From stress to success: be your own therapist

‘This course is potentially life- changing and definitely life-enhancing,” said one of the attendees at the last Stress Control course, in Dundalk.

Stress Control is a practical six-week course that was developed by Glasgow-based psychologist Dr Jim White. My colleague, clinical psychologist Dr Alison Rooney, and I have been giving this course around the east coast of Ireland for the past four years.

On average 200 people have attended each course, so the first message to anyone who attends the course is, you are not alone.

Unfortunately, isolation is one of the classic symptoms of stress. Many of us feel that we must be the only ones going through this experience. It can be a great relief to discover that thousands of us are going through the very same thing.

It can be an even greater revelation to discover a range of simple strategies that relieve our stress and make us feel more in control of our lives.

One of our greatest fears is the fear of the unknown. When we develop stress symptoms of unknown origin, these can turn into a cycle of increasing pressures.

Take, for example, panic attacks, which can take different forms. It can be a feeling of disorientation that happens out of the blue; it can be fear of having a heart attack or of losing control of your bowel or bladder; or it can be a feeling that you are going mad. All of these symptoms are very normal responses to stress. Similarly, panic attacks are not uncommon following a bereavement or when you are hit with unanticipated financial hardship – so that includes just about all of us.

On the Stress Control course, we discover that these distressing symptoms come about as a result of an imbalance between breathing in too much oxygen and not converting it into carbon dioxide, as a result of hyperventilation.

This imbalance between oxygen and carbon dioxide in the bloodstream makes us feel unwell. With this understanding of how these symptoms come about we feel less vulnerable and more in control. Very often it is how we talk to ourselves that leads to the breathing imbalance and the panic attack.

When we learn how to slow down our breathing and to talk to ourselves in a positive, reassuring way, the chances of having another panic attack are reduced considerably.

Simple strategies

A number of other simple strategies can immediately alleviate stress. Exercise is the most obvious one. A brisk half-hour walk most days is sufficient to be an effective antidote to stress. When we are stressed, many of us go in the opposite direction of what is good for us.

We are more inclined to sit in front of the television and drink coffee or cola. We seek solace in the old reliables of salt, sugar and fat. The reality is that these substances provide only very temporary relief from stress. They send us on a rollercoaster of mood swings, making our stress even worse in the medium and long term. Alcohol is the same.

The relief from stress is temporary and the aftermath is that we feel even worse than before, so exercise is the best possible alternative. It burns up those chemicals in the body associated with stress, such as cortisol.

While I acknowledge that it can be difficult to get yourself out the door, I have yet to meet anyone who regrets having done so. Even moderate exercise produces happy chemicals in the brain. It also reduces cravings for foods that are bad for us. Drinking plenty of water flushes out toxins such as caffeine and helps to stabilise mood. Learning proper breathing also has many benefits.

The heart sends many more messages to the brain than the brain sends to the heart. If we can learn to slow our heart rate through activities such as yoga and mindfulness, we are sending all the right messages to the brain. As a result, we are much more likely to feel calmer and in control.

“Fake it until you make it”

I learned one other tip for instant stress management from Prof

Ian Robertson

, head of neuropsychology at Trinity College Dublin. He recommends that you have to “fake it until you make it”.

In other words, if we make ourselves smile, walk tall and act in a confident manner, we are much more likely to produce the requisite chemicals in our brains to support these actions. So, by making ourselves smile, we are going to feel happier. By acting in a confident way, we are going to feel more confident.

These are just some of the strategies you can learn on the Stress Control course. Attendees are invited to just come along and listen; in fact, we don’t encourage questions from the floor.

The format is that we are teaching people to be their own therapists. There are no silly or embarrassing exercises. There is no charge except for an optional, nominal fee for materials related to the course. And everybody is welcome. We look forward to seeing you there.

The next Stress Control course will be held in Theatre L, Arts Block, UCD Belfield, on Monday, November 3rd, from 7.30pm-9.30pm. Full details and online registration on stresscontrolireland.com.

Dr Mark Harrold is a clinical psychologist. See drmarkharrold.com