Stress Management Toolkit: Resources and Tips to Reduce Stress

How to Manage Stress

Stress is a fact of life. It's your mind's and body's response to demanding situations or events. Not all stress is bad. It can energize you and help you perform at your best. But too much stress, or stress that lasts too long, can take a toll on your health and well-being .

At Cigna Healthcare^®, through good times and crunch times, we've got your back. This toolkit can help you tame your stress and build skills to better manage future stress.

Assess Your Stress

Take a few minutes to think about your stress levels and how you're doing. Checking in with yourself is an important step in feeling more balanced and less stressed.

Good for: Becoming more self-aware, determining next steps

Exercise to Try: 5‑Minute Stress Self‑Check

Time needed: 5 minutes
What you’ll need: Pen and paper or notes app

• Rate your stress today (between 0 and 10).
• Name the top trigger (such as work, money, relationships, or health).
• Choose one action (such as deep breathing, list‑making, or asking for help).

What to do next (based on rating)

• 0 to 3: Maintain what’s working
• 4 to 6: Try a mindfulness or planning tool, then reassess
• 7 to 10: Consider coaching, counseling, or professional support

Additional Resources

• Stress Management 101 (Cigna Healthcare Webcast) : Learn what stress is, how it affects your body, and better ways to manage it.
• What Is Your Stress Level? (Healthwise^®) : Take this interactive quiz to get an estimate of your current stress level and how to cope.
• Stress Management: Topic Overview (Healthwise) : Read this article on what happens to your body when you're stressed and ways to relieve stress.

Practice Mindfulness

Mindfulness means living in the moment and paying attention to what's happening right now. Practicing mindfulness can help lower your stress levels.

Good for: Racing thoughts, anxiety, building better habits

Exercise to Try: Mindfulness Body Scan

Time needed: 3 minutes
What you’ll need: Nothing

• Lie down or sit comfortably.
• Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth.
• Starting from your head, slowly pay attention to each part of your body.
• Work your way down to your toes.
• Be aware of any thoughts and feelings that come up, without judgment.

Use this when: Your thoughts are racing or you feel overwhelmed.

Additional Resources

• Refresh, Refocus, Relax: Techniques that Work (Cigna Healthcare Webcast): Learn simple ways to calm your body and focus.
• Guided Meditations (UCLA Mindful): Free guided audio mediations you can stream, download, or read. Each exercise is between 3 and 20 minutes long and available in several languages.
• Mindfulness Meditation (Johns Hopkins Medicine): Learn how living in the moment can be good for your health and help manage stress.

Improve Your Balancing Act

When everything feels urgent, your stress levels can go up. Find help with balancing the demands of work and life with these tools.

Good for: Work-life balance, caregiving stress, lack of time

Exercise to Try: Today–Next–Later List

Time needed: 5 minutes
What you’ll need: Pen and paper or notes app

• Write down everything you have on your to do list.
• Sort tasks into:
  • Today (Must be done as soon as possible)
  • Next (Important, but not needed right away)
  • Later (Can wait for another time)
  • Pick just one Today task to start.

Additional Resources

• Stress Management: Managing Your Time (Healthwise): Discover ways to manage your time and, in turn, become less stressed.

Strengthen Your Coping Skills

Building better coping skills can help you become more resilient and handle challenges with confidence.

Good for: Long-term resilience, healthy habits

Exercise to Try: ABCDE Thought Reframe

Time needed: 5 minutes
What you’ll need: Pen and paper or notes app

• A – Activating event: “I made a mistake.”
• B – Belief: “I always mess things up.”
• C – Consequence: Experiencing anxiety; avoiding the problem.
• D – Dispute: “What’s another explanation?”
• E – Effective thought: “I made one mistake. I can fix it.”

Additional Resources

• How Well Do You Bounce Back? (Healthwise): Take this resiliency quiz to discover how well you can come back from stressful situations.

Where to Get Help Now

If you need stress support beyond self-help tools, here are a few options:

Employee Assistance Program (EAP)

If you have a health plan through your employer, you may have access to an EAP. EAPs offer short-term counseling, coaching, and referrals at no additional cost.

For Cigna Healthcare members: Check your EAP coverage on myCigna or learn more about our EAP Services.

For non-members: Check with your Human Resources department, benefits center, or EAP administrators to find out what's available to you.

Call 211 for Local Resources

Find community resources for mental health, financial help, housing, and more from the United Way^®. Call 211 or search online.

Call or Text 988 for Suicide and Crisis Concerns

If you or someone else is in crisis, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers 24/7 confidential support. Call or text 988, or chat online for immediate help.

Other Cigna Healthcare Member Benefits

Go to myCigna to find information on other stress management services and tips, such as:

• Virtual and in-person mental health support
• Cigna Healthcare Healthy Rewards^® discounts on services like acupuncture and massage therapy
• Health library articles on stress tests and coping

You can also call the number on the back of your Cigna Healthcare ID card.

Stress Management FAQs

What’s the fastest way to calm down when I'm stressed?

A slow breathing or grounding exercise can lower stress just a few minutes. Try the Mindfulness Body Scan above to get started.

Is stress always bad?

No. Short-term stress can help you focus. However, ongoing stress may affect your health. If you're feeling stressed long-term, it's a sign to use coping tools or seek support.

What if I don’t have an EAP?

Community resources such as 211 or national hotlines can help you get support, even if you don't have benefits through an employer.

¹ Employee assistance program services are in addition to, not instead of, your health plan benefits. These services are separate from your health plan benefits and do not provide reimbursement for financial losses. Program availability may vary by plan type and location, and are not available where prohibited by law.

² Cigna Healthcare provides access to virtual care through certain third-party service providers. Such third-party service providers are solely responsible for the care and treatment they deliver. Benefits are subject to plan terms and conditions, including applicable exclusions and limitations. These services may not be available in all areas.

³ Healthy Rewards programs are NOT insurance. Rather, these programs give a discount on the cost of certain goods and services. The customer must pay the entire discounted cost. Some Healthy Rewards programs are not available in all states and programs may be discontinued at any time. Participating providers are solely responsible for their goods and services.

This material is provided by Cigna Healthcare for informational/educational purposes only. It is not medical/clinical advice. Only a health care provider can make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment plan. For more information about your behavioral health benefits, you can call the member services or behavioral health telephone number listed on your health care ID card.

Cigna Healthcare products and services are provided exclusively by or through operating subsidiaries of The Cigna Group.