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Are you having back pain with any of the following?

  • Severe pain, weakness or tingling in your leg(s).
  • Difficulty stopping urination or loss of control of bladder or bowels.
  • Unexplained fever, nausea or vomiting.
  • A history of cancer or unexplained weight loss.

We understand that you are experiencing one or more of the health issues that might be impacting your back pain.

We recommend that you discuss these health issues with your doctor before proceeding with this program.

Once you are cleared by your doctor to do this program, we hope it helps you find relief from your back pain.

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Stress Management

Stress can appear in different forms. Some stressors are things that many of us encounter every day, like conflicts, disagreements or tension in our personal or professional lives. Whatever the cause, learning to manage the stress you feel is important to your health and well being.

The Importance of Stress Assessment

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Are you feeling stressed yet do not know where to begin? It's easy to recognize when you feel stress, but it is sometimes hard to put your finger on where the stress is coming from.

Assessing and identifying stresses in your life is an important step toward stress management. Self-assessment tools can lead you to a greater understanding of yourself, your routines, and the role stress plays in your life. Once you're aware that you're under too much stress, you can to learn how to manage it.

There are several ways to assess your stress levels and explore possible causes of stress in your life:

  • Use stress self-assessment to help you identify the daily events that bother you.
  • Keep a stress diary for a few days to a few weeks. This can show details of your stress: everyday occurrences, patterns, and the way you react and manage this stress.

Together, these stress assessment methods can help you develop a plan to deal with the stress in your life.

Self-Assessment

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Stress self-assessment will help you identify the daily events that bother you. This list contains common sources of stress. Think about your life and consider whether any of these things cause you stress.

  • Not enough sleep
  • Money problems
  • Too much work
  • Boring work
  • Commute to work
  • Noisy environment
  • Lack of support
  • Family problems
  • Not enough free time
  • Sexual problems
  • Having a hard time getting along with others
  • Poor health or long-term illness
  • Not enough exercise
  • Not eating well
  • Being overweight or underweight
  • Feeling like you have no direction in life

One, several, or even many of these options may be sources of stress in your life. It's helpful to have these sources in mind as you move on to exploring your reactions to these stress sources.

Start a Stress Diary

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There's more to stress than stressful situations. Your reaction to stress and the ways you cope with difficult situations are essential parts of stress management.

Observing your reactions to stress is an important step. To help you do this, try keeping a stress diary. For a few days or even for a week or 2, write down your response to each stressful event that occurs.

Manage the Stressors You Identify

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Take a look at your stress diary or the results of your stress self-assessment. For each significant source of stress, ask yourself the following questions:

  • Do I have the power to change this situation?
  • If I can't change the situation, can I change the way I respond to the stress?
  • If I can't change the situation and I can't change the way I feel about it, can I learn to accept this source of stress and move on?  

These questions can help you decide how best to manage the stressors you identify.

  • Action-oriented management. Confront the problem causing the stress and change the environment, situation, and/or role you play.
  • Emotionally oriented management. You may not have the power to change the situation, but you can manage stress by changing how you respond and feel about it.
  • Acceptance-oriented management. Sometimes sources of stress occur in areas over which we have no power and no emotional control. In this case, focus on surviving the stress and moving beyond it.

Related Health Tools:

Classes and Coaching
Interactive Programs
Podcasts
Videos

See more Health Tools »

If you have an emergency medical condition, call 911 or go to the nearest hospital. An emergency medical condition is any of the following: (1) a medical condition that manifests itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity (including severe pain) such that you could reasonably expect the absence of immediate medical attention to result in serious jeopardy to your health or body functions or organs; (2) active labor when there isn't enough time for safe transfer to a Plan hospital (or designated hospital) before delivery, or if transfer poses a threat to your (or your unborn child's) health and safety, or (3) a mental disorder that manifests itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity such that either you are an immediate danger to yourself or others, or you are not immediately able to provide for, or use, food, shelter, or clothing, due to the mental disorder.

This information is not intended to diagnose health problems or to take the place of specific medical advice or care you receive from your physician or other health care professional. If you have persistent health problems, or if you have additional questions, please consult with your doctor. If you have questions or need more information about your medication, please speak to your pharmacist. Kaiser Permanente does not endorse the medications or products mentioned. Any trade names listed are for easy identification only.

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