PURDUE GLOBAL UNIVERSITY

HW410 Stress: Critical Issues in Management and

Prevention

Stress Management and

Prevention Program
Resource Guide
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 PURDUE GLOBAL UNIVERSITY

Stress Management and Prevention Program Resource

Guide

By

Catherine Klus

Purdue Global University

HW410: Stress: Critical Issues in Management and Prevention

30 September 2019
Table of Contents
UNIT 1 T HE NAT UR E OF ST R E S S

Information to Remember.......................................................................................................5
Self-Assessment Exercises......................................................................................................6
Journal Writing.......................................................................................................................9

UNIT 2 T HE P HYS IOL OGY OF ST R E S S

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................10
Self-Assessment Exercises....................................................................................................11
Journal Writing.....................................................................................................................13

UNIT 3 P S YC HOL OGY OF S T R ES S

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................16
Self-Assessment Exercises....................................................................................................17
Journal Writing.....................................................................................................................20

UNIT 4 P E R S ONAL IT Y T R AITS AND T HE HUM AN S P IR IT UAL IT Y

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................22
Self-Assessment Exercises....................................................................................................23
Journal Writing.....................................................................................................................28

UNIT 5 DE AL ING WIT H S T RE S S : C OP ING ST R AT E GIE S

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................30
Journal Writing.....................................................................................................................31

UNIT 6 R E L AXAT ION TE C HIQUE S 1 : B R E AT HING, ME DIT AT ION, AND

M E NT AL IM AGE R Y

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................34
Self-Assessment Exercises....................................................................................................35
Journal Writing.....................................................................................................................38

UNIT 7 NUT R IT ION AND ST R E S S

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................40
Self-Assessment Exercises....................................................................................................41
UNIT 8 P HYS IC AL E XE R C ISE AND AC T IVIT Y

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................44
Self-Assessment Exercises....................................................................................................45
Journal Writing.....................................................................................................................50

UNIT 9 AP P L YING S T R ES S : C R IT IC AL IS S UE S F OR M ANAGE M E NT AND

P R E VE NT ION T O YOUR P R OFE S S IONAL L IFE

Information to Remember.....................................................................................................52

ADDIT IONAL R ES OUR C E S ..................................................................................................53

R E F E R E NC ES ...........................................................................................................................54
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 Unit

Unit 1: The Nature of Stress

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Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: The General Adaption Syndrome is the theory that our body's response to
chronic stress can be broken into three parts and was first researched by Hans Selye. The
first part is the alarm reaction which is when the nervous system is triggered for survival.
The second phase is resistance which is where the body tries to adapt and the third stage
is exhaustion where one or more organs show signs of malfunction. This was easily
applied while I was moving from New Mexico to Florida, starting a new job, and moving
into my new home. (B. Seaward, 2018).
Key Learning Point: Mindfulness is the process of being aware of all surroundings and living in the
present moment (B. Seaward, 2018). This helps you connect what is happening and how your
feelings are connected to those surroundings. Since this course began, I have spent time in the
car on my way home reflecting on the day with the soundtrack from our book.
Key Learning Point: There are four parts to complete the wellness paradigm. These four
components are physical, intellectual, spiritual, and emotional. These parts work together and
will affect the other if the balance is off. For example, physical intake of foods high in omega 3
fatty acids improve brain function and mood (Dee, 2019).

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Self-Assessment Exercise:

There are four parts to complete the wellness paradigm. These four components are physical,

intellectual, spiritual, and emotional. These parts work together and will affect the other if the

balance is off. If too much emphasis is placed on one area, another may lack. Just as you exercise for

physical wellness, the same must be done for your spiritual, intellectual and emotional parts. In this

assignment, I will explain the definition of each wellness aspect, why each one is important to overall

wellness, and one environment that fosters a balance of my personal wellness paradigm.

Physical wellness is important because each organ plays a vital role in life. For example, your

skin protects your organs, your bones hold your organs in place, your heart pumps blood throughout

your body, your brain allows you to process thoughts, and your digestive system fuels your body. By

exercising, you increase energy, think quicker, sleep better, release endorphins to reduce stress,

improve mood and self-esteem, and reduce risk for chronic diseases (Michigan State University,

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2012). If you notice, a person’s physical wellbeing directly ties into their intellectual, spiritual, and

emotional wellbeing.

Intellectual wellness is important because that is the ability for you to remember facts,

processes, people, and how well you can apply these facts to scenarios. This act put into practice is an

example of neuroplasticity, which is defined by Nikhil Sharma, Joseph Classen, and Leonardo Cohen

as the ability of the central nervous system to adapt in response to changes in the environment or

lesions (2016). A simple example of intellectual wellness is your ability to solve word problems such

as “If it takes you 30 minutes to cut a lawn, and you make $20 per lawn, how many lawns will you

have to cut to make $200 and how long will it take?”. You have to apply facts to the situation and

think through it logically to determine it will take 5 hours and you have to cut 10 lawns. You use

your intellectual wellness to relate to people and improve your spiritual wellness.

Spiritual wellness is described by Brian Seaward as having a higher consciousness derived

from relationships with oneself and others, having strong morale and value systems and having a

purpose to life other than simply living (2018). As you can imagine, this is important because this

gives you drive and initiative to do more and better. Having people to confide in is important because

it gives you a sense of belonging and can give you an outlet to reduce stress. Spiritual wellness can

be directly tied into emotional wellness many people tend to mirror their surroundings.

Emotional wellness is how you feel, how you express your feelings, and how well you control

them. As you can imagine, it is important to be emotionally well because if you cannot control your

anger, it can damage your relationships or eventually cause physical problems. You can be taken

advantage of if you are too eager or excited for something, such as a new car. A person needs to have

a good balance of emotions and be able to process them without letting them control the decisions in

their lives.

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 One place that I believe fosters a balance in my personal wellness paradigm is the kitchen. I

personally believe that food is fuel. If you put good food into your body, you will be well, and you

can improve your physical health. Dietician Paula Dee states that foods high in omega 3 fatty acids

improve brain function and mood, and a Mediterranean diet can also improve gut health, resulting in

weight loss and improved heart function (2019). When I am in the kitchen, I am calm. I am focusing

on one thing: the food. It brings me to a place of zen and allows me to show appreciation for those I

love by feeding them.

During this assignment, I explained the four components that complete the wellness paradigm:

physical wellness, intellectual wellness, spiritual wellness, and emotional wellness. I explained why

these four components are important and how they are cohesive, directly affecting the others and

contributing to the overall human wellness. I also talked about how cooking and being in the kitchen

fosters a balance in my own personal wellness paradigm. Without balance and exercising each

component, you will not be at your peak level of performance in any of the levels.

Journal Writing:

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 Unit

Situation Start Midway

2
End
House Hunting (distress) 7 10 2
Sick Dog (distress) 8 4 1
Familiarizing myself with new area (distress) 6 4 3
Meeting my best friend’s new baby (eustress) 3 5 4
Choosing a movie theater to finally see Lion King in 1 1 1
(neustress)
Choosing what kind of cupcake to get at my favorite bakery 3 2 1
(eustress)
Rock cracked my windshield on trip and had to get it 4 2 2
repaired with insurance provider (distress)
Running (physically distress and mentally eustress) 1/6 6/4 8/2
Carpet company shutdown in town (neustress) 1 1 1
Going to the grocery store (neustress) 1 1 1
(Stahl & Goldstein, 2010)

Unit 2: The Physiology of Stress

Information to Remember:
 Key Learning Point: Myrin Borysenko theorized that our body’s nervous system release either
too much of various stress hormones such a cortisol, epinephrine or norepinephrine.  With our
hormone balance being off, this leads to our immune system over or under-responding to the
stress which can lead to a variety of problems.
 Key Learning Point: The autonomic dysregulation can lead to migraines, ulcers, coronary heart
disease, or hypertension. 
 Key Learning Point: The immune dysregulation can lead to infections, allergies, lupus or
arthritis. These reactions are further broken down by whether it is an overreaction or under
reaction of the immune system (Seaward, B. 2018).

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Self-Assessment Exercise:
When the body experiences stress, the first instinct of the brain is “fight or flight” and

resources are sent throughout the body in order to defend itself. Hormones such as epinephrine and

cortisol are sent out which increases your heart rate and respiration, blood vessels to dilate, and your

sugar levels to increase (G. Berntson, n.d.). The primary discussion of this assignment is the

description of neuroscience and neuroplasticity, five diseases that are caused by stress on the nervous

system, and one disease that is caused by stress to the immune system.

Neuroscience is defined as “the study of how the nervous system develops, its structure, and

what it does” (C. Nordqvist, 2018). Neuroplasticity is defined as the ability of the central nervous

system (CNS) to adapt in response to changes in the environment or lesions (N. Sharma, J. Classen, &

L. Cohen, 2016). The brain is responsible for interpreting your senses, such as something being hot

or cold, whether something is salty or sweet, or whether something is quiet or loud. When

overworked and stressed out, the brain sends signals throughout your body to remain alert which

overworks and affects your nervous and immune system. The brain sends out signals to attack any

disease, which may cause short-term or long-term damage to the body.

Five diseases that can occur when the nervous system is affected by stress are migraines,

asthma, temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJD), irritable bowel syndrome, and coronary heart

disease. Rapid dilation of arteries changes the vascular pressure and hours after the stressful event, a

person may experience a migraine which may mean a throbbing sensation over half of their head,

light sensitivity, and dizziness (B. Seaward, 2018). A person may have an asthma attack induced by

stress because your breathing rate is increased, airways are narrowed, and your lungs begin to release

hormones in preparation for defense yet leaving you with a hard time breathing. TMJD is an illness

where your jaw muscles constrict and dilate during a person’s sleep leaving them with symptoms such

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as teeth grinding, muscle pain, popping sounds when chewing, and earaches (B. Seaward, 2018).

Irritable bowel syndrome is a broad category covering problems such as diarrhea, constipation, gas,

and stomach pains caused by neural stimulation of the digestive organs. Coronary heart disease is

caused by stress because of the combination of the hormones being released into the blood stream and

increased blood flow throughout the body. This modifies the blood pressure and can cause too much

strain to be placed on the heart.

A person’s immune system is responsible for ridding the body disease, repair damaged tissues,

and disposing of abnormal cells. The immune system needs to be regulated constantly because

without it, someone might develop an autoimmune or inflammatory disease (E. Sternberg & E. Gold,

2002). As mentioned previously, when a person is stressed, they are on high alert and their immune

system begins to attack all foreign bodies. This includes pollen, mold, and pet dander. Each person

can withstand a baseline level of these external attackers without stress. When stress is added, your

immune system goes into overdrive to protect you from these allergies.

The primary discussion of this assignment was the description of neuroscience and

neuroplasticity, five diseases that are caused by stress on the nervous system, and one disease that is

caused by stress to the immune system. Stress affects everyone in unique ways. When the body

experiences stress, the first instinct of the brain is “fight or flight” and hormones are distributed to

nearly every part of your body with an effort to protect you.

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Journal Writing:
Stress about people is affecting my life in a minimal way. Since I recently moved, the only

person I’ve really been around lately is my husband. I do not have any other relationships established

with people here which for me, as an extrovert, is a stressor. I am very conscious of what I say to not

offend someone and try to impress the people around me in an effort to make friends.

How is stress or anxiety about work affecting your life?

Stress about work is affecting my life quite significantly. I like to know what I am going to be

doing and how to best do it. I am assigned to Eglin Air Force Base in Fort Walton Beach, Florida but

work for Tyndall Air Force Base in Panama City, Florida. I do not know how many people I will be

responsible for, what I will be responsible for, or how to do what it is I’ll be doing. I worry that a

decision will be made to move my position back to Tyndall and I’ll be forced to go with it. In the

meantime, I’m trying to just take things one step at a time and not stress but some insight to my

worklife would be great!

How is stress or anxiety about the world affecting your life?

Things happening in the world is affecting my life a decent amount. I lived in Alamogordo,

New Mexico and drove to El Paso, Texas at least once or twice a month. I still have many friends

there and was instantly worried after the recent shooting. I was relieved that no one I know was near

there, but now I worry about restricting gun ownership becoming a hot topic again. I worry that we

are falling into the same patterns that other countries like Venezuela did. I worry about the world

relations affecting the U.S. market and whether we’ll go into a recession. These worries don’t keep

me up at night or give me stomach ulcers, but they’re definitely things that distract me throughout the

day.

How is stress or anxiety about food and eating habits affecting your life?

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 Stress about food and eating habits usually do not affect my life but since I’ve been living out

of a hotel and now RV, I find myself worrying more. I like to cook and try to find intriguing ways to

make my favorite meals into healthier alternatives. I have to maintain fitness and appearance

standards, so I can’t and don’t want to eat a lot of fried foods. I also don’t want to eat out a lot

because it gets very expensive which puts a strain on my budget and that is overwhelming.

How is stress or anxiety about sleep and sleeplessness affecting your life?

Stress about sleep and sleeplessness does not affect me one bit. I can generally sleep

anywhere as long as there is minimal light and noise. I obviously prefer my own bed which I will

finally sleep in tonight for the first time in more than a month, so I am very excited about that!

How is stress or anxiety about exercise or lack of physical activity affecting your life?

Stress about my exercise does affect me a bit. I am not in the best shape and I would like to

improve it. I have ran in Florida a few times and I’m not used to the humidity at all. I am kind of

grateful to know know that I will now have unit physical training sessions but since I am a leader, the

members of my unit will be looking to me to set the example. I just don’t think that I’m where I

should be, so I am trying to improve and maybe the members of my unit will respect that I am giving

100%. I have made sure not to go too hard, too fast because of overtraining. According to George

Redmon, in order to make this change a positive one, I cannot stay in the exhaustion phase of the

general adaptation syndrome or my brain will change physiologically and it may interfere with

positive changes (2013).

I think that usually my life isn’t as stressful as the past 6 weeks have been. The assignment

listed in our book has helped me to recognize the things that I have going on and how I can adapt to

them (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). I will use different meditation techniques to exercise my mind and

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remain conscious of the moment I am in. Another thing that I will try to focus on is realizing what I

Unit

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am in control of and what I am not, and only stress about the things that I can affect change in.

Unit 3: Psychology of Stress

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Anger is a way to communicate and reveals information about what you hold
important in life and is a response to different situations (Seaward, 2018)
Key Learning Point: According to notable theorist Leo Buscaglia, you in order to love someone else,
you must accept yourself for who you are and love yourself. In order to be lasting, you must
work at loving yourself regularly. He has six hypotheses as it pertains to love as an influence.
They are 1) to give love you must possess love, 2) to teach love you must comprehend love, 3) to

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 study love you must live in love, 4) to recognize love you must be receptive to love, 5) to yield
love you must be vulnerable to love and 6) to dedicate yourself to love you must grow in love
constantly (B. Seaward, 2018).
Key Learning Point: Technology has caused a shift in communication. There is a term called the
technology gap and that is the different generations and their preferences to communication.
Generally, people over 30 prefer talking face to face or over the phone and those under 30 prefer
text messages, emails, and instant gratification. One major problem is that electronic
communication leaves much to interpretation without body language, pitch, tone, and facial
expressions (B. Seaward, 2018).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
If you lift weights, you can lose weight and gain muscle. If you practice improving your

skeeball throw, you can achieve a higher score. You study throughout school to learn life skills and

basic knowledge. These same principles can be applied to exercising the mind and improving your

communications skills. Neuroplasticity is the ability for your brain to adapt to scenarios and it can be

exercised to meet your own goals. Throughout this assignment, I will review how the Tibetan culture

has set milestones regarding mind and stress, viewpoints shared by mindfulness theorists, ways to

cope with fear, and ways to improve your communications skills.

Tibet is located in central Asia and is a very mindful culture that has studied and shared

information from biology to medicine to mindfulness for 1,500 years (R. Thurman, 2018). The

Tibetan people are a non-violent culture and believe in the openness of heart and mind. They believe

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that the mind controls all aspect of their lives and if their minds are happy, then all aspects of their

lives will follow. The Dalai Lama is the head of Spirituality of Tibet and says that negative emotions

such as anger, jealousy, and anger are harmful and destroy our mental happiness and he encourages

meditation to relieve ourselves of those feelings (B. Seaward, 2018).

There are many mindfulness theorists such as Sigmun Freud and Carl Gustav Jung. Freud

believed that humans act from instincts and these desires to act are to please individual needs. Jung

coined the concept of individualization which is a process of self-discovery and realization from

childhood throughout adulthood and each experience building on another (B. Seaward, 2018). These

two theorists and many others all have similar beliefs and that is that each person must be aware of

their thoughts, presence, and limitations. When a person becomes aware, they must accept what they

are in order to ease stress and achieve happiness.

There are a multitude of ways a person can deal with fear with some being more beneficial

than others. The theories by scientists and psychologists are all common, in that you cannot run from

fear and you must assert it at some point, or the fear will always be prominent in your life, holding

you back from happiness. Joseph Wolpe believed that much of our behavior is learned and founded

the concept of desensitization. Desensitization is the concept that a person can unlearn fears by slowly

integrating triggers of the fear, usually in a controlled environment or even by rehearsing these

stressful situations (Psychologist Anywhere Anytime, n.d.) For example, if a person has a fear of

heights, the person would be introduced to varying levels of platforms until they are comfortable with

each level.

There are a host of means to improve communication skills. First, is by improving your

vocabulary. When speaking with a limited vocabulary, you may not have the correct words to get

your message across to your listener. Another tool is using the right words for your audience. For

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example, if you are speaking to kindergarteners about mindfulness and mental wellness, you

shouldn’t use large words like “desensitization” without explaining the definition. The next mean to

improve your communication is to avoid giving too much information when communicating. The

human brain can only process so much information before instincts kick in and our minds begin to

wander (B. Seaward, 2018).

Other techniques apply directly to one on one conversations. First, avoid putting people on

the defensive. It is instinctual for people to stop listening when they are offended or they think that

you are closed off to their position on a topic. You should also not assume someone’s message

without verifying what they meant. A good way to do this is to summarize or paraphrase what they

said. Finally, you should always resolve a problem during conversation and not wait to dwell on it.

This will allow you to deal with the problem prior to it bubbling up and affecting your relationship (B.

Seaward, 2018).

During this assignment, I reviewed how the Tibetan culture set milestones regarding mind and

stress, viewpoints shared by mindfulness theorists such as Sigmun Freud and Carl Gustav Jung, using

desensitization to cope with fear, and a several ways to improve your communication skills.

Exercising your mind as you do your body will reduce your stress levels and help your brain adapt to

various scenarios and meet your goals. Applying these theories and skills can improve your daily life

and improve your overall happiness.

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Journal Writing:
I am sitting in my RV as I practice Mindfulness with my sense. I have been living in it for

nearly a month. I hear the air condition running and the heavy sounds of rain hitting the insulated

roof. I smell the pinto beans that I cooked with green chili oil, onions, cumin, and cayenne powder to

make for dinner later this week. I am reminded that I will still need to clean out the pot and make rice

for dinner tonight and I begin planning my list of things that I still need to accomplish before the

dreadful work week begins.

I realize that I am not longer in the present and I begin to think about what I taste to bring me

back to the moment. I still taste the strawberry and orange from the gummy worms I ate while I

watched Captain Marvel. I see them sitting on the table in front of me and I grab two different colors

to differentiate in the colors. I eat the white side first and it tastes like a fake pineapple flavor. It is

gooey and chewy and easily dissolves. I eat the red side and I cannot place the flavor. It almost tastes

like a cherry but also tastes like strawberry. I look at the packaging to see what flavors it contains,

and it was cherry. I narrowed it down well and have a small sense of accomplishment.

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 I see my two dogs lying under the booth dinette. It brings me a level of peace to see them

calm and adjusted to being here, and I am reminded that just a month ago that my younger pup had

stomach ulcers because she was stressed from the move. I try to remember that this can no longer be

changed and nothing negative came from this and I push the thought from my mind.

I feel a stiffness in the left side of my neck, and I have a sudden desire to roll out the pain. I

roll it forward, and then slowly to the right, I look up, and then roll it back to the left. I repeat this

motion a few times until the tension is eased and I feel a sense of relief. I feel my chest rise and the

breath coming in from my nose. I exhale through my nose as well and feel my chest fall. As the

sound of the rain intensifies, I look out the window and see my plants that are graciously recovering

from being burnt by the New Mexico sun on moving day. I see the droplets holding onto the leaves.

My attention is grabbed by the squirrel running up the tree seeking cover from the rain. I am

reminded that I still need to do laundry but I do not want to be in the rain or interrupt my feeling of

tranquility.

After I completed this mindfulness meditation, I realized that I did keep in mind the eight

attitudes. I looked at the place I had been living with fresh eyes or a beginner’s mind. I saw my dogs

through non-judgement and acknowledged that there was nothing I could do. I found myself looking

towards the future and brought myself back to the quality of awareness of nonstriving. I realized the

equanimity of my plants with heat and the rainwater and decided to let my laundry be and the feeling

of daunting tasks affect my wellness. This reflection now as I read through my text, I know that I can

rely on myself to determine what is true and I am striving to not criticize my actions and love myself

unconditionally (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

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 Unit

Unit 4: Personality Traits and the Human Spirituality

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Self-esteem is the sense of self-values, self-acceptance, and self-love and is
thought to mitigate any threat (Seaward, B. 2018).

Key Learning Point: There are 3 Cs involving a hardy personality: Commitment, Control, and
Challenge.  Commitment is being dedicated to things you value and gives you a sense of purpose.
Control helps you see the series of events that put you in the position you're in which enables you
to feel like you have a say. Challenge is being able to see the possibilities and make the changes
to improve your life (Seaward, B. 2018).

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 Key Learning Point: Being assertive generally means to comfortably strong-willed about your
thoughts with a balance and without being passive or aggressive. Skills to become more assertive
is learning to say no, using “I” statements about your feelings or interpretations, using eye
contact, using assertive body language, practicing peaceful disagreement, avoid being
manipulated and finally responding rather than reacting. (B. Seaward, 2018).

Self-Assessment Exercise:
How does a person develop self-awareness of behaviors and values to use in managing stress

on an individual basis? This is not an easy task. During this assignment, I will go over the meaning

of self-esteem and how it promotes and resolves feelings of stress, how relationships, values, and

meaningful purpose affect and are affected by stress, the difference between values, attitudes, and

beliefs, and the application of Prochaska’s Stages of Change Model. All of these things will make it

easier to be more aware of your behavior in managing stress on an individual basis.

Self-esteem is crucial in how a person deals with stress. Self-esteem is described by Brian

Seaward as the sense of self-values, self-acceptance, and self-love and is thought to mitigate any

threat (2018). This could be equated to confidence in performing a task. If a person is on a debate

team and began preparing to debate a specific topic, they are prepared and know that topic inside and

out. The entire team has practiced, and they know all aspects of it and they know how to argue each

point and what to say in order to counter each point that their opponent retorts with. This is exciting

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but you are relatively calm and have high self-esteem because you’re prepared. Upon arriving to the

competition, the judges changed the topic the members don’t know as much about it and they doubt

your ability to win. The team is unprepared and really begin to stress out in a negative way and by

imagining every negative outcome, the stress is increased. They begin to sweat and have a hard time

concentrating. That’s how self-esteem effects stress. There are many ways to combat stress such as

not allowing yourself to doubt your abilities and use effective problem-solving techniques (B.

Seaward, 2018).

Spirituality is the connection between self and life. It is having a sense of purpose, self-love,

and belonging. When a person is spiritually sound, they are more prepared to handle high amounts of

stress. This is most likely caused by either having a support system, understanding that some things

are uncontrollable, or not believing that others have ill intent. People who are spiritually sound are

positive and more likely to recover. According to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services

Administration, hope is the foundation of recovery as it is the belief that challenges can be overcome

and recovery is supported through a strong social network (SAMHSA, 2019).

In the reverse aspect, stress can severely impact your social life and relationships. It is not in

human nature to compartmentalize and communication is an important part of both a relationship and

managing stress. This becomes a problem when a person becomes overwhelmed, does not properly

communicate and lashes out at their loved ones.

There are many differences between values, attitudes, and beliefs but each is affected by the

other. A value is something taught by role models from a young age and is basically what is

important to you. Values are things such as relationships, honesty, education, tangible items, or

privacy and can move up and down as a priority throughout a person’s life. Your perception and

expression of feelings is called your attitude and is based on your values. Your beliefs are the things

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that you think to be true and assumptions made about the world. Your attitude is based on what you

believe and how important that value is.

James Prochaska was one of the founders of the Stages of Change model for implementing

change in someone’s life. He believed that changing is a process and learned skill, not something that

is done instantly (B. Seaward, 2018). There are six stages in this model and can be applied to any act

requiring change such as modifying your diet. The first stage is precontemplation and during this

stage, you may deny that a problem exists at all. The second stage is contemplation and during this

stage, you acknowledge the problem with your diet. This could be because your clothes don’t fit

quite the same, a big event coming up, or health concerns. The third stage is determination. This is

the stage where you start to research the diet you want to implement, set goals, and determine the best

way to reach your goals.

Next is actually putting in work as the fourth stage is action. During this stage, a person may

stumble a few times, cheat on their diet, and try to find the right balance for them but it’s where

everything is put into play. The fifth stage is the maintenance stage where the diet is a normal thing

for them. A person will have their favorite meals to make and it is the routine. Occasionally, a person

may enter the sixth stage, commonly referred to as the relapse stage. During this stage, a person may

fumble and have a series of cheat meals or go on a vacation and have too many margaritas. It is

normal for a person to enter this stage and go back to bad habits before resuming good ones again.

I reviewed the meaning of self-esteem and how it promotes and resolves feelings of stress, and

how relationships, values, and meaningful purpose affect and are affected by stress. I also went over

the difference between values, attitudes, and believes and the definition and application of

Prochaska’s Stages of Change Model. This should give a little insight on how a person develops self-

awareness of behaviors and values to use in managing stress on an individual basis.

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Journal Writing:
Emotions are very tricky to navigate and put your finger on. Our vocabulary may limit us and

not allow us to comprehend the feelings we have. Each person feels things in different ways and they

impact our ability to handle stress differently. Some people may have muscle spasms in their necks,

migraine headaches, or stomach aches with negative emotions. Some people may have an increased

heartrate or breathing rate with happy emotions. During this assignment, there are groups of feelings

with paragraphs following on which words I relate to most and how my body manifests these

emotions (B. Stahl & E. Goldstein, 2010).

FEAR: apprehension, anxiety, distress, edginess, jumpiness, nervousness, panic, tenseness,

uneasiness, worry, fright, feeling overwhelmed.

The three words that stand out to me in this grouping are tenseness, worry, and feeling

overwhelmed. I will start with feeling overwhelmed because this is the easiest to explain for me. I

like to believe that I relate most to a helpless-hopeless personality. In order to impress people and

feel valued or needed, I take on a lot of things and end up feeling overwhelmed. This overwhelming

feeling often leads me to being tense and on edge with my mind racing. My mind races and I worry

that I forgot details or I think of alternate ways to do things. Something even more concerning is that

I worry about not receiving validation from people that I seek approval from (B. Seaward, 2018). I

carry these feelings in my gut and stomach. I often find myself so overwhelmed and sidetracked that

I will not eat and push that off which doesn’t help with any anxiety.

CONFUSION: bewildered, uncertain, puzzled, mystified, perplexed, chaotic, foggy, or unaware.

27
 The words that stand out most to me in this are puzzled and unaware. I am often puzzled by

emotions of others because I have a hard time relating to the feelings that they feel. I want to relate to

understand their motives and reactions to problems and other people. For example, I don’t understand

why people assume ill-intent of others. I do my best to assume that someone isn’t doing things solely

to spite or make me angry. The other word unaware is because I overlook things and try to see the

best in all situations. This sometimes leads to people with type a personality taking advantage of me,

but I’m becoming more aware of these types of people as I learn from my mistakes. I wear these

types of emotions right on my face. When I am perplexed, I will furrow my brow or scowl in

discontent which possibly aggravates these situations.

ANGER: aggravation, agitation, annoyance, destructiveness, disgust, envy, frustration, irritation,

grouchiness, grumpiness, rage.

Aggravation, frustration, and grumpiness are three words that I relate to most in this grouping

of words. As I stated before, I like to relate to people and understand their feelings and motives as

this can help me empathize with them. When I’m unable to do this, I feel both aggravated and

frustrated. I also feel this way when I know people are taking advantage of my kindness or do not

reciprocate kindness, even though I shouldn’t expect people to act the same. When these things

happen, I am often unable to articulate my feelings well and am grumpy. I do not sleep as well and

my mind is foggy as a result. Types of anger holds tight into my shoulder and neck. When I realize

that I am slouching or my shoulders are stiff, I will roll my shoulders back and hold them high, then

focus on my breathing.

SADNESS: alienation, anguish, despair, disappointment, gloom, grief, hopelessness, insecurity,

loneliness, misery, unhappiness, rejection.

28
 The words I relate to most in this grouping are alienation, hopelessness, and insecurity. As I

previously mentioned, I seek approval and validation through others. I enjoy doing things to make

others happy. I think that I do this because I believe happiness and joy are contagious. When I was

growing up, I have fond memories of my family and we were all pretty close. My dad got remarried

in 2006 and since then, he hasn’t talked to me as much and when he does, it’s when he is out of town

and his wife isn’t around. This makes me feel alienated and although I have tried to build the

relationship between her and I, it has never been successful so I feel hopeless. When I think about

these heavy emotions and specific examples, I feel it in my chest. I feel like something is pushing on

the front of my chest and deep breaths help me relieve that pressure.

SHAME: guilt, embarrassment, humiliation, invalidation, regret, remorse, mortification.

Two words that I relate to in this category are guilt and invalidation. These are feelings that I

try to avoid and shove deep down, so I don’t really have to feel them. Things I have said and done

have had a last impact on my life and has affected the impressions I have left on some people. I feel

bad about some of the things I have done. I often do things for people and not having any kind of

acknowledgement or someone else taking the credit leaves me feeling invalidated and unvalued.

These are also feelings I can feel in the base of my neck, between my shoulders.

LOVE: affection, arousal, attraction, caring, compassion, desire, fondness, infatuation, kindness,

liking, longing, warmth, sympathy, sentimentality.

29
 This is one of my favorite feelings. The ones I relate to most are affection, compassion,

infatuation, and sentimentality. I am a very physical person and love when my husband holds my

hand or my friends hug me. I enjoy seeing people do nice things for eachother and not taking

advantage of that act of kindness. I love being so hopelessly and sickeningly in love with my husband

and hope that everyone has that person in their life. I like looking at objects or pictures and being

reminded of the positive memories that are attached to these items. When I feel these emotions, I feel

them in my whole body. When I am held by my husband, I am in a relaxed and tranquil state and

many worries wash away.

JOY: amusement, bliss, contentment, eagerness, elation, enjoyment, enthusiasm, excitement,

exhilaration, hope, optimism, pleasure, satisfaction.

Emotions that I like most in this category are eagerness, elation, contentment, and optimism.

Some days I am elated and happy at seeing that my work has been fruitful, or when a person

expresses their gratitude for the work I have done. Some days I’m content which is nice to have a

calming emotion. I am always eager for a challenge and seeing problems through brings me a bit of

joy as well. Optimism brings me hope and happiness. I feel these emotions in my chest as well. As I

think through these things, my chest feels light and my breathing feels fulfilled.

During this assignment, there are groups of feelings with paragraphs following on which

words I relate to most and how my body manifests these emotions (B. Stahl & E. Goldstein, 2010).

Emotions are very tricky to navigate and put your finger on, which can also be restricted by a limited

vocabulary. Each person feels things in different ways, and they impact our ability to handle stress

differently. Some people may have muscle spasms in their necks, migraine headaches, or stomach

30
aches with negative emotions while some people may have an increased heartrate or breathing rate

Unit

with happy emotions.

5

Unit 5: Dealing with Stress: Coping Strategies

Information to Remember:
Key Point: James Prochaska believed that changing is a process and learned skill, not something that
is done instantly (B. Seaward, 2018).
Key Point: There are six stages to Prochaska’s model of change. 1) Pre-contemplation. 2)
Contemplation. 3) Determination. 4) Action. 5) Maintenance. 6) Relapse
Key Point: Your outlook and view on situations in your life can affect the outcome. If you are
optimistic, you will be less effected by stress and more likely to have a positive result as opposed
to having a negative outlook with will more likely produce negative results.

31
Journal Writing:
As I began the Mindful Self-Inquiry for Stress and Anxiety, I congratulated myself on taking

the time to meditate and as the instructions stated, I considered it an act of self-love (B. Stahl & E.

Goldstein, 2010). I read through the exercise and had a hard time focusing on the words and the

feelings that I was going through, so I stopped about 2/3 of the way through and put in the audio disc

to listen instead.

Being aware of my breathing was the easiest part that I truly enjoyed. It relaxed me as I felt

my chest rise and fall with each inhalation and exhalation. I breathed in through my nose and I felt

the cool air go in as my chest rose. I exhaled through my mouth, feeling the warm air go out as my

chest fell. Focusing on these actions caused my shoulders to fall down and I naturally felt taller.

With my shoulders lower, I felt tension relieved from the base of my neck and shoulders. I felt

calmer because my mind wasn’t wandering and thinking about anything except my breathing. It

distracted me from any woes in my life.

When scanning through my body, I was reminded of the itch on the back of my head. I

breathe through my nose and hear a short whistle because of minor congestion. I sniffle to try and

reduce the whistle. I scan down and feel my hair touching my neck and I brush it away. I feel that

tension in my shoulders again, so I roll them back and down to ease the stiff feeling. I feel my watch

32
touching my wrist. I feel the cushion of the chair behind my back and under my butt. My right side is

feeling more pressure than my left. I adjust my position to disperse my body weight a little more

evenly. I’m sitting with my legs cross and I feel that cool air touch my left knee. I feel my right foot

under my left thigh and my left foot under my right calf. I feel the cold in my feet.

I began my mindful inquiry, thinking about the things that concern me. I am saddened that my

husband left for training for 2 months. I fear being alone in a new place and wonder if I will make

friends. I think about moving into our house in just four days and am again saddened that I’ll be

doing it alone. I think about how anything I unpack and put into a place will just be moved again

because my husband is very particular how he wants things. I think about how we struggle to

communicate when we’re apart, and my eyes begin to tear. I feel the weight of sadness in my chest. I

stop here with this inquiry into negative emotions.

I begin to explore my mind and body again. I think back to the home we chose to buy, and I

am happy. I think about the feeling that we will grow as a couple and one day raise our own family in

this home. I am excited about the future. I remember that I have hope and promise of positive days.

I draw away from this and focus on my breathing again.

I empty my mind entirely, as if I were laying on the beach and watching clouds form shapes. I

think about the kitchen and living room in our new home. I think of the turquoise beach water, sound

of the waves, smell of the saltwater in the air, and the heat on my face. I remember the feeling of my

feet sinking into the sand as the waves approach the shore and recede, attempting to keep my balance.

I think about walking my dogs down to the beach and remember as I walk that I should look just

above my head because of the huge spiders. I remember seeing the parasailers off in the distance of

our favorite area to walk.

33
 I draw myself away one last time and focus on my breathing. Throughout this exploration of

my mind my shoulders are sitting higher and forward again. I roll my shoulders back and down,

feeling my trap muscles in my shoulders being stretched. As I breathe in, I focus on keeping my

shoulders back, neck high and my back straight. I feel the stretch more and my breathing is crisp and

precise. I exhale and the stretch is lessened.

This exercise was very exhilarating and reminded me of things that bother me. It made me

think of the things that are important to me and anticipate happy things. Reflecting on the portion of

the exercise where I focused on the negative emotions I have, I realized that I often try to suppress

these negative emotions, and I know this isn’t good. By recognizing my feelings towards any actions,

I can rationalize these feelings and adjust to them better. I really liked the breathing exercises. I

enjoy feeling the stretch in my shoulders as I focus on my breathing and it really is calming. I think

that this is something that I’m going to continue to do.

34
Unit 6: Relaxation Techniques 1: Breathing, Meditation, and Mental

Unit

Imagery
6
Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: One form of mental imagery is Tranquil Natural Scenes. This is where you
would imagine being on the beach and calmly listening to the waves or sitting at a cabin in the
woods hearing the wind rustle the leaves on a tree.
Key Learning Point: Another form of mental imagery is behavior changes. This is where you
imagine quitting smoking or running through if/then scenarios of how to may respond to
situations.
Key Learning Point: There are 5 actions used to focus a person's mind during exclusive meditation:
1) mental repetition. 2) visualization. 3) Repeated sounds. 4) Physical repetition. 5) Tactile
repetition (B. Seaward, 2018).

35
Self-Assessment Exercise:
Many people wonder how to become more self-aware. There are countless tools and methods

in order to do this. It is important to know different coping strategies in order to manage stress on an

individual basis. During this assignment, I will cover some of these coping strategies such as

diaphragmatic breathing, and the three steps that are critical to performing diaphragmatic breathing. I

will also go over the effects of meditation on the mind and body, as well as the three ways that

imagery and visualization can be useful for relaxation.

Diaphragmatic breathing is when you breathe from your lower stomach rather than from your

thoracic area or your chest. It is easily thought as deliberate deep breathing or a deep sigh when

gathering your thoughts. When you focus on inhaling from your lower abdomen, rather than your

chest, there are less sympathetic nerves stimulated which means your body is more inclined to relax

(B. Seaward, 2018). This type of breathing decreases stress, focuses your mind, decreases chronic

pain, and studies have shown that it even lowers your cortisol level (Ma et all, 2017).

There are three steps that are important to engage in this technique. The first is to sit in a

comfortable position. It is recommended to wear loose fitting clothing, and to sit with your back

straight and for first timers, place your hand on your stomach so you can feel the changes in your deep

breathing exercises. The second step is concentration. You want to minimize any distractions and

find some where quiet or separated from busy areas. The third step is to visualize the breaths coming

and going from your body. One visualization technique called breathing clouds is completed by

imagining clean air being inhaled and negative, toxic air which include your negative thoughts

expelled from your body. Imagine the clear, clean air being inhaled and the grey, dark air being

expelled, releasing any tension in your body (B. Seaward, 2018).

36
 Meditation is the process of concentration and self-reflection that allows you to clear and ease

your mind. Studies have shown reduced symptoms of depression, anxiety, and pain and have even

had positive effects compared to anti-depressants (Walton, 2015). Meditation is basically the brain’s

version of weight training or preparing for a marathon. Meditating allows different areas of the brain

to become quieter which improves concentration and the ability to respond to stress and reduces

anxiety. Studies have also shown that people who meditate have more grey matter which is the part

of the brain that is responsible for muscle movement, speech, memory, and emotions (Lunders,

Cherbuin, & Kurth, 2015).

There are three ways that imagery and visualization can be useful for relaxation. The first is

by using peaceful natural scenes which a person imagines being near the ocean or in a forest. During

this type of visualization, it was found that it recreated the same sense of relaxation as actually being

in the location and if a person addresses problems during this visualization, it makes them appear

more manageable. The second visualization tool is behavioral changes which allow a person to see

themselves breaking bad habits or acting on better ones. An example of this is when a person trying

to quit smoking imagines the times when they want to smoke most and they walk through the scenario

of not smoking. A third visualization method is internal body images which is where you are

visualizing your body piece by piece as it is being healed or even damaged to create the desired

outcome (B. Seaward, 2018). For example, a person who is quitting smoking may visualize the

smoke going into their body and darkening their lungs, or the plume of smoke that surrounds them

with the odor which discourages them from smoking (Brewer, 2019).

During this assignment, I reviewed the effects that meditation has on the mind and body, as

well as the three ways the imagery and visualization can be used for relaxation. I covered coping

strategies like diaphragmatic breathing, and the three steps that are critical to performing

37
diaphragmatic breathing. It is important for people to know different coping strategies to manage

stress as there are countless tools and methods that will benefit them in doing so.

38
Journal Writing:
I found this journal easy to complete. It was simple for me to reflect on my life because these

are things that I have thought of often. I would like to believe that I was raised to love myself and

others. I think it is important to love without expectations, because doing so builds stronger

relationships both internal to yourself and external with friends and your family.

39
Mindful of how you interact with yourself?

I am very mindful of how I interact with myself. I try to remain positive about things going on

in my life and understand other factors that are influencing the actions around me. There are times

where I have caught myself saying that something will be too hard, but I generally push past negative

thoughts like that because I don’t like the way negativity feels. Our book asked “Would you ever talk

to other people that way” and the answer is no, therefore I definitely try not to talk to myself that way.

When I do begin feeling hopeless, it’s a weight on my shoulders that I just don’t want to carry around.

That feeling makes me think I’m holding myself back mentally ends up holding me back physically.

I’ve noticed in the past that once I lose momentum for something, it’s hard to get started again,

especially if I’ve failed at something in the past.

I often tell my co-workers and subordinates that negativity begets negativity. If you focus on

all that is wrong in the world, you will only see that. That is what Nhat Hahn means when he said

“watering the seeds of our own suffering”. Your eyes and mind will be trained to only see those

things that bring you sadness, anger, and other negative emotions. By seeing things through a

positive lens, you don’t hold yourself back. You don’t hang on to resentment and harmful emotions

that stunt your growth personally. Instead of using this as an opportunity to wallow in your own self-

pity, I tell them to use it as a chance to better themselves and really focus on things that they can have

in their lives.

Day-to-day life feelings of resentment?

There are oftentimes that I have feelings of resentment. I do not like being put in impossible

situations or be made to feel bad about things. I generally like to make my mind up and go for

something 100%. When I am put in difficult situations, I often hold onto the negative emotions

40
associated with that person or situation. I am torn on whether bringing a beginner’s mind to situations

where someone is pressing your buttons is a good idea. Some people are intentionally spiteful and

mean-hearted people who do not want resolution or positivity in their life and will take advantage of

you. I think emotions and resentment is a human tool to protect oneself from being hurt. There’s an

old saying, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me”. I whole heartedly believe

that we learn lessons for a reason and that is a good instinct to have.

Reflection on writing?

41
 As I stated, I found this journal to be simpler than many of the others. I think focusing on

Unit

7
negative emotions and feelings is a terrible thing to do because your life becomes consumed with all

of the things that have gone wrong or could go wrong in your life. That’s no way to live. I liked the

term “watering the seeds of our own suffering”. Many people do this. They wallow in their own self

pity and then try to have other people feel bad for them as well. People become so enraged and

focused on all that is wrong, they forget to appreciate the things in their life that is right. Also, instead

of focusing on all that is wrong and giving in to the problems surrounding their life, they can make it

a challenge and do better for themselves and those that they love. Nothing worth having in life comes

free and I have found that the harder I work for things, the sweeter they are.

Unit 7: Nutrition and Stress

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Harvard studies show that high insulin production increases stress, and your
body produces more insulin with higher blood sugar (n.d.)
Key Learning Point: Addicting properties of sugar is similar to that of cocaine. When we eat sugar,
our brains trigger the release of dopamine which is why we feel pleasure upon eating it (Schafer
& Yasin, 2016)
Key Learning Point: The human creates more hormones and does not absorb the food properly, this
can also lead to weight gain and disrupts the thought process as well as how well people sleep. 

42
Self-Assessment Exercise:
For this Journal exercise, I decided to complete the Mindful Lying Yoga. I do not have carpet

in my new house and none of my things, so instead I used a towel for cushioning. I read the

instructions so I could familiarize myself with the postures and I practiced based on the test and

planned on doing the 15-minute session since I’m not very flexible.

The first thing I did was assume the Supine pose. I laid on my towel with my arms by my

sides, palms facing up, and breathed in naturally for a few breaths. The next pose I did was the

Supine Full Body Stretch. I took a deep breath in and swept my arms up along the floor, stretching

them overhead and my palms both facing inward. Next, I exhaled swept my arms back down to my

sides. I felt calm and relaxed.

The third pose I did was the Supine Twist. I placed my arms out straight to my side with my

palms up. I bent both of my knees until my feet were touching my bottom. Keeping my shoulders

placed on the floor, I rolled my knees to my left and turned my head to the right. I breathed in

naturally and felt a release as my back twisted in this stretch. After a few seconds, I returned my head

to the center and rolled my knees back as well. I performed the same action, except opposite and felt

43
relief. During this pose, I felt my focus shift to this alone instead of the endless amount boxes I

needed to unpack, and I was in a position of tranquility.

The next pose I did was the Supine Full Body Stretch. I took a deep breath in and swept my

arms up along the floor, stretching them overhead, palms facing inward. Next, I exhaled and swept

my arms back down to my sides. I followed this action by bringing my left foot back near my bottom

and lifted my right foot in the air, keeping my knee as straight. I flexed my foot forward with my toes

up and rotated my foot in a circle before reversing and I felt distracted from my problems. I slowly

lowered my foot back on the floor and repeated on the other side.

Following that, I brought my left knee to my chest and held my knee while keeping my right

foot pointed towards the sky. I took several deep breaths from my abdomen while feeling the stretch.

I lowered my foot back towards the ground before swapping sides, ensuring to take several deep

breaths again and being mindful. I returned my foot to the ground and completed a full body stretch.

When I brought my knee into my chest, I felt restricted and enveloped, but not in a good way. I didn’t

care for this stretch much.

Next, I completed the Pelvic Rock and Tilt pose. During this pose, I bent both of my knees

and kept my feet on the ground. Upon inhaling, I arched my back and held it in for a few seconds.

Then I exhaled, straightening my back again. I repeated these 3 times before returning to full body

stretch. I went right into the bridge pose where I kept my feet flat on the ground and brought them

closer to my bottom. I lifted my bottom off the ground and clasped my hands together underneath my

body and stretched my arms downwards towards my heels. I took a few breaths and released my

hands, slowly lowering my back down to the floor. During this pose, I didn’t think about much, I was

thinking about the discomfort in the pose. I repeated that same pose except I placed my arms

overhead.

44
 Then, I brought my knees to my chest and held onto my shins before rocking back and forth as

I breathed. This felt a little awkward and uncomfortable. I kept my thighs and knees close to my

stomach and pointed my heels towards the sky, holding onto them. My feet naturally fell to the side

and I breathed naturally, gently rocking. I brought my feet back down and held onto my shins again

before rocking again.

I rolled onto my right side and let my head rest on my arm. I lifted my left leg up as I inhaled

and exhaled as I lowered it back down. I repeated this action several times because it was very

calming to feel my breath like this. Next, I rolled onto my back and kept my hands as fists under my

hipbones. I lifted my head and legs off the ground and feel the muscles in my back engage and I

breathed in and out. I lowered my legs and upper body back to the ground before assuming the

modified cobra pose. In this pose, I remained on my stomach and placed my elbows at about a 110

degree angle with my weight being supported by my forearms. I focused as I inhaled… and exhaled.

I lifted myself onto my hands and stretched my chest upwards keeping a normal breath.

Next, I got onto my hands and knees and arches my back, allowing my stomach to sink low to

the ground and my head looking up. I exhaled and brought my stomach to the sky and arched my

back as I looked towards my legs. I repeated this several times as I inhaled and exhaled, feeling the

stretch in my shoulders and back. I left my shins on the ground and bent into child’s pose. I

enveloped my legs with my chest and placed my arms with my palms up on the ground, and my head

on the ground. I relaxed in this pose as I was enveloped with calm.

I went back into the Supine Full Body pose for several breaths before assuming the pose of

openness. I laid on my back with arms out and feet spread apart, feeling open and exposed. I laid

here for what felt like minutes. I inhaled and felt my chest rise and stomach sink. I exhaled and felt

my shoulder fall closer to the ground and every worry begin to disappear as I did.

45
 During this exercise, I felt tension in my body and muscles, but I felt that tension being

Unit

8
relieved with each breath that I took. I felt a pressure in my mind that was freed as I held a pose

longer and longer. My favorite pose was either the supine twist or the pose of openness. I liked the

first because it was the most physically noticeable stretch. I liked the pose of openness because I felt

vulnerable but accepting of what is to come. (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).

Unit 8: Physical Exercise and Activity

Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Interpersonal Mindfulness can be beneficial for relationships. There are six
qualities to look at people from: openness, compassion, loving-kindness, sympathetic joy, and
equanimity. (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010).
Key Learning Point: Cortisol is a hormone produced by the adrenal gland that causes a stress
reaction and reduces the carbohydrate metabolism rate.
Key Learning Point: Yoga is a mind-body practice that combines breathing techniques, stretches,
and meditation to reduce stress, improve circulation, and reduce risk for heart disease (Mayo
Clinic Staff, 2019).

46
Self-Assessment Exercises:
RATIONALE

The purpose of this program is to improve employee health and wellness for the 50-60 employees,

reduce cost of insurance premiums and to improve employee work productivity. Studies show that

by increasing exercise, a person’s body is more prepared to defend against sickness, as well as

have lower heart rate and blood pressure (B. Seaward, 2018). By having a program like this,

employees will miss less work and have a lower predisposition to preventable disease. It is also

said that participating in yoga increases flexibility and muscle strength which increases blood flow

throughout the body and decreases chronic pain (B. Seaward, 2018).

MINDBODY PROGRAMS/PRACTICES

Exercise – Yoga (up to 3 one-hour sessions per week)

Example: https://www.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene/playlists (Mishler, 2019)

Exercise – HIIT (up to 3 one-hour sessions per week)

Example: https://www.youtube.com/user/popsugartvfit/playlists (PopSugar Fitness, 2019)

Mindfulness meditation (2 ten-minute sessions per day)

Example: https://www.youtube.com/user/calmdotcom/playlists (Calm, 2019)

47
CAPITAL OUTLAY

There are initial costs totaling $800. Maintenance costs are only $95 per month. Since employees

will be missing work, it may be necessary to hire an additional person to offset work time loss by

employees participating in the program. This will cost approximately $3,000 per month, however

may not be necessary since studies have shown a 4% increase in worker productivity when an

effective wellness program is in place (Totty, 2017).

Initial Cost:

12 Yoga mats = $100

55” smart television with mount = $450.00

Sound System = $250.00

Maintenance Cost:

Wireless internet: $75/month

Cleaning wipes: $20/month

BENEFITS

To employer:

Increased productivity

Reduced insurance premiums

To the employee:

Reduced stress

Improved health

TIMELINE

48
This could begin immediately upon the purchase and installation of the TV and sound equipment.

The goal of this program would to be indefinite as it will be beneficial to employers and employees.

It can be run on a trial basis (6 months) to see if it is used regularly and whether the benefits are seen

in productivity and employee health. By instituting this program at work, it also enables a support

system which has positive effects on the habit forming of participating in a good exercise program (B.

Seaward, 2018).

PERSONNEL

No extra personnel required initially. After observation, the company may be interested in employing

an additional person if it does not have the same results as many studies.

TOTAL BUDGET

Initial Cost:

12 Yoga mats = $100

55” smart television with mount = $450.00

Sound System = $250.00

Maintenance Cost:

Wireless internet: $75/month

Cleaning wipes: $20/month

PITCH: Do you want to help improve overall employee wellness? Do you want to reduce cost of

insurance premiums? Do you want to improve work productivity? Everyone needs a mental break

from work and need to step away from their desk to do a mini reset. Studies have shown that this

49
reduces perceived stress and increases workplace productivity (Kersemaekers et all, 2018). Since

there is a large office not being utilized, we could use this space as a meditation room between

9:00-9:30 and 2:00-2:30 where employees can go in and focus on breathing and clearing their

minds from stress of work. These sessions would only be 10 minutes but given the opportunity for

two sessions during the day to make sure that someone is still at work during business hours. This

coupled with lunch would give them three breaks during the day to reset.

Everyone knows that exercise is important so I think it will be beneficial for employees to

participate in an exercise program. This program will take place 3 days per week either one hour

before or one hour after work. Employees would be split assigned to either group so that a portion

of the workforce is still present during peak business hours. There will be multiple options offered

for employees to take part for varying levels of age and fitness. Options will include video base

yoga, walking or running, or High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) to limit the amount of

equipment required.

CLASSMATE FEEDBACK

Judy Watts Wallace

You pitch a great plan! The need for a mental break throughout the workday would most definitely

benefit both the employees and the company. Currently, companies are expanding on the benefits that

are typically offered, such as the paid time off, retirement plans, maternity leave, and pension plans.

These subsidies are put in place as a retention and recruitment advantage, but by adding a Wellness

Program like you are suggesting, will keep them competitive in this ever-changing search for quality

personnel. We are lucky to have at a click of our mouse decades of research outlining the influence of

workplace wellness programs. For example, the lead author of the Rand Report Soern Mattke, reports

50
“We find that workplace wellness programs can help contain the current epidemic of lifestyle-related

diseases, the main driver of premature morbidity and mortality as well as health care cost in the

United States” (Aldana, 2019, p. 1). The plan to use the unutilized office space is genius and will

solve a lot of the overhead worry during implementation. I would suggest that part of the project

would include small investments like having a computer available in that office space and subscribe

to Calm.com; Meditation Made Easy, Calm is the #1 app for meditation and mindfulness. Lower

stress and sleep better with 100+ guided meditations. Also, invest in soft lighting and a diffuser for

calming scents like lavender to optimize the 10-minute meditation experience. Good Luck, Catherine,

Nameste!

SUMMARY

The purpose of this program is to improve employee health and wellness for the 50-60 employees,

reduce cost of insurance premiums and to improve employee work productivity. Implementing a

wellness program such as this has shown to improve immune response, lessen the strain on the

heart and decrease stress and chronic pain. With minor initial costs at $800 and maintenance costs

of $95 a month, you can improve employee morale and reduce amount of absenteeism of

employees due to stress or stress related illness. This can be implemented immediately so

everyone can begin to see the benefits of a great wellness plan.

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Journal Writing:
OPENNESS: I look at my husband with fresh eyes, forgetting our history. Without speaking to him

in my imagination, I see that my husband has kind eyes with a softness to them. His shoulders are

back and high and his pride in himself shines through in a near stoic manner. When I talk to him, he

is mindful of his choice in words for fear of unacceptance.

EMPATHY: If I looked at my husband through empathetic eyes, I think about how he deserved a

better childhood than what he had. While he had fond memories, he also knew struggle and rejection.

I want to give him everything I have because he’s the best person I know and deserves it.

COMPASSION: When I imagine my husband through a compassionate lens, I understand why he is

cautious when making friends however I want him to see himself through my eyes. He is important,

smart, and widely cared for by many. I show him compassion by cooking for him and doing things

around the house to ease his stress.

LOVING-KINDNESS: I want my husband to be happy and succeed in every way. I want his dreams

to come true and will do anything I can do support him, even when it means we are apart. A better

him means a happier one and his hard work and selfless dedication merits the greatest things in life.

SYMPATHETIC JOY: My husband is driven every day by progress. He is inspiring and when he

accomplishes something, he is so proud and I am in awe.

EQUANIMITY: My husband is even headed and patient. He rarely has ill intent and loves me

endlessly. I appreciate him for everything he does, including inspire and pushing me to do better than

yesterday.

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Summary: I once heard someone speak and they said not to assume that someone has ill-intent and

Unit

9
that’s one of the best things I’ve ever heard. When you’re driving to work and someone merges in

front of you, don’t assume they intentionally did it with the sole purpose of messing up your day.

Throughout this journal, I looked at my husband through six qualities that are essential in

interpersonal mindfulness to improve my relationship (Stahl & Goldstein, 2010). Doing these things

with strangers or people that you do not know can be extremely beneficial, because it will reduce

stress and place focus on positive things in life.

Unit 9: Applying Stress: Critical Issues for Management and

Prevention to your Professional Life
Information to Remember:
Key Learning Point: Stahl and Goldstein talk about interpersonal wellness and different tools you
can use to improve relationships such as thinking of a person with openness or beginner’s mind,
or even an empathetic or sympathetic view point (2010).
Key Learning Point: Dream therapy includes dream interpretation, dream incubation, and lucid
dreaming. During the 3-part dream interpretation phase, the person writes down their dream and
tries to find any association to the dream. The second phase is to draw parallels and trying to find
commonalities between the dream and reality. The third phase is to see if it has any relevance to
your life. In the incubation phase, you place a seedling into someone’s mind to have them begin
dreaming of it to reduce stress. In lucid dreaming, you enter the dream while conscious,
sometimes to continue or finish the dream. (B. Seaward, 2018).

53
 Key Learning Point: Hobbies often distract a person from stress and reduce the amount of stress
reaction they have, effectively calming them. This is a form of transferrance unless the result
from the hobby must be perfect, and it can then cause more stress. (B. Seaward, 2018).

Additional Information
Calm. (2019). Daily Calm | 10-Minute Meditations. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChSpME3QaSFAWK8Hpmg-Dyw

Ma, X., Yue, Z., Gong, Z., Zhang, H., Duan, N., Shi, Y., …Li, Y. (2017). The Effect of

Diaphragmatic Breathing on Attention, Negative Affect and Stress in Healthy Adults. Retrieved

from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5455070/

Mishler, A. (2019). 40-60 min Full Yoga Practices. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene/playlists

54
 References

Aldana, S. (2019). The 7 best reasons to have a wellness program: Benefits of wellness. Retrieved

from https://www.wellsteps.com/blog/2018/07/04/reasons-to-have-a-wellness-program-benefits-

of-wellness/

Bernston, G. (n.d.) Stress Effects on the Body. Retrieved from

https://www.apa.org/helpcenter/stress/effects-nervous#menu

Brewers, J. (2019). Quitting smoking is hard. Mindfulness hacks the habit loop, offering a new

approach. Retrieved from https://www.statnews.com/2019/06/14/quitting-smoking-mindfulness-

new-approach/

Calm. (2019). Daily Calm | 10-Minute Meditations. Retrieved from

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 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChSpME3QaSFAWK8Hpmg-Dyw

Dee, P. (2019). Boost Your Mood with Mediterranean Food. Retrieved from https://eds-b-ebscohost-

com.libauth.purdueglobal.edu/eds/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=2671e49d-30f4-436f-adce-

85f4853727dd%40sessionmgr102&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU

%3d#AN=136118751&db=bwh

Lunders, E., Cherbuin, N., & Kurth, F. (2015). Forever Young(er): potential age-defying effects of

long-term meditation on gray matter atrophy. Retrieved from

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01551/full

Ma, X., Yue, Z., Gong, Z., Zhang, H., Duan, N., Shi, Y., …Li, Y. (2017). The Effect of

Diaphragmatic Breathing on Attention, Negative Affect and Stress in Healthy Adults. Retrieved

from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5455070/

Mishler, A. (2019). 40-60 min Full Yoga Practices. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene/playlists

Nordqvist, C. (2018). What is neuroscience? Retrieved from

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/248680.php

PopSugar Fitness. (2019). 45-Minute Workouts. Retrieved from

https://www.youtube.com/user/popsugartvfit/playlists

56
Psychologists Anytime Anywhere. (n.d.). Famous Psychologist: Joseph Wolpe

https://www.psychologistanywhereanytime.com/mobile/famous_psychologist_and_psychologists/

psychologist_famous_joseph_wolpe.htm

Redmon, G. (2013). When Rest Doesn’t Recover. American Fitness Magazine. 25-27

SAMHSA. (2019). Recovery and Recovery Support. Retrieved from www.samhsa.gov/find-

help/recovery

Seaward, B. (2018). Managing stress: Principles and strategies for health and well-being. Burlington,

MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Sharma, N., Classen, J., & Cohen, L. (2016). Neural Plasticity and its’ Contribution to Functional

Recovery. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4880010/

Stahl, B., & Goldstein, E. (2010). A mindfulness-based stress reduction workbook. Oakland, CA: New

Harbinger Publications, Inc.

Sternberg & Gold. (2002). The Mind-Body Interaction in Disease. Scientific American Special

Edition, Retrieved from https://eds-b-ebscohost-com.libauth.purdueglobal.edu/eds/detail/detail?

vid=0&sid=cc47f02d-99c2-4dd9-8deb-2f3f1127b568%40pdc-v-

sessmgr02&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#AN=10684237&db=hxh

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Thurman, R. (2018). Why is Tibetan Culture the Culture of Enlightenment? Robert A.F. Thurman

Embodied Philosophy. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/xWhuVQyQySQ

Totty, M. (2017). Do Corporate Wellness Programs Booster Worker Productivity? Retrieved from

https://www.anderson.ucla.edu/faculty-and-research/anderson-review/wellness

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