to destruct the normal functioning of mind and health. Moreover, due to stress people feel burdened, which in turn leads to frustration and nervousness within the individuals. At times, people also lose their control over their logical perceptions. Besides, it might not be important that only serious and critical problems are the cause of stress as at certain instances, even minute tensions can result in stressful situations in life (Olpin & Hesson, 2015).

Besides, stress is a consideration process under which stressors (demand) activate an effort to get adopted that might in turn be the result of individual’s sufferings. Moreover, stress takes place at behavioral, physiological and cognitive levels, which has a potential to create the most dangerous health problems (Linden, 2004). Moreover, stress can be defined through the following aspects:

• Stressor: Reason for which stress takes place within an individual such as job interview, conflict among family members and examination results
• Stress reactivity: Reaction of the individuals towards stressors
• Stress symptoms: The effect of stress on the individuals body such as irritation, headache and body pain

(Source: Tummers, 2013)

However, using appropriate techniques such as mindfulness, walk meditation, body scan, relax in hurry and exercise among others by the individuals can reduce stress and effectively manage them in their everyday life (Klinic Community Health Centre, 2010).

Literature Review

Stress as a process.

Woolfolk, Lehrer & Allen (2007) highlight that stress originates from the Middle French word destresse (‘distress’) that in turn is obtained from the Latin word ‘strictus’ (‘compressed’). It states that “stress is sometimes used to refer to what was, at one time in psychology, called external stimuli” (Woolfolk, Lehrer & Allen, 2007, 9). Stress is a part of external world environment and it can be periodic or episodic, a challenge or a problem and even negative or positive in nature (Woolfolk, Lehrer & Allen, 2007). Besides, Mcvicar (2003) opined that stress is associated with the perceptions of the individuals on the stressors and their opinions regarding the capability to accomplish those demands. The stressful situation is mostly triggered when there is a mismatch evident between both the stated perceptions (Mcvicar, 2003). Moreover, based on the findings of Arora, Sevdalis, Nestel, Woloshynowych, Darzi & Kneebone (2010), stress can be referred as a bodily process that is a result of situation, circumstance and environment, laying psychological and physical stressor (demands) of the individuals (Arora, Sevdalis, Nestel, Woloshynowych, Darzi & Kneebone, 2010).

According to Woolfolk, Lehrer & Allen (2007), stress can be categorized under three main stages based on their response namely the alarm stage, the exhaustion stage and the adaptive-resistance stage. When stress response prepares an individual to react towards emergency, it falls under the alarm stage afterward. This is followed by the progression of the stressful condition towards adaptive-resistance stage, where they get adjusted to the conditions. Lastly, the stress response hits the final stage of homeostatic processes, where the body is forced to return to the original state, while in the exhaustion stage, the individual collapses due to stress (Woolfolk, Lehrer & Allen, 2007). Besides, Awa, Plaumann & Walter (2009) assert that burnout is a result of stress that hampers the social relationship between a help recipient and a helper. This in turn takes place in case of three dimensions namely exhaustion, decreasing personal accomplishment and depersonalization (Awa, Plaumann & Walter, 2009). Although, based on the findings of Sood, Prasad, Schroeder & Varkey (2011), it can be stated that stress is a combination of various factors such as loss of control, college loans, specialty choice, poor self-care, workload and maladaptive coping strategies. It further includes the fall in satisfaction level, poor mental health, loss of empathy and burnout. Moreover, stress related to various factors involves both personal as well as professional lives (Sood, Prasad, Schroeder & Varkey, 2001). 

Causes of Stress

According to Varvogli & Darvir (2017), stress is the second frequent health problem, which creates a huge impact on one third of employed population, thereby highlighting the factor of stress, which has become a major issue in the society. Hence, healthcare professionals need to work on the selection of stress management technique to deliver them to their patients to reduce their level of stress (Varvogli & Darvir, 2017). Additionally, Chiesa & Serretti (2009) state that continuous stress directs unproductive consideration that consumes an individual’s strength and energy, thereby challenging flexibility factors such as capacity to forgive and hope. However, sometimes stress is responsible for improvement in performance but higher level of stress can negatively affect the mental and physical health of the individuals (Chiesa & Serretti, 2009). Correspondingly, Donaldson & Ko (2010) suggested that stress occurs due to the negative reaction of stressors. It is hence a result of consideration, where stressors are supposed to be either harmful or threatening for the individuals’ personality. This is because stressors stand for psychological or physical stimuli, towards which individual’s react (Donaldson & Ko, 2010). Besides, Mcvicar (2003) highlights the fact that at times stress threshold depends upon individual’s experiences, characteristics and coping mechanisms as well as the circumstances, in which stressors (demands) are made. It is also opined that a single event cannot always be responsible for stress and then reducing it becomes an immensely difficult task in the professional domain of health care (Mcvicar, 2003). 

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Consequences of Stress

Based on the findings of Danna & Griffin (1999), work related stress leads to emotional and physical outcomes as a result of excess demand from the individuals’ end (Danna & Griffin, 1999). Simultaneously, Limm, Gundel, Heinmuller, Mittag, Nater, Siegrist & Angerer (2014) suggested that work related stress is a primary risk factor that is responsible for the higher range of health related outcomes, thereby resulting in absenteeism, low turnover, poor performance and morale. Therefore, health care sector needs to find out the techniques and strategies that can enable its employees as well as customers to reduce stress along with its negative impacts on the individual’s health (Limm, Gundel, Heinmuller, Mittag, Nater, Siegrist & Angerer, 2014). Besides, Sanches, Hook, Vaara, Weymann, Bylund, Ferreira, Peira & Sjolinder (2010) opined that stress can be regarded as one of the most common risks in the modern society and it can be described as an adaptation of the organization or body towards the changing environment. However, they also state that stress prepares individuals to handle the frequent changes as well as enable them to adapt to the changes effectively. Moreover, stress occurs when arousal reaction has not ended and stress hormones cortisol is released. If this stress hormone is not obstructed in time, it can hamper the capacity of the body to get cured, thereby increasing the level of illness (Sanches, Hook, Vaara, Weymann, Bylund, Ferreira, Peira & Sjolinder, 2010). 

Correspondingly, Olpin & Hesson (2015) highlight that people who faced moments of acute stress are mostly short-tempered, anxious, irritable, tensed and over-aroused. The acute stress symptoms are similar to that of extensive over-arousal including migraines, hypertension, heart disease and digestive problems. Besides, they also state that chronic stress is the result of the long-lasting health problems, unfulfilling demands and energy-draining jobs. Moreover, due to chronic stress, some people lose their hope as their mental and physical resources get exhausted. At times, they are even led towards negative consequences such as violence, heart-attack and suicide, thereby reducing the life quality (Olpin & Hesson, 2015). However, Tummers (2013) stated that it is difficult to define stress with a single definition because it has numerous theories that describe the reason behind its occurrence and the manner, in which it affects the individuals. It is also highly complex to identify the appropriate techniques that can be used by the individuals to cope with the stress as well as cultural and social factors. Besides, they also highlight the fact that in the present scenario, people can reduce their stress and move from emotional mode to the logical path with the guidance of stress management. Moreover, it allows the individuals to make them capable enough to give effective response to difficult situations and circumstances (Tummers, 2013). 

Worldview of Christianity on Stress Management

Considering the manner, in which the Christians deal with stress always helps others to get closer to the Lord. At the workplace, Christians always feel that their relationship with work is similar to the relationship they share with God. They always follow the path and words of Jesus, when they feel angry upon someone and immediately reduce their reaction, which further helps him to reduce their anger related stress. Moreover, Christians use appropriate techniques to deal with the stress related problems that are as follows:

• Be Spiritual: Christians believe that everyday spending few minutes in silence reduces the daily work stress. They believe that workplace is the best means of communicating with God asking for guidance during the stressful day at work. It will not only provide people with spiritual strength but will also help them to find the respective solution for their stress (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2017)
• Be Physically Fit: To deal with stress related issues, it is important to be physically fit, for which people need exercise, rest and good diet. Moreover, participating in outdoor games is an admirable mode to get relieved (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2017)
• Get Out of Debt: Christian church leaders suggest setting up a budget for everything related to financial stress that will in turn help them to come out from the debt and reduce their financial stress (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2017)
• Change Pace: To cope with the hectic schedule of one’s life, they can bring about a change in their pace by reading a book and doing anything that they enjoy (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2017)
• Share Problems: Sharing problems with someone not only reduces the level of stress but also procures the solutions to deal with the stressful situations (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 2017)

Conclusions

Now-a-days, stress is considered as one of the major reasons for illness and has even become a primary problem in the domain of heath care. Everyone is facing problems such as headache, heart-attack and body pain among others due to stress and sometimes it even results in committing suicide, violence and murder. Therefore, reducing the level of stress in day-to-day life is a huge predicament for everyone as it creates physical as well as psychological issues in their lives. Besides, for maintaining a healthy and a happy life, it is important to reduce the stress, thereby allowing people to generate higher productivity in the workplace. Today, for reducing the level of stress, health care sector has brought into practice various techniques such as meditation, relax in hurry and exercise among others to reduce the stress in everyday life. Moreover, Christians suggest that people can reduce their stress by using numerous techniques, such as sharing problems, being spiritual, physically fit and by standing out of debt among others. Thus, stress management techniques are the requirement of the daily life for leading a happy life with lesser complications. 

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