INTRODUCTION TO STRESS

DEFINING STRESS

We can all remember times when we’ve felt stressed, but what is stress? The definition of stress involves two parts: 1) Stress is a perceived threat to our psychological or physical well-being that 2) we cannot cope with at that present moment.

 While stress can appear in many different forms, there are three primary types of stress. Physical stress refers to stress triggers in the environment, such as extreme temperatures, environmental pollution, constant noise, or electric shock. It also includes physiological factors like prolonged exercise, injury, or surgery. Psychological stress stems from the way we feel, the attitudes we have, and the way we react toward anything that is threatening us, whether the threat is real or imagined. The last type of stress, psychosocial stress, refers to tension caused by our interpersonal relationships. This can be arguments or conflicts with family members, neighbors, employers, friends, or other people around us. Psychosocial stress can also appear when we’re isolated from others due to poor social interactions.

FLIGHT-OR-FIGHT RESPONSE

One of the most famous examples of our body’s response to stress is the Fight-or-Flight Response. The Fight-or-Flight Response is a physiological reaction to stress and was originally created to help humans respond to real, present physical threats. Today, it can still be a helpful, adaptive tool if we ever encounter a momentary, physical threat. When faced with that physical threat, our bodies adapt to give us the best possible chance to survive. First, a region in the brain called the hypothalamus triggers the sympathetic nervous system to release adrenaline and noradrenaline. Then, these hormones produce physiological effects in our bodies that help us successfully face the threat.

 While our stress triggers today are often more mental (psychological and psychosocial) than physical, the brain cannot tell the difference. We react the same way to both physical and mental threats. So, each time we worry about being late or that we don’t have enough money, our body goes through this whole procedure to help us respond as if there were a physical threat. The same physiological steps activate as if we were being chased through the streets. And the more we stress, the more this fight-or-flight response is initiated. Originally, the fight-or-flight response was meant to only be initiated for a short amount of time while a physical threat was present and then turn off. However, with modern stress triggers, we initiate this system much more often and keep the response active for much longer than was intended.

IDENTIFYING STRESS

We all experience stress differently, and it’s important to realize which symptoms indicate that you’re feeling stressed. These symptoms may not be so obvious for many people. Getting a better understanding of your stress-related symptoms will help you identify when you’re stressed, which lays the foundation for learning to minimize and reduce that stress.