Understanding Stress | Stress Management

Stress Defined

Oftentimes, people think that stress is a disease, but actually it is a normal part of life. Stress is defined as a condition that people experience when reacting to life events that are difficult, challenging, or upsetting. These life events are called stressors. One of the pervasive myths about stress is that all stress is negative. Experiencing stress can motivate you to perform your best in a challenging and/or life-threatening situation.

Health Risks of Stress

Regardless of the type of stress, profound physical and emotional symptoms are triggered. Stress tightens muscles, changes sleeping patterns, and affects digestion, breathing, and heart rate. Noticing these changes early can help identify and control your stress reactions.

If uncontrolled, chronic stress is especially dangerous. Research done at the US National Institute of Mental Health shows that excessive long-term stress can compromise the immune system and the body's ability to fight disease. Ongoing stress can result in physical ailments such as heart disease, peptic ulcers, insomnia and allergies, among other serious health issues.

Understanding Stress: Stress Symptoms, Health Risks, Treatments:

Stress is an everyday occurrence that you can control by simply incorporating stress management techniques into your life.

You've got a deadline at work. Your boss yells at you. You're stuck in traffic. Your house is a mess. And you panic because you don't have time to get everything done. Does this sound like one of your typical days? If so, most likely you are stressed.

Seeking Medical Advice For Chronic Stress

If your stress is chronic and not improving, then a trip to the doctor is in order. The doctor will perform a physical exam, and tests may be done to determine if there is an underlying disorder causing the stress.

Historically, 19th century doctors were apt to recommend bed rest, a vacation, or a visit to the spa to unwind from the rigors of life. With the popularity of prescription drugs in the 20th century, doctors often placated patients with drugs that tended to only address the symptoms of stress and not the underlying causes.

In "flight" mode, you realize that you may not be able to defeat the stressor, so you want to avoid it instead. In addition to feeling some of the symptoms described above, you may experience feeling scared or anxious.

Unfortunately, in the above example, and in most situations, neither response is best. Instead, you must react to the stressor in an appropriate way, while quelling your stress response to it.

Coping Techniques for Stress

There are many techniques people use to manage their response to stressful situations. These include:

- Identification of the stressors, and determination of a method to reduce their effect or eliminate them entirely.
- Better nutrition, to strengthen the body against stressful situations.
- A regular exercise program, to provide a healthy outlet for that excess adrenalin response.
- Stress management programs that can successfully prevent stress responses from overwhelming a person. Examples include:

Meditation
Movement Therapies (Yoga, Tai Chi, etc.)
Biofeedback
Guided Imagery
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Support Group Therapy

- Massage therapy can reduce stress and anxiety, while normalizing the body.
- Social support from friends and family can lessen your reaction to stress and give you more resources to handle it.

Today's health care providers are more apt to take the best of both worlds and prescribe rest, stress reduction programs, lifestyle changes, and sometimes, medications which target specific stress symptoms, such as anxiety, depression, high blood pressure or ulcers.

The Stress Solution

Stress is a manageable condition. Identification of stressors, understanding the stress response, and utilizing stress reduction techniques can reduce the way stress impacts people's lives.

The Stress Response

Suppose you have to give a presentation in front of a large group of people. You've never done it before and are worried about how it will go. You are evaluating whether you can successfully present your topic, but you are having doubts, resulting in the classic "fight or flight" response associated with stress.

In "fight" mode, your body wants to try to tackle the problem directly. Your body produces adrenalin, a chemical that "pumps you up." It tightens your muscles, increases your heart rate, makes you sweat, and gets you angry and tense.

Stress Statistics

At least you're not alone. Experts state that one out of every two people report feeling highly stressed . Stress is the number one health concern in adults and accounts for millions of dollars of health care costs and lost work wages. However, even with statistics like these, stress is still not well understood by many who suffer from it.