April is Stress Awareness Month. It’s an important topic that shouldn’t be shrugged off.
Stress Awareness Month, is a national cooperative effort to inform people about the dangers of stress, successful coping strategies and harmful misconceptions about stress that are prevalent in our society.
Not all stress is bad for us, but long-term stress can certainly have harmful impacts on physical and mental health.
Why Stress Awareness Month is important to individuals
Stress is a major factor in causing and aggravating health problems. It’s part of the way we are as humans, and everyone is prone to stress. However, with so many people turning to alcohol or experiencing heightened emotion as a result of stress it’s important to learn how to handle it.
Why Stress Awareness Month is important to Employers
It’s not just individuals that need to be concerned with stress. Businesses need to be aware of the impact stress has.
According to Government statistics, Employers should be aware that on average each person takes around 18.5 days off work due to stress, depression or anxiety. This means that if you employ a staff of approximately 20 people, the equivalent of one person’s salary and productivity is lost for an entire year through stress related illnesses.
What is Stress?
Stress can cause a variety of physical and psychological symptoms. Physically, stress can lead to increased heart rate, high blood pressure, muscle tension, and headaches. Stress can also cause changes in digestion and sleep patterns, as well as a weakened immune system.
Psychologically, stress can cause anxiety, depression, irritability, and difficulty concentrating. Long-term stress can lead to serious health problems, such as heart disease and mental health disorders.
Who can suffer from Stress
Anyone can suffer from stress, as it is a normal response to challenging situations. Stress can be caused by a wide range of factors, including work, relationships, financial issues, and personal health problems.
People with certain risk factors may be more prone to experiencing stress, such as those with:
• A history of mental health issues
• High-pressure jobs
• People who live in high pressure environments
• A lack of social support
That said, stress can affect anyone at any time, regardless of age, gender, or background.
How people can educate themselves about stress awareness
There are many ways to educate yourself about stress awareness, including:
1. Reading books and articles about stress management and coping strategies.
2. Attending workshops or classes on stress management and mindfulness.
3. Hearing a keynote speaker talk about mental health
4. Talking to a therapist who specializes in stress management.
5. Joining a support group for people who are dealing with stress.
6. Practicing stress-reduction techniques such as meditation, yoga, or deep breathing exercises.
7. Staying informed about the latest research on stress and its effects on the body and mind.
8. Seeking out stress awareness and management resources provided by professional organizations, such as the American Psychological Association or American Institute of Stress.
The challenge people may have however, is getting started.
How to get started – supporting employees with mental health
Mental Awareness Month is a great way to highlight the challenges that people may face with mental health. It helps individuals understand their own mental wellbeing and the impact they may have on others.
However, it’s one thing to bring the issue of mental health to “light” through awareness, it’s another to bring it to “life”, and help people live daily with good mental health.
The issue an organisation has however, is how they bring this topic to “life”.
Living with good mental health daily requires inspiration, stories and guidance from people who have gone through stressful times and can share their experience and insights.
Speakers For Stress Awareness Month
At Stellar Speakers we offer a number of speakers for Stress Awareness Month.
Penny Power – Penny founded the world’s first online business community, Ecademy, an online platform that had 650,000 members and predated LinkedIn by four years. Today, through her keynote, Penny boldly opens up about the trials of her own life and her observations.
Andrea Pennington – Dr. Andrea Pennington is an integrative physician, acupuncturist, meditation teacher and #1 international bestselling author of several books on resilience, mindfulness and self-love. She is a highly acclaimed TEDx speaker, author and sought-after media personality with more than 20-years’ experience in broadcast and digital media.
Caspar Craven – Caspar Craven is a leading authority in achieving big bold goals through effective leadership and high-performance teamwork. He understands, first hand, the importance of putting people first in order to get results. He understands because he has made every mistake in the book on the way to achieving a number of personal big bold goals.
At Stellar Speakers we believe all keynote speakers should be Stellar Speakers – able to entertain, connect with an audience and make a positive impact. As a unique speaker agency representing change-making keynote speakers, we provide expertise to help you manage your budgetary expectations and provide realistic options. We provide a preferred partner’s service base, so that partner clients get everything they need, lowering your risk as a booker of speakers, so you can make your choice about your next speaker with confidence.
