LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Materials: ParticipantManuals, Flipchart paper, Markers, LCD Projector, USB, pens, notepads, Question/Comment Box, plastic glass – clear, Jenga

Things to print: Attendance List

Section/Time / Learning Activities / Resources
Introduction
10 minutes /
  • Review content from last week.
  • Has anyone cut down the amount they smoked, made any other changes?
  • Recovery symptoms – Any experienced? How did you cope?
  • How are you rewarding yourself?
  • Feedback from Former Tobacco Users Visit – Pat Knecht, Jim Taylor

Glass Half Full Half Empty /
  • Confidently walk around the room while leading and explaining stress management to an audience with a raised glass of water. Make everyone thing you are going to ask the ultimate question, “half empty or half full?... But, then ask”How heavy is this glass of water?” with a smile.
/ Clear glass half full of water
Session 4–Stress Management
Section/Time / Learning Activities / Resources
Glass Half Full Half Empty
(continued) /
  • Answers may be called out that may range from 8 oz. to 20 oz. Reply, “The absolute weight doesn’t matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, that’s not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you’ll have to call an ambulance. In each case it’s the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes. And that’s the way it is with stress. If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won’t be able to carry on.”
  • “As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we’re refreshed, we can carry on with the burden – holding stress longer and better each time practiced. So, as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don’t carry them through the evening and into the night...Pick them up tomorrow.”

What is Stress /
Smoking & Stress /
  • Although most people understand that smoking harms a person's health, many people who smoke believe it helps them cope with stress. Since nicotine is a psychoactive (mood altering) drug, tobacco use does seem to make the subjective effects of stress (such as feelings of frustration, anger, and anxiety) less severe. But smoking is a cruel illusion; while people may feel calmer and less stressed when they smoke, their body is experiencing just the opposite reactions. Blood pressure rises, heart rate increases, muscles become tense, blood vessels constrict, and less oxygen is available to the brain and body to facilitate healthy coping. In short, smoking increases the stress level on the body.
/ Post it pads
Participant Manual Page 49 & 50
Session 4 – Stress Management
Section/Time / Learning Activities / Resources
Jenga
20 minutes /
  • Discuss stress and how it builds up. There are strategies to use for stress that we will discuss after this activity. Bring a Jenga game (small or giant jenga) and set up in a separate room or large space. Ensure participants know the rules to play Jenga. Facilitators can demonstrate how to participate and state a stressor to help get the game started. Ask participants to draw out one block and state one stressor in their life. Continue the game until the jenga game topples over.
  • Once stressors are shared, have participants volunteer their suggestions to deal positively with stress.
/ Jenga Game
Stress Management Strategies
Bad Coping/Good Coping
Alternative s effective coping or comparison of healthy and unhealthy / Think of alternative ways to reduce stress without the negative side effects.
  • Discuss stress: Stress is one of the leading causes of ill health in our society. But, if that is not bad enough, our own coping strategies are unhealthy too! If we shift from bad coping strategies to good coping strategies we can achieve two benefits
-Positive help in reducing our stress
-Improved health
Using flip chart paper, write the headings “Bad Coping”, and “Good Coping”. Ask participants to brainstorm ideas for each flipchart. Participants can be broken in pairs or small groups or activity can be done in a large group. Have participants think of alternative ways to reduce stress without the negative side effects. / Flip chart paper
Markers
Bad Coping
Good Coping