In a world full of needs, wants, broken relationships and the fact that sickness and death exists, stress is a very real experience we all have to deal with. Everyone experiences stress in some way, shape, or form. Do you recognize it and know when you're stressed? What are your most successful ways of dealing with stressful situations?
Stress is more than just a feeling. It's a condition and stressor to the stimulus causing it, and this covers mild irritation to drastic dysfunction that may cause severe health breakdown according to Endocrinologist Hans Selye. Psychologists adapted Selye's concept of stress in the late 1960s and from then on, a large amount of research was undertaken to examine links between stress and disease of all kinds. With Stress defined as a person's physiological response to an internal or external stimulus that triggers the fight-or-flight response, stress therefore is a highly subjective phenomenon that differs for each of us which explains why we all respond to stress differently.
Perhaps you already heard from clinical psychologists how stress changes our mental and emotional condition, and how signs of stress such as poor judgment, moodiness, irritability and general negative outlook can cause job and relationship problems. You heard it right. Stress can have wide ranging effects on emotions, mood and behavior. But have you heard from your medical specialist or family doctor that stressors and stressful situations actually have a significant impact on our bodies? Again, you heard it right! Stress affects our body's systems, organs and tissues all over the body. These include the hair, muscles, digestive tract, skin, brain, mouth, heart, lungs, and reproductive organs. Numerous emotional and physical disorders have been linked to stress; these include depression, anxiety, heart attacks, stroke, hypertension, immune system disturbances that increases susceptibility of body to infections and other viral linked disorders.
From the list of 50 common signs and symptoms of stress published by The American Institute of Stress (AIS) in their website, 10 most common I'm sure we all experience every time we recognize and know that we're stressed are:
1. frequent headaches, jaw clenching or pain
2. increased frustration, irritability, edginess
3. heartburn, stomach pain, nausea
4. constipation, diarrhea
5. difficulty breathing, sighing
6. overreaction to petty annoyances
7. chest pain, palpitations
8. increased smoking, alcohol or drug use
9. excessive gambling or impulse buying
10. constant tiredness, weakness, fatigue
We all agree by now that stress is a condition we all have to deal with that's why many of us tend to escape stressful situations or cope by way of anything that makes us feel better and relaxed. These coping and escaping mechanisms are short-lived and they're not addressing the source of stress, but only meant to protect one's self from any discomfort caused by the stressor. There is no magic formula for dealing with stress but there are several best practice stress management techniques that are worth mentioning to help us avoid or deal with bad stress. The first two may help us avoid bad stress while the rest will help us deal with bad stress with a winning attitude for us to stay happy, healthy, and productive.
• Accept the fact that bad stress is a result of our bad approach to a stressful situation. It is how we approach a situation that can cause us problems, or allow ourselves to grow.
• Plan and be prepared. Anticipate and identify possible stressful situations; act to prevent a bad situation to happen. Be prepared to control the situation. Control yourself, control the situation, and allow yourself to grow from the situation.
• Time Management technique
• Exercise and relaxation techniques
• Deep breathing
• Praying and listening to Christian music
• Conflict resolution
• Spending time with pets or in nature
Now get yourself ahead of any stressful situation common to your age, your job, your status, and common to society you belong. Stand prepared, stand relaxed, and stand to live a happy, healthy, and productive life!
Marilyn is a fan of Do-it-Yourself and Self-Improvement tools and tips. A self-made practical woman who teaches and inspires other women to live a happy, fulfilling life free of lies, free of anger and free of regrets. Marilyn is a member of Fppt.com, an online resource where you could find a good PowerPoint presentation template on stress.
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