Welcome to The New Science of Stress Management – Proven Methodologies.
This course will give you the skills and knowledge to manage stress effectively. The course is based on the latest scientific research on stress management.
What you learn in this course will benefit all areas of your life: professionally, socially, physically, and financially. Your work will be better. Your family will be better. Your social life will be better. Your physical health will be better. Your finances will be better. Everything gets better when you learn to more effectively work with stress, anxiety, and other such challenges.
My name is Todd McLeod and I will be your instructor. I am tenured college faculty and a Microsoft Certified Educator. I have over 40+ years of experience working with mindfulness and meditation to help others have less stress, have more peace and equanimity, become more productive and effective, have better relationships, and live happier lives.
This course is thorough & comprehensive. It is also practical & applicable. This course will give you skills you can apply to manage stress more effectively:
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Learn the new science of stress management
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Understand the key takeaways for managing stress effectively
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Practice applying stress management techniques in your life
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Realize the important role mindset plays in relation to stress
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Gain the ability to more effectively manage stressful narratives
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Acquire the ability to meet stressful situations more skillfully
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Learn the best techniques for handling intense stress
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Gain wholistic perspectives for effectively managing stress
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See how sleep and exercise help you manage stress
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Understand how belonging and lifestyle influence stress
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Use the 4, 7, 8 “box” breathing technique to reduce stress
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Learn how the ADA framework can help reduce stress
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Acquire body-centered practices to manage stress
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Realize how mindfulness can help you meet stress
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Deepen your knowledge with curated resources
This course provides a science-based approach to skillfully managing stress. In this course, you will gain a deep understanding of stress management and practical tools to more effectively manage and reduce stress in your life.
Together, we will embark on a transformative journey to more effectively manage and reduce stress. We will explore the latest research on stress management, providing you with valuable insights and practical techniques to navigate stress. We will gain an understanding the impact stress has on our health and well-being. We will uncover the key takeaways from research revealing how changing our narratives can empower us to handle stress more effectively. We will also learn through real-life examples how to apply key takeaways and rewrite stressful narratives.
As we progress, we will explore the connection between stress and its effects on our cardiovascular health, cognitive responses, and mortality. Moreover, we will explore the intriguing placebo effect and the immense power of the mind in managing stress.
In order to skillfully manage stress, we will address the importance of sleep, exercise, nutrition, & belonging. These lifestyle factors play a significant role in reducing stress and enhancing overall well-being. Through hands-on exercises and practical tips, we will see how to incorporate these elements into our daily routines.
We will also explore stress management by delving into the psychology of stress. We will explore the origins of stress, the fight-or-flight response, and the internal narratives that influence our perception of stress. Through psychological reframing and articulating experiences, we will gain valuable tools to reduce stress and foster resilience.
Social support & mindfulness will also be pivotal in our journey towards stress management. We will examine the role of social connections and provide strategies to leverage them effectively. Additionally, we will learn about mindfulness and its impact on stress reduction, drawing inspiration from real-life case studies.
Throughout the course, you will find exercises, case studies, and practical techniques to apply the theory. Together we will gain a comprehensive toolkit to face stress with confidence and resilience. This course will equip you with the knowledge and skills to manage stress more effectively.
So click enroll and begin learning the new science of stress management.
Click enroll and get started!
The New Science of Stress Management
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1The new science of stress management
Marcus Aurelius
“The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are.”
Thoroughly researched and documented
It is the job if ask academic and a teacher to unearth that which isn't widely known and to bring it into the world to others
disruptive data
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2The key takeaway from the research on stress management
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3Example - applying the key takeaway and changing my narrative
The first time I had to give a speech....
sweating
frozen
Speech coach
"Don't try to get rid of the butterflies. Get them to fly in formation."
Harness your stress and use it
Mindset matters
the stories we tell ourselves matter
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4Course details: how we learn & managing expectations
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5New information = new opportunities
Two hours or less, your life will change
Progressing forward with skillfully managing stress
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6Study #1: Does the Perception that Stress Affects Health Matter?
We will learn to manage and reduce stress at individual and organizational levels:
Introduction
Key Takeaway
Jedi mind tricks
Your mindset matters.
I have bad news and good news
"You are responsible for you."
"Mind is the forerunner of all things. As you think and act, so your world becomes."
die positive
positive, focused, action oriented
Chuck Yeager - test pilots - Edwards Air Force Base
Yeager: An Autobiography Paperback
Key Takeaways - The New Science of Stress
(1) stress doesn't kill you
your belief that stress is bad for you kills you
old message
stress is bad; makes you sick
stress was demonized
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7A Deeper Dive into Changing Our Narratives
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8Study #2: Mind over Matter: Cardiovascular and Cognitive Responses to Stress
(2) change your mind, change your body's response
" … how you think about stress matters …"
" … I am strong and I am ready to take on challenges …"
" … my body is ready to do what it needs to do …"
" … trust yourself to handle life's challenges …"
" … you don't have to face challenges alone …"
new message
stress is good; makes you strong; resilient; performant; focused
stress exists within us to help us
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9Study #3: Giving to Others and the Association Between Stress and Mortality
(3) stress drives you to be social
oxytocin - neurohormone
the cuddle hormone
increases empathy, compassion, caring, connection
it's also a stress hormone
pituitary gland pumps it out during stress
motivates you to seek social support
connect with others
tell them how you feel
allows us to support each other
restores your body
natural anti-inflammatory
helps blood vessels stay relaxed
helps heart cells regenerate and heal
your heart has oxytocin receptors
social contact and support
releases even more oxytocin
your stress response has a built in mechanism for stress resilience
that mechanism is human connection
Research
(1) Does the Perception that Stress Affects Health Matter? The Association with Health and Mortality
Questions asked of participants
How much stress have you experienced in the last year?
Do you believe stress is harmful to your health?
yes
43% increased risk of dying
no
no increased risk of dying
33.7% of nearly 186 million (n=28,753) U.S. adults perceived that stress affected their health a lot or to some extent. Both higher levels of reported stress and the perception that stress affects health were independently associated with an increased likelihood of worse health and mental health outcomes. The amount of stress and the perception that stress affects health interacted such that those who reported a lot of stress and that stress impacted their health a lot had a 43% increased risk of premature death
Keller, Abiola, et al. "Does the perception that stress affects health matter? The association with health and mortality." Health psychology 31.5 (2012): 677.
(2) Mind over Matter: Reappraising Arousal Improves Cardiovascular and Cognitive Responses to Stress
Researchers have theorized that changing the way we think about our bodily responses can improve our physiological and cognitive reactions to stressful events. However, the underlying processes through which mental states improve downstream outcomes are not well understood. To this end, we examined whether reappraising stress-induced arousal could improve cardiovascular outcomes and decrease attentional bias for emotionally negative information. Participants were randomly assigned to either a reappraisal condition in which they were instructed to think about their physiological arousal during a stressful task as functional and adaptive, or to 1 of 2 control conditions: attention reorientation and no instructions. Relative to controls, participants instructed to reappraise their arousal exhibited more adaptive cardiovascular stress responses—increased cardiac efficiency and lower vascular resistance—and decreased attentional bias. Thus, reappraising arousal shows physiological and cognitive benefits. Implications for health and potential clinical applications are discussed.
They were told how the body’s stress response evolved to help us succeed, and that the increased arousal symptoms of stress can aid your performance during times of stress. The bottom line of the lesson was this: In a tough situation, stress makes you stronger.
Jamieson, Jeremy P., Matthew K. Nock, and Wendy Berry Mendes. "Mind over matter: reappraising arousal improves cardiovascular and cognitive responses to stress." Journal of experimental psychology: General 141.3 (2012): 417.
(3) Giving to Others and the Association Between Stress and Mortality
Helping others predicted reduced mortality specifically by buffering the association between stress and mortality.
Poulin, Michael J., et al. "Giving to others and the association between stress and mortality." American journal of public health 103.9 (2013): 1649-1655.
summary: Ted Talk - How to make stress your friend | Kelly McGonigal
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10The Placebo Effect & The Power of The Mind
additional resources:
World Economic Forum - The science of how mindset transforms the human experience | Alia Crum
mindsets
formed from our conditioning
micro and macro cultures
mindsets about
stress
beauty
eating
health
impacts of doctors
placebo
60 - 90% efficacy for all diseases
belief makes it so
most people define placebo as
fake
woowoo mystery magic
not relevant
sugar pills
a joke
hotel maids
"...work is work…"
"…work is exercise…" (lost weight, lower blood pressure)
milkshakes
"sensishake"
"indulgence" - (3x impact more satiated)
Ted Talk - Change your mindset, change the game | Dr. Alia Crum | TEDxTraverseCity
(1) Dr. Fabrizio Benedetti
anesthesia
machine administered
doctor administered - (less pain)
treatments for anxiety, parkinson's disease, hypertension
same results
mindset
setting in the mind
mindset
plays a dramatic role in determining our health and well being
(2) hotel maids
"...work is work…"
"…work is exercise…" (lost weight, lower blood pressure)
(3) milkshakes
"sensishake"
"indulgence" - (3x impact more satiated)
(4) two videos
stress bad
stress good (better health; better engagement; better performance)
aging
positive mindset = extends longevity
our mindsets matter
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success - Carol Dweck
shift mindset from fixed to flexible
Harnessing the power of placebos | Dr. Alia Crum
histamine prick
"this cream will make it worse" (same chemically inert cream)
and it did
"this cream will make it better" (same chemically inert cream)
and it did
social context influences us
social context
cold and incompetent (same chemically inert cream)
worse placebo outcomes
warmth and competence (same chemically inert cream)
amplified positive placebo outcomes
Course draws upon
Stanford Mind & Body Lab
Stanford's Stress Reduction Program
The American Psychological Association
Mental Health America - Mind the Workplace Survey
Google's research on effective workplace teams - Project Aristotle
Psycholog's best-practices & Academic research
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
mindfulness & meditation practices
Overview and synthesis of best-practices
Motivation:
Goal: increased quality …
quality of life
quality of work
impact on bottom line:
decrease stress = increased productivity and profits
we have room for improvement
individually and collectively as organizations
negative effects of stress
APA: "A stressful work environment can contribute to problems such as headache, stomachache, sleep disturbances, short temper, and difficulty concentrating. Chronic stress can result in anxiety, insomnia, high blood pressure, and a weakened immune system. It can also contribute to health conditions such as depression, obesity, and heart disease. Compounding the problem, people who experience excessive stress often deal with it in unhealthy ways, such as overeating, eating unhealthy foods, smoking cigarettes, or abusing drugs and alcohol."
Sleep, exercise, nutrition, belonging & lifestyle
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11The key takeaways on managing stress
We are embarking into the domain of soft science …
Social Emotional Intelligence (SEI)
SOFT SCIENCE
collect and analyze empirical data
results are more difficult to predict
ambiguous ← → wicked problem
1) They do not have a definitive formulation.
2) They do not have a “stopping rule.” In other words, these problems lack an inherent logic that signals when they are solved.
3) Their solutions are not true or false, only better or worse.
4) There is no way to test the solution to a wicked problem.
5) They are hard to study through trial and error. Their solutions are irreversible so, as Rittel and Webber put it, “every trial counts.”
6) There is no end to the number of solutions or approaches to a wicked problem.
7) All wicked problems are essentially unique.
8) Wicked problems can always be described as the symptom of other problems.
9) The way a wicked problem is described determines its possible solutions.
10) Planners, that is those who present solutions to these problems, have no right to be wrong. Unlike mathematicians, “planners are liable for the consequences of the solutions they generate; the effects can matter a great deal to the people who are touched by those actions.”
source: Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber
principles & guidelines
HARD SCIENCE
definitive, discrete, reproducible
more control over the variables and conclusions
math, physics, chemistry
formulas & recipes
Understanding stress
the more we understand stress, the more effectively we can work with stress
the more we understand ourselves, the more effectively we can work with ourselves
the more we understand others, the more effectively we can work with others
the more we understand teams, the more effectively we can work in teams
Immediate strategy
body techniques
stretching
yoga
mindfulness
meditation
music
massage
hot bath
Long-term strategy
All of these techniques …
The Seven Skills for Managing Stress
from the American Psychological Association
The Stanford Stress Reduction Program
Using mindfulness to reduce stress
Using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to reduce stress
Google's Project Aristotle research
Using the ADA loop to reduce stress
assess, decide, act
ooda loop
… point to the same conclusion:
Clarity, Cognition, Behavior (more individual oriented)
clarity =
better decision making =
better actions
Social Emotional Intelligence (more group/organizational oriented)
psychological safety:
empathy
social sensitivity
equal communication
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12Steps to take when facing intense stress and challenges
1 in 8 Americans is on antidepressants
1 in 8 Americans is on benzodiazepines
1 in 4 Americans is on some type of psychiatric pharmaceutical
1 in 8 Americans is an alcoholic
88,000 Americans died from alcohol related deaths.
70,000 Americans died from drug overdoses.
Last year in America, 100,000 drug overdoses
Every year, 1 in every 280 Americans attempts suicide
1,400,000 Americans attempt suicide.
Every hour of every day, an American veteran takes their life.
1 in 3 couples have engaged in physical violence (source)
50% of marriages end in divorce
1 in 4 grew up with alcoholics
Last year in America, there were 417 mass public shootings.
"List of mass shootings in the United States in"
If you are thinking about harming yourself or others, seek the help of others.
United States Suicide Prevention Lifeline Call 988
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13Hands on exercise: investigating stress
How have you grown because of challenges and stress?
List the ways stress is beneficial.
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14Hands on exercise: stress & mindset
What is your current mindset about stress?
“stress is good for me”
"stress is bad for me”
something else
What is the most effective mindset to have about stress?
What do you want your future mindset to be about stress?
write your answers down
tell someone about your answers
Body centered practices to reduce stress
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15Your life's purpose
your purpose
learn, grown, change, iterative, improve, evolve
core directives of the mind
survive
procreate
belong
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16SLEEP, exercise, nutrition, & belonging = reduce stress
How we live our lives determines our health, wealth, & happiness.
sleep
Ted Talk - Sleep is your superpower
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17Sleep, EXERCISE, nutrition, & belonging = reduce stress
How we live our lives determines our health, wealth, & happiness.
exercise
Ted Talk - The brain-changing benefits of exercise
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18Sleep, exercise, NUTRITION, & belonging = reduce stress
How we live our lives determines our health, wealth, & happiness.
nutrition
the body
Power Foods for the Brain | Neal Barnard
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19Sleep, exercise, nutrition, & BELONGING = reduce stress
Robert Waldinger: What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness | TED
NYT - sign Up for Well’s 7-Day Happiness Challenge
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20Sleep, exercise, nutrition, & belonging = LIFESTYLE = reduce stress
nutrition
the mind
Ted Talk - Is Social Media Hurting Your Mental Health?
Books
Audio books
Mind is the forerunner of all things. As you think and act, so your world becomes.
lifestyle, self-care, & resilience
The Doctor Of The Future: Prescribing Lifestyle As Medicine | Mark Rowe
How to live to be 100+ - Dan Buettner
Elizabeth H. Blackburn, The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2009
The discovery of how chromosomes are protected by telomeres and the enzyme telomerase
Have you wondered why some sixty-year-olds look and feel like forty-year-olds and why some forty-year-olds look and feel like sixty-year-olds? While many factors contribute to aging and illness, Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn discovered a biological indicator called telomerase, the enzyme that replenishes telomeres, which protect our genetic heritage. Dr. Blackburn and Dr. Elissa Epel's research shows that the length and health of one's telomeres are a biological underpinning of the long-hypothesized mind-body connection. They and other scientists have found that changes we can make to our daily habits can protect our telomeres and increase our health spans (the number of years we remain healthy, active, and disease-free). The Telemere Effect reveals how Blackburn and Epel's findings, together with research from colleagues around the world, cumulatively show that sleep quality, exercise, aspects of diet, and even certain chemicals profoundly affect our telomeres, and that chronic stress, negative thoughts, strained relationships, and even the wrong neighborhoods can eat away at them. Drawing from this scientific body of knowledge, they share lists of foods and suggest amounts and types of exercise that are healthy for our telomeres, mind tricks you can use to protect yourself from stress, and information about how to protect your children against developing shorter telomeres, from pregnancy through adolescence. And they describe how we can improve our health spans at the community level, with neighborhoods characterized by trust, green spaces, and safe streets.
food
Telomere length is positively associated with the consumption of legumes, nuts, seaweed, fruits, and 100% fruit juice, dairy products, and coffee, whereas it is inversely associated with consumption of alcohol, red meat, or processed meat (source)
Flax · Spinach · Mushrooms · Berries · Oats (source)
exercise
Exercise has a beneficial effect on telomere length compared with usual care or inactivity. Exercise for more than six months is associated with changes in telomere length. (source)
reduce stress
The worse the stress was — and the longer they felt it — the more their telomeres wore down. (source)
Abstract – Numerous studies demonstrate links between chronic stress and indices of poor health, including risk factors for cardiovascular disease and poorer immune function. Nevertheless, the exact mechanisms of how stress gets “under the skin” remain elusive. We investigated the hypothesis that stress impacts health by modulating the rate of cellular aging. Here we provide evidence that psychological stress— both perceived stress and chronicity of stress—is significantly associated with higher oxidative stress, lower telomerase activity, and shorter telomere length, which are known determinants of cell senescence and longevity, in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy premenopausal women. Women with the highest levels of perceived stress have telomeres shorter on average by the equivalent of at least one decade of additional aging compared to low stress women. These findings have implications for understanding how, at the cellular level, stress may promote earlier onset of age-related diseases. source
community
trust
green spaces
safety
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21Hands on exercise: build your best life
Use a calendar to schedule these into your life
sleep
exercise
nutrition
belonging
career
Gaining insight into the psychology of stress
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22Using the 4, 7, 8 breathing technique to reduce stress
"If you keep doing the same thing, you will continue doing the same thing."
dr. weil
technique
inhale 4 seconds
hold 7 seconds
exhale 8 seconds
Book:
Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art
Wim Hoff
breath
ice bath
Gwyneth Paltrow GOOP
Wim Hof website
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23Using other body-centered practices to reduce stress
stretching
yoga
mindfulness
meditation
music
massage
hot bath
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24Exercise: self-massage to chill music
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25Exercise: stretching to chill music
Using mindfulness to manage stress
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26Introduction to the psychology of stress
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27The origins of stress: the fight-or-flight response & internal narratives
stress definition
stress analogy - structural stress; metal bridge
origins of stress
(1) stress is part of our heritage
we come from a lineage of warriors and worriers (worry-ers)
the vigilant survived
the overly calm / relaxed got eaten
stress is a tool
learn to use it, instead of it using you
use it when you need it to turbo-boost your response
stress is one more voice at the table
listen to its input and make your decision
(2) fight or flight
survival instinct
sympathetic nervous system
(3) difference between
where you are and where you would like to be
how things are and how you would like them to be
stories
noticing stories
what stories are you telling yourself
surrendering stories
releasing stories you're telling yourself
choosing skillful stories
telling yourself more skillful stories
Stress arises because you care
values / love / goals are behind stress
"I am stressed because I care about …"
"We only stress about things that we care about. By owning our stress, we connect to the positive motivation or personal value behind our stress. If we deny or avoid our stress, we may actually be denying or disconnecting ourselves from the things we value and treasure most." source
You are a survivor!
Thinking is tied to emotional regulation
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28Working with narratives: psychological reframing to reduce stress
examples of skillful narratives
It's okay to be late
The perfection of imperfection
I am human and am necessarily not an intellectual ideal
There is much for which I am grateful
I am blessed to have this job
I am blessed to be able to learn
I am blessed …
Acknowledging your wins
"I am a survivor"
Embracing the adventure of life
challenges are par for the course
Our superpower as a species
our social nature
helping and being helped
practice = progress
ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE
Willie Nelson - Just Breathe (Official Video)
What stories could Lukas Nelson tell himself?
RESOURCES
The Upside of Stress: Why Stress Is Good for You, and How to Get Good at It
McGonigal shows readers how to cultivate a mindset that embraces stress, and activate the brain's natural ability to learn from challenging experiences. Both practical and life-changing, The Upside of Stress is not a guide to getting rid of stress, but a toolkit for getting better at it—by understanding, accepting, and leveraging it to your advantage.
Thinking is tied to emotional regulation
If you're going to tell yourself a story, make it a skillful one.
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29Integrating the brain: articulating experiences to reduce stress
two hemispheres of the brain
talk integrates left (language) and right (emotion)
"come to terms"
The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind
Putting feelings into words
Labeling your stress consciously and deliberately moves neural activity from the amygdala — the center of emotion and fear — to the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for executive control and planning.
Putting feelings into words (affect labeling) has long been thought to help manage negative emotional experiences; however, the mechanisms by which affect labeling produces this benefit remain largely unknown. Recent neuroimaging studies suggest a possible neurocognitive pathway for this process, but methodological limitations of previous studies have prevented strong inferences from being drawn. A functional magnetic resonance imaging study of affect labeling was conducted to remedy these limitations. The results indicated that affect labeling, relative to other forms of encoding, diminished the response of the amygdala and other limbic regions to negative emotional images. Additionally, affect labeling produced increased activity in a single brain region, right ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (RVLPFC). Finally, RVLPFC and amygdala activity during affect labeling were inversely correlated, a relationship that was mediated by activity in medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC). These results suggest that affect labeling may diminish emotional reactivity along a pathway from RVLPFC to MPFC to the amygdala.
Lieberman, Matthew D., et al. "Putting feelings into words." Psychological science 18.5 (2007): 421-428.
Presence, Parenting and The Planet | Dan Siegel | Talks at Google
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30Using social support to manage & reduce stress
"A coach is someone who will tell you what you don't want to hear, show you want you don't want to see, so that you can be who you want to be."
Pets
Friends & family
Colleagues & supervisors
"Many employers also offer employee assistance programs that have a variety of services, including short-term counseling from licensed therapists or referrals to outside experts who can help with the specific problem you’re having." source
psychologists, therapists
talk therapy
integrate the brain
CBT
the choices we make
create new patterns of thought; new patterns of behavior
create a new mind set about how we think about our challenges
psychiatrists
medication
educate yourself & make informed decisions
NYT article
Good Chemistry, June 16, 2020, by Julie Holland
Netflix: Take Your Pills: Xanax | Official Trailer
CBT & CBD is helpful for a lot of people
asking for help
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31Exercise: investigating your stress
Amazon - blank journal
When you get stressed, write down
what caused the stress?
how did you react?
what stories were you telling yourself?
is there a more skillful story you can tell yourself?
what are skillful actions you can take to reduce stress?
Individual and organizational optimization
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32Understanding mindfulness
Mindfulness = choice, presence, focus
example: wine culture
benefit:
seeing more clearly
internally and externally
clarity = better
assessment – decision – action (ADA)
hiker in the woods analogy
fog vs no fog
lacking clarity vs having clarity
How to Be More Mindful at Work - The New York Times
No matter what your job, work can be anxiety-provoking. Mindfulness can help. In recent years, many companies — from Google to General Mills — have started teaching mindfulness in the office.
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33Case study: Starbucks and mindfulness
mindfulness = awareness
cultivating the customer experience
training customers
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34Exercise: Using the ADA framework to reduce stress
ASSESS
identify stress
notice the stories you are telling yourself
difference between
reality & desired reality
how things are & how you want them to be
how someone is & how you want them to be
how you are & how you want yourself to be
DECIDE
what choices are available?
discount / discard old stories
tell yourself new stories
ACT
tell yourself new and more skillful stories