• "Stress is anything that applies tension in our lives and is a necessary part of life.
• "Eustress is perceived as positive and life-enhancing, whereas distress is perceived as life-depleting. Your body does not know the difference between the two.
• "Chronic, unrelenting distress can lead to illness and disease.
• "A method to manage stress can be remembered as PQRRS:
Practice cultivating awareness so that we know stress when it affects us. Question our reactions or whatever comes up with gentle curiosity. Reframe situations from a more broad and compassionate perspective. Respond based on conscious choice, grounded in understanding and insight. Surrender any attachments to outcomes.
• "Stress management relies heavily on our point of view: What's eustress for one person may be distress to another.
• "Stress tends to flow in and through our relationships with ourselves, others, and the natural world.
• "Personality type can influence our reactions to stress in important, modifiable ways.
• "Physical activity can help manage stress.
• "There are many mind-focused tools that help relieve distress, including meditation, guided imagery, and breath-focused practice.
• "An approach to spirituality can help with reframing and surrendering.
• "Notice when you are reacting to stress and watch yourself without judging. How do you act, think, and feel in your body?
• "If you can catch yourself reacting to stress, take a single, conscious breath.
• "When something causes you distress, name it.
• "Lengthen your exhalation for several breaths at specific times throughout the day.
• "When you find yourself fixating on a specific stressor, actively release it for just one minute.
• "Close your eyes and visualize being in your favorite place in the world. Take four conscious breaths there, and return.
• "Take a moment to scan your body. If there is tension, breathe into it. If there is none, look for ways in which you can do less with your muscles while settling in to your current position."
