Calgary Stress Management Counselling

Michael Haggstrom, RCSW, Doctor in Counseling

“Every stress leaves an indelible scar, and the organism pays for its survival after a stressful situation by becoming a little older.”

~ Hans Selye ~

According to Statistics Canada

➣ More than 1 in 4 Canadian workers described their day-to-day lives as highly stressful
➣ 6 out of 10 Canadians say work is their main source of stress
➣ Canadians are stressed about not having enough time for their partner and family

Our ability to thrive and be happy is dependent upon the state of our mind and body. Unmanaged stress will compound and provoke additional problems such as ♦ depressed mood ♦ anger ♦ fatigue ♦ relational problems ♦ addiction and ♦ decreased performance.

But isn’t stress normal?

Yes. Some stress is normal for everyone, but we can all reach our breaking point. Not taking care of everyday stresses will affect our ability to function well in our occupations. It has negative affects on our relationships and creates problems for our health: physical, mental and emotional.

When clients come in for counselling, they often complain of how stress is impeding upon their happiness and ability to relax, even when they try to do nothing. Their minds continually race to everything they should be doing and wonder, “How did life get so busy?”

WATCH our 2 Min. VIDEO

How is your ability to de-stress?

Culturally, we are conditioned to press through challenges no matter the consequences. This can have a good side-effect in that it will help us persevere until we succeed, but… do we know when to lift the foot off the accelerator when it’s no longer needed?

Under stress we start believing we need to keep busy all the time, or we find that when we are trying to rest we can’t stop thinking of all that we should be getting done.

When was the last time you really relaxed? How long has it been? Are you able to find ways to de-stress everyday; or do you just hope you can make it until the next vacation?

Without the proper tools, we will find ourselves managing stress in unhelpful ways such as ♦ over-working ♦ drinking ♦ taking pills or drugs ♦ smoking ♦ eating ♦ watching too much TV ♦ being on the computer for hours on end ♦ over-sleeping ♦ getting busy all the time to avoid looking at what’s not working in your life ♦ venting your frustrations out at others or ♦ avoiding social events with friends or family.

Discover the sources of your stress

Managing stress sounds simple, right?… Not really. Not all of our stresses have to do with pressures put on us from the outside world.

Often our stresses are self-created by our behaviours, attitudes, thought patterns, procrastination, emotional states, excuses and beliefs.

• Do you ruminate and worry without challenging your thoughts?

• Do you procrastinate and put things off saying, “I’ll get to it tomorrow”?

• Do you believe that without stress you won’t be productive?

• Do you excuse your own experience of stress by blaming it on others, your work, society or outside circumstance?

Watch this Fun Video by BBC

How do you cope?

We provide our cars with regular maintenance, but when it comes to stress we feel guilty if we take care of ourselves. We all have a breaking point. Just like a vehicle that is poorly maintained, we can break-down suddenly.

What can stress counselling help with?

First, we will work with you to evaluate each major area of your life:

1) Work life 2) Home life

3) Personal life 4) Health (physical, emotional, mental)

Then, we will look at ways to get you back in the driver’s seat by helping to ensure:

1) Your priorities are taken care of

2) You are living with a clearer purpose, while decreasing your stress levels with life skills and mental/emotional mastery.

When we manage stress, we live a life that empowers us to greater happiness, increased productivity and more peace of mind.

Calgary Stress Management Counselling

I seek to equip people with useful tools to better manage stress. Counselling can help you take charge of your life.
Call or Email. I’m here to help – Michael Haggstrom, RCSW, Doctor in Counselling

Call Now

Email Now