Running head: MY INTEGRATIVE PLAN FOR PERSONAL WELL-BEING 1

Stress-Management Program: My Integrative Plan for Personal Well-Being

Christine A. Nielsen

Salt Lake Community College

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Stress-Management Program: My Integrative Plan for Personal Well-Being

People are extremely busy these days, often filling multiple roles and meeting ever

increasing expectations. Between work, school, and home, individuals are attempting to do more,

be more, and produce more, all within the confines of a 24-hour day. Due to these demands, we

as a society, and as individuals, are facing increasing amounts of stress, which can lead to both

physical and emotional illness. Therefore, it is important to develop and implement strategies

that are effective in mitigating the harmful effects of stress in our lives. With that in mind, the

following sections contain my individualized plan for increasing personal well-being.

Identify Your Stressors

To more fully understand how stress affects me, it is important to first, identify what my

stressors are. Therefore, I have listed my top five stressors in descending order, from highest to

lowest stressors, as follows:

1. School- As I am nearing the end of Spring semester, I have an overwhelming amount

of school responsibilities. Not only do I have assignments, papers and exams that are

due, but I am also in the process of transferring to the University of Utah.

2. Spouse- Since my husband and I are both extremely busy and stressed out, friction is

developing in our relationship. Some of this is due to how we individually handle

stress, and the fact that we are not spending enough quality time together.

3. Kids- While I love my children very much, they are now adolescents, with all that

entails. The relationship with my daughter Emma, is especially stressful right now,

because she is struggling with ways to cope with ADD.

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4. Finances- Recently, my family has experienced some financial changes that place

more responsibility on me. In the long run these are positive changes, however these

changes feel overwhelming to me in the present moment.

5. Personal Time- As a more introverted person, I seem to function best when I have

time to myself to recharge. With all the changes I have experienced lately, I have been

cutting myself short of the time I need to recharge.

Interventions

Most stressors elicit an emotional response of either fear or anger, and sometimes both.

Identifying which emotion is associated with each stressor, offers me additional insight for

choosing appropriate interventions. In the following list, I have labeled each stressor with an A to

indicate feelings of anger, or F to indicate feelings of fear.

1. School- A, F

2. Spouse- A

3. Kids- A, F

4. Finances- A, F

5. Personal Time- A

In completing this exercise, I notice that anger is the prevailing emotion attached to many of my

stressors. While this absolutely aligns with my feelings of impatience, frustration and sadness, it

also provides a clear picture as to why I am currently experiencing so much anger.

Integration

Since stress takes a toll in multiple ways, it is vital to recognize how it impacts not only

emotions, but the mind, body and spirit as well. Additionally, according to Brian Luke Seaward

and the Wellness Paradigm Model, to achieve balance and well-being, it is essential to integrate
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and harmonize the physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of the individual (Seaward,

Managing Stress: Principles and strategies for health and well-being, 2018). Being mindful of

stress in these four areas, will allow me greater flexibility in choosing interventions that will

facilitate integration of mind, body and spirit.

Mind

Right now, I feel completely overwhelmed with the issues in my life. Not only am I

struggling with the afore mentioned stressors of school, spouse, kids, finances and personal time,

but they are also in fluctuation at any given moment. For instance, when I attempt to focus on

school, an emergent situation will arise with my kids. This creates a mental state of

overstimulation and confusion for me. However, one thing that I can do to restore mental balance

in this situation is to use diaphragmatic breathing. According to Brian Luke Seaward in,

Managing Stress: Principles and Strategies for Health and Well-being, diaphragmatic breathing

allows the parasympathetic system to take control over the sympathetic system resulting in a

more relaxed state (Seaward, 2018). I find that in the moment of highest stress, and when all

other coping skills are forgotten, this is the technique that works the best for me.

Emotions

Since I absolutely dislike the feeling of fear, I tend to feel more anger during periods of

high stress. For me, anger is an action emotion, as opposed to fear, which leaves me feeling

helpless. While I understand that anger is an unhealthy response to stress, it is the feeling I am

most comfortable with and therefore, feel the most. One strategy that I use when I am angry, is to

channel that energy into positive action. For example, when I can feel myself becoming angry, I

put my headphones in and clean or do something physical. This provides an outlet for the excess

energy that I feel when I am angry, and I am doing something productive which leads to feelings
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of accomplishment. In this way, I do not stuff or bury my anger, but instead work with my

feelings to neutralize the anger.

Body

I tend to hold most of my stress in my body without really being aware of it.

Consequently, I tend to get a lot of tension headaches and back and should pain. I also

unconsciously clench my teeth and jaw which contributes to my headaches. In fact, I clench my

teeth so hard at night that I have micro fracturing in my molars and must wear a night guard to

sleep. To restore balance in my body has been an interesting process for me because I had to first

become mindful of the way stress was affecting me physically. This means that often, I must

remind myself to “check in” with my body, to identify any areas that feel stressed, and

deliberately relax those areas using stretching techniques. After completing this routine, I usually

feel more in balance in body and mind.

Spirit

Currently, I would say that every stressor in my life is connected to personal

relationships, my values, or my purpose. I believe the reason I am in such a high space of stress

right now, is because some of my highest values and relationships, conflict with my pursuit of

meaningful purpose for this stage of my life. This biggest question I have asked myself lately is,

“What am I supposed to be doing?” and “Do I finish school or focus more on my family?” I have

yet to feel resolved on this issue since I tend to over-think things of significant importance. So, to

create an open and calm space, that restores my connection to the universe, I sit outside in nature.

This reminds me that there are bigger things in this world and that there is beauty and peace to be

found in the smallest of creations. It also reminds me that I do not need to have all the answers,

but can accept and enjoyed what is, instead of worrying about what isn’t.
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Personal Stress-Management Strategy

Stress management is about having a system of effective coping strategies to use when

we feel that our well-being is threatened. The following, is a list of coping skills I am currently

using to address my stressors, followed by, new skills I would like to begin incorporating in my

life.

Skills that I am now using:

1. Humor_ ___________________________________

2. Personal Therapy______________________________

3. Reframing____________________________________

4. Communication Skills___________________________

5. Creative Problem Solving_________________________

Skills I would like to incorporate:

1. Setting Healthy Boundaries_______________________

2. Forgiveness___________________________________

3. Journaling____________________________________

Relaxation Skills that I am currently:

1. Diaphragmatic Breathing_________________________

2. Mindfulness___________________________________

3. Music Therapy_________________________________

4. Conscious Stretching____________________________

5. Message_____________________________________
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Relaxation Skills I would like to incorporate:

1. Meditation____________________________________

2. Exercise and Diet______________________________

3. T’ai Chi Ch’uan_______________________________

Time-Management

Time-management is critical in facilitating stress management and probably the

biggest impediment to my ability to relax. To address this, it is important that I commit to

a block of time to practice these skills. Therefore, I will dedicate 15 minutes a day, every

day, to incorporate relaxation into my schedule. After I have achieved success with 15

minutes, I will increase the time to 30 minutes and go from there.

Conclusion

If I had to describe my current situation in one phrase it would be: I live, therefore

I am stressed. That is why it is so important for me to have an effective stress-management

plan created with my personal stressors in mind. While I currently utilize strategies that

have worked for me in the past, as my life changes, so do my stressors. Therefore, it makes

sense that my coping strategies need to evolve to meet my current needs. Besides, you can

never have too many tools in your tool bag.

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References

Seaward, B. L. (2018). Managing Stress: Principles and strategies for health and well-being.

Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning. Retrieved April 9, 2018

Seaward, B. L. (2018). Managing Stress: Principles and strategies for health and well-being.

Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning. Retrieved April 9th, 2018