Stress & Coping — Easier Flashcards

How do communication techniques like active listening and reflection help a stressed client?

They build trust, help the client express feelings, make them feel understood, and encourage them to open up about stressors.

How does culture affect stress and coping?

A person’s beliefs and values affect how they see stress and how they cope with it.

Why is rapport (trusting connection) and trust important before assessing stress?

It makes the client feel safe, respected, accepted, and more willing to share honest information.

What does TTSC mean?

Total Time Spent Caring

In Total Time Spent Caring(TTSC), what does appraisal mean, and what does the caregiver do first during primary appraisal?

Appraisal means the caregiver evaluates the situation to understand what it means (threat or not). In primary appraisal, the caregiver’s first step is judging whether the stressor is a threat.

Who is more likely to experience episodic acute stress?

Someone who takes on too many responsibilities, feels disorganized, or often thinks negatively.

What happens when a crisis action plan is started?

Find supportive people, contact needed resources, and start helping with the client’s immediate needs.

What does cortisol do during stress?

It’s released during stress, helps the body respond, keeps you alert, and reduces pain. Chronic high cortisol weakens immunity, lowers lymphocytes, and increases the risk of infections, inflammation, depression, heart disease, and other illnesses.

How does journaling help with stress?

It lets a person express feelings, identify stressors, understand reactions, track patterns, and find coping strategies that work.

How does exercise help with stress?

It reduces stress, boosts mood, increases endorphins, promotes relaxation, and improves sleep.

What does “Avoid” mean in the Four As of stress management?

Say no to unnecessary stress and avoid stressful people, situations, or conversations.

What are situational stressors?

Stress caused by life situations, such as illness, money problems, family problems, or changes in relationships.

What does the nurse do during the implementation phase of stress management?

Carry out interventions, document progress, coordinate care, and delegate tasks when appropriate.

How can a nurse help a client identify anxiety triggers?

By using journaling, discussing past stressors, encouraging reflection, using therapeutic communication, and spotting patterns that cause anxiety.

What behaviors can indicate a mental health emergency?

Suicide attempts or threats, hostility, destroying things, or threatening to hurt themselves or others.

What is proactive coping?

Planning ahead to prevent or reduce future stress.

What are developmental stressors?

Stressors that happen during different stages of life.

Examples:

• Children → school

• Adolescents → identity

• Adults → career

• Older adults → health concerns

What can nurses do when experiencing moral distress?

Get professional help, talk with leadership, focus on ethical care, and use healthy stress-management techniques.

In Total Time Spent Caring what does reappraisal mean, and how does the caregiver use it during stress?

Reappraisal means re‑thinking the situation and adjusting your response, and in TTSC it means rechecking the stressor and your coping ability as the situation changes.

What is the goal of Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation?

To improve nurses’ health by encouraging self-care and healthier lifestyles.

What are the main types of stressors that can cause a crisis?

Situational, developmental, adventitious, socioeconomic, and cultural stressors.

How does the hypothalamus start the stress response?

It releases CRF, which turns on the sympathetic nervous system and makes the pituitary release ACTH, leading to cortisol release.

What affects how a person views a stressor?

Their thoughts, emotions, physical condition, psychological state, abilities, and available resources.

What does cortisol do during the alarm stage of GAS?

It increases blood pressure, heart rate, blood glucose, oxygen intake, pupil dilation, and alertness.

How can low socioeconomic status increase stress?

It increases stress because poverty, unstable housing, and limited resources make physical and emotional stress worse.

What should a nurse consider when making a stress-management care plan?

The client’s knowledge, support system, access to care, beliefs, health habits, culture, and spiritual preferences.

What happens if a person decides a stressor is NOT a threat, and what happens if they decide it IS a threat?

If the stressor is NOT a threat, it is dismissed. If it IS a threat, they continue assessing the situation and their ability to cope.

What are examples of stress-related disorders?

Acute stress disorder (ASD), PTSD, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

What is episodic acute stress and what symptoms can it cause

Frequent episodes of acute stress that can lead to tension headaches, migraines, and high blood pressure.

What is problem-focused coping?

Trying to change or fix the stressful situation.

What is emotion-focused coping?

Changing how you emotionally respond to the situation instead of changing the situation.

What are warning signs or risk factors for violence during a crisis?

Substance misuse, past violence, psychiatric illness, depression, suicidal behavior, or a family history of abuse or neglect.

What happens during fight‑or‑flight, and which hormones are released?

The body activates an immediate threat response (↑HR, ↑BP, ↑breathing, ↑glucose, pupils/airways widen). Hormones: epinephrine and norepinephrine, which cause these same changes.

What are signs of moderate anxiety and physical signs of anxiety?

Moderate anxiety: slightly increased vitals, shakiness, fast HR, chest tightness, faster breathing, racing thoughts, restlessness, trouble concentrating.

Physical signs: fast HR, faster breathing, chest tightness, shakiness, muscle tension, fatigue.

How does mindfulness (Calm awareness) help anxiety?

It helps the person focus on the present, relax, and better control emotions.

What happens in the resistance stage of GAS?

The body stays alert, tries to return to normal, restores homeostasis, and repairs damage.

Which nervous system returns the body to normal after stress?

The parasympathetic nervous system — it calms the body, conserves energy, and restores normal balance.

What is an example of a physiological stressor?

Extreme temperatures.

Why is follow-up important after a crisis?

To check the client’s condition, make sure the crisis is resolved, and help prevent another crisis.

Why should nurses evaluate past coping mechanisms and ask what worked before?

To find healthy strategies that worked, identify unhealthy ones to change, and use past effective coping methods to help with the current crisis

What is guided imagery?

Using relaxing mental images and imagination to feel calm and reduce stress.

How can nurse stress affect patient care?

Nurse stress reduces focus, leads to burnout, and lowers the overall quality of patient care.

What does biopsychosocial mean?

It means health is affected by biological (body), psychological (mind), and social (social life) factors.

What is checked during a biopsychosocial crisis assessment?

Suicide/homicide risk, substance abuse, medical needs, coping, resilience, protective factors, and support systems.

What are physical signs of severe stress?

Physical signs of severe stress include Increased heart rate, chest tightness, muscle tension, fatigue, sleep problems, and headaches.

How can a nurse change their reaction to stress?

A nurse can change their reaction to stress by reframing negative thoughts, adjust expectations, focus on positives, and look at the bigger picture.

What does the limbic system mean?

It’s the brain’s emotion and memory center (controls feelings, fear, and forming memories).

What does the limbic system do during stress?

It evaluates the situation and activates the hypothalamus if it senses a serious threat.

In TTSC, how does the caregiver decide whether they can handle the stress during secondary appraisal, and what coping resources do they consider?

Secondary appraisal =It means the person asks if they have what they need to handle the stress, such as social support, knowledge or skills, and past successes.

Why should nurses collect both subjective and objective stress data?

To understand the client’s feelings AND physical or behavioral signs.

What are common causes of workplace stress for nurses?

Time pressure, fast-paced environments, long hours, and high expectations.

What are the 3 stages of General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)?

Alarm → Resistance → Exhaustion

What happens in the alarm stage of GAS?

The nervous system activates, catecholamines are released, and the body enters fight‑or‑flight.

What happens in the exhaustion stage of GAS?

The body’s energy is depleted, it becomes worn down, and the risk of depression, heart disease, and other illnesses increases.

What is acute stress?

Short-term stress that activates fight-or-flight.

What are common signs of acute stress?

These are common signs of acute stress Irritability, chest tightness, headache, and shortness of breath.

What is eustress?

Positive stress that can motivate a person. (good stress)

What is distress?

Negative stress that can harm physical and emotional health. (Bad stress)

What can an overwhelmed nurse do to decrease stress?

Remove nonpriority tasks, take breaks, sleep enough, and reduce caffeine and sugar.

What type of stress commonly activates fight-or-flight?

Acute stress.

What should the nurse assess to understand a client’s crisis?

The cause of the crisis, the main problem, and the challenges making it worse.

How are vital signs different in mild vs. moderate anxiety?

Mild anxiety causes little or no change. Moderate anxiety can slightly increase pulse, breathing, and blood pressure.

What is the difference between ASD and PTSD?

ASD = less than 1 month. PTSD = more than 1 month.

In Total Time Spent Caring, what does stress mean for the caregiver?

Stress depends on how the caregiver views the situation and interacts with their environment.

What is progressive muscle relaxation?

Progressive muscle relaxation helps reduce stress by having the caregiver gently tense and then relax muscle groups to release tension and calm the body.

What subjective information should the nurse collect about stress?

The client’s symptoms, stressors, relationships, work situation, coping strategies, and beliefs about stress.

What are adventitious stressors and why are they difficult to cope with?

They are rare, unexpected events like natural disasters, violence, or terrorism, and they’re hard to cope with because they happen suddenly and can overwhelm normal coping abilities.

What is the goal of health promotion for stress?

Help people develop healthy habits that reduce stress and improve well-being.

In Total Time Spent Caring, what are the two broad types of stressors a caregiver can experience?

Physiological = physical and psychological = mind and emotions.

What is chronic stress and what can it cause?

Chronic stress is constant, long‑lasting stress that can cause anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disorders, heart disease, and weakened immunity.

What are the 7 stages of crisis intervention?

1. Biopsychosocial crisis assessment (whole‑person check: body, mind, social factors)

2. 
   

3. Establish rapport (build trust)

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5. Assess the problem (find the main issue)

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7. Encourage emotional expression (let them talk about feelings)

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9. Explore past coping strategies (see what helped before)

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11. Implement an action plan (create and start a plan)

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13. Establish follow‑up (check back later)

What healthy/adaptive coping strategies can nurses recommend?

The good coping strategies can a nurse recommend can be Healthy eating, exercise, mindfulness, journaling, time management, relaxation techniques, and social support.