April is recognized as National Stress Awareness Month to bring attention to the negative impact of stress. A major part of a healthy lifestyle is managing stress and anxiety. Controlling stress can improve mental and physical well-being as well as minimizing the start of health-related issues.
It’s important to know what stress and anxiety look like, take action towards recovery, and know where and when to get help. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website and introduce strategies for stress management.
Elior North America offers several resources that can assist managers and employees in dealing with stress and anxiety, including the Employee Assistance Program (EAP). EAP focuses on confidential counseling and enhancing and maintaining the well-being of all employees.
Life can be stressful and can be due to work, workload, work expectations, lack of staff, COVID, natural disasters, gun violence, wars, inflation, or a life changing event. Everyone feels stress from time to time.
Stress is the physical or mental response to an external cause, such as having a too much work to do and not enough time or boots on the ground. Stress can decrease once the situation is resolved.
Stress can be positive or negative since it can motivate you for a deadline or cause you to lose sleep.
Anxiety is your reaction to stress and can occur even if there is no current threat.
Anxiety is the constant fear that something bad or unpleasant will happen. If that anxiety doesn’t go away it can interfere with your life and affect your health. You could experience problems with sleeping, affecting immune, digestive, cardiovascular, and reproductive systems. Anxiety will lead to higher risk for developing a mental illness such as an anxiety disorder or depression.
Both Stress and Anxiety
Both stress and anxiety can affect your mind and body. You may experience symptoms such as: Excessive worry, loss of sleep, high blood pressure, uneasiness, tension, headaches or body pain.
Coping with Stress and Anxiety
Learning what causes or triggers your stress and what coping techniques work for you can help reduce your anxiety and improve your daily life. It may take trial and error to discover what works best for you. Here are some activities you can try when you start to feel overwhelmed:
- Keep a journal.
- Download an app that provides relaxation exercises (such as deep breathing or visualization) or tips for practicing mindfulness, which is a psychological process of actively paying attention to the present moment.
- Exercise, and make sure you are eating healthy, regular meals.
- Stick to a sleep routine, and make sure you are getting enough sleep.
- Avoid drinking excess caffeine such as soft drinks or coffee.
- Avoid drinking alcohol.
- Identify and challenge your negative and unhelpful thoughts.
- Reach out to your friends or family members who help you cope in a positive way.
If you are struggling to cope, or the symptoms of your stress or anxiety won’t go away, it may be time to talk to a professional. Psychotherapy (also called talk therapy) and medication are the two main treatments for anxiety, and many people benefit from a combination of the two.
