Stress Responses

General Adaptation Syndrome : Alarm

- First stage of general adaptation syndrome - Organism recognizes threat - Energy increases as physiological arousal occurs - Heart rate increases - Blood flow increases to skeletal muscles - Respiration increases

Striking Out at Others

People may strike out at others as a response to stressful situations. - Generally an ineffective coping strategy that tends to lead more anger or frustration

Using Humor

Using humor to reduce stress helps in moderating the negative impact stress can have on one's health. - Can help to change one's appraisal of events - Can enhance positive emotions - Often facilitates social support from others

Autonomic Stress Response 2

Walter Cannon (1932) was one of the first researchers to describe the fight-or-flight response. - Studied the fight-or-flight response in cats - The body's fight-or-flight response is managed by the sympathetic nervous system - Adaptive response to danger that prepares the body for survival

Automatic Stress Response

A fight-or-flight response is triggered within the body when humans and animals encounter stressful situations. - Physiological reaction in which the body's autonomic nervous system prepares the body for attacking (fight) or fleeing (flight) during threatening situations - With the fight or flight response, it's characterized by a rapid heartbeat an increase in breathing

General Adaptation Syndrome 3

Alarm Resistance Exhaustion

Negative Coping Strategies

Blaming oneself Overindulging Striking out at others

Coping with Stress 2

Coping strategies vary among individuals. - Strategies used to reduce or tolerate the effects of stress Positive coping strategies - Adaptive or constructive Negative coping strategies - Maladaptive or unconstructive

Positive or Negative Coping? 4

Defense mechanisms can be either maladaptive or adaptive? - Maladaptive Denying or avoiding situations generally does not provide solutions to problems Adaptive - Positive illusions about reality can be beneficial to one's mental health and well-being Research indicates that people who are depressed more than others generally have a less favorable, yet more realistic self-concept and are generally less optimistic about reality. However, a overly positive view of the self and optimism has been known to improve stress management. So some positive illusions concerning one's reality may be beneficial for individuals when it comes to coping with stress.

Positive Coping Strategies 2

Effective patterns of positive coping : - Altering thoughts - Using humor - Releasing suppressed emotions - Forgiving others - Practicing relaxation strategies - Taking care of physical health

Overindulging

Encountering stressful situations often leads to reduced impulse control or self-indulgence. - Some individuals tend to engage in excessive consumption when stressed Overeating Overspending Excessive drug or alcohol consumption

Stress Responses 2

Exhaustion is the last of general adaptation syndrome that occurs if stress continues beyond the resistance phase. - Body's energy resources begin to deplete - Organism eventually experiences hormonal exhaustion (can cause death) - Body becomes more vulnerable to illness Even if the stressor doesn't cause extreme fear, over time exposure to the same stressor, like a stressful job, can deplete one's energetic resources.

Positive or Negative Coping? 2

Giving up or withdrawing from a stressful situation is a common coping behavior in individuals. - Giving up can be maladaptive or adaptive behavior - Commonly giving up in the face of any obstacle or constantly giving up on goals may lead to depression - However, giving up on a goal when a goal is unattainable can lead to lower levels of stress hormones and better health So whether giving up is an effective coping strategy depends on the situation.

General Adaptation Syndrome

Hans Selye identified and labeled the concept of stress while studying animal reactions to different kinds of stressors. - Found that animals had the same physiological reaction to stress despite the type of stressor the animal was exposed to

General Adaptation Syndrome 2

Hans Selye's theory about the body's automatic stress reaction is known as the general adaptation syndrome. - Process that describes the body's natural physiological response to stress - Consists of three stages that the body advances through when fight-or-flight response is triggered

Physiological Reaction to Stress

How would your body react if you went into a room and a face appeared in the shadows? - Your reaction may be to lash out or to run. Your heart rate and breathing would generally increase - Even if you learned the stranger in the room was really your brother attempting to play a prank on you, your body's initial automatic reaction would be the same as it would be if you thought it was an intruder

Positive or Negative Coping? 3

Many individuals commonly use defense mechanisms to cope with stress. - Mechanisms or behaviors that protect or guard against unpleasant emotions - Often help to distort one's unpleasant or unwanted reality Denial Intellectualization Fantasy Undoing Overcompensation

Practicing Relaxation Strategies and Taking Care of Physical Health

Practicing methods of relaxation is a valuable way to soothe negative emotion and reduce physiological arousal. - Factors promoting effective relaxation include : Being in a quiet environment Using a mental device to direct focus Keeping a passive attitude during technique Maintaining a comfortable position Taking care of physical health assists in managing the negative effects stress can have on the body. - Physical health can be improved through : Moderate exercise Nutritional diet Adequate sleep Taking care of one's physical health doesn't guarantee that one won't experience stress.

Positive Coping Strategies

Psychologists claim that an overall constructive coping method for stress involves four processes. - Confronting problem directly Includes taking action to solve problems - Realistically evaluating stressful issues and coping possibilities - Learning to recognize and regulate stressors - Ensuring body is not vulnerable to damaging effects of stress Although these processes generally lead to the beset way to effectively manage stress, there's no guarantee that these processes will successfully reduce stress.

Releasing Suppressed Emotion and Forgiving Others

Releasing suppressed emotion can help in reducing the negative effects of stress. - Failing to release anger and other stress-related emotions can increase one's blood pressure - Suppressing emotion can lead to an increase in stress and negative emotion Forgiving others can help to effectively manage stress and reduce depression. - Research has established a connection between forgiveness and one's well-being - Studies have associated vengefulness with an increase in negative emotion and life dissatisfaction

Stress Responses

Resistance is the second phase of general adaptation syndrome that occurs if stress remains. - Body begins to cope with stressor - Releases of hormones help stabilize body resources in preparation to fight - Physiological changes remain higher than normal - Temperature, blood pressure, and respiration remain elevated

Blaming Oneself

Some individuals tend to engage in self-blame or become self-critical when encountering stressful situations. - Researchers have noted that negative self-talk may influence the development of depressive disorders Although recognizing one's weaknesses can lead to a clearer self-concept, most psychologists agree that chronically blaming oneself for situations that provoke stress isn't a healthy coping strategy for managing stress.

Positive or Negative Coping?

Some researchers argue that some methods may appear to be negative but also can be perceived as positive. - Whether or not the results of certain coping strategies are healthy often depends on the situation and the degree of use Giving up Using defense mechanisms

Altering Thoughts

Theorist Albert Ellis claims that one's emotional reaction to stress can be controlled by altering evaluations of stressful events. - Stress often occurs as a result of negative appraisals and irrational assumptions about events - Changing one's thoughts about stressful events may change the reaction to it So for example, someone who believes they must have approval of all of their friends may become stressed when this doesn't occur. Altering one's thinking about having approval from many friends will generally help in reducing stress when someone close doesn't demonstrate their approval.

Coping with Stress

Ways of coping with stress can be adaptive or maladaptive.. - Coping methods used to decrease stress are often influenced by the situation - Individuals using flexible strategies to cope with stress generally manage stressful situations more effectively than individuals who use consistent methods of copying For example, one who's more flexible may evaluate the situation and react in different ways depending on situational factors. Whereas others may generally use one way of coping with any type of stressful situation.