{"id":6453,"date":"2019-10-01T00:00:36","date_gmt":"2019-10-01T00:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/todaysveterinarybusiness.com\/?p=6453"},"modified":"2023-01-02T22:12:48","modified_gmt":"2023-01-02T22:12:48","slug":"stress-is-inevitable","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/navc.sitepreview.app\/todaysveterinarybusiness.com\/stress-is-inevitable\/","title":{"rendered":"Stress Is Inevitable"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have a confession: Writing this article was a source of great stress.\u00a0Here\u2019s the mind blower: Stress isn\u2019t all bad.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve worn many hats in my two-decade adventure in veterinary medicine. Most recently as a co-founder and positive change ninja with Flourish Veterinary Consulting, I\u2019m wearing a hat that reads, \u201cPositive Psychology Practitioner.\u201d<\/p>\n

Positive psychology is the applied science of human thriving. When I put my current professional hat on, I\u2019m working to empower veterinary professionals and organizations with the tools for cultivating well-being in work and life. Because I know firsthand how stressful a career in veterinary medicine can feel.<\/p>\n

The uncomfortable truth is, all the psychological tools and tricks in the world can\u2019t eliminate stress from our lives. In fact, the desire to live a good-feeling, stress-free life can be quite harmful, resulting in increased depressive symptoms, more negative emotion and even a physiological response similar to that of chronic illness. Stress is inevitable. What we make of it matters.<\/p>\n

The tools from positive psychology become transformative when we use them to help us build a healthier stress mindset. You see, sometimes stress has an upside.<\/p>\n

A healthy stress mindset contributes to resilience. Resilience allows us to stand strong<\/a> in the face of adversity, bounce back from stumbles and grow from crises we\u2019ve endured. How does one build such a mindset?<\/p>\n

Here are two tools I\u2019ve used:<\/p>\n

1. Real-Time Resilience<\/h3>\n

The mental judo tricks I\u2019ve learned from the research of Karen Reivich, Ph.D., who studies resilience, have been instrumental in helping me develop a healthy stress mindset.<\/p>\n

One tool is called the Plan Strategy. Use the sentence starter \u201cIf \u2018x\u2019 happens, I will \u2018y,\u2019\u201d and then write a brief plan for how you\u2019ll handle a potentially stressful situation you anticipate happening.<\/p>\n

When I agree to write an article like this, I place unhelpful pressure on myself to create something unique and engaging. As I write, this periodically causes my mind to go blank and I panic \u2014 \u201cDo I have this in me? Do I even know what I\u2019m talking about? Goodness, I can\u2019t think of a single clever thing to say! No one will like this. I\u2019ll never be asked to write something again.\u201d<\/p>\n

This is when my Plan Strategy clicks in. Having anticipated this stress spiral, I wrote myself a simple real-time resilience plan. It looks like this: \u201cWhen the stress spiral starts to happen, I\u2019ll stand up and take a short walk around the house.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr. Reivich\u2019s research shows that simple strategies like these, when written in advance, help the brain shift from the emotional centers to what psychologists call the \u201cexecutive function\u201d centers. When we engage executive function, we are able to respond to stress instead of just react. Using the strategy over and over, we create neural connections that lessen the blow of the trigger and shorten the duration and intensity of the resulting stress. Stress spiral denied!<\/p>\n

We all have triggers in the veterinary hospital that set us off on our stress spirals. One that comes to mind from my time as a hospital administrator was when an employee would call in sick. I think back to how I\u2019d react in those situations and, more often than not, it was not the best version of myself. The stress spiral kicked in and took over.<\/p>\n

If I could go back in time, I would have built a Plan Strategy for myself. It probably would have looked something like this: \u201cIf an employee calls in sick, I\u2019ll tell him as genuinely as I can that I hope he feels better soon and to not worry about us. I\u2019ll then look over the roster of employees in the hospital that day and take stock of the strengths they have that will contribute to the day going well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Take a few minutes to think of one or two things you know will trigger you at your hospital. Then write out a real-time resilience Plan Strategy. Read what you\u2019ve written and tuck the paper away somewhere safe and cozy. By doing so, you\u2019ll also be tucking the plan away in the mental judo areas of your brain.<\/p>\n

Your stress spiral doesn\u2019t stand a chance.<\/p>\n

2. Purpose Spotting<\/h3>\n

I\u2019ve done a ton of writing between my education and career. And yet, after all these years and all this practice, I still feel stressed when I sit down to write something new. I\u2019ll come up with all sorts of excuses to postpone starting. Despite all the excuses and anxiety I allow to fester in my mind, I started and completed writing this article.<\/p>\n

How? By using a trick learned from my friend and colleague, Dr. Zach Mercurio.<\/p>\n

Dr. Mercurio studies the science and practice of purpose and meaningfulness. His research has uncovered an incredible link between the feeling of meaningfulness and well-being. It turns out, being purposeful can help alleviate the kind of stress I feel when I have to create a piece of written work.<\/p>\n

When I notice myself kicking the can down the road on a writing project, I ask myself: \u201cWhat would happen to another human being (or beings) if I didn\u2019t write this?\u201d<\/p>\n

In this case, I\u2019d be letting down another friend and colleague. If I don\u2019t write this article, I\u2019ll be forgoing an obligation to her. Furthermore, it will negatively affect her ability to get her work done well and on time, as she would have a gap in her publication roster. I\u2019d be adding quite a bit of unnecessary stress and discomfort to her life.<\/p>\n

Dismissing responsibility to a thing is relatively easy. It\u2019s much harder to dismiss responsibility to another human being. Thinking about this was all the motivation I needed to open up Word and start typing away.<\/p>\n

Dr. Mercurio suggests considering a task you\u2019re not particularly fond of in the workplace and answer these two questions:<\/p>\n