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Balancing stress now and into the future

A recap of the programme and how to prevent stress into the future (42 minutes).

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    What you will learn

    You will learn how to use positive psychology to manage and prevent stress, including:

    • practising gratitude and kindness
    • recognising your positive qualities (character strengths)
    • enjoying positive experiences (savouring)

    Things you can do

    You can practise some activities to help you manage stress:

    Think about your character strengths

    Character strengths are the positive qualities that make you who you are.

    For example:

    • kindness
    • fairness
    • forgiveness
    • gratitude
    • hope
    • humour

    Take a moment to think about:

    • the strengths you see in yourself
    • how other people would describe you
    • what other people compliment you on
    • the strengths that make up the real you
    • how you can use your strengths
    Make gratitude part of your day

    Every day, think about 3 things that went well and why.

    You could write them on a piece of paper that you put in a jar or in a notebook.

    You could also say thank you to someone in a note, text message or letter.

    Find ways to show kindness

    Doing something nice for yourself or others can make you feel good.

    Even small acts of kindness can help, for example:

    • let someone ahead of you in a queue
    • smile at someone or start a conversation in a waiting room
    • treat yourself like you would a friend in the same situation

    You could look for opportunities to volunteer in your area.

    Volunteer Ireland - volunteer.ie

    Make savouring part of your day

    Savouring is when you pause and appreciate positive experiences.

    Take some time every day to practise savouring.

    For example:

    • think about a positive experience in the past
    • pay attention to an enjoyable moment as it happens
    • imagine an enjoyable event in the future
    Try positive affirmations

    To focus on your strengths and reduce negative thinking, try using positive affirmations.

    Positive affirmations (video, 3 minutes)

    Use tension down

    When you notice physical symptoms of stress, try the tension down breathing exercise.

    Tension down (video, 3 minutes)