7 Practices to Change Your Relationship to Stress

Name: 7 Practices to Change Your Relationship to Stress
Rating: 4.7 (6 reviews)

Effective Stress Management Practices to Ease Stress in a Simple, Science-backed, and Healthy way

Created byTerre Passero

Last updated 6/2023

English

What you'll learn

Understand how stress impacts the brain, body, and behavior and how YOU can impact stress
Identify stressors in your life and learn to respond more effectively
Learn 7 simple micro-practices so you can better regulate stress and emotions
Apply evidence-based micro-practices that fit into your busy life

Course content

8 sections • 15 lectures • 30m total length

Learning Objectives1:14
As you read the Objectives, consider how they are relevant to your life. Identify an intention - why do you want to change your relationship to stress?

Stress is a Natural Part of Life1:15
You will realize you are not alone - there is a lot in our world that causes stress.
Using a worksheet to guide you, you will consider and write down some of the stressors in your life. When we name what we're experiencing, we can start to work with it in a healthy way.
Practice: POP Stress Now (Pause, Observe, Proceed)2:48
You will learn and do a simple practice that helps you interrupt the stress reaction. It helps calm the nervous system. It's simple and you can do it any time for any length of time. We will do it for about 2 minutes.

Stress and Behavior0:50
Understand how stress impacts how you behave and how that can impact others
Using a worksheet to guide you, explore your behavior with colleagues, friends, family when stressed
Practice: Savor a Pleasant Experience3:25
You will learn and do a simple practice that helps you relax - recalling a pleasant experience. With consistency, this helps develop neural pathways in the brain that help you recharge, that help you bring some balance to the mind's natural negativity bias. It's simple and you can do it any time for any length of time. We will do it for about 2 minutes. (And it's a great practice to do before going to bed)

Five More Relaxation Practices Overview0:33
An overview of 5 more simple practices that I will demonstrate and to which you can follow along.
Practice: Breathe 4-count Inbreath, 5-count Outbreath1:22
How we breathe communicates a message to the brain, shifting blood and brain chemistry. A longer exhalation activates the parasympathetic branch of our nervous system. You will do a simple breathing practice in which the outbreath is longer than the inbreath.
Practice: Self Massage1:46
You will do a simple self massage of the shoulders, a place where tension builds when we are stressed. This can help increase blood flow to the area and release tension, promoting relaxation of the muscles.
Practice: Eye Relaxation1:04
You will do a simple, lovely practice to help soothe and rejuvenate the eyes. Cupping the palms over the eyes creates a dark environment, reducing the amount of light that enters the eyes. This can also help to reduce dryness and fatigue of the eyes.
Practice: Stretching2:20
You will have an opportunity to do some simple stretching. Stretching reduces tension in the muscles, increases blood flow and oxygen through the body, and helps activate the parasympathetic branch of the nervous system, helping you relax.
Practice: Smile1:01
An opportunity to simply smile. Smiling releases endorphins in the body, reduces cortisol and can help shift your mindset, sending a message to the brain that things are ok. Try it! :)

Requirements

There are no requirements for this course - come as you are! For people who need simple, quick practices that you can do as you move through your day. (30 seconds - 3 minutes) like you just don't have enough time, yet you need help. I would recommend, however 3 characteristics that will support your success in this course: 1) Curiosity about yourself and your relationship to life's stressors; 2) kindness towards yourself as you learn; and 3) committment to yourself and to the practices

Description

Stress is a natural part of life. If it goes unchecked or becomes chronic, however, it can have a significant impact on both our physical and mental health. It's possible to change our relationship with stress and learn to manage it (and ourselves) effectively. This course will provide you with seven strategies to help you do just that.

Throughout the course, you'll learn about the causes and effects of stress and how it impacts the body, the brain, and your behavior. You'll do some self-reflection to acknowledge the stressors in your life and how you deal with them. It's critical for us to mange our stress response. You will learn that here.

You'll also learn some new ways to deal with stress reminder and ways to make it stick.

We'll explore and practice seven evidence-based strategies that have been shown to be effective in managing stress and reducing its impact on your health and wellbeing.

The course includes:

Simple practices using the breath, stretching, eye relaxation, self massage, working with the mind, and a mindfulness practice called POP Stress Now - Pause, Observe, Proceed.
Seven recordings of guided stress management practices that you can download and listen to anytime.
Lectures about stress, the body, the brain, and behavior related to stress.
Opportunities to explore your favorite ways to unwind and recharge. Identify how to make it a priority.
Six worksheets with various activities to help you assess and reflect on your current situation and to identify strategies that will work for you.

By the end of the course, you'll have a deeper understanding of stress and the tools you need to manage it effectively. You will have experienced just how quickly you can interrupt the stress reaction with simple practices, allowing you to better manage your emotions. You'll be equipped with seven evidence-based practices that you can apply in your daily life to change your relationship with stress and improve your overall health and wellbeing.

Who this course is for:

This is an effective stress management course for anyone who wants to learn basic strategies to cope with stress. Great course for busy professionals, caregivers, students, people going through challenging life changes. If you want to practice relaxation techniques and don't have a lot of time, this is for you!

7 Practices to Change Your Relationship to Stress

What you'll learn

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Course content

Learning Objectives1 lecture • 1min

Stress is a Natural Part of Life2 lectures • 4min

Section 3: Stress and the Body1 lecture • 5min

Section 4: Stress and Behavior2 lectures • 4min

Section 5: Five More Relaxation Practices6 lectures • 8min

Section 6: Apply Practices to Daily Life1 lecture • 3min

Section 7: Thank you and Keep it Going1 lecture • 1min

BONUS: Mindfulness1 lecture • 4min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: