Useful tool for managing stress
Stress management worksheets help people pinpoint stressful areas of their lives and gain a deeper understanding of the effects it has on their minds and bodies. But it’s not all negative! In fact, many worksheets are designed to help you choose the best stress reduction techniques for your life while promoting positive change. Explore examples, types, uses and benefits of worksheets to find helpful activities and solutions to your stress management needs.
Positive Thoughts
Negative thoughts about yourself and others can create additional stress in life. For example, if you lack confidence in your abilities at work and consistently think yourself unworthy of the position, it’s likely that work will bring stress above and beyond your basic job description. If you think only of the poor qualities in someone else, such as your father-in-law’s tendency to belittle others, you may feel additional stress when around them.
A worksheet to use for such scenarios is a list of these negative thoughts and perceptions. List each negative self-thought on a piece of paper; and beside each thought, write the exact opposite, which should be positive. From the above example, you’d write: “I am good at my job.” As these negative thoughts creep into your mind during daily activities, you can stop them and repeat the positive thought . The boost in self-esteem from repeated practice will help you manage undue stress.
Beside each negative thought about others, write down their positive qualities. Perhaps your father-in-law is great with your kids or helps your family with household bills or tasks. Remind yourself of these positive attributes when they’re around, as it can ease communication between you, thus reducing stress.
Time Management
One of the greatest sources of stress is that we all have too few hours in the day to complete all that we need or want to do. This is especially true for those who juggle multiple roles, which are now the norm and not the exception.
A worksheet for this is to list your hobbies, dreams, roles and responsibilities . Assign a numerical value of importance to each and prioritize them. Some roles and responsibilities must always come first, of course, but it’s essential that we all make time to pursue our interests—to manage our stress! So once you have your prioritized list, determine the amount of time that each requires per week and write a schedule for yourself. It’s far too easy to lose balance in life and to devote too much time to certain areas, but a worksheet and subsequent schedule can help you find that balance and manage stress.
Stress Reduction Techniques
Stress management worksheets help people monitor progress and reactions to stress reduction techniques , too. They may offer step-by-step instructions to a technique, such as progressive muscle relaxation, with space to record your thoughts and experiences. You may find that some techniques suit you better than others. Stress management plans are not always easy to visualize from the start, but by incorporating stress management worksheets, you can find direction and positive change in your efforts.
Stress management worksheet
It includes sections for identifying stressors, assessing stress levels, and listing coping strategies.
1. Identifying Stressors
List the top 5 things that are currently causing you stress.
2. Assessing Stress Levels
For each stressor listed above, rate your stress level on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being very low stress, 10 being very high stress).
______________________________________________________ (Stress Level: _____)
______________________________________________________ (Stress Level: _____)
______________________________________________________ (Stress Level: _____)
______________________________________________________ (Stress Level: _____)
______________________________________________________ (Stress Level: _____)
3. Current Coping Strategies
List the strategies you currently use to cope with stress.
4. Evaluating Effectiveness of Current Strategies
For each coping strategy listed above, rate its effectiveness on a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being not effective, 10 being very effective).
_____________________________________________________ (Effectiveness: _____)
_____________________________________________________ (Effectiveness: _____)
_____________________________________________________ (Effectiveness: _____)
5. Exploring New Coping Strategies
Research and list 3 new stress management techniques you would like to try.
6. Action Plan
Choose one new coping strategy from above and create a plan to implement it.
New Strategy: ______________________________________________________
Steps to Implement:
Start Date: ___________________
Review Date: ___________________
7. Reflection
After trying the new strategy for a set period, reflect on its effectiveness.
Was the strategy helpful? Why or why not? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Will you continue using this strategy? Why or why not? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Additional Notes: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________