Coping with Stress

Why is social support important for coping with stress?

Can provide emotional comfort, financial assistance, and personal resources

Four Social Ties for Stress

1. Marriage

2. Friendships

3. Church membership

4. Group associations help manage stress.

5 Ways of Gaining Control of Stress (BEDIC)

1. Behavioural Control

2. Cognitive Control

3. Emotional Control

4. Decisional Control

5. Informational Control

Behavioural Control

Using problem focused coping to gain an ability to do something to reduce the impact of a stressful situation/prevent recurrence

Cognitive Control

Cognitively restructure our negative mindset and emotions/thoughts

Emotional Control

Emotional regulation to suppress and express emotions

Why is emotion-focused coping better for high stress scenarios instead of problem-focused coping?

Prepares us for stressful events, emotions, or thoughts due to emotional regulation. Problem-focused coping can be overwhelmed by stress

Decisional Control

Ability to choose among alternative course of actions

Analysis Paralysis

Feeling overwhelmed when presented with multiple decisions, leading to indecision.

Informational Control

Acquiring info about a stressful events

Catharsis

Process of releasing negative emotions/painful feelings

Useful if it involves problem-solving and constructive efforts

Why is the cathartic release of anger not helpful?

It increases an individual's anger feeling and aggressive behaviour

2 Individual Differences of Stress

1. Hardiness: Sees changes as challenges not threat

2. Optimistic: More productive and handles frustration better

Flexible Coping

Ability to adjust coping strategies based on the situation for better stress management.

VmPFC

Vital region in the adaptive behavioral coping circuit for handling stress effectively.