Under pressure, your mind’s ‘threat system’ kicks in but sometimes the pattern of responses that once kept you safe don't serve you well anymore!
Recommend material for Stress & PressureThere is no end of great material on this website. We love it. Dig in and see what you think.
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Visit The SiteArizona-based drug rehab support. In their own words:
“In essence, we are a full-scope addiction treatment solution that takes it to the next level, that level being a life-building component that addresses the many elements within each individual that comprise their self-worth. For us it is much more than simply getting you clean off drugs or alcohol for 60 or 90 days and then sending you on your way. For us it is about one’s long-term success, and not just in recovery but in life as well.”
Visit The SiteStress management and building resilience doesn’t have to be deadly serious. There’s room for a bit of fun too. Here are a few gift ideas!
Visit The SiteThis web page has some useful narrative around the change curve and what to do at each stage.
Visit The SiteSleep-deprived workers are costing the UK economy £40bn a year and face a higher risk of death . There’s a growing body of research that indicates that poor sleep leads to a variety of harmful negative organisational outcomes, including increased work-related injuries and unethical behavior including cyberloafing! If you are a manager, you could find this link useful …
Visit The SiteAre you experiencing weight gain, high blood pressure, or mood swings? If so, your cortisol levels may be high. But what are the ways to lower cortisol, why does it impact the body so negatively, and how can you get back to living the happy healthy life that better suits you? This website is a great place to start building up your understanding.
Visit The SiteCortisol is one of the hormones released by the adrenal glands in response to any type of psychological, environmental or physical trigger (i.e. infection). Many people associate cortisol with the “fight or flight” mechanism. Cortisol is also part of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) –axis that impacts sex hormones and thyroid function. Research has demonstrated that it isn’t necessarily the stress that is significant but rather how it is “perceived” that is important. When cortisol is released in response to a stressor, all non-essential bodily functions are temporarily put on hold in order to deal with the situation. The body needs to have as much energy as possible available, in the form of blood glucose, so it signals insulin to restrict glucose uptake to the cells. Cortisol also triggers glucagon to release stored glucose from the liver. Some of the ways cortisol release impacts the body in response to a stressor includes:
Once the threat has resolved, insulin rebalances blood glucose levels and glucose is welcomed back into the cells. At this point, the body is ready to rest and store energy for next time. This evolutionary adaptive response has ensured the survival of humans over time. The problem, however, lies in the repetitive and constant activation of the cycle. Ultimately the signalling process becomes impaired and cells become resistant to insulin, which has far-reaching consequences.
Visit The SiteYou may not have heard of cortisol? Cortisol is often called the primary “stress hormone” because it’s one of the main hormones we release when we’re under any sort of pressure and our evolutionary-based “fight or flight response” kicks into gear. Cortisol levels naturally fluctuate during the day but when the problems start is with levels that stay elevated. This is going to have impacts on your body – from weight gain to disturbed sleep.
Visit The SiteThe VIA Institute on Character is a non-profit organization, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, dedicated to bringing the science of character strengths to the world through supporting research, creating and validating surveys of character, and developing practical tools for individuals and practitioners. We use their free tools in our stress management and resilience training courses to help people connect with their meaning and purpose. Lots of free resources on this website.
Visit The SiteWhatever you need to know about coping with stress, anxiety or depression, or just the normal emotional ups and downs of life, the NHS Choices Moodzone is here to help.
It offers practical advice, interactive tools, videos and audio guides to help you feel mentally and emotionally better.
Visit The SiteIf meditating is simply not your thing, positive psychologist Michelle Gielan suggests another powerful method to calm an anxious mind: fact-checking.
Visit The SiteIn this well-written Psychologies article Oliver Burkeman argues that taking a step back at work might actually help you achieve more.
Visit The SitePsychologist Mark Griffiths examines workaholism and what it has in common with other behavioural addictions.
Visit The SiteWhen it comes to negative experiences, we have habitual ways of responding to what triggers us. But we can learn to step out of and stay out of negative thought cycles – this article tells you how.
Visit The SiteThe Process Communication Model® (PCM) is an innovative tool which enables you to understand, motivate, and communicate effectively with others. People who use the Process Communication Model benefit from a whole range of practical tools specifically designed for successful everyday management of communication. This is the work of Dr. Taibi Kahler, who has done a great deal to help us understand what happens to personality under pressure.
Visit The SiteLink to a website from the centre for clinical interventions, which lists several types of unhelpful thinking styles common to individuals experiencing low mood, anxiety, stress and other difficulties.
Visit The SiteVery good article using the thought errors classifications first proposed by Burns (1999) to look at how they may influence people’s work lives. Brief and accessible
Visit The SiteGood website from Harley therapy about the various forms of cognitive distortions people can have and how these can lead to stuck relationships.
Visit The SiteWeb page from the Harley Street Therapy website explaining core beliefs (CBT approach)
Visit The SiteA list of the 18 maladaptive schemas (from Schema therapy)
Visit The SiteLink to a perfectionism questionnaire on the BBC website, originally taken from Frost’s Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale. It self-scores and provides feedback on which dimensions you scored highest
Visit The SiteAnother article about perfectionism, including information about how to break free from it. It contains a brief questionnaire.
Visit The SiteWebsite page written by a psychologist about perfectionism and its possible impacts on people.
Visit The SiteWebsite from the centre for clinical interventions. This link is to a page containing several useful handouts about perfectionism, with strategies and tasks to help overcome it in a self-help fashion.
Visit The SiteFrom the centre for clinical interventions in Australia. It’s a brief hand-out about rules for living and is nice and balanced, talking about flexible and adaptive rules for living. Quite accessible but also quite clinically focused. Nonetheless, it has some good tips and exercises
Visit The SiteGood information about the ABC technique. It applies the information to a workplace example, which is quite handy.
Visit The SiteNic describes his work as “Short, Black & White Human Portraits in Film. Extremely close up. And extremely revealing of our common human experience.” Take 5 minutes and watch one ….
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