Forging Resilience to Stress

First, let me set things straight - I am no stress management expert! But I have been through a myriad of stressful situations in my personal and professional life that I have learned to adapt some simple yet effective strategies to cope with stress.

Before I go further, let’s try to demystify stress. The word “stress” was invented by Hans Selye, a Hungarian-Canadian endocrinologist in 1936, who defined it as “the non-specific response of the body to any demand for change”. Since then, the word has been passed from generation to generation and has been used in different contexts, most of which are with a negative connotation (distress) even though there is also a positive form of stress known as eustress. One of the most widely and generally accepted definitions is from Lazarus and Folkman (1984) who described stress as “a particular relationship between the person and the environment that is appraised by the person as taxing or exceeding his or her resources and endangering his or her well-being.”

Knowing that stress can potentially endanger one’s well being, I would like to share some straightforward techniques on how I built resilience to withstand or cope with stress (distress):

·     A – Alternative Activities - I list down the top 3 activities that I enjoy doing or that makes me happy. When I feel stressed, I divert my attention by doing something I enjoy, in order to shift my focus away from that stressful situation. Having at least 3 different activities provide me with alternatives when I get bored with one.

·     B – Being aware of my stressors. I usually do self-introspection to identify what predisposes me to stress. I sometimes keep a “stress diary” in my mind, and I bookmark it for easy retrieval should the need arise. Knowing what makes me tense, nervous, and anxious helps me develop a SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time-bounded) Plan and enables me to manage it wisely when faced with stressful situations.

·     C – Communicate and do not assume. I make it a habit to communicate and ask for help when I need it. Life (in general) and Healthcare is not a one-man show so I do not pretend and assume that I can do everything on my own. I communicate with when I need support and I also do not presume that people know what I need, considering that nobody is a mind reader.

·     D - Dedicate some quality time for my self and for others. With a 48-hour workweek, and with the demands of the job in healthcare, it is inevitable that one gets stuck into work-related activities without even noticing the passing of time. Hence, I always make sure that I keep track of my working hours, and not spend my personal time at home doing some work-related tasks. My day-off is primarily for my self, family, and friends, except when there are dire situations at work that needs my attention.

·     E – Evade from wasting my time through proper time management. Doing a lot of tasks simultaneously at the same time can lead to an inability to finish the tasks properly, which in turn leads to stress. To avoid unfinished tasks, I write down my to-do lists in a journal, and I prioritize them based on their significance and urgency. In this manner, I don’t waste my time on nonsense.

·     F – Facing the fact that there are things that I can and cannot control. When faced with a stressful situation, I gauge how much I can tolerate and I ask myself if I am capable of managing that situation. By knowing my tolerance level, I know when to walk away from situations that I have no control over.

·     G – Give my self a break and try to maintain balance in everything. Despite the fact that I am quite preoccupied with a lot of stuff in my personal and professional life, I try my best to maintain a balance between stimulation and relaxation, responsibility and freedom, and work and play. Even though it is easier said than done, it is doable and not impossible.

·     H – Halt/stop comparing my “ability to cope” with others. I have understood the basic principle that people respond to stress differently and therefore have different ways of coping. Hence, I know that whatever may be helpful to my friends might not necessarily work or help me manage my stress, and vice versa.

·     I – Improve my ability to say “No”. Stress can stem from people - whether it is their request or expectation. When I know that a request or expectation from a person has the probability of causing me undue stress, I tactfully and firmly say “NO”. It can initially be difficult, but I would rather say no from the get-go than being stressed about something that I knew I could have averted.

These strategies have aided me a lot in dealing with stress. What about you? What coping mechanisms have helped you manage or overcome stress in your personal and professional life?

Share your strategies in the comment section below and let’s help each other cope with stress particularly at this very stressful time.