The Role of Stress in Physical Illness - Essay Example

Presentation on the Role of Stress in Physical Illness Introduction Stress refers to any inducement, such as fear and pain, which may disrupt and inhibit the normal mindset and symmetry of an organism. Ideally, each human being routinely experiences stress due to commitments to family, work, personal relationships and financial pressures. In as much as stress is not the cause of health conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, peptic ulcers and cardiac related conditions, research has overtime indicated that stress influences such conditions. Stress is known to aggravate certain ailments and may bring about health conditions such as chest pains, backache and head ache. A healthcare practitioner who fails to comprehend the role of stress in any health condition will most likely be lacking efficiency in discharging his or her duties. Evaluating the Biopsychosocial Model The biopsychosocial model of illness points to the fact that three factors often interact bringing about stress, hence resulting into various forms of physical illness. These aspects include the biological, psychological and social features of the life of an individual. Biological Factors Both the genome organisation and the overall biology of an individual are the major factors that bring about physical illness. In case the above-mentioned factors cause either severe illnesses or injuries, the affected individual is likely to suffer from stress due to physical and psychological trauma, which would make the health condition extreme. According to Daruna (2012), genetics is a major player in determining the behaviour of an individual. To this effect, it is imperative to acknowledge that stress, which comes about due to individuals exhibiting low mood personality is a mechanism through which physical illness can come into play. Psychological Factors The psychological status of an individual plays an essential role in determining his or her overall well-being. Many a time, stress comes about due to psychological factors such as lack of self-control and negative thinking. Additionally, people often give way to stress due to emotional turmoil and such factors often cause the manifestation of various health conditions and diseases (Winkelman, 2010). Moreover, lack of mental and psychological stability often makes the affected parties highly susceptible to physical injuries, infections and various diseases. Social Factors The social, cultural and environmental components of an individual are essential in determining his or her health status. Social aspects of an individual, such as losing his or her job often bring about stress, which results in the manifestation of various health conditions and diseases. In as much as the cultures of various communities have registered considerable adjustments in the 21st century, the practice of various traditions such as female genital mutilation notably, among African societies poses a great risk to the overall well-being of the individual. Similarly, residing in an unhealthy environment that includes poor nutrition often results into high incidence of transmittable infections and non-communicable conditions such as diabetes and obesity. Critical Evaluation According to Ghaemi (2010), various scholars have celebrated the biopsychosocial model on the basis of the fact that it is not dogmatic, as it incorporates all the factors and approaches that influence the overall health of the individual. That notwithstanding, the model has been discredited for several reasons including the fact that it does not seem to have a logical and theoretical foundation as relates to the affiliation between the mind and the body. Similarly, it is not apparent that the biopsychosocial model supplements much to the previous medical humanist ideology, particularly as characteristically suggested by the hypothesis of William Osler (Ghaemi, 2010). One more flaw is education. In countless scenery, the biopsychosocial model has not assisted well in the training of medical scholars. Evaluating the Psychoneuroimmunology Model Psychoneuroimmunology simply refers to an area of medicine that focuses on the impact of both stress and the nervous system on the functionality of the immune system, particularly in relation to their influence on the inception and evolution of disease. As a model of study, psychoneuroimmunology suggests that the psychosocial status of an individual can have direct influence on the immune system. One of the major propositions of the model for instance is that, stress has several diverse effects on the endocrine system as a whole, encompassing the well-known flight initiation, which is the instigation of the sympathetic adrenal-medullary (SAM) system, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPAC) system, and other endocrine systems. How the Immune System Reacts to Stress During stressful durations, various body organs and the immune system reacts to anxiety in the following ways, sympathetic fibers run down from the brain into both primary lymphoid tissues: bone marrow and thymus and secondary lymphoid organs: spleen and lymph nodes. These fibers can discharge a varied variety of elements that affect immune responses notably by binding to receptors on white blood cells. Although all white blood cells have adrenergic receptors, discrepancy in density and sensitivity of adrenergic receptors on the white blood cells may influence receptiveness to stress among cell subsets. For instance, natural killer cells have both high-density and high-affinity to β2-adrenergic receptors. Similarly, B cells have high density but lower affinity, while T cells have the lowest density. HPA Axis Hypophysiotropic neuron contained in the medial parvocellular section of the PVN produces and discharges corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF), the major controller of the HPA axis. In reaction to anxiety, CRF is discharged into the hypophysial portal vessels, which interacts with the anterior pituitary gland. Binding of CRF to its receptor on pituitary corticotropes prompts the discharge of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) into the systemic flow (Davey, 2011). The primary objective for flowing ACTH is the adrenal cortex, where it fuels glucocorticoid production and emission from the zona fasciculata. Glucocorticoids are the downstream effectors of the HPA axis and control functional changes through ubiquitously circulated intracellular receptors. Activation Stimulation of the HPA axis is a compactly meticulous procedure that encompasses a varied range of neuronal and endocrine systems. Glucocorticoids play a noticeable role in monitoring the scale and interval of HPA axis activation (Davey, 2011). Ensuing disclosure to stress, raised levels of flowing glucocorticoids impede HPA motion at the level of the hypothalamus and pituitary. The HPA axis is similarly subject to glucocorticoid self-determining regulation. CRF binding proteins that are found at high levels in the systemic flow and in the pituitary gland likewise moderate the neuroendocrine consequences of CRF. The Sympathetic Nervous System The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) is one of the three portions of the autonomic nervous system, besides the enteric and parasympathetic systems. Its common role is to activate the bodys nervous system fight-or-flight reaction; it is correspondingly relentlessly vigorous at a basal level, with the aim of maintaining homeostasis. Activation Instantaneous stress triggers the hypothalamus to stimulate the sympathetic subdivision of the autonomic nervous system. This excites the adrenal medulla of the adrenal gland, which discharges adrenaline and noradrenalin into the blood stream. This results in increased blood pressure and heart rate; reductions in digestion; tense muscles, upsurge in perspiration and breathing rate. This in return brings about the fight or flight reaction. Cortisol Cortisol is an important hormone in the body, secreted by the adrenal glands and involved in several functions including regulating blood sugar and maintaining proper immune functionality. Customarily, it is existent in the body at advanced intensities during morning hours and at its lowest during the night. Even though stress is not the only reason that cortisol is discharged into the circulatory system, it is often known as the stress hormone, for it is routinely produced and secreted in higher levels during the body’s fight or flight reaction to stress, and is accountable for a number of stress-related alterations in the body (Davey, 2011). Advanced and more extended intensities of cortisol in the bloodstream as demonstrated during chronic stress have been revealed to have a myriad of negative effects such as blood glucose disparities such as hyperglycemia, compromised cognitive performance, and upsurge in blood pressure among others. Effects of Stress on the Immune System Internal features such as stress have been associated in instigating an inefficient immune system because of the manner of the bodys reaction to it. The abilities of the immune system are weakened after recurrent instigation of the autonomic nervous system as in the case of chronic stresses. Apparent attitude also appears to play a part in immune system efficacy. Exhibiting an encouraging approach seems to draw a parallel with an improved ability of the immune system in combating diseases. In scenarios where the entities have put on a display of fear afore a surgery, they have had an extended curative time afterwards. Correspondences were observed in the number of lymphocyte cells and the persons level of optimism (Ader, 2007). Cardiovascular ailments are an additional area where anxiety and tension could have an adverse consequence. The ordinary reaction of the fight or flight instigation mechanism could have a categorically undesirable impression on the cardiovascular system. Since the initiation of the fight or flight system comprises of an escalation in the heart rate, a regular stimulation could intensify the prospect of a heart attack or other negative aspect of the disease. Research and Examples In detail, a study was done in an industrial work setting in which a much higher incidence of cardiovascular mortality was found to correlate with an environment in which there was very minute reward enticement. Even in moderately less hazardous health complications, attitude can have an outcome. A survey with the common cold and sensations showed that participants with happy feelings exhibited a bigger ability to fight off the cold when given a squirt of the rhinovirus (Ader, 2007). In a conclusive study comprising of parents in cooperation with children living with cancer and parents whose children are relatively healthy, the findings showed that prolonged psychological stress might reduce the reaction of the immune system to hormonal secretions that were routinely used to combat the inflammatory reaction (Ader, 2007). Critical Evaluation Despite some researchers distrust and capital unavailability, the nascent field of psychoneuroimmunology has gained superior reception in the ordinary medical world. One of the major reasons is the fact that various scholars have managed to employ powerful molecular techniques to pinpoint the associations stuck between stress and disease immunity, identifying alterations in hormone flow and immune system cells (Segerstrom, 2012). That notwithstanding, the model has been discredited on the basis that the associations between the different systems and the science backing up such links are unfounded. Conclusion In as much as both models have received their share of criticism, they mutually ascertain that stress brings about physical illness. The main point in the biopsychosocial model is that an individual can become stressed based on the degree of interaction of his or her biological, social and psychological features. If the stress is extended for a long duration, then the individual will be susceptible to certain conditions, or will begin manifesting various diseases. The psychoneuroimmunology model on the other hand introduces the ideology of the immune system, asserting that stress weakens the immune system, hence reducing the efficiency of the body’s immunity in fighting infections (Kendall et al, 2010). Even though the models are based on different principles, it would be of significance to draw the conclusion that stress results into physical sickness. References Ader, R. (2007). Psychoneuroimmunology. Amsterdam: Elsevier/Academic Press. Daruna, J. H. (2012). Introduction to psychoneuroimmunology. Amsterdam: Elsevier Academic Press. Davey, G. (2011). Applied psychology. Chichester: BPS Blackwell. Ghaemi, S. N. (2010). The rise and fall of the biopsychosocial model: Reconciling art and science in psychiatry. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press. Goodkin, K., & Visser, A. P. (2008). Psychoneuroimmunology: Stress, mental disorders, and health. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press. Janowski, K., & Steuden, S. (2009). Biopsychosocial aspects of health and disease: Vol. 1. Kendall-Tackett, K. A., & American Psychological Association. (2010). the psychoneuroimmunology of chronic disease: Exploring the links between inflammation, stress, and illness. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Saleebey, D. (2012). Human Behaviour and Social Environments: A Biopsychosocial Approach. New York: Columbia University Press. Segerstrom, S. C. (2012). The Oxford handbook of psychoneuroimmunology. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Whitbourne, S. K., Whitbourne, S. B. (2011). Adult development and aging: Biopsychosocial perspectives. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Winkelman, M. (2010). Shamanism: A biopsychosocial paradigm of consciousness and healing. Santa Barbara, Calif: Praeger Read More