1. STRESS MANAGEMENT
BY: AHMED ABDI

2. PREFACE
The studyof human resource management is one of the major criteria in the corporate sector. Human
resource is the heart of the organization. By this research project we will be able to know that
what stress is. How to reduce stress level of the employees? And how to manage the stress in working
place?Bythisway the productivity of the employee increases.
Nowadaythecorporatesectoris booming ina highspeedthat the people have to work for prolonged
hours to maintain the standard of living and achieve their basic needs. So is the condition in the
organization, colleges, and lots of other places. In spit of having the modern technologies and
facilities, people are feeling themselves to be work loaded and stressed. Stress arises because ofmany
reasons which are discussed in the following project. The project report also contain techniques
how to reduce the stress and overcome such problems. Stress arises because of unfulfilled wants,
lack of job satisfaction etc.

3. Executive Summery
This project gives us a detailed idea of what is stress and also the definition of stress is been
defined. For more detailed study the types of the stress is also defined. By looking at the
starting of the project you will find:
 Introduction
 Stress In Biological Term
 What Is Stress
 Types of stress
 Cause of stress
 Good Stress v/s Bad Stress
 How Does Stress Affect You?
 Workplace Stress
 Coping with Stress at Work place
 Approaches to manage Stress
 How to improve the ability to handle stress

4.  Prevention
Introduction
Stress is a part of day-to- day living of every individual. The college students may experience
stress in meeting the academic demands, people on the job, business men may suffer stress to
reach office in time and to complete the projects on time and even the house hole ladies may
experience stress in managing the home affairs and to look for the maid servant. The reasons
for the stress differ from person to person. The stress people experience should not be
necessarily treated as harmful. An optimum amount of stress can always act as an energizer or
motivator and propel people to apply the efforts and complete the work. But a high level of
stress can be serious threat to the personality trails of the individual and can cause
physiological and social problems.
Stress affects millions of people. One of the most common forms of stress is that related to our
careers and the workplace. In today's economic difficulty, work related stress is even more
pronounced than ever before. Worries about whether or not people will be able to keep their
job, their health insurance, and even keep their homes, plays a large role in stress, and the
possibility of losing a job can be scary. Another word for stress is tension or anxiety. When
someone experiences stress, there are many different symptoms and repercussions. Depending
on the level and frequency of stress, some of these symptoms can become serious and cause a
myriad of problems. Stress affects people both mentally and physically. The heart rate
increases, headaches can develop, and often people become irritated much more easily.
Individuals who work in high stress or dangerous jobs as well as those who are employed at a
place where there is a high pressure environment are often prone to experiencing stress. Work
environment, coworker relations, and customer pressures can all contribute to stress at work.
Understanding how to manage, minimize, and deal with stress can help people feel more
relaxed and react when stressful situations as they arise.
Stress is a common problem that affects almost all of us at some point in our lives. Learning to
identify when you are under stress, what is stressing you, and different ways of coping with
stress can greatly improve both your mental and physical wellbeing.

5. Stress in Biological terms:
Stress is a biological term which refers to the consequences of the failure of a human or animal
body to respond appropriately to emotional or physical threats to the organism, whether actual
or imagined. It includes a state of alarm and adrenaline production, short-term resistance as a
coping mechanism, and exhaustion. It refers to the inability of a human or animal body to
respond. Common stress symptoms include irritability, muscular tension, and inability to
Concentrate and a variety of physical reactions, such as headaches and accelerated heart rate.
The term "stress" was first used by the endocrinologist Hans Selye in the 1930sto identify
physiological responses in laboratory animals. He later broadened and popularized the concept
to include the perceptions and responses of humans trying to adapt to the challenges of
everyday life. In Selye's terminology, "stress “refers to the reaction of the organism, and
"stressor" to the perceived threat. Stress in certain circumstances may be experienced
positively. Eustress, for example, can be an adaptive response prompting the activation of
internal resources to meet challenges and achieve goals. The term is commonly used by
laypersons in a metaphorical rather than literal or biological sense, as a catch-all for any
perceived difficulties in life. It also became a euphemism, a way of referring to problems and
eliciting sympathy without being explicitly confessional, just "stressed out". It covers a huge
range of phenomena from mild irritation to the kind of severe problems that might result ina
real breakdown of health. In popular usage almost any event or situation between these
extremes could be described as stressful.

6. What Is Stress?
Stress is your body's way of responding to any kind of demand. It can be caused by both good
and bad experiences. When people feel stressed by something going on around them, their
bodies react by releasing chemicals into the blood. These chemicals give people more energy
and strength, which can be a good thing if their stress is caused by physical danger. But this can
also be a bad thing, if their stress is in response to something emotional and there is no outlet
for this extra energy and strength. This class will discuss different causes of stress, how stress
affects you, the difference between 'good' or 'positive' stress and 'bad' or 'negative' stress, and
some common facts about how stress affects people today.
Types of stress
1. Acute stress
Acute stress is the most common type of stress. It’s your body's immediate reaction to a new
challenge, event, or demand, and it triggers your fight-or-flight response. As the pressures of a
near-miss automobile accident, an argument with a family member, or a costly mistake at work
sink in, your body turns on this biological response.
Acute stress isn't always negative. It's also the experience you have when riding a rollercoaster
or having a person jump out at you in a haunted house. Isolated episodes of acute stress should
not have any lingering health effects. In fact, they might actually be healthy for you, as these
stressful situations give your body and brain practice in developing the best response to future
stressful situations.
Severe acute stress such as stress suffered as the victim of a crime or life-threatening situation
can lead to mental health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder or acute stress
disorder.

7. 2. Episodic acute stress
When acute stress happens frequently, it’s called episodic acute stress. People who always
seem to be having a crisis tend to have episodic acute stress. They are often short-tempered,
irritable, and anxious. People who are “worry warts” or pessimistic or who tend to see the
negative side of everything also tend to have episodic acute stress.
Negative health effects are persistent in people with episodic acute stress. It may be hard for
people with this type of stress to change their lifestyle, as they accept stress as a part of life.
3. Chronic stress
If acute stress isn't resolved and begins to increase or lasts for long periods of time, it becomes
chronic stress. This stress is constant and doesn’t go away. It can stem from such things as:
 poverty
 a dysfunctional family
 an unhappy marriage
 a bad job
Chronic stress can be detrimental to your health, as it can contribute to several serious diseases
or health risks, such as:
 heart disease
 cancer
 lung disease
 accidents
 suicide
What Causes Stress?
Many different things can cause stress -- from physical (such as fear of something dangerous) to
emotional (such as worry over your family or job.) Identifying what may be causing you stress is
often the first step in learning how to better deal with your stress. Some of the most common
sources of stress are:
Survival Stress - You may have heard the phrase "fight or flight" before. This is a common
response to danger in all people and animals. When you are afraid that someone or something
may physically hurt you, your body naturally responds with a burst of energy so that you will be

8. better able to survive the dangerous situation (fight) or escape it all together (flight). This is
survival stress.
Internal Stress - Have you ever caught yourself worrying about things you can do nothing
about or worrying for no reason at all? This is internal stress and it is one of the most important
kinds of stress to understand and manage. Internal stress is when people make themselves
stressed. This often happens when we worry about things we can't control or put ourselves in
situations we know will cause us stress. Some people become addicted to the kind of hurried, tense,
lifestyle that results from being under stress. They even look for stressful situations and feel
stress about things that aren't stressful.
Environmental Stress - This is a response to things around you that cause stress, such as
noise, crowding, and pressure from work or family. Identifying these environmental stresses
and learning to avoid them or deal with them will help lower your stress level.
Fatigue and Overwork - This kind of stress builds up over a long time and can take a hard
toll on your body. It can be caused by working too much or too hard at your job(s), school, or
home. It can also be caused by not knowing how to manage your time well or how to take time
out for rest and relaxation. This can be one of the hardest kinds of stress to avoid because many
people feel this is out of their control. Later in this course we will show you that you DO have
options and offer some useful tips for dealing with fatigue.
Good stress v/s Bad stress:
Stress has often been misunderstood to be negative, with few people acknowledging the
importance and usefulness of positive stress. In our everyday lives, stress is everywhere and
definitely unavoidable; hence our emphasis should be on differentiating between what is good
stress, and what is bad. This will help us to learn to cope with negative stress, and harness the
power of positive stress to help us achieve more. There are 4 main categories of stress, namely
eustress, distress, hyper stress and hypo stress. Negative stress can cause many physical and
psychological problems, whilst positive stress can be very helpful for us. Here’s how we
differentiate between them.
Eustress:
This is a positive form of stress, which prepares your mind and body for the imminent
challenges that it has perceived. Eustress is a natural physical reaction by your body which
increases blood flow to your muscles, resulting in a higher heart rate. Athletes before a
competition or perhaps a manager before a major presentation would do well with eustress,
allowing them to derive the inspiration and strength that is needed.
Distress

9. We are familiar with this word, and know that it is a negative form of stress. This occurs when
the mind and body is unable to cope with changes, and usually occurs when there are
deviations from the norm. They can be categorized into acute stress and chronic stress. Acute
stress is intense, but does not last for long. On the other hand, chronic stress persists over a
long period of time. Trigger events for distress can be a change in job scope or routine that the
person is unable to handle or cope with.
Hyperstress
This is another form of negative stress that occurs when the individual is unable to cope with
the workload. Examples include highly stressful jobs, which require longer working hours than
the individual can handle. If you suspect that you are suffering from hyper stress, you are likely
to have sudden emotional breakdowns over insignificant issues, the proverbial straws that
broke the camel’s back. It is important for you to recognize that your body needs a break, or
you may end up with severe and chronic physical and psychological reactions.
Hypostress
Lastly, hypo stress occurs when a person has nothing to do with his time and feels constantly
bored and unmotivated. This is due to an insufficient amount of stress; hence some stress is
inevitable and helpful to us. Companies should avoid having workers who experience hypo
stress as this will cause productivity and mindfulness to fall. If the job scope is boring and
repetitive, it would be a good idea to implement some form of job rotation so that there is
always something new to learn.
The types of stress are named as eustress and distress. Distress is the most commonly-referred
to type of stress, having negative implications, whereas
Eustress is a positive form of stress, usually related to desirable events in person's life. Both can
be equally taxing on the body, and are cumulative in nature, depending on a person's way of
adapting to a change that has caused it.
How Does Stress Affect You?
Stress can affect both your body and your mind. People under large amounts of stress can
become tired, sick, and unable to concentrate or think clearly. Sometimes, they even suffer
mental breakdowns.
Signs and symptom
Cognitive symptoms

10. Memory problems, Inability to concentrate, Poor judgment, seeing only the negative, Anxious
or racing thoughts, Constant worrying
Physical symptoms
Aches and pains, Diarrhea or constipation, Nausea, dizziness, Chest pain, rapid heart rate, Loss
of sex drive, frequent colds or flu
Emotional symptoms
Depression or general unhappiness, Anxiety and agitation, Moodiness, irritability, or anger,
Feeling overwhelmed, Loneliness and isolation, other mental or emotional health problems
Behavioral symptoms
Eating more or less, Sleeping too much or too little, Withdrawing from others, Procrastinating
or neglecting responsibilities, Using alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs to relax, Nervous habits (e.g.
nail biting, pacing)
Workplace Stress
Workplacestress is the harmful physical and emotional response that occurs when there is a poor
match between job demands and the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Stress-
related disorders encompass a broad array of conditions, including psychological disorders (e.g.,
depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder) and other types of emotional strain (e.g.,
dissatisfaction, fatigue, tension, etc.), maladaptive behaviors (e.g., aggression, substance
abuse), and cognitive impairment (e.g., concentration and memory problems). In turn, these
conditions may lead to poor work performance or even injury. Job stress is also associated with
various biological reactions that may lead ultimately to compromised health, such as
cardiovascular disease.
Stress is a prevalent and costly problem in today's workplace. About one-third of workers
report high levels of stress. One-quarter of employees view their jobs as the number one
stressor in their lives. Three-quarters of employees believe the worker has more on-the-job
stress than a generation ago. Evidence also suggests that stress is the major cause of turnover
in organizations.
Stress in the workplace is a commonality throughout the world in every business. Managing
that stress becomes vital in order to keep up job performance as well as relationship with co-
workers and employers. For some workers, changing the work environment relieves work
stress. Making the environment less competitive between employees decreases some amounts

11. of stress. However, each person is different and some people like the pressure to perform
better.
Salary can be an important concern of employees. Salary can affect the way people work
because they can aim for promotion and in result, a higher salary. This can lead to chronic
stress.
Cultural differences have also shown to have some major effects on stress coping problems.
Eastern Asian employees may deal with certain work situations differently from how a Western
North American employee would.
In order to manage stress in the workplace, employers can provide stress managing programs
such as therapy, communication programs, and a more flexible work schedule.
Coping with Stress at Work place
With the rapid advancement of technology, the stresses faced at work have also increased.
Many people dread going to work, hence the term “Monday Blues”. What is the reason for
this? There is partly the fear from being retrenched in bad times, leading to greater job
insecurity on the part of those who remain. Undoubtedly, occupational stress is one of the
most commonly cited stressors faced by people all over the world.
Stress refers to the pressure and reactions to our environment which results in psychological
and physical reactions. Whilst some stress is good for motivation and increasing efficiency, too
much stress can result in negative impacts such as reduced effectiveness and efficiency. More
and more people are feeling isolated and disrespected at work, and this has led to greater
occupational stress. Manycompanies have taken to consulting experts and professionals on
ways to increase connectedness and motivation of their employees. Some companies organize
parties and make their employees feel valued at work. These are measures to motivate
employees and help them to feel secure at their jobs, translating into greater productivity.
However, not all companies have such measures in place, and some have not gotten it quite
right. Hence, it is up to you to make sure that you can cope with stress at your workplace, and
use it to help you work better. Here are 3 simple steps to help you with coping with stress in
the workplace.
Step1:RaisingAwareness
Help yourself to identify when you are facing rising levels of stress, tipping the scales from
positive to negative. This is important, as being able to identify signs of being stressed can help
you to take steps to ensure that your overall quality of life does not drop. If left
unacknowledged, the problem will only snowball, leading to disastrous consequences to your

12. health and overall wellbeing. You can identify if you are feeling stressed by checking if you have
any physical or psychological reactions, such as excessive sweating or heart palpitations, or the
onset of headaches, irritability or the need to escape. If you experience any of these reactions,
identify if you are feeling any overwhelming negative emotions, and if you are constantly
worried.
Step2:IdentifytheCause
You need to be able to analyze the situation and identify what is causing the rise in stress.
These stressors can be external and internal. External stressors refer to things beyond your
control, such as the environment or your colleagues at work. Internal stressors refer to your
own thinking and attitude. Often, we only start reacting to stress when a combination of
stressors working together exceeds our ability to cope. Keep a diary or a list of events that have
caused you to feel strong negative emotions, or that are likely stressors. This will help you to
identify the causes of your stress. Whilst it is not always possible to eradicate them, we can
change the way that we cope with it.
Step3:CopingwithStress
In order to deal with the situation that is causing you stress, you need to calm your mind and
body so as to stave off the reactions and cope with it in a positive way. This can be through
different methods, such as taking time off. If a situation is triggering your stress and you are
unable to calm down, remove yourself from it. Go outside and take a walk to calm down.
Alternatively, you can try implementing relaxation techniques such as deep breathing. If it is an
internal stressor, stop your thought process until you are able to deal with it logically.
There are three major approaches that we can use to manage stress;
Action-oriented: In which we seek to confront the problem causing the stress,
often changing the environment or the situation;
Emotionally-oriented: In which we do not have the power to change the situation, but we
can manage stress by changing our interpretation of the situation and the way we feel about it;
and
Acceptance-oriented: Where something has happened over which we have no power and
no emotional control, and where our focus is on surviving the stress.
Improving your ability to handle stress
Whether you’re trying to build your tolerance to stress or cope with its symptoms, you have
much more control over stress than you might think. Unfortunately, many of us try to deal with

13. stress in ways that only compound the problem. We drink too much to unwind at the end of a
stressful day, fill up on comfort food, zone out in front of the TV for hours, use pills to relax, or
lash out at other people. However, there are many healthier and more effective ways to cope
with stress and its symptoms.
Get moving
This is something you can do right now to help yourself start to feel better: exercise. Activities
that require moving both your arms and your legs are particularly effective at managing stress.
Rhythmic exercises such as walking, running, swimming, dancing, and aerobic classes are good
choices, especially if you exercise mindfully (focusing your attention on the physical sensations
you experience as you move).
Connect to others
The simple act of talking face to face with another human can trigger hormones that relieve
stress when you're feeling uncomfortable, unsure, or unsafe. Even just a brief exchange of kind
words or a friendly look from another human being can help calm and soothe your nervous
system. Being helpful and friendly to others delivers stress-reducing pleasure as well as
providing great opportunities to expand your social network.
Set aside relaxation time
Relaxation techniques such as yoga, meditation, and deep breathing activate the body’s
relaxation response, a state of restfulness that is the opposite of the fight or flight or
mobilization stress response.
Eat a healthy diet
Eating a healthy diet isn’t about eating bland food, adhering to strict dietary limitations, or
depriving yourself of the foods you love. But by re-examining your existing diet and
experimenting with new ways of eating that promote mental health, you can find an eating
plan that not only helps to relieve stress, but also boosts your energy, improves your outlook,
and stabilizes your mood.
Get your rest

14. Feeling tired can increase stress by causing you to think irrationally. At the same time, chronic
stress can disrupt your sleep. Whether you’re having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep at
night, there are plenty of ways to improve your sleep so you feel less stressed and more
productive and emotionally balanced.
Prevention
A combination of organizational change and stress management is often the most useful
approach for preventing stress at work. How to Change the Organization to Prevent Job Stress
•Ensure that the workload is in line with workers' capabilities and resources.
•Design jobs to provide meaning, stimulation, and opportunities for workers to use their skills.
•Clearly define workers' roles and responsibilities.
•Give workers opportunities to participate in decisions and actions affecting their jobs.
•Improve communications-reduce uncertainty about career development and future
employment prospects.
•Provide opportunities for social interaction among workers.
•Establish work schedules that are compatible with demands and responsibilities outside the
job.
•Discrimination inside the workplace. (e.g. nationality and language )

15. Bibliography
https://www.scribd.com/doc/24158580/Project-report-on-stress-management
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stress_management
https://www.cornerstoneondemand.com/learning-how-manage-stress-workplace