The Stress Container Worksheet

Identify Capacity, Stressors, and Effective Coping Strategies

1. The Stress-Vulnerability Model

The Stress Container model is an applied version of the Stress-Vulnerability Model. We all have a baseline Vulnerability, which is represented by the fixed size of your container. Stressors (work, finance, life events) fill the container like water. Effective coping strategies act as drains, letting the pressure out. The interaction between your vulnerability and your total stress load determines your risk of overflow (burnout or crisis).

2. Your Container Size (Vulnerability)

Your container size represents your inherent or long-term capacity. Reflect on factors that currently make your container feel smaller (higher vulnerability) or larger (higher resilience).

Factors making my container smaller (Higher Vulnerability):
Factors making my container larger (Higher Resilience/Capacity):

3. Your Stress Signature (Warning Signs)

These are your personal symptoms that indicate your container is getting full and is close to 'overflowing'. Recognizing these is key to intervention.

4. Stressors (The Water) - With Severity

List specific things filling your container and rate their severity (1=Low, 5=High Impact).

5. Helpful Drains - With Effectiveness

List activities that release pressure and rate their effectiveness (1=Low, 5=High Effect).

6. Unhelpful Vents

List habits that provide short-term relief but cause long-term problems (these don't drain the container).

7. Summary and Action Plan

Container Fullness Metric (Weighted)

Total Stressor Severity - Total Drain Effectiveness

0%

Start adding items above to calculate.

Load: 0 | Drain: 0 | Net: 0

🎯 Commitment to Change

Based on your entries, identify one action to commit to this week:

  1. Reduce Input: Which top stressor (from List 4) can you mitigate or solve?
  2. Increase Drain: Which helpful drain (from List 5) will you schedule into your day?
  3. Eliminate Vent: Which unhelpful vent (from List 6) will you actively avoid?

An AV Wellbeing Resource | Stress Management Tool.

From Talent Management and Change Support to Policies, Employee Handbooks, and Manager Coaching. Silvia’s focus is on making HR work for your business—commercially smart, people-focused, and easy to implement.

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Our associate Claire delivers a variety of training sessions on behalf of AV Wellbeing. She is an Adult and youth Mental Health First Aid instructor, a Suicide First Aid instructor. Claire talks about a variety of sessions through bitesize and expanded courses.  Her expertise lie in mental health, suicide prevention, EDI and anxiety awareness. With experience in online and face to face delivery, Claire works hard to ensure all learners feel comfortable, included and respected throughout.

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She struggled with her own gut health for many years, with over-the-counter medicines failing to provide any relief, so decided to take matters into her own hands, completing a three-year diploma in Nutritional Therapy.

She now works with people struggling with their own gut health, hormonal imbalances and chronic disease, taking a full-body approach to their health.

She delivers our Cultivating a Healthy Gut for Good Mental Health programme.

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Her background is in mental health and wellbeing having worked in a range of settings including businesses, the NHS and charities.

Kate has lived experience of mental illness and previously worked as a Peer Supporter for the NHS before joining a local company delivering sport and wellbeing session in schools where she spent many years before becoming a freelance trainer.

Kate has been a qualified Mental Health First Aid instructor since 2014.

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Her vast experience in business – working as a management consultant for companies like KPMG before setting up her own consultancy practice – has seen her designing and delivering practical interventions to companies from varying sectors.

She developed her own model for employee engagement that has seen fantastic success in the corporate world.
Sue has an MA in HRM/MCIPD and is a BPS registered Behaviour Assessor.

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