Chapter 8
Managing Stress
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Stress (1 of 2)
⬤ Stress is the emotional, behavioural, or
physical response to an event or situation.
⬤ Stress is a normal part of life.
⬤ The event or situation that causes stress is
called a stressor.
⬤ New situations or illness can cause stress.
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Stress (2 of 2)
⬤ Some stress can be good:
Called eustress
It can make you work more effectively to
accomplish tasks
⬤ Acute and chronic stress
Acute stress—short in duration
Chronic stress—ongoing stress
See textbook Box 8.1: Physical Signs and
Symptoms of Acute Stress
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Coping With Stress
⬤ Chronic stress can lead to burnout—a state of
physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion.
⬤ Stress affects the whole person and can have
positive or negative effect on all dimensions.
See textbook Box 8.2: Physical Signs and
Symptoms of Chronic Stress
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Sources of Stress (1 of 2)
⬤ Changes
⬤ Emotional pressure
⬤ Lack of control
⬤ Conflict
⬤ School
⬤ Daily frustrations
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Sources of Stress (2 of 2)
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Responses to Stress
⬤ A person’s response to stressors is influenced
by numerous factors:
Gender
Perception
Availability of social supports
Cognitive awareness
Health
Personality
Past experiences with the same or similar stressors
Number of other stressors; nature, severity, and duration of
stressors
• See textbook Box 8.3: Emotional and Behavioural Signs
and Symptoms of Stress
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Defence Mechanisms (1 of 2)
⬤ A defence mechanism is an unconscious
reaction that blocks unpleasant or threatening
feelings.
⬤ Most people occasionally use defence
mechanisms because these can help to
relieve stress.
⬤ Understanding defence mechanisms gives
you insight into what your clients may really
be feeling.
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Defence Mechanisms (2 of 2)
⬤ Support workers must recognize the client’s
defence mechanisms.
Support Worker Responses:
• Validation
• Validate your client’s feelings
• Document
• Describe client’s behavior
• Report
• Report to your supervisor
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Managing Stress in Your Life
(1 of 2)
⬤ Don’t ignore signs of stress—this can result in
illness and/or burnout.
⬤ Strategies for managing stress:
Develop self-awareness.
Take care of your needs.
Think positively.
Be assertive; make decisions that work for you.
Ask others for help and support.
Practise calming exercises.
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Managing Stress in Your Life
(2 of 2)
Additional strategies:
Learn to accept things you cannot change.
Understand how change itself can be
stressful.
Use laughter as a stress reliever.
Understand the effect of social media can
have on your mood.
Dealing with stress is important.
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Job Burnout
⬤ Burnout is common among health care
workers.
⬤ Burnout can have negative consequences for
your health.
⬤ Do not ignore the signs of burnout.
Long-term effects can lead to physical, emotional,
and mental exhaustion.
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Signs of Burnout
⬤ Signs you are experiencing burnout may
include the following:
You find yourself being more critical or sarcastic
Sleep habits have changed
Appetite has changed
Fatigue—you drag yourself to work and have trouble
getting your day started
You have less patience with clients and co-workers
Self-medicating—food, drugs, or alcohol—to make
yourself feel better
• See textbook box: Supporting Kathy: Support Workers
Can Face Burnout Also
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Time Management
⬤ Good time management is essential to
reducing stress.
⬤ You must identify and manage your priorities:
At work, your priority is to provide competent,
compassionate care.
Outside of work, ask yourself:
What do I value most in life?
What gives me satisfaction?
What principles do I want to live my life by?
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Setting SMART Goals
⬤ Your goals should be SMART:
S Specific
M Measurable
A Achievable
R Realistic
T Timely
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Planning Your Life and Your Work
⬤ Questions to guide your decisions include:
What are the client’s needs and priorities?
How much time will each task or activity require?
When will I do each task or activity?
Can I organize my time so that some of the tasks
overlap?
Have I allowed time for the unexpected?
Is there anyone with whom I should coordinate
these activities?
⬤ Give each task a time limit.
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Decision Making (1 of 4)
⬤ Skills that you need to make decisions:
Focus—Focus on the client and the task in order
to make the right decision
Flexibility—You need to be flexible and responsive
to your clients needs.
Decisiveness—Stick to your decisions, unless they
are not working.
• Indecisiveness can upset clients.
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Decision Making (2 of 4)
⬤ Support Workers must make daily decisions:
The order in which you are going to carry out
tasks
The equipment and supplies you need for each
task
The amount of time to spend with each client
When a problem or an observation needs to be
reported immediately
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Decision Making (3 of 4)
⬤ Support workers must make daily decisions
(cont.):
Whether you need help to complete a task
Whether you need to consult with your supervisor
Whether you will accept or refuse a delegated task
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Decision Making (4 of 4)
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Decision Making in Different
Health Care Settings
⬤ Problem Solving:
Identify the problem.
Analyze the problem.
Find a solution.
Devise a plan.
Deal with conflict as necessary.
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Dealing With Conflict (1 of 2)
⬤ Respect Diversity:
Differences in communicating may be influenced
by a person’s culture, personal discomfort, or how
they learned to deal with conflict.
• Depending on their culture, some people may simply
deny that a problem exists.
• Taking action could cause displeasure so some people
may choose not to address the conflict.
• Some may choose to blame others for the problem.
• Some may not respond verbally at all.
Do not hesitate to seek guidance from your
supervisor or co-workers, who may know more
background about your client.
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Dealing with Conflict (2 of 2)
⬤ Workplace conflicts may arise over issues or
events—for example, work schedules,
absences, and the amount and quality of work
performed.
When work environments become unpleasant,
care of clients is affected.
⬤ How do you respond to conflict?
See textbook Box 8.7: Managing Conflict
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