After having complete the Holmes-Rache Inventory scale I totalled up my score to be 69 over the previous year. This gives the implication that I have a relatively low amount of life change and a low susceptibility to stress-induced health breakdown. I feel quite relaxed about my score and also quite relieved that my stress levels are not too high. At this stage in my life I am relatively happy with how things are going and have minimum stress levels. However, I feel that there was certain things I am stressed about that didn’t appear in the Holmes- rache inventory test such as the thought of my first year university exams looming over my head. I often over think the idea of these exams and put myself down as I always think the worst in exam situations. By worrying and constantly thinking about this I instantly become stressed and get stressed about being stressed and usually end up a teary mess.
In addition to this, I am constantly stressed about my university, work and social life and maintaining a healthy balance between all three of these. I always find myself tied up and worried that if I don’t spend enough time on one of these aspects I will not only let myself down but other people as well. By keeping up with my university work during the week I usually make time for my family and friends at the weekend and relax during this part of the week. Work is another aspect that I can easily come stressed about as I am constantly forced to complete over time by my boss and I feel they are unaware of the high demand of work my course at university has.
Despite this, there are many combats I do to relieve my stress and try to forget and over come what I am stressed about. My most important combat to stress is listening and talking to my friends and family about my problems and worries. I like to talk about my problems with people who have experienced or experiencing similar problems to myself as we can provide each other with support and advice. I am aware that my friends and family are always there for me in time of need and do there best to support me and make me happy. I often find myself listening to music while tidying my room or before I go to my bed at night, this allows me to calm down and really think about my worries as well as making me happier. Another combat I use frequently is exercise. I make time to go a walk or go to the gym during the week in between university and work to release my stress by exercising and staying healthy. By exercising I instantly feel better about myself as it allows me to take my mind off my worries in life and focus on keeping myself fit. One stress combat that I use that is almost like a guilty pleasure is online shopping, this takes me mind off things and allows me to treat myself when I a feeling down.
