April is Stress Awareness Month, a time dedicated to understanding the various ways stress manifests in your life. While stress is something everyone experiences, it doesn’t affect us all in the same way. This month presents an opportunity to increase your awareness of how stress affects you, as well as learn practical strategies to manage stress in healthy, sustainable ways.


What is Stress?

Stress is a normal reaction to the demands of life. When you experience a challenge or face stress, your body responds with a hormone response that provides a burst of energy. This is known as the fight-or-flight response, and it is designed to help you respond to this challenge.

Stress may feel like a fast heartbeat, increased breathing, sweating, upset stomach, and nausea. Stress may also affect your emotions. You may also have difficulty focusing, feel anxious, experience mood swings, or feel overwhelmed.

It can be easy to think of stress as something to avoid at all costs. While stress can be negative, not all stress is the enemy. In fact, we need stress, and it can be a positive thing.


Positive Stress – Eustress

Stress can be positive.

This type of stress can help you stay focused, motivated, and perform better in certain situations. It helps you accomplish tasks and can add excitement.

Examples of positive stress:

  • Prepping for a tryout or audition
  • Starting a new class that excites or challenges you
  • Meeting new people and pushing out of your comfort zone
  • Setting goals and working towards them

For example, positive stress over an upcoming test might help you stay focused on studying. It is also incredibly normal for stress to increase during an important competition. It can even help you focus on the task at hand and ‘lock in’.

Regular everyday stress can make you stronger. It provides opportunities to learn, accomplish new things, and gain resilience. Without challenge, you would never have the opportunity to get stronger and learn what you are capable of.


Negative Stress – Distress

Stress impacts everyone differently, but stress is negative if it overwhelms you, reduces your ability to concentrate, or strains relationships, mood, or behaviour.

Negative stress may also feel unpleasant, cause anxiety or concern, or be something perceived to be out of our coping abilities.

Examples of negative stress:

  • Overcommitting to too many activities
  • Procrastinating or cramming for deadlines
  • Social pressures or conflicts
  • Feeling like you are falling behind

Stress can become a problem when it interferes with your functioning, it affects your health, it takes a lot of your time or energy to complete small things, you feel stuck, or you isolate from others and the things you enjoy.


Finding Balance – Dealing with Both Positive and Negative Stress

You will never be able to ignore or delete stress. Instead, it is important to find ways to manage our stress and to distinguish between the positive and negative.

Try to avoid the ‘stress is bad’ mindset and instead learn how to embrace and manage stress.

First, identify what type of stress you are dealing with.

Ask yourself:

  • Do you feel challenged, but in control? -> Positive Stress
  • Is the stress temporary and tied to a specific goal? -> Positive Stress
  • Are you feeling motivated and energized? -> Positive Stress
  • Is the stress ongoing, with no clear end in sight? -> Negative Stress
  • Are you feeling anxious, irritable, or drained? -> Negative Stress

Positive stress is still stress, and these emotions still need to be managed. Try to use this stress as fuel and channel the energy into productivity. Stay organized, as this can help stop stress from being overwhelming.

 

Stress Tips:

  • Breathe – this is the first step when you are feeling stressed. Take a second to breathe, calm down, and then you can determine your next steps depending on the type of stress or the situation.
  • Recognize it and re-frame it – instead of thinking “I’m stressed”, try focusing on the positive challenge. Reframing your mindset can turn nerves into motivation.
  • Master time management – new routines or increased demands can be solved with a bit of time management. It’s not just about scheduling tasks, but also thinking about your energy levels and acting accordingly.
  • Build a strong support system – talk to friends, family, coach, teacher, etc., about your feelings. Lean on those around you to experience stress relief.
  • Prioritize self-care – make time to recharge and rest. A healthy mind and body can better handle stress.

Bottom line: stress isn’t the enemy, but ignoring it can make it worse. What matters is how you respond to the stress. With the right mindset and healthy habits, you can turn stress into something that works with you, not against you.

For more information on stress, check out EQUIPPED’s online course “Stress Management and Healthy Coping”