The Influence of Stress on Stress - Coursework Example

Stress and Health Living under stress becomes an everyday reality for the increasing number of people nowadays. One can encounter a stressful situation in any context or surrounding: home, work, or on a street in a crowd of people. The speed and conditions of modern life put multiple demands on a common person, requiring to cope with considerable workload, family problems and other issues arising on a daily basis. As a result, many are getting used to living under the constant influence of stress and continue wondering what is going wrong with them. Although many do not recognize this fact, but their ability to cope with everyday tasks as well as the general state of health become negatively affected by the occurrence of stress. In fact, numerous data prove that stress has a profound influence on one’s health and is connected with the significant diversity of health problems. To start with, it is essential to discuss what is usually implied under the term stress. As a whole, it is difficult to find a single definition of this phenomenon as different authors suggest different definitions. Yet, it is generally agreed that stress is multifaceted and integrates reactions of different systems of a body. According to Cotton (2013, pp 28-30), stress is the integrated reaction of the body, “comprised of cognitive, behavioral, and physiological components.” It is also suggested to view stress as a sum of mental, emotional, and physical strains or tensions, resulting from person’s interactions with the environment that are “perceived as straining or exceeding one’s adaptive capacities and threatening well-being”. ("Stress,") A research conducted by the American Psychological Association in 2014 reports that 77 and 73 percent of questioned people regularly experience physical and psychological symptoms of stress correspondingly, and 33 percent admitted living with extreme stress. ("Daily life,") Subsequently, the statistics of stress occurrence grounds the need to list stress among the current health concerns. The conditions of modern life are quite favorable for the existence of a continuous influence of a variety of stressors on an average person. As any irritants, they can be chronic and persistent or acute and short-term. Subsequently, the nature and intensity of a stressor will influence the reaction of the body and the extent to which this reaction can be regarded as destructive for a person. According to DSM IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), stressor is any life change or event that can be associated “with the onset, occurrence or exacerbation of a mental disorder”. ("Stress,") However, it would be wrong to state that all of the stressors are negative in their nature, since the reactions of stress can appear as a result of a stimulus or event that are pleasant. Among such can be mentioned getting a promotion, moving to another city, starting new relationships, or other positive experiences that can excite, cause a boost of energy and motivation, improve performance and raise self-esteem. (Mills, Reiss & Dombeck, 2015) In contrast, negative stressors can have a profound influence on one’s emotional and physiological health and produce a variety of adverse effects, influencing one’s functioning capacity. Although, stress can be a result of various stimuli, some of the stressors appear to be more prevalent and more associated with the negative reactions of the body. To such belong workplace stress and that related to money issues. In fact, numerous sources state that they remain at the top of all reported causes of stress, which is not surprising with the current state of the economy and unemployment. (apa org; Hicken, 2015) According to the statistics provided by the American Institution of Stress (2014), the rates of job stress have escalated over the last decades with near 80 percent of workers complaining of facing stress at work. What is more, near a half of them thinks they need help in managing stressful situations as well as recognize that their colleagues also need such help. ("Workplace stress,") The following illustrates that job can be regarded as a major source of stress for adults in America. Factors contributing to the appearance of stress at the workplace can be quite different, so it would be difficult to predict the most or least stressful occupations. Importantly, the onset of stress is related to the individual perception of a situation or event, thereof, one and same situation can produce different effect on a person. ("Workplace stress,") However, among the most widespread and common factors of job stress can be named tension between colleagues, problems with bosses, the need to juggle with too much tasks, and inability to meet deadlines. All these have become an everyday reality of an average working person. Apart from that, researches show that the great amount of people is subjected to stress stemming from money issues. Numerous current studies revealed that nearly three quarters of people feel stressed about money at least during the last month while more than a quarter find themselves stressed almost always. (Hicken, 2015) This makes money another most common stressor together with a workplace. Noticeably, people of different age are likely to be stressed due to financial concerns. Here, such factors as losing a job, debt, feeling of being less finically provided as compared to others, constant need to cut down expenses can be put in a list of stressors. An important aspect of this kind of stress is that it is likely to have a prolonged character, starting at college years and persisting after graduation. Indeed, appearing away from home and acquiring more independence, students can face the need to contribute to covering the cost of education, repay loans, live on a tight budget, or try to combine education and part time job. Together with other potential stresses, this can considerably undermine one’s health. Despite the fact that stress is extremely prevalent today, living under its constant influence should not be viewed as a norm as far as it can lead to serious illnesses, such as cardiovascular disease. Stress remains among the frequently mentioned topics today, yet, not everyone is aware of its possible threats. As explained by Cohen, Janicki-Deverts & Miller (2007), experiments revealed that stress increases coronary artery disease, can “foster pathogenic processes and activate inflammatory and coagulatory mechanisms.” Authors argue that current scientific literature allows to prove the connection between cardiovascular disease mortality and morbidity and stress, including workplace stress of that stemming from traumatic events. (Cohen, Janicki-Deverts & Miller, 2007) Interestingly, apart from direct physiological changes, stress can also lead to CVD through triggering behavioral changes that increase the probability of disease occurrence. ("Stress and cardiovascular," 2006) To such belong smoking tobacco, drinking alcohol, unhealthy diet and sleeping patterns, and other. Furthermore, occurrence of stress is also associated with deprivation of mental health of individuals with depression being a commonly cited outcome. Under the influence of stress a person becomes vulnerable to lowered mood, irritability, or pessimism that, in their turn, would lead to more mood problems. Research shows that approximately 20-25 percent of individuals who experience a kind of stressful event develop depression while near 50-80 percent of depressed persons experienced a major life event during 3 to 6 months preceding the onset. (Cohen, Janicki-Deverts & Miller, 2007) One explanation of the connection is found in TIME magazine that cites conclusions of a study that says stress kills neurons and prevents the birth of new brain cells responsible for a health response to a stress. (Szalavitz , 2011) The growing rates of stress among the population and the variety of adverse effects it has on a person constitute a serious health concern today. Stress has a profound influence on the way human body functions. (Cotton 2013, pp 28-30) With its onset, muscles become tense till stress passes, which can lead to the appearance of health problems. For examples, occurrence of headaches and migraines is associated with muscle tension shoulders, head, and neck. Apart from that, respiratory system also becomes affected with breathing becoming harder or more rapid. As a result, the risk of asthma or panic attack increases. Endocrine, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, reproductive and nervous systems are also influenced. ("Stress effects on,") Consequently, stress is connected with a variety of physical illnesses and emotional disorders including anxiety, depression, stroke, immune system disturbances that leads to susceptibility to infections and many others. It undermines one’s ability to function effectively by decreasing concentration and ability to memorize new information as well as encourages sleep problems and obesity. The list of effects of stress is the long one and is still likely to be continued after more research will be conducted. To sum up, as a response of the organism to certain stimulus, stress influences the way human body functions by affecting the list of systems in a body. Stress can have a positive nature and result in a boost of energy, motivation, and mood; however it can also undermine a person’s health, when its stressor is negative. Surveys show that the most widespread stressful situations which Americans face today are related to job and money. These factors affect a substantial majority of the general population that appears under the risk of developing a long list of illnesses. Both emotional and physical disorders are proved to stem from the exposure to stress, which makes it a serious health concern. Reference List Cotton, D. (2013). Stress management: An integrated approach to therapy. (pp. 28-30). Routledge. Retrieved from https://books.google.com.ua/books?id=Yvq2kYAbQhYC&pg=PA28&dq=definition of stress&hl=en&sa=X&ei=Yyk-VaXUMMPoaKGygLgD&sqi=2&ved=0CCQQ6AEwAA Cohen, S., Janicki-Deverts, D., & Miller, G. (2007). Psychological stress and disease. Journal of the American Medical Association, 298(14), 1685-1687. Retrieved from https://www3.nd.edu/~wevans1/class_papers/JAMA_2007_Psy_Stress_Disease.pdf Daily life. The Amercian Institute of Stress , Retrieved from http://www.stress.org/daily-life/ European Heart Network, (2006) Stress and cardiovascular disease. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/health/mental_health/eu_compass/reports_studies/stress_report_en.pdf Hicken, M. (2015, Feb 4). Money issues are still really stressing americans out. CNN Money, Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/2015/02/04/pf/money-stress/ Mills, H., Reiss, N. & Dombeck, M. (2015). The nature of stress. Community Counseling Services, Retrieved from http://www.communitycounselingservices.org/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=15644&cn=117 Stress. Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders, (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.minddisorders.com/Py-Z/Stress.html Stress effects on the body American Psychological Association, Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/stress-body.aspx Szalavitz , M. (2011, Aug 3). Study: How chronic stress can lead to depression. TIME, Retrieved from http://healthland.time.com/2011/08/03/study-how-chronic-stress-can-lead-to-depression/ Workplace stress. The Amercian Institute of Stress, Retrieved from http://www.stress.org/workplace-stress/ Read More