Indicates Different Stressors May Stress Manageme
Stress Management Technique/Evaluation of Effectiveness
Physical activity is one of the many stress management techniques that individuals can choose from in order to manage their stress. Physical activity can range from aerobic exercise, strength training, or any program that includes physical exertion in different degrees of intensity that is designed to increase heartrate or muscle strength (Edenfield & Blumenthal, 2011). One way to see how effective this technique is by evaluating how one is feeling before and after exercise. Edenfield and Blumenthal (2011), found that self-report allowed them to see the benefits of exercise on their participants with depression, anxiety, and their overall stress levels. Each individual could track their mood changes, symptom changes, and physical and mental health changes as well when they exercised to see if there is any change.
Benefits of Multiple Stress Management Techniques
There are multiple benefits to offering different types of stress management techniques. Each individual is different in what they like/dislike, what they need, and what might work best to aid them with their stress. Anderson et al. (2011) mentions that taking inventory of daily stressors and life experiences will give a better understanding of the unique characteristics of typical days for each individual. Doing this can help assess which stress management technique might work best as well. Anderson et al. (2011) also mentions that men and women tend to report different types of stressors which indicates different stressors may need different management techniques. Multiple stress management techniques are also beneficial when it comes to cultural differences. Culture can influence what is perceived as stressful, the intensity level, primary appraisal, secondary appraisal, and coping efforts (Eshun & Kelley, 2009). Culture itself may be seen as a stressor so it is highly beneficial to have multiple forms of stress management techniques in order to reach this area as well.
Two Barriers to Effective Stress Management
One barrier to effective stress management is the culture that surrounds stress and stress management. Mailey et al. (2018) found that often times military spouses did not take the time to manage their stress due to balancing work, childcare, household needs, and the added pressure that military spouses were supposed to take care of everyone else first. Mailey et al. (2018) conducted many focus groups that told of how military culture tended to put the soldier and their career first over the spouse and family leaving them reluctant to reach out for help. Another barrier to effective stress management is one’s perception of stress and their perception of health. King et al. (2012) identifies that individuals need to perceive that there is a benefit in performing a behavior, that benefits outweigh the barriers to perform that behavior, and there are cues to help them remember that behavior. Where the perception lies, the behavior follows.
Priscilla Fleming
Reference
Anderson, B., Wethington, E., & Kamark, T. W. (2011). Interview assessment of stressor exposure. In R. J. Contrada & A. Baum (Eds.), The handbook of stress science: Biology, psychology, and health (pp. 565–582). New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.
Edenfield, T. M., & Blumenthal, J. A. (2011). Exercise and stress reduction. In R. J. Contrada & A. Baum (Eds.), The handbook of stress science: Biology, psychology, and health (pp. 301–319). New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.
Eshun, J. P., Jr., & Kelley, K. J. (2009). Managing job stress: Cross-cultural variations in adjustment. In S. Eshun & R. A. R. Gurung (Eds.), Culture and mental health: Sociocultural influences, theory, and practice. (pp. 55–70). Wiley Blackwell. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1002/978…
King, K. A., Singh, M., Bernard, A., Merianos, A. L., & Vidourek, R. A. (2012). Employing the Health Belief Model to Examine Stress Management among College Students. American Journal of Health Studies, 27(4), 192–203.
Mailey, E. L., Mershon, C., Joyce, J., & Irwin, B. C. (2018). “Everything else comes first”: a mixed-methods analysis of barriers to health behaviors among military spouses. BMC Public Health, 18(1), N.PAG. https://doi-org.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/10.1186/s12…