Stress Management Plan

Introduction

By its simple definition, stress is people's reaction to certain things and circumstances around them which disrupts their normal day equilibrium. It is a part and parcel of everyday life hence has been experienced by several individuals. Stress is not just a mental response to the environment we live in; it has got an enormous physical impact on people (Davis, M., Eshelman, & McKay, 2008). Therefore, it is significant to manage it in order not to interfere with our daily activities as well as health. There are many strategies and techniques for handling stress. Some of them include physical activities such as exercise and breathing. Others include mental processes such as mental imagery and meditation.

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My stress management technique was cardio exercise. It has a diversity of psychological assistance which helps me to advance my physical health. Mainly, cardio exercise is an activity which improves the blood flow, strengthens oxygen supply in the blood, and act as the stimulator of endorphin which makes one feels good about herself or himself and eventually provides peace and prevents tensions that might have caused the stress (Davis, M., Eshelman, & McKay, 2008).

The exercise plan impacted me positively. The level of stressed went down since I felt relaxed and fresh immediately after the exercise. This was a sign that there was continuous and efficient blood flow in the body. Additionally, my mood also changed. In most cases, I woke up very happy and jovial, a sign that proved to me that the technique was delivering its core mandate, which was to reduce the stress level.

There are several things that I liked in the cardio exercise stress management plan. Other than its main objective, it has given me an opportunity to interact with other people. During the regular plan of running in the park, I have met several individuals whom we have discussed with several issues which are not even related to stress. As such, other than being a method of relieving stress, it is also a very good way of socializing by meeting other people. However, despites its benefits, it also consumed some of my time which would have been used to complete certain tasks or meet some deadlines.

Although cardio exercise stress management plan was successful, there are few barriers which hindered its success. The first one is my inability to keep time during the initial stages of the plan. Cardio exercise requires one to obey set timelines to achieve the desired outcome . However, this was a challenge since most of the times, I did not obey such timeframes. Fatigue is another barrier which I experienced during the program. Cardio exercise is just another training method which require use of energy hence can be tiresome in some instances. Fatigue led to nonattendance and negligence which majorly occurred during the initial stages of the program. However, as time went on, I got used to the plan and did not experienced an extreme level of exhaustion. Lastly, it required considerable amount of time in a day which had to be created. Notably, some of the sessions of the cardio exercise such as cardio running at local nature park (30min) required more time which in some instances could not be created due to daily activities. This hindered the smooth progress of the plan which forced me to take longer duration than expected.

One of the stress management tools that I would like to incorporate as I move forward is yoga. By definition, yoga is a mind- body practice which brings together mental and physical disciplines that help one to achieve a peaceful body and mind (Sapolsky, 1998). The choice of yoga is preferred to others because some of its elements such as breathing are incorporated in cardio exercise which I am well conversant with. In addition, Yoga has several forms and styles which allow the user to select. This will basically allow me to choose the one I feel is safe and interesting. For example, I would like to narrow down to Hatha yoga, one of the most common yoga and proffered for reducing stress. It can be used by both beginners and seniors. It involves poses, breathing, relaxation, and mediation. All these are responsible for stimulation of the of endorphin, the hormone which makes one feels good about herself or himself hence reduction of stress.

References

Davis, M., Eshelman, E. R., & McKay, M. (2008). The relaxation and stress reduction workbook. New Harbinger Publications.

Sapolsky, R. M. (1998). Why zebras don't get ulcers: A guide to stress, stress-related disorders and coping.