3 Stress-Management Techniques for Front Line Workers

NAMI is partnering with #FirstRespondersFirst to raise awareness about the importance of mental health in frontline health care and public safety professionals. In today's blog, a clinical psychologist describes how stress can affect your thoughts, emotions, and physical well-being.

Everyone has experienced some level of stress during the coronavirus pandemic, but as a frontline healthcare worker, you’re seeing and experiencing things most of us can’t even imagine. Which is why it’s so important that you take time for calming practices. We want you to take care of yourself, so you’re better able to care for us when we need it.

In this video, Gahan Pandina, who is a Clinical Psychologist and Senior Director and Compound Development Team Leader at Janssen Research & Development, describes how stress can affect your thoughts, emotions, and physical body. Chronic stress, like you may be experiencing now, can have serious effects on our physical and mental health. But calming practices used in the moment can help reduce those effects.

View the entire video to hear Dr. Pandina walk you through 3 effective stress-management techniques, step-by-step: deep breathing and scanning your body for tension, progressive muscle relaxation, and guided imagery. These techniques can help you learn more about how you experience stress and ways to manage it in the moment. Dr. Pandina reminds us that “Mindfulness is all about finding the techniques, or technique, that’s best for you.” Try different techniques and find the ones that you can incorporate throughout your day.

Reach out to family, friends, or a mental health professional when your stress symptoms interfere with ability to function at home or work, when you feel like your coping techniques aren’t working, or when you feel like you might just need some extra help. Remember, you are not alone and support is available.

By Behavior Science and Mental Health Experts at Johnson & Johnson

This piece originally appeared on thriveglobal.com.

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