(Sharing this article which I have written for the DILG in November 2018. Hope this can help those going through stress)
Stressed? Happy thoughts Reinforce Positive Emotions
Feeling stressed from the quagmire of problems, family situation, work overload, or traffic?
Recent studies in the Philippines identified work, financial worries and studies as among the leading causes of stress brought by negative emotions or mental pressure. Stress, however, is not a disease but the human body’s reaction to any change that requires an adjustment or response.
Cognizant of the needs of assisting 1,000 career service employees, contract of service and job orders, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has been conducting seminars on Stress Management for two consecutive years now for the employees to better cope with their respective work pressures.
Atty. Gina V. Wenceslao, Chief Appellate Division of the Legal and Legislative Liaison Service (LLLS) said that stress is not an isolated case. Instead, it is a common experience in every organization or office, but more so in a workplace where there is “no feedback mechanism and no communication.”
In a recently concluded seminar-workshop attended by the LLLS personnel in Mariveles, Bataan, the facilitators explained that stress is part of work and can actually be cultivated from negative to right thinking and feeling.
The common signs that can be attributed to stress are frequent headaches, tiredness or exhaustion, problem in sleeping, grinding of teeth, upset stomach, increase or loss of appetite, and muscle tensions in the neck, face or shoulders.
Atty. Wenceslao shared her insights from the event saying that when an employee feels that he/she is already stressed, then it’s time to slow down, focus and internalize positive or good thoughts or happy memories in order to emit and convert positive emotions.
“It can be done kahit dito sa opisina na bukas ang ating mga mata. For example, I am here at work and I recognized that I am stress, I can put on an inspirational music to redirect my negative feelings into something positive,” she explained.
She also shared her practice of having personal meditation at home because it extinguishes negative energy like stress from surfacing. Having good communication among group or family members is also an effective way of pushing stress away.
Rather than entertaining worry, be optimistic. Instead of saying you cannot, say you can do it. Positive reinforcement can surely make people happy and at peace.
So the next time you are going through some stressful situation, redirect your thoughts to something cheerful and bright. The mind is very powerful and positive thoughts always generate positive feelings. This will surely attract some positivity that will help employees deal and cope with workloads and personal issues easily. As Poppy from the movie Trolls puts it: ###