Essay on Stress

Stress Is the body’s way of responding to the hectic lives most of us live, whether good or bad. The body releases chemicals into the bloodstream, which creates a rush of energy and strength If an individual is feeling stressed. This energy can prove useful if an individual is in physical danger. Because it enables a person’s survival instinct kicks in; it is often described as ‘fight or flight.’ In addition, stress can also have a negative effect on the body, for example: suffering from stress and leaving it unchecked can contribute to health problems, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.

From being more susceptible to illness and heart attacks to an increased risk of mental health issues, stress is a psychological phenomenon that many struggle to manage. Burton, Westen and Kowalski (2015) wrote that, ‘Stress refers to a challenge to a person’s capacity to adapt to inner and outer demands’. It is a psychological process that affects everyone and encompasses both physical and psychological elements and consequences (Burton et al., 2015). Stress is a transactional process between an individual and the environment wherein the individual perceives the situation to either tax or exceed their psychosocial resources (Lazarus, 1981, 1993, as cited in Burton et al., 2015). General adaption syndrome (Selye, 1936, 1976, as cited in Burton et al., 2015) states that stress is experienced in three stages; alarm, resistance and exhaustion. If the body remains within a state of alarm or resistance too long the body’s physiological defences break down increasing vulnerability to illness. Likewise, stress may also increase the risk of health compromising behaviours or mental health issues (Smith, Hancock, Blake-Mortimer, & Eckert, 2007).

Psychological and physical well-being and the overall quality of life are under a constant threat of stress and thus, psychological and medical sciences have long been concerned with studying stress response. Cox (1979) claimed that because of the poor understanding and defining it, the concept of stress tends to be rather elusive. The term, “stress”, commonly describes any physchological or physical alteration that deranges the organism’s homeostasis (or balance). This essay reviews some of the biological factors involved in stress and it has been organized in the following way. The paper begins by briefly introducing the concept of stress. It will then go on to discus and describe the automatic response (fight or flight reaction),

Stress was first described in the 1930s by Hans Selye. “During his second year of medical school, Selye observed that, although his patient’s suffered from a variety of illnesses, they all showed common symptoms, such as fatigue, appetite disturbance, sleep problems, mood swings, gastrointestinal problems, and diminished concentration and recall. He began developing his now-famous theory of the influence of stress on people’s ability to cope with and adapt to the pressures of injury and disease.”

Stress is something that affects many people each and every day. Life is full of hassles, deadlines, frustrations, and demands. For some people stress is so common it is a way of life. Stress can be very harmful and or helpful. It could help motivate you to meet a deadline and perform a task under pressure. Stress can also be very harmful, such as memory problems, moodiness, aches and pains, and eating more or less.

What is a mental illness? Mental illnesses are defined by the America Psychiatric Association as “health conditions involving changes in thinking, emotion, or behavior (or a combination of these).” On the other hand, what is stress? Stress, as defined by the dictionary for this purpose, is “a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances.” Mental illnesses and stress go hand in hand. If one is under too much stress, it is too easy for that person to convey signs of a mental illness. Arthur Andrew examined stress levels in the workplace, as well as the correlation it has with workplace counselling. When an individual is placed under large amounts of stress, it can physically manifest in the form of headaches, insomnia, loss of energy or sex drive, shifts in mood, or increase in heartrate, among other things. Signs such as those can easily be seen in people who suffer from depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (stress is even in the name!), etc.

Stress can be viewed and experienced differently, especially depending on the setting where stress is occurring. The American Institute of Stress (2017) provides two definitions of stress where it is seen as mental, emotional, and physical strain and it can be considered the condition of an experience when an individual feels as though they do not have the needed resources to complete a task. Both of these definitions apply to stressful experiences within the

Stress is an anticipated feeling someone gets when they get into any trouble or difficulty. The human body reacts physically to any stressor that comes across. For example, our body has two important systems that play a role — sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic system. The parasympathetic system is known as a “rest and digest” response in which hormones send adrenaline and other transmitters to your body. On the other hand, the sympathetic nervous system is known as a “fight or flight” response in which it uses that adrenaline in order to react quickly. Therefore, both these symptoms react to any stressor that can prepare the human body for anything that might come across, physically and mentally. (Grant n.p.)

Going through the years of high school you start to grow up and mature into an adult. This for many teenagers, is when they want to start becoming financially dependent on themselves. But, with many high schoolers having to deal with challenging academic courses and athletics; those who juggle a part-time job overall have more stress. Stress is the complete feeling someone gets when they have too much to do and not enough time. Being at school seven hours a day takes up about half of your time if you are not counting sleep, which leaves you only seven hours to do all of your extra-curricular activities. When a group of teenagers who have a part-time job have so much to balance, they start to panic and not know what to do. Causing them to have high stress levels which can only be an effect of taking on extra responsibilities, a part-time job.

Events that occur in a person’s life may cause feelings of stress, which may consist of:

The human body is like a car engine. It needs fuels to be powered for it to run, but instead of fuel we need food and nutrients to keep a steady metabolism. If too many calories are consumed (being over 3,500 calories) then those calories turn into adipose or fat. In stressful situations, a person can become inclined to eat more than or less than recommended and this can lead to a change in their weight; for example, the infamous freshmen fifteen. The freshmen fifteen are the common weight gain of college freshmen that is the result of stressful events throughout the first year of school. While not every student can become subjected to this it is a great example of the affects stress can have on an individual. Stress and weight gain can affect any person even adolescents.

Throughout the year of 2017, I had personal experience with stress and depression. Senior year of high school was rough for me. There were often times that I thought that I was not going to be alright overall. After a relationship break up in January, I became a bit depressed. Being depressed made me have less motivation when it came to school which made me slack. In result of slacking, I crammed my school work and became more stressed. I was a bit stressed already due to my last semester of high school taking a toll on me. I was taking five classes, in which, I was at school for a whole eight hours. The school I went to, seniors usually have four classes. I took a fifth class for my own interest and benefit. The class was basically an internship where we studied marine mammals and their vocalizations in the arctic. I studied the presence and absence of the bowhead whale, which took a lot of my time. While being depressed, I didn’t do much as I usually do. Typically, I am always out and about, but I would stay in my room a lot. I also had problems when it came to eating, in which, I did not eat as much as I should have. So, does stress cause depression?

try to find more efficient ways of doing things?” If you answered yes it was

Over the last few years, the term stress and its causes have drawn so much interest. The term stress itself can be historically seen as a rediscovery of the concept which has developed over a number of centuries (Cassidy, 1999, cited in Cooper & Dewe, 2004). In addition, some authors stressed that the term evolved with the feeling of pressure, strain and hardships associated with the 17th and 18th centuries and that what people feel today has been exactly the same centuries over the years (Hinckle, 1973, cited in Cooper & Dewe, 2004). Therefore, the condition has always been there. However, the study of stress has gathered momentum with many different definitions with a typical one describing the concept as the emotional and physiological

Stress is found in all aspects of life. Hans Selye, a pioneer in stress research, has defined stress as "the nonspecific response of the body to any demands made upon it" (Kreitner & Kinicki, 1992, p. 597). It is considered to be an internal state or reaction to anything we consciously or unconsciously perceive as a threat, either real or imagined (Clarke, 1988). Stress can evoke feelings of frustration, fear, conflict, pressure, hurt, anger, sadness, inadequacy, guilt, loneliness, or confusion (Cavanagh, 1988). Individuals feel stressed when they are fired or lose a loved one (negative stress) as well as when they are promoted or go on a vacation (positive stress). While many individuals believe they must avoid stress to live longer, Freese (1976) argues that it is the salt and spice of life and that to have no stress we would have to be dead.