Stress is a necessary link in the development of any organism. The body's response to stress and the consolidation of "working" options is, in essence, evolution.
Psychologist Nina Yurkovskaya explained what stress is .
For our organism, it does not matter whether the threat is real or imaginary. We will respond to any stress by activating physiological systems.
Stress can be both negative and positive. And there are only four conditions that distinguish them:
- positive or negative emotional background;
- the presence or absence of experience in solving the problem and a positive prognosis;
- social approval or disapproval;
- Are there any resources to solve the problem that has arisen?
There is physical stress, everything that takes the body out of the state of equilibrium of biological systems. And there is psychological stress, also known as emotional or psycho-emotional stress.
The master of psychology Richard Lazarus defined it as a person's reaction to the peculiarities of interaction between the individual and the surrounding world. The result of the impact of constant psycho-emotional stress, according to scientists, are many chronic diseases of our time.
In addition, the increase in psychosomatic diseases directly depends on the increase in stress in life.
During stress, changes occur in various functional systems of the body. Thus, in behavior, the following may be observed: hand tremors, increased muscle tone, changes in the depth and rhythm of breathing, changes in the voice, and speech disorders.
In intellectual activity, there are disturbances of attention, memory, a shift from logical thinking to emotional swings. At the physiological level, in addition to the invisible impact on all organs, there is a quite noticeable increase in pressure, increased heart rate, and disruption of the gastrointestinal tract.
And finally, on an emotional level, there is a background gloomy, anxious, melancholy mood, intense negative outbursts, loss of faith in success.
It has long been established that long-term stress is more harmful than short-term and intense stress. If short, even intense stress "shakes up" the body, then long-term, even if not intense, literally wears out systems and organs.
Each person has their own threshold of sensitivity to stress and their own threshold of exhaustion.
There are factors that influence how you perceive, experience, and cope with stress.
1. Innate features related to the strength of the nervous system. For example, melancholics are more susceptible to stress than phlegmatics. Sanguine people are more stable. But cholerics, on the one hand, are very susceptible, on the other hand, are less susceptible to the effects of prolonged stress due to the high mobility of reactions and the speed of switching.
2. Traumatic childhood experience. If a person has negative life experience gained in childhood, then the tendency to evaluate any hypothetical situation as threatening increases. Which has an extremely negative effect on the experience of stressful situations.
3. Individual scenarios of stress behavior learned in childhood. It’s simple: what you observed, that’s what you learned. You saw a maladaptive way of reacting to stress – you adopted it.
4. Personality traits: character and temperament. This includes increased anxiety, a tendency toward aggression, an outwardly accusatory type of response, and a tendency toward conflict. The most vulnerable combination of traits: increased sensitivity with anxiety and impulsiveness.
5. Social environment: prevalence of mental activity, disruption of sleep and rest patterns, eating disorders, addictive behavior, chronic harmful conditions in the workplace, increased responsibility, moving, changing jobs, changing social status, political and social instability, chronic fatigue.
The good news is that even under constant stress, you can learn to minimize its effects. Modern specialists distinguish several groups of methods: psychological, physiological, biochemical, physical.
The first group includes:
1. Autogenic training. This is not just a method of self-hypnosis, but a certain sequence of techniques aimed at consciously turning off stress reactions. This method is best learned from specialists in order to really use it effectively.
2. Biofeedback method. Using modern computer technologies, the student monitors changes in heart rate, blood pressure, muscle tension, brain activity and learns to consciously control them.
3. Breathing techniques. The simplest, most accessible at any time, anywhere, do not require additional skills.
4. Jacobson's progressive muscle relaxation method. Conscious relaxation of muscle tone to relieve mental stress.
5. Psychotherapy, NLP methods, meditation, etc.
The second group includes various massages, physical exercises, muscle relaxation, breathing techniques, acupuncture.
The third is pharmacology, medicinal plants, aromatherapy.
The fourth is physical methods of stress reduction, the easiest to use. This includes temperature effects (a sauna or, conversely, a cryosauna), color and light effects (yes, moderate safe sunbathing reduces stress levels), and water procedures.
Hans Selye, the father of the concept of stress, wrote: “Whoever fails to study himself will suffer from distress caused by the lack of worthwhile work or from constant overload.”
Therefore, exploring one’s own individual psychological and physical characteristics and capabilities is the key to adaptively coping with stressful situations.
