Stress Academy Presents:

Web Series – The Story of Stress

Part 1 – Understanding Stress

Episode 17 – Stress Management Roadmap

In the last two videos, we discussed different types of stress and how they manifest in various forms such as active, dormant and potential stress. Stress can be further classified as positive and negative stress as well as intentional and unintentional stress. We also introduced a Stress Identification diagram that allows us to identify different forms of stress proactively and systematically. Having identified them, you must be curious to know how we can manage them? Let’s start with the roadmap that summarizes the steps and strategies for management of stress.

When a patient consults a doctor, the doctor first makes the diagnosis, informs the patient and then recommends appropriate treatment. The doctor’s initial goal in managing cancer or poisoning that can spread to other organs, is to contain the disease and prevent its spread. At the same time, if the patient is suffering from intense pain, doctors administer medicines for comfort. This is followed by treatment of the underlying causative factors. And subsequently, focus moves to continued suppression and complete eradication of the disease.

Strategies to identify and manage stress, especially “Long-lasting stress” are very similar to the clinical approach. So let us first understand what is a “Long-lasting stress”. It manifests due to strong passions, intense attachments and unreasonable expectations known as ‘Anantanubandhi kashayas’. These long-lasting passions are inevitable in the presence of wrong beliefs and ignorance about consciousness. Like we have seen before, they are a form of “potential stress”.The primary steps in the process of stress identification and management are:

1. State of Uncontained Stress
2. State of Contained Stress 
3. State of Reduced StressEradication of Long-Lasting Stress
4. Preventing Recurrence of Long-Lasting Stress
5. Complete Eradication of Stress

Progress through these stages is achieved through the process of Contain-Reduce-Conquer-Prevent (CRCP).

Let’s discuss these stages one by one:

Uncontained Stress – In this stage, the serious negative tendencies are prevalent such as:

1. Serious Addictions – related to Alcohol, Tobacco, other harmful addictive substances as well as highly risky and irrational behaviors such as gambling, betting etc.
2. Violent, Unethical and Immoral Behaviors – such as intentionally killing or hurting other living beings, habitual lying & stealing, indulge in extramarital relationships and limitless materialistic desires.

These behaviors result from intense passions. Do you agree that these negative tendencies are capable of destroying our physical, mental and emotional health while ruining us socially and financially? Oftentimes, they can also land us into legal troubles ruining lives in the process. These behaviors represent an inescapable spiral of stress. Therefore, we can call this stage “Uncontained Stress”. In future videos, we will discuss ways to contain self-destructive behaviors through a series of de-addiction and behavioral resolution techniques. After achieving de-addiction and behavioral changes, a journey towards containing stress shall be pursued. 

In the stage of Contained Stress, addictions as well as violent, immoral and unethical behaviors are no longer prevalent. However, many attitude and lifestyle related issues along with wrong beliefs and distorted understanding do not allow intensity of stress to subside. If not addressed, these issues could possibly lead to serious mental health diseases such as depression and anxiety. Let us mention few examples of such behavior:

1. Irrational goals & unbalanced priorities
2. Irrational decision making
3. Inappropriate manners of speech
4. Unhealthy lifestyle
5. Unresolved conflicts
6. Negative thinking
7. Fear of failure
8. Inferiority complex
9. Following irrational ideals and idols

We will discuss each of the above behaviors in detail in future videos. Addressing these issues would empower us to live very peacefully by containing stress. At this point, we can begin a set of activities geared towards ‘Reducing Intensity of Stress.’

In order to reach the stage of Reduced Stress, we shall seek to reduce intensity of negative passions such as anger, ego, deceit and greed through introspection, contemplation and by cultivating positive passions such as compassion, truthfulness, gratitude, forgiveness, humility, straightforwardness, satisfaction and charity etc.

For this to happen, three things are required: 

1. Proper philosophical understanding of consciousness, various causes of stress and process of overcoming passions.
2. Introspection to identify active, dormant and potential forms of negative passions such as anger, ego, deceit, greed, fear, grief etc. along with underlying wrong beliefs and incorrect opinions.
3. Systematic contemplations to rectify wrong beliefs, incorrect opinions and eliminate negative passions by cultivating positive passions.

Through these repeated introspection and contemplations, we will be able to develop a positive outlook and continued awareness to remain much more resilient to stress than before. Progress towards Eradicating Long-Lasting Stress may begin when we start to differentiate between transient aspects of life such as body and surroundings from everlasting consciousness and seek to become stress-free through systematic contemplations.

In the previous stage of Reduced Stress, we would have started introspection of beliefs and passions. However, elimination of wrong beliefs would not occur entirely till we gain complete conviction about ourself as consciousness through self-realization. In order to develop firm conviction about ourself as consciousness, we will need to experience a partial passionless state (Atmanubhuti) that we discussed in video 13. Experiencing this passionless state truly enables us to overcome many types of active, dormant and potential stresses by experiencing inherent non-sensory bliss that comes from within.  This bliss is independent of any external factors. This is a meditative state in which we will overcome all active forms of negative as well as positive passions for that duration; thus, conquering long-lasting stress from within. By experiencing this state, we attain firm conviction about ‘consciousness’ which is the permanent aspect of our own identity. The process to achieve this passionless state is known as ‘Bhed Vigyan’ (Art of Self-Identification) through which many wrong beliefs are corrected and long lasting stress is eliminated; thus resulting in improved emotional health. 

This partial passionless state is a transient one because we will eventually get involved in other day to day professional or personal activities. However, due to improved resilience the intensity of our passions will be milder than before. Now, these passions are not accompanied by wrong beliefs and they manifest primarily due to lack of self-discipline (Avirati) and negligence (pramad). Due to the absence of wrong beliefs, these passions don’t last as long as Long-Lasting passions; and thus we call these passions ‘Short Lasting Passions’. These ‘Short-Lasting Passions’ result in the ‘Short-Lasting Stress’. In order to reduce these passions further, we can then adopt a set of behavioral resolutions to proactively address certain types of potential passions and limit unnecessary stressful activities. In this stage, we will discuss strategies to proactively deal with potentially difficult situations of life such as financial hardship, health related issues, loneliness, suicidal thoughts and loss of loved ones. These techniques would boost our resilience to stress, prevent long-lasting stress while also reducing frequency and intensity of short-lasting stress. This is a stage of ‘Preventing Recurrence of Long-Lasting Stress.’

Complete Eradication of all types of stress requires one to be completely detached by adopting advanced behavioral resolutions and practicing deeper levels of Bhed Vigyan meditation to achieve everlasting passionless state. We will be offering a glimpse into this stage towards the end of this video series.

It is important to note that the stages of stress described here are not based on Active stress only because active passions are short lived. The classification of these stages depends upon the magnitude of active, dormant as well as potential stress. Such a classification allows us to systematically and proactively identify stress and contain, reduce, conquer and prevent stress. While being in any of those stages above, we would still continue to oscillate periodically between active, dormant and potential stresses with varied intensity. Intensity and frequency of stressful experiences would go down with progression into higher stages. 

Now that we understand “What is Stress?”, let’s try to understand all causes of stress in the next video before we embark on the “Journey to systematically manage stress”.

Till then, don’t forget to like, comment and subscribe.