Stress

Reactions to Stress Part 1

There is a wide variety of stress reactions, and their effects range from beneficial to harmful.

Many of the psychological responses to stress are inborn methods that probably evolved to cope with stress effectively. In addition many responses to stress are automatic.

We are more likely to depend solely on the ancient stress responses than to make conscious attempts to modify them or adopt others that we know are more appropriate to our modern lifestyle.

Stress reactions may be physical, psychological or behavioral. The effects of these reactions will depend on the way we think and behave.

FIGHT-OR-FLIGHT RESPONSE

Regardless of the stressor, the body reacts with immediate arousal. The adrenal glands are stimulated to produce:

a) Hormones that increase the amount of blood sugar for extra energy

b) Adrenaline, which causes rapid heartbeat and more energy

These reactions are designed to prepare a person for a self defense.

GENNERAL ADAPTATION SYNDROME

Hans Selye (1956, 1976) identified three stages in the body’s stress reactions:

• Alarm: Heartbeat and breathing chicken, muscle tense, the pupils dilate, and the hormones are secreted. If the alarm reaction is insufficient to deal with the stressor, the person may develop symptoms such as anxiety.

• Resistance: The person finds means to cope with the stressor and to ward off, superficially at least, adverse reactions. The person may suffer psychosomatic symptoms which result from strain that the person pretend is nonexistent.

• Exhaustion: The adrenal and other glands involve in the fight-or-flight response have been taxed to their limit and become unable to secreted hormones. THIS IS THE BREAK POINT.

EMOTIONAL AND GOGNITIVE RESPONSES

Psychological stress reactions may be either emotional or cognitive. The most common responses to a sudden and powerful stressor are:

• Anxiety, which is the feeling of an imminent but unclear threat.

• Anger, which is the irate reaction likely to the result from frustration

• Fear, which is the usual reaction when stressor involves real or imagined danger.

Cognitive reactions include:

• Difficulty in the concentrating or thinking clearly

• Recurring thoughts

• Poor decision making

• Unjustified suspicion

• Distrust of others

Continued frustration can lead to burnout. People feel burned out when they feel they are incapable of doing their job well and they are physically worn out and emotionally exhausted from giving too much time and energy to a project while not receiving sufficient gratification.

A post-traumatic stress disorder is a condition in which a person who has experienced a traumatic event feels severe and long-lasting aftereffects.

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