Career Success/Personal Stress - How to Stay Healthy in a High-Stress Environment

This book begins with a set of assumptions about stress: that stress is the rule nowadays, and is virtually wired-in to the majority of work environments; that the notion that stress can be eliminated from one's routine is unrealistic; that stress can actually be used to advantage if properly managed; and that stress-sensitive lifestyle is learnable. Building on these four cornerstones, the authors provide a detailed look at stress and how it can be controlled, including: how to perform a personalized stress check; how to recognize common physiological stress patterns and interpret common physiological reactions to stress; how to understand and cope with 12 major job stressors (many of which have only surfaced in the past 3 years); how to know if stress is affecting your sexual performance and what can be done about it; how to evaluate the mutual effects of stress, diet, and exercise; how to spot and cope with a wide array of stress-impacted symptoms and illnesses - from backaches, panic attacks, and dermatitis to teeth-grinding sleeping problems, and sexual dysfunction; and how to make lifestyle changes that render stress manageable for positive results. In addition, the authors introduce the concept of a Type C personality, as distinguished from the stress-vulnerable Type A and stress-avoider Type B personalities. Statistically validated through their own research, the Type C construct illustrates how real-world people who are already functioning successfully in the new environment do it - and it provides a model for the most desirable qualities and behaviours for optimal stress management.