Definition of Stress

Stress is a very common word in the hectic pace of life in these modern times and is often the cause of illnesses and disease. When we encounter stressful situations our bodies start preparing for a traumatic experience and produce excess amount of adrenaline to ready the body for fight or flight.

 

It is impossible to go through life without experiencing signs of stress at certain points and some situations will cause more stress symptoms than others. It is also possible that what would qualify as stress for one person would not affect another person at all.

Everyone should learn how to minimize the amount of stress in their lives and how to use effective stress relief techniques. First of all, they have to learn to recognize the situations that are the causes of stress. Knowing the effect that stress has on your mind and body and what stress is can be the difference between realizing how the various stressors in your life could be impacting your health or continuing on in a destructive style of living.

It also involves being able to recognize the signs of stress so that you know when you are feeling stressed and have a reason for feeling the way you do, potentially eliminating feeling overwhelmed or just plain frustrated. Stress manifests itself in mental and physical ways. Some of the signs of stress that can affect you mentally are:

  • a feeling of tension in most situations
  • feeling irritable and with the inability to pinpoint a particular reason for the irritation
  • being unable to concentrate on the task at hand and instead focusing on a smaller, unrelated problem
  • feeling excessively tired and being able to sleep at any time of the day
  • having trouble sleeping at night because of constant thoughts of a stressful situation

The physical symptoms of stress include:

  • a dry sensation in the mouth
  • feeling as if your heart is pounding out of your chest
  • difficulty breathing
  • feeling nauseous or like your stomach is very upset
  • having to urinate more frequently than usual
  • muscles that are so tense that they cause you to have aches and pains
  • sweaty palms

The definition of stress is commonly associated with unpleasant events, but there are pleasant activities that can also be one of the causes of stress in your life. The birth of a new baby, a wedding, or even starting a new job are occasions to celebrate, but they can also be stressful ones. One should attempt to identify what kinds of events cause symptoms of stress and then work to minimize the stress as much as possible.

If one is feeling ill or recognize feeling stressed, that individual should think about the recent or current events in their life and consider whether or not they have attributed to any changes experienced in emotions, behavior, and thoughts. According to the medical profession, the definition of stress is related to a whole host of medical conditions. It can cause chronic fatigue, stomach ulcers, headaches, and back pain. Asthma sufferers who become stressed can have an attack that is worse than others they have experienced.

Being under constant stress can increase the possibility of having a heart attack or stroke because of the increased blood flow throughout the body. It can also affect sexual relationships because one of the symptoms of stress is a decrease in the sexual appetite. Some of the situations that are causes of stress can be eliminated or minimized. When experiencing signs of stress in the workplace, one should discuss the problems they are having with a co-worker, preferably the person who is causing the stress, or speak to the person in charge.

Social and family demands can bring on symptoms of stress as well. If this is the case, sitting down and discussing the situation with family or prioritizing a list of tasks may help remedy the situation. Learning to delegate, being able to answer the question "what is stress and what does it mean to me?" and not attempting to take on everything on at once are all crucial to keeping causes of stress at bay.
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  Biofeedback.ca & Stress
The definition of stress is commonly associated with unpleasant events, but there are pleasant activities that can also be one of the causes of stress in your life.