Promoting Stress Coping Resilience with Educators Brian H

Promoting Stress Coping & Resilience with Educators Brian H Smith Ph. D

Social Emotional Learning for Students Ø Teach SEL Competencies Ø Positive Relationships Ø Safe & Rewarding Environments Ø What’s missing?

Why SEL for Adults? 1. Teaching is stressful 2. Stressed teachers = stressed students 3. Better SEL teaching

Adult SEL = Resilience More resilience means improved: 1. 1. Educator wellbeing 2. Coping with students 3. Relationships 4. Modeling and teaching SEL

SEL for Adults “As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others. ” — Maya Angelou

Resilience = Thriving Despite Adversity 1. Improving stress coping 2. Increasing wellbeing skills & behaviors

Life is Stressful (and that’s ok) 100 years ago? 1, 000? Gallup World Poll: More Stress = Greater wellbeing, health & longevity, happiness, & satisfaction with life You can’t create a meaningful life without stress

Stress & the Ideal Life? How have you grown personally or professionally from stressful experiences? What is something that is bringing both stress and value to your life right now?

Getting Good at Coping with Stress Your stress response is key Two options: Ø Threat Response Ø Challenge Response Physiological & Psychological

Threat Response Stress Damage Prepare for injury Blood flow Inflammation Attention to negatives Cycle of fear and anxiety

Challenge Response Blood flow Heart rate Adrenaline Focus Self-confidence Performance Positive coping Learn from experience

Harnessing the Challenge Response Can you can handle it? What’s your Mindset? Strengths Resources Stress Successes

Stress Success What’s a stressful experience or time in your life that you feel like you handled well? How did you cope? What did you bring to the challengestrengths, resources, experience, faith? Discuss with partner or write - Introverts accepted

Stress Coping is Something you DO Actively coping with stress is #1 Fix it Or Accept it and Cope

Accepting Stressful Reality Can all stressors be fixed? Accepting it, not liking it 1. Acknowledge, don’t run 2. Apply strengths and resources

Avoidance = more: Depression Conflict at work Fired Divorced

Avoidance Avoiding stress = Avoiding life! What kinds of things do people do to escape stressful thoughts and feelings that can end up making things worse?

Stress Coping Recap Ø Rich, meaningful life = Stress Ø Harness the Challenge Response Ø Remember Ø Active your strengths Coping is key Tools for coping? SEL

Neuroscience of Losing Control Upstairs or Downstairs Brain Hot or Cold Processing Amygdala Hijack PREFRONTAL CORTEX • Logic • Planning • Self-regulation • Consequences • Suppress urges • Think about future LIMBIC SYSTEM • Emotional drive • Pleasure seeking • Mood swings • Gut feelings • Rewards

Pure Logic?

Wise Mind

Calming Strong Emotions: Catch Them Early

Emotion Calming Strategies Ø Deep Breaths Ø Distraction Ø Name It to Tame It Neuro-imaging: Less Amygdala More Prefrontal Cortex Ø Emotion Co-Regulation Share with partner: What works for you?

Self-Distancing – Thoughts & Emotions “What would Batman Do? ” Who’s your Batman? Talk about yourself – Second Person Talk about yourself – Third Person What would you tell your best friend? “How will I feel about this one week from now? Or ten years? ”

Power of Meaning Highly meaningful life = 30% less mortality US study: More stress = more meaningful life Why did you want to become a teacher? How does teaching make your life more meaningful?

Stress Coping Resource Stanford Rethink Stress Intervention: “See, Own and Use Your Stress” 60 minutes, 7 modules Free, with questionnaires https: //mbl. stanford. edu/interventionstoolkits/rethink-stress-intervention

Single Most Important Thing for Brain and Body Health?

Power of Sleep Daylight Saving Time WHO – Night Shift Work is a carcinogen <7 hours harms everything! “The shorter your sleep the shorter your life” “Why We Sleep” Matthew Walker – Center for Human Sleep Science

Power of Sleep Poor sleep strongly impacts: Emotional reactivity Cognitive control Decision making Impulsivity Learning and Memory Teen depression/anxiety?

Sleep Hygiene 1. Regular sleep schedule 2. Avoid electronics before bed 3. Eye shades and ear plugs 4. Limit caffeine 5. Avoid napping What helps you?

Power of Gratitude Physical ü Stronger ü Less immune systems bothered by aches and pains ü Lower ü More blood pressure exercise ü Better ü Sleep self-care longer

Power of Gratitude Psychological More: ü Positive ü Alert, ü Joy emotions alive, and awake and pleasure ü Optimism and happiness

Power of Gratitude Social More: ü Helpful ü Generous ü Compassionate ü Forgiving ü Outgoing Less: ü Lonely and isolated

Gratitude journaling Write down three things you’re grateful for today Big or small What if you didn’t have …. ? ?

Practicing Gratitude Practice Makes Perfect ü Something that happened before you left home today? ü Something about this training? ü Something about your work? ü One tiny thing you never really think about? ü Something you take for granted?

Thank You & Happy Resilience! Brian Smith Ph. D. brianhsmith 1@gmail. com https: //www. surveymonkey. com/r/LXHTCM 8