Stress, Health and Coping

1. Stress, Health and Coping Chapter 14

2. Stress Stress is real and can have many side effects. Stress, The physical and psychological response to internal or external pressures Stressors, Specific events or chronic pressures the place demands on a person’s well-being

3. Stress has different sources and it impacts everyone differently. Stress can be: -Internal -External -Chronic Stress can cause much harm to the body.

4. Health stress and your health

5. Fight or Flight • Walter Cannon (1929) • coined the phrase “Fight or Flight”. He recognized this common response across species and suspected that it might be body’s first mobilization to any threat.

6. Fight or Flight An emotional and physiological reaction to an emergency that increases readiness for action. “Should I stay and battle this somehow, or should I run like mad?” - Brain

7. Process: HPA Axis Brain response to threat starts in the Hypothalamus Stimulates the Pituitary Gland  which in turn releases a hormone known as ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone)  That stimulates the Adrenal Glands The Adrenal Glands then release Hormones that increase heart rate, Increase respiration and release cortisol Which provides fuel to the muscles.

8. General Adaption Syndrome Hans Selye exposed rats to prolonged stressors. His stressed out rats developed physiological responses including enlarged adrenal cortex, shrinking of the lymph nodes, and ulceration of the stomach. He called this as the reaction General Adaption Syndrome. G.A.S: A three-staged physiological stress response that appears regardless of the stressor that is encountered G.A.S is Nonspecific. Response doesn’t vary change regardless of source of repeated stress

9. G.A.S- Three stages First: The Alarm Phase. The body rapidly mobilizes its resources to respond to the threat. Equal to Fight or Flight. Second: Resistance Phase. Body adapts to its high state of arousal as copes with the stressor. To make sure it has enough fuel to the muscles, it shuts down unnecessary processes like digestion, growth, and sex drive. Third: Exhaustion Phase. The body’s resistance collapses. Many of the resistance-phase defenses create gradual damage as they operate which can result susceptibility to infection, tumor growth, aging irreversible organ damage or death.

10. Immune System • Immune system: • A complex response system that protects the body from bacteria, viruses and other foreign substances. • Lymphocytes: -White blood cells that produce antibodies that fight infection Stressors can cause hormones to flood the brain and make you less able to fight off invaders.

11. Stress and cardiovascular health Although smoking, sedentary lifestyle and a diet high in fat and cholesterol can cause coronary heart disease… chronic stress is a huge contributor. As a result of stress activated arousal of the sympathetic nervous system, blood pressure goes up and stays up, and this gradually damages the blood vessels. The damaged vessels accumulate plaque, and the more plaque, the greater the likelihood of heart disease.

12. Physiological Reactions Posttraumatic stress disorder A disorder characterized by chronic physiological arousal, recurrent unwanted thoughts or images of the trauma and avoidance of things that call that event to their mind. This disorder is most apparent in war. Many soldiers returned from combat having PSTD symptoms such as flashbacks, anxiety and startle reactions

13. Physiological Reactions • Burnout, A state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion created by long term involvement in an emotionally demanding situation and accompanied by lower performance and motivation Symptoms of burnout include overwhelming exhaustion, a deep cynicism and detachment from the job, and a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment. Burnouts tend to be disgruntled employees who bask in their colleagues failures and ignores success.

14. Coping Dealing with your stress

15. Mind Management Repressive Coping - Avoiding situations or thoughts that are reminders of a stressor and maintaining an artificially positive viewpoint. The avoidance of thoughts and situations makes your world smaller each day Rational Coping - Face a stressor and working to overcome it. What are the three steps in rational coping? • Acceptance, coming to realize that the stressor exists and cannot be wished away. • Exposure, attending to the stressor, thinking about it, and even seeking it out. • Understanding, working to find the meaning of the stressor in your life.

16. Reframing - Finding a new or creative way to think about a stressor that reduces its threat. Stress inoculation training (SIT) is a reframing technique that helps people to cope with stressful situations by developing positive ways to think about the situation. How has writing about your stressful events shown to be helpful? Writing down your deepest thoughts and feelings in a journal, improves immune function, reduces stress, and helps to reframe trauma.

17. Body Management Relaxation therapy is a technique for reducing tension by consciously relaxing muscles of the body. What does meditation , hypnosis, yoga, and prayer have in common? • They all draw on a relaxation response, a condition of reduced muscle tension, cortical activity, heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure

18. Biofeedback, the use of an external monitoring device to obtain information about a bodily function and possibly gain control over that function. • How does biofeedback work? • Biofeedback gives people access to visual or audio feedback showing levels various psychophysiological functions, that they would otherwise be unable to sense directly

19. Aerobic exercise • When stress affects your mind the rest of the body feels the impact as well in turn when your body feels better, so does your mind. Exercise and other physical activities produce endorphins (natural painkillers) and also improves the ability to sleep, which in turn reduces stress.

20. Situation management, Changing your life situation as a way of reducing the impact of stress on your mind and body. Social Support ,The aid gained through interacting with others. Spend time with positive people who enhance your life. A strong support system will buffer you from the negative effects of stress. Women seek support under stress, men do not. Humor, Laughter fires up and then cools down your stress response.

21. Unhealthy ways of coping with stress These coping strategies may temporarily reduce stress, but they cause more damage in the long run: • Smoking • Drinking too much • Overeating or undereating • Zoning out for hours in front of the TV or computer • Withdrawing from friends, family, and activities • Using pills or drugs to relax • Sleeping too much • Procrastinating • Filling up every minute of the day to avoid facing problems • Taking out your stress on others (lashing out, angry outbursts, physical violence)

22. Test Question • True or False: • Although stress can be an inconvenient phenomenon in the human psyche, there is no correlation between stress and your overall health.