Everyone feels stress from time to time: When something doesn’t go to plan; when we are put on the spot; when we are running late; when we are let down; when we feel out of our depth; when we are in an unfamiliar situation, we will feel a short burst of stress.
A small amount of stress is good for us. It heightens our senses, gives a rush of adrenaline and jolts us into action. However, excessive or sustained stress is damaging to our physical and mental health.
This Power Hour Expert session aims to increase participants' awareness and understanding of stress so that they can take steps to deal with it before it becomes a major problem. In particular, by completing this Power Hour Expert session, participants will be able to:
- Describe (in broad terms) what stress is and what causes it
- Recognise the symptoms of stress
- Use practical techniques to reduce stress before it becomes a major problem
You can download our free Key Points Sheet and view a selection of the optional PowerPoint slides in pdf format to give you a taste of the session (more slides are included with the virtual session)
Stress Management - Virtual Session (PDF Version)
Whilst the core session can be run in 60 minutes, the extra content allows you to run a half-day worksop as follows:
The full session includes:
- Introduction and objectives
- Stress V Pressure - OPTIONAL group activity to examine the differences between the two
- Why we feel stress – Brief trainer input and discussion of the pressure-performance curve
- The psychological reaction to stress – OPTIONAL trainer input and discussion around General Adaptation Syndrome
- Symptoms of stress – group activity to recognise the physical, emotional and psychological symptoms of stress
- Personality and stress – OPTIONAL individual exercises, trainer input and group work to explore personal drivers
- The causes of stress - Post-it note exercise to examine what causes stress, and the introduction of the 'Four As' in terms of handling those causes.
- Social needs and stress – OPTIONAL input and case studies around SCARF
- The Circle of Concern - Trainer input around the model and review of causes of stress in relation to it
- Lifestyle and stress - brief exploration of the physical things that people can do to reduce stress
- Lifestyle changes - OPTIONAL exercise to look at lifestyle in more detail
- Your Support Network - Discussion around how to recognise and use sources of help
- Your Social Network - OPTIONAL Individual/pairs activity to explore support in more detail
- Saying No - Tips for saying 'No' including OPTIONAL activity to explore why 'no' is sometimes difficult.
- Quick Stress Busters – OPTIONAL review and discussion of practical ways to reduce stress. Points are provided in the workbook if no time to cover individually.
- Make it work at work – What people will do now to put the learning into practice