Stress Signals Exercise
From the book
About the exercise
Our body is intelligent. Your body tells you when you are overloading your brain and body. This list shows some of the most common stress signals your body shows you, which you can use as markers for what your body is trying to say. The signals can vary in length and intensity. As when you are nervous before a presentation or hasn’t been sleeping well for the past two weeks. Nobody gets all the signals/symptoms, and it differs, how many of them you get. Remember, it is possible to overhear the signals due to familiarization and through the use of stimulants and painkillers. Go through the list to reflect on how and which of the signals apply to you. The first step towards balance and feeling energetic is to know your stress signals.
What stress signals does your body signal to you?
Before starting this exercise, you need to be aware of the following steps:
- Make sure that your phone is on silent mode.
- Make sure that no one will disturb you for the next 15 minutes.
- Have a pen ready.
When you have completed these steps, you are now ready to dive into the exercise. Take a look at the below signals and write down the ones that you can recognise in yourself.
Physical signals:
- Headache
- Racing heart
- Increased blood pressure
- Shaking hands
- A restless body
- Tension and pain
- Shallow breathing
- Pressure in the chest
- Insomnia or disrupted sleep
- Tingling in the hands and legs
- Dizziness
- Butterflies in the stomach
- Stomachache
- Diarrhoea
- Reduced sex drive
- Reduced appetite
- Worsening of a chronic illness
Feelings:
- Feeling threatened
- Pressured
- Vulnerable to criticism
- Guilty conscience
- Feeling inadequate
- Low self-confidence
- Nervous
- Lonely
- Aggressive
- Frustrated
- Irritable
- Restless
- Distorted
- Fatigue
- Sad
- Lethargic
- A lack of desire for contact with others (on the job as well as at home)
Behavior:
- Mood swings
- Edginess
- Impulsive
- Nervous laughter
- A reduced sense of humour
Do you turn to extremes?:
- Increase/reduction in the consumption of food
- Increased consumption of alcohol
- Frequent smoking
- Increased use of medicine
At work:
- Difficulty in decision-making
- Unstable
- Reduced performance
- Increased conflicts with colleagues
- Increased sick leave
- Sloppiness
- Frequent physical complaints
