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Application to Everyday Life-
This is a simple, quick treatment which can be used during a patient's downtime. Everyone has certain place they wish to esacpe to, whether it be a childhood home or the beach.
Situational Factors
However could be difficult for patients who lack free-time and a private space to imagine and relax. (Doctors, people who live near construction sites, Mothers with new-borns, and so on)  But as this is a quick treatment, this could also be done during bedtime.
Participant variables:
Participants with ADHD or Aphantasia may be unable to imagine their desired places or get too fidgety for such treatment. Patients may also feel frustrated with leaving their imaginary world and may find recluse in them, rather than handle reality.

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Application to Everyday Life-
Though it is an effective treatment that identifies the stressors in one's life and caters to one's specific requirements. The techniques are learnt in the a therapeutic setting and could be difficult for patients to apply them in real life. However  this method does allow individuals to find coping mechanisms to constant long or short term stressors, according to their terms.

Participant differences
Some individuals may genetically be negative, come from a harsh background or  are generally pessimistic in nature. In these cases, they might subconsciously refute positive, supportive thoughts.

Validity and reliability-
As the treatment focuses on developing a close relationship with the practitioner, it is unlikely the patients will lie to them. However dishonesty could arise from  pathological, impulsive liars or patients conscious of their social desirability. But as this treatment is for their benefit only , this might not be the case.
As the treatment tailored according to a particular patient, it can be said to lack in reliability and generalisability. This can lead to subjectivity also and bias the treatment.

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Conceptualization- The first stage focuses on the development of a warm cooperative relationship between patient and practitioner. An assessment of the patient’s stressors should be done and explained to him/her/them. The effects of stress on their body should also be explained.

Skills Acquisition- New skills and coping mechanisms should be formed and practiced. These strategies should be done according to the patient’s cognitive abilities and involve regulation techniques, relaxation, and problem-solving tasks. This will increase the confidence of the patient and cause them to realize they can control the stress in their lives.

Application- Apply the strategies learnt during the acquisition stage to real life and prevent relapse.

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Bridge (1988)

Bridge conducted an independent-measures designed experiment investigating the effect relaxation and imagery exposure had on a group of women diagnosed with breast cancer and whether their stress levels would be lowered, prolonging their lives. The sample consisted of 139 outpatients, undergoing 6 weeks of trial radiotherapy at the Middlesex Hospital London and under the age of 70. The women completed the Leeds General Scales Measures which measure one’s depression and anxiety. They also completed a mood scale which assessed their mood states using subscales for vigor, tension fatigue and so on. The women were allocated to 3 conditions:  relaxation, relaxation plus imagery and a control condition. The results on the mood profiles after therapy show that those who underwent relaxation and imagery were more effective than relaxation itself.

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Meichenbaum suggested that people could inoculate themselves from in the same way people can vaccinate/protect themselves from the flu. He believed that people can become immune to stress and be resistant to it. He constructed the general phases of SIT, which are
1. Conceptualization
2. Skills Acquisition
3. Application
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0011000088161005

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Mendeley's Study (PTSD and Imagery Exposure) 2011

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Mendeley's Study (PTSD and Imagery Exposure) 2011

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The  study investigated psychological treatment, using stress imagery treatment for 37 Veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic posttraumatic nightmares called “Imagery Rescripting and Exposure Therapy” (IRET). The men participated in a 6 multi-component sessions that involved identifying nightmares and using imagery exposure methods to reduce these perceived stress levels.  The results reveal that the therapy reduced the frequency of nightmares, severity of PTSD and increased hours of sleep.
Original case study:
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1181&context=publichealthresources

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1.Cognitive therapy- This therapy focuses on how a person perceives a situation and aims to alter maladaptive, undesired, negative evaluations, emotions, and thoughts.

2.Behavioral therapy- This therapy focuses on the learning process and how to respond to react to certain situations. It aims to produce a new set of desirable and less distressing reactions, actions and behavior to a seemingly stressful situation.

3.Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy- A combination of cognitive and behavioral therapy

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEAV4h9zStM

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Electromechanical devices monitor the status of a person's physiological process such as heart rate. it gives the information to the individual who can then control the situation through operant conditioning.

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SIT involves reassuring the patient that stressors challenges and opportunities for potential growth rather than obstacles and burdens. This treatment consists of three overlapping methods:

1. Cognitive therapy,

2. Behavioral therapy

3. Cognitive behavioral therapy.

Using these three styles of therapy, SIT gives the patient various coping strategies so that they could identify the stressors in their lives and negative, distressing thoughts/cognitions. The individual’s perception on stressful situations is the key factor of SIT. SIT also proposes that when the perceived resources do not meet the perceived demands, stress occurs.

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The Recommended Steps for Imagery Exposure

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The Recommended Steps for Imagery Exposure

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1.   Find a private, calm room and relax. Distractions such as noises could disturb/irritate you and cause you to lose focus on imaging.

2.   Take a few slow breathes and deep breathes to concentrate your attention and relax yourself. This action also helps to relax tense muscles in your whole body. (chest, lungs, facial )

3.   Close your eyes. Internal images can be more vivid if one’s eyes are closed and cause one to focus only on their own thoughts/visuals.

4.   Next  you can imagine a beautiful location. Most people tend to visualize a beach, forest,  a close relative's house, mountain or sitting in their favorite room.

5.   Imagine yourself feeling calm and comfortable: envision yourself smiling, laughing, feeling content and having a wonderful time.

6.   Focus on different sensory factors found in your imaginary environment so that your vision can be more vivid. Just like in a book, by invoking your taste, touch, smell and hearing, a person can experience a more intense image.  Examples:

a)      If you’re imagining a forest, spend time imagining the scent of grass and wood, the chirping of birds and mud between your toes

b)      If you’re imagining a beach, try to conjure sunshine on your skin, the scent of sea-salt and the sound of waves

c)      If you’re in your favorite room, concentrate on the warmth of your blanket, the softness of your bed and the smell of your preferred hot drink( tea/coffee/hot chocolate)

7.   Stay within this image, exploring its sensory qualities for around five-ten minutes or until you feel completely relaxed.

8.   When you reach this relaxed state, reassure yourself that you can return here whenever you desire or need to de-stress.

9.   Open your eyes again and rejoin your reality.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cw_G5n9pPg8

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Drugs are an easy and quick way to deal with stress. It is usually prescribed when many symptoms of stress are noticed.
anti depressants:
-are selective serotonin reuptake inhibiters like Prozac
-they regulate serotonin levels in the brain and elevate mood.
-known to treat panic disorder, old and generalised anxiety disorders.
anti-anxiety drugs:
-decrease arousal and relaxes the body by reducing tension un the muscles
-Benzodiazepines are drugs that treat anxiety and do so by releasing inhibitory neurotransmitters. this makes the brain less aroused and the person is calmer (less anxious)

Kahn et al researched the effectiveness of Benzodiazepines. a group of patients were given the drug while the other group was given a placebo. the 250 patients were followed for 8 weeks.  Benzodiazepines reduced stress a lot more significantly.

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Electromyography electrodes are attached to particular muscles.
A tone proportional to the Electromyography activity is played and they have to maintain a higher level relaxation to hear a lower pitch.
Biofeedback is based on the principle of operant conditioning and receiving reinforcement for behaviour than can reduce stress. Can be used to treat stress related health problems.
Biofeedback helps people control stress response by realising when it happens and and implying relaxation techniques to calm the arousal.
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aim: assess the effect of biofeedback in reducing tension headaches.
tension headaches are associated with sustained contractions of the scalp and neck muscles.
15 participants and all had electrodes attached to their head (one inch above the eye)
3 conditions and all 15 participants randomly allocated.
the experimental group were told that the tone is correlated to level of muscle tension and hence they should relax as deeply as possible and hence maintain a low pitch.
other 2 conditions were control groups. one group had a constant low tone and were told to relax especially the forehead muscles. the other group was told to relax as deeply as possible in silence.

the results were collected over 5 sessions and mean level of muscle tension was measure (to operationalise the DV) . Those in the experimental condition saw a significant reduction in muscle tension compared to the 2 control groups.

the study showed that people can be trained to voluntarily lower muscle tension through biofeedback

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This treatment focuses on visualization and imagery techniques to reduce stress. It involves creating and imagining a detailed mental image of an appealing and peaceful environment. This is done by the practitioner asking the patient to envision positive imagery that would help to relax them. There is no single correct method, but the there are certain steps are often recommended and followed.

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a very small sample size is used. this can lower generalisability since a wide range of people cannot be represented. as a result validity might be lowered.
there were numerous controls and a standardised procedure was used. as a result reliability might be high.
this was snapshot study so it must be kept in mind that the results may not be applicable for the process being used for a long time.