Dealing with Stress

There are few people who do not deal with stress in their daily lives. As a student, you know about the stress of completing assignments and meeting deadlines. You may not realize that there is good stress and bad stress! It is the good stress that allows you to be successful in your degree program. Complete this week’s lecture to learn more about stress and how you can cope with the bad stress in your life.

Stress impacts everyone, we have strategies to deal with stress, and we can learn new ways to decrease stress and learn how to manage it effectively. There are many ways of dealing with stress: emotion-focused coping, problem-focused coping, avoidant coping, and emotional insulation. Coping styles include hardiness and resilience.

Student Suzie is dealing with a stressful situation. She has an upcoming exam in a class and is dealing with a personal issue at home and has been working overtime. All of this is affecting her performance in class. She must prepare for the exam, as it is the final and will affect her overall grade in the class.

· If you were Suzie which of these three methods, would you choose and why?

· Describe how you would apply this coping strategy: either emotion-focused, problem-focused, avoidant coping, or emotional insulation.

· Share with us an example of how you can develop hardiness and use problem-focused coping in your educational or professional life. Answer in relation to either your education or your career.