Coping with Stress
Somatic relaxation training
A means of voluntarily reducing/preventing high levels of arousal
Stress management coping skills
Cognitive restructuring and self-instructional. Alters stress producing cognitive appraisals.
Bottling up feelings
Excessive emotional constraint can cause people to be at a risk factor for cancer and other disorders. Finding a balance and having flexibility in emotional expression and suppression lowers distress and is desirable.
Self-instructional training
Learning to guide behaviour in ways that help coping more effectively. 1) preparing 2) confronting/handling 3) coping 4) evaluation
Trauma Disclosure
Has positive effects on physical and psychological well-being - lowered sickness, anxiety and depression. Enhanced immune system functioning. Depends on quality of disclosure, the supportiveness, understanding and appropriateness of sharing partner. Helps aid the process of extinction and so reduces stressors emotional impact.
Culture and Gender
PFC used by both genders. Women, however, more likely to seek social support and also use EFC. In most cultures and societies boys are pushed to be more independent/assertive/self-sufficeint, girls pushed to be more emotionally expressive/supportive/dependant. Male Response- fight or flight Female Response- tend and befriend Western- PFC, Eastern- EFC/Social
Cognitive relaxation/meditation
Peaceful/Mind-clearing state
Effectiveness of coping mechanisms
Problem-focused coping and seeking social support relate to better adjustment to stressors in most cases. Problem-focused coping desirable when we can control the stressor. Most emotion-focused coping techniques predicted depression and poorer adjustment, however, adaptive emotion-focused strategies such as changing irrational negative thinking or forgiving others can be effective methods in reducing stress. Emotion-focused coping desirable when we cannot influence/modify the stressor and controlling may be maladaptive ie. situations of low personal control. No strategy is effective in all situations.
Relaxation techniques
Somatic Relaxation training and cognitive relaxation/meditation Develop greater control of physiological arousal
Problem - focused coping
Strategies to confront and directly deal with the demands of the situation or to change the situation so that it is no longer stressful. Include; planning; active coping; problem solving; suppressing competing activities; exercising restraint; assertive confrontation.
Emotion - focused coping
Strategies to manage the emotional responses that result from a stressful situation. Include; positive reinterpretation; acceptance; denial; repression; escape avoidance; wishful thinking; controlling feelings.
Cognitive Restructuring
Systematically detect, challenge and replace irrational thoughts
Seeking social support
Turning to others for assistance and emotional support in times of stress. Includes; help and guidance; emotional support; affirmation of worth; tangible aid.
