Healthy Stress Mastery during COVID-19.

Understanding Stress during COVID-19.

“Stress is like spice – in the right proportion it enhances the flavor of a dish. Too little produces a bland, dull meal; too much may choke you.” Donald A. Tubesing

You have probably heard someone close to you say “the stress levels are running high around here”, or “people are so tense with this crisis”, or “I think we should just take a break from the stress and relax”. These are all valid saying that reveals much about where we are in the dealing with Covid-19 and our perspective of stress.

In this blog series we will look at the following:

Basic understanding of stress.
Becoming aware of stress triggers and the effect stress has on our body.
Understanding my internal stress factors and my personal response.
Developing short and long-term stress management strategies.

In this specific blog we will look at the basic understanding of stress.

I just love the quote above. It gives us a clear understanding of stress. Stress is not something we can avoid. It is also not something we should wish away. It is also not something we should have too much of. Understanding the concept of stress helps us to navigate stress effectively.

For example, if I view stress as something bad and only unhealthy, then I will always try and get rid of it. I will use all my energy to stop stressing. Only after a while will I realize I cannot stop it. This picture of stress is not a healthy picture.

The other side of the coin could be to see stress as always being good and only healthy, then I will try and create stress all the time. I will want to use my energy to be in stressful situations. This is also not a healthy picture of stress.

How should we then view stress?

The reality is that stress can be healthy or unhealthy. Our beliefs about stress plays a big role. These beliefs depend on 3 things:

Our perspective of the situation. If we perceive the situation as unhealthy then we will try to either avoid it or make it go away. That same situation can be perceived by someone else as healthy and therefore they will engage the situation. We cannot always judge these different perspectives. What we can do is dialogue and learn from each other.
Our historical experience dealing with similar scenarios. If we have dealt with something similar in the past, then we are more inclined to deal with the situation in a healthy way. If we have never dealt with something like the specific situation then we might be more fearful to handle it. This is why many younger people are struggling with the current crises. If they haven’t dealt with something similar in their short life until now, then the crisis can be overwhelming. This does not mean that people who are older find it easier. It just means their historical memory of dealing with something similar gives them hope and courage to deal with it more effectively. As South Africans we have had to deal with many similar things in the past, this gives us courage to deal with the current situation if we still have energy.
Our available resources to handle the situation. If we have resources to deal with the specific situation then we can courageously confront it. If we feel we don’t have the needed resources then it will cost us more energy to deal with the specific situation. This is why the quote “We are all in the same storm but in different boats and in different parts of the storm” makes sense to us all. The available resources differ from person to person, family to family and company to company. For this reason, we cannot judge each other’s resources, but we can support each other and make sure we get the right support. There are two main resources that is making it more difficult for us to deal with the current crisis in South Africa. One is corruption, that has depleted financial resources. Secondly, unemployment, which is the result of many people who don’t have a place where they can grow their talents.

What are some of the resources we need?

We need both social and structural resources.

Social Resources
1. Positive friends.
2. Appreciative family and work.
3. Inspiring leaders and mentors.
Structural resources
1. Healthy finances.
2. Healthy mission and purpose.
3. Healthy growth in mastery.

Read the blogs on Social and Structural resources for more information.

What can you do to handle your current stressful situation better?

Take time to define your perspective of the situation. Determine if the situation is healthy or unhealthy for you.
Reflect on the way you dealt with similar situations in the past. What can you learn from that situation? Which similar strategies can you implement in this situation?
Find the necessary resources to help you deal with the situation. Yesterday while doing a Resilience session, I told the participants that our greatest personal resources are our time, energy and ability to focus. What resources do you really need to handle the situation?

I want to end with this quote by Joseph Goldstein: “You can’t hold back the waves, but you can learn to surf”. We wish you all the best as you learn to surf the waves!

Complete your personal stress assessment and get support in handling your stress effectively!

Attention all trainers, HR and coaches! You are welcome to attend our Persolog Stress Profile License Training 20-21 Aug or 29-30 October 2020.

Sincere greetings,

Xpand South Africa

Empowering individuals and organizations to thrive.