Stress– a term literally meaning pressure or tension. It is understood as a human condition that occurs in response to the influence of unfavorable factors, which are commonly called stressors. They can be physical (hard work, injury) or mental (fear, disappointment).
The prevalence of stress is very high. In developed countries, 70% of the population is in a state of constant stress. Over 90% suffer from stress several times a month. This is a very alarming figure considering how dangerous the effects of stress can be.
Experiencing stress requires a lot of energy from a person. Therefore, prolonged exposure to stress factors causes weakness, apathy, and a feeling of lack of strength. The development of 80% of diseases known to science is also associated with stress.
Types of stress
Pre-stress state – anxiety, nervous tension that occurs in a situation when a person is affected by stress factors. During this period, he can take measures to prevent stress.
Eustress– beneficial stress. This may be stress caused by strong positive emotions. Eustress is also a moderate stress that mobilizes reserves, forcing you to more effectively deal with the problem. This type of stress includes all the body’s reactions that ensure a person’s immediate adaptation to new conditions. It makes it possible to avoid an unpleasant situation, fight or adapt. Thus, eustress is a mechanism that ensures human survival.
Distress– harmful destructive stress that the body is unable to cope with. This type of stress is caused by strong negative emotions or physical factors (injuries, illnesses, overwork) that last for a long time. Distress undermines strength, preventing a person from not only effectively solving the problem that caused stress, but also from living fully.
Emotional stress– emotions that accompany stress: anxiety, fear, anger, sadness. Most often, it is they, and not the situation itself, that causes negative changes in the body.
Based on the duration of exposure, stress is usually divided into two types:
Acute stress– the stressful situation lasted for a short period of time. Most people quickly bounce back after a short emotional shock. However, if the shock was strong, then disturbances in the functioning of the nervous system, such as enuresis, stuttering, and tics, are possible.
Chronic stress– Stress factors affect a person for a long time. This situation is less favorable and is dangerous for the development of diseases of the cardiovascular system and exacerbation of existing chronic diseases.
What are the phases of stress?
Alarm phase– a state of uncertainty and fear in connection with an approaching unpleasant situation. Its biological meaning is to “prepare weapons” to combat possible troubles.
Resistance phase– period of mobilization of forces. A phase in which there is an increase in brain activity and muscle strength. This phase can have two resolution options. In the best case, the body adapts to new living conditions. At worst, the person continues to experience stress and moves on to the next phase.
Exhaustion phase– a period when a person feels that his strength is running out. At this stage, the body's resources are depleted. If a way out of a difficult situation is not found, then somatic diseases and psychological changes develop.
What causes stress?
The causes of stress can be very diverse.
| Physical causes of stress | Mental causes of stress |
|
| Domestic | External |
|
| Strong pain Surgery Infections Overwork Backbreaking physical work Environmental pollution | Mismatch between expectations and reality Unfulfilled hopes Disappointment Internal conflict is a contradiction between “I want” and “I need” Perfectionism Pessimism Low or high self-esteem Difficulty making decisions Lack of diligence Impossibility of self-expression Lack of respect, recognition Time pressure, feeling of lack of time | Threat to life and health Human or animal attack Conflicts in the family or team Material problems Natural or man-made disasters Illness or death of a loved one Marriage or divorce Cheating on a loved one Getting a job, getting fired, retiring Loss of money or property |
It should be noted that the body’s reaction does not depend on what caused the stress. The body will react to both a broken arm and a divorce in the same way - by releasing stress hormones. Its consequences will depend on how significant the situation is for the person and how long he has been under its influence.
What determines susceptibility to stress?
The same impact can be assessed differently by people. The same situation (for example, the loss of a certain amount) will cause severe stress for one person, and only annoyance for another. It all depends on what meaning a person attaches to a given situation. The strength of the nervous system, life experience, upbringing, principles, life position, moral assessments, etc. play a big role.
Individuals who are characterized by anxiety, increased excitability, imbalance, and a tendency toward hypochondria and depression are more susceptible to the effects of stress.
One of the most important factors is the state of the nervous system at the moment. During periods of overwork and illness, a person’s ability to adequately assess the situation is reduced and relatively small impacts can cause serious stress.
Recent studies by psychologists have shown that people with the lowest levels of cortisol are less susceptible to stress. As a rule, they are harder to get angry. And in stressful situations they do not lose their composure, which allows them to achieve significant success.
Signs of low stress tolerance and high susceptibility to stress:
- You can't relax after a hard day;
- You experience anxiety after a minor conflict;
- You repeatedly replay an unpleasant situation in your head;
- You may leave something you have started out of fear that you won’t be able to handle it;
- Your sleep is disturbed due to anxiety;
- Anxiety causes a noticeable deterioration in well-being (headache, trembling hands, rapid heartbeat, feeling hot)
If you answered yes to most of the questions, this means that you need to increase your resistance to stress.
What are the behavioral signs of stress?
How to recognize stress by behavior? Stress changes a person's behavior in certain ways. Although its manifestations largely depend on the character and life experience of a person, there are a number of common signs.
- Binge eating. Although sometimes there is a loss of appetite.
- Insomnia. Shallow sleep with frequent awakenings.
- Slowness of movement or fidgetiness.
- Irritability. May manifest itself as tearfulness, grumbling, and unreasonable nagging.
- Closedness, withdrawal from communication.
- Reluctance to work. The reason lies not in laziness, but in a decrease in motivation, willpower and lack of strength.
External signs of stress associated with excessive tension of individual muscle groups. These include:
- Pursed lips;
- Tension of the masticatory muscles;
- Raised “tight” shoulders;
What happens in the human body during stress?
Pathogenetic mechanisms of stress– a stressful situation (stressor) is perceived by the cerebral cortex as threatening. Next, the excitation passes through a chain of neurons to the hypothalamus and pituitary gland. Pituitary cells produce adrenocorticotropic hormone, which activates the adrenal cortex. The adrenal glands release stress hormones into the blood in large quantities - adrenaline and cortisol, which are designed to ensure adaptation in a stressful situation. However, if the body is exposed to them for too long, is very sensitive to them, or hormones are produced in excess, this can lead to the development of diseases.
Emotions activate the autonomic nervous system, or rather its sympathetic department. This biological mechanism is designed to make the body stronger and more resilient for a short period of time, to set it up for vigorous activity. However, prolonged stimulation of the autonomic nervous system causes vasospasm and disruption of the functioning of organs that lack blood circulation. Hence the dysfunction of organs, pain, spasms.
Positive effects of stress
The positive effects of stress are associated with the effect on the body of the same stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol. Their biological meaning is to ensure human survival in a critical situation.
| Positive effects of adrenaline | Positive effects of cortisol |
| The appearance of fear, anxiety, restlessness. These emotions warn a person about possible danger. They provide an opportunity to prepare for battle, run away or hide. Increasing breathing speed ensures oxygen saturation of the blood. Increased heart rate and increased blood pressure - the heart better supplies blood to the body to work efficiently. Stimulates mental abilities by improving the delivery of arterial blood to the brain. Strengthening muscle strength by improving muscle blood circulation and increasing their tone. This helps to realize the fight or flight instinct. A surge of energy due to the activation of metabolic processes. This allows a person to feel a surge of strength if he was previously tired. A person shows courage, determination, or aggression. Increasing blood glucose levels, which provides cells with additional nutrition and energy. Reduced blood flow to internal organs and skin. This effect allows you to reduce bleeding during a possible wound. | A surge of vigor and strength due to the acceleration of metabolism: increasing the level of glucose in the blood and the breakdown of proteins into amino acids. Suppression of the inflammatory response. Accelerating blood clotting by increasing the number of platelets helps stop bleeding. Reduced activity of secondary functions. The body saves energy to use it to combat stress. For example, the formation of immune cells decreases, the activity of the endocrine glands is suppressed, and intestinal motility decreases. Reducing the risk of developing allergic reactions. This is facilitated by the inhibitory effect of cortisol on the immune system. Blocking the production of dopamine and serotonin - “happy hormones” that promote relaxation, which can have critical consequences in a dangerous situation. Increased sensitivity to adrenaline. This enhances its effects: increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, increased blood flow to skeletal muscles and the heart. |
It should be noted that the positive effects of hormones are observed during their short-term effects on the body. Therefore, short-term moderate stress can be beneficial for the body. He mobilizes and forces us to gather our strength to find the optimal solution. Stress enriches life experience and in the future a person feels confident in such situations. Stress increases the ability to adapt and in a certain way contributes to personal development. However, it is important that the stressful situation is resolved before the body’s resources are exhausted and negative changes begin.
Negative effects of stress
Negative effects of stress onpsyche are caused by prolonged action of stress hormones and overwork of the nervous system.
- Concentration of attention decreases, which entails memory deterioration;
- Fussiness and lack of concentration appear, which increases the risk of making rash decisions;
- Low performance and increased fatigue may be a consequence of disruption of neural connections in the cerebral cortex;
- Negative emotions predominate - general dissatisfaction with position, work, partner, appearance, which increases the risk of developing depression;
- Irritability and aggression, which complicate interaction with others and delay the resolution of a conflict situation;
- The desire to alleviate the condition with the help of alcohol, antidepressants, narcotic drugs;
- Decreased self-esteem, lack of self-confidence;
- Problems in sexual and family life;
- A nervous breakdown is a partial loss of control over one’s emotions and actions.
Negative effects of stress on the body
1. From the nervous system. Under the influence of adrenaline and cortisol, the destruction of neurons is accelerated, the smooth functioning of various parts of the nervous system is disrupted:
- Excessive stimulation of the nervous system. Prolonged stimulation of the central nervous system leads to its overwork. Like other organs, the nervous system cannot work in an unusually intense mode for a long time. This inevitably leads to various failures. Signs of overwork include drowsiness, apathy, depressive thoughts, and cravings for sweets.
- Headaches may be associated with disruption of cerebral vessels and deterioration of blood outflow.
- Stuttering, enuresis (urinary incontinence), tics (uncontrolled contractions of individual muscles). They may occur when neural connections between nerve cells in the brain are disrupted.
- Excitation of parts of the nervous system. Excitation of the sympathetic nervous system leads to dysfunction of internal organs.
2. From the immune system. The changes are associated with an increase in the level of glucocorticoid hormones, which inhibit the functioning of the immune system. Susceptibility to various infections increases.
- The production of antibodies and the activity of immune cells decreases. As a result, susceptibility to viruses and bacteria increases. The likelihood of contracting viral or bacterial infections increases. The chance of self-infection also increases - the spread of bacteria from foci of inflammation (inflamed maxillary sinuses, palatine tonsils) to other organs.
- Immune protection against the appearance of cancer cells decreases, and the risk of developing cancer increases.
3. From the endocrine system. Stress has a significant impact on the functioning of all hormonal glands. It can cause both an increase in synthesis and a sharp decrease in hormone production.
- Failure of the menstrual cycle. Severe stress can disrupt the functioning of the ovaries, which is manifested by delay and pain during menstruation. Problems with the cycle may continue until the situation is completely normalized.
- Decreased testosterone synthesis, which is manifested by a decrease in potency.
- Slowdown in growth rates. Severe stress in a child can reduce the production of growth hormone and cause delays in physical development.
- Decreased synthesis of triiodothyronine T3 with normal levels of thyroxine T4. Accompanied by increased fatigue, muscle weakness, decreased temperature, swelling of the face and limbs.
- Decrease in prolactin. In breastfeeding women, prolonged stress can cause a decrease in breast milk production, up to a complete stop of lactation.
- Disruption of the pancreas, responsible for the synthesis of insulin, causes diabetes mellitus.
4. From the cardiovascular system. Adrenaline and cortisol increase heart rate and constrict blood vessels, which has a number of negative consequences.
- Blood pressure increases, which increases the risk of hypertension.
- The load on the heart increases and the amount of blood pumped per minute triples. Combined with high blood pressure, this increases the risk of heart attack and stroke.
- The heartbeat accelerates and the risk of heart rhythm disturbances (arrhythmia, tachycardia) increases.
- The risk of blood clots increases due to an increase in platelet counts.
- The permeability of blood and lymphatic vessels increases, their tone decreases. Metabolic products and toxins accumulate in the intercellular space. Tissue swelling increases. Cells are deficient in oxygen and nutrients.
5. From the digestive system disruption of the autonomic nervous system causes spasms and circulatory disorders in various parts of the gastrointestinal tract. This can have various manifestations:
- Feeling of a lump in the throat;
- Difficulty swallowing due to spasm of the esophagus;
- Pain in the stomach and various parts of the intestines caused by spasms;
- Constipation or diarrhea associated with impaired peristalsis and the release of digestive enzymes;
- Development of peptic ulcer;
- Disruption of the digestive glands, which causes gastritis, biliary dyskinesia and other functional disorders of the digestive system.
6. From the musculoskeletal side systems Long-term stress causes muscle spasms and poor blood circulation in bone and muscle tissue.
- Muscle spasm, mainly in the cervicothoracic spine. In combination with osteochondrosis, this can lead to compression of the spinal nerve roots - radiculopathy occurs. This condition manifests itself as pain in the neck, limbs, and chest. It can also cause pain in the area of internal organs - heart, liver.
- Bone fragility is caused by a decrease in calcium in bone tissue.
- Decreased muscle mass – stress hormones increase the breakdown of muscle cells. During prolonged stress, the body uses them as a reserve source of amino acids.
7. From the skin
- Acne. Stress increases sebum production. Clogged hair follicles become inflamed due to reduced immunity.
- Disturbances in the functioning of the nervous and immune systems provoke neurodermatitis and psoriasis.
We emphasize that short-term episodic stress does not cause serious damage to health, since the changes caused by it are reversible. Diseases develop over time if a person continues to acutely experience a stressful situation.
What are the different ways to respond to stress?
Highlight three strategies for dealing with stress:
Rabbit– passive reaction to a stressful situation. Stress makes it impossible to think rationally and act actively. A person hides from problems because he does not have the strength to cope with a traumatic situation.
a lion– stress forces you to use all the body’s reserves for a short period of time. A person reacts violently and emotionally to a situation, making a “jerk” to solve it. This strategy has its drawbacks. Actions are often thoughtless and overly emotional. If the situation cannot be resolved quickly, then the strength is depleted.
Ox– a person rationally uses his mental and mental resources, so he can live and work for a long time, experiencing stress. This strategy is the most justified from the point of view of neurophysiology and the most productive.
Methods for dealing with stress
There are 4 main strategies for dealing with stress.
Raising awareness. In a difficult situation, it is important to reduce the level of uncertainty; for this it is important to have reliable information. Preliminary “living” of the situation will eliminate the effect of surprise and allow you to act more effectively. For example, before traveling to an unfamiliar city, think about what you will do and what you want to visit. Find out the addresses of hotels, attractions, restaurants, read reviews about them. This will help you worry less before traveling.
Comprehensive analysis of the situation, rationalization. Assess your strengths and resources. Consider the difficulties you will face. If possible, prepare for them. Shift your attention from the result to the action. For example, analyzing the collection of information about the company and preparing for the questions that are asked most often will help reduce fear of an interview.
Reducing the significance of a stressful situation. Emotions prevent you from considering the essence and finding an obvious solution. Imagine how this situation is seen by strangers, for whom this event is familiar and does not matter. Try to think about this event without emotion, consciously reducing its significance. Imagine how you will remember the stressful situation in a month or a year.
Increased possible negative consequences. Imagine the worst case scenario. As a rule, people drive this thought away from themselves, which makes it obsessive, and it comes back again and again. Realize that the likelihood of a disaster is extremely low, but even if it happens, there will be a way out.
Setting for the best. Constantly remind yourself that everything will be fine. Problems and worries cannot continue forever. It is necessary to gather strength and do everything possible to bring a successful outcome closer.
It is necessary to warn that during prolonged stress, the temptation to solve problems in an irrational way with the help of occult practices, religious sects, healers, etc. increases. This approach can lead to new, more complex problems. Therefore, if you cannot find a way out of the situation on your own, then it is advisable to contact a qualified specialist, psychologist, or lawyer.
How to help yourself during stress?
Various ways to self-regulate under stress will help you calm down and minimize the impact of negative emotions.
Autotraining– a psychotherapeutic technique aimed at restoring balance lost as a result of stress. Autogenic training is based on muscle relaxation and self-hypnosis. These actions reduce the activity of the cerebral cortex and activate the parasympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system. This allows you to neutralize the effect of prolonged stimulation of the sympathetic department. To perform the exercise, you need to sit in a comfortable position and consciously relax the muscles, especially the face and shoulder girdle. Then they begin to repeat the autogenic training formulas. For example: “I am calm. My nervous system calms down and gains strength. Problems don't bother me. They are perceived as the touch of the wind. Every day I get stronger."
Muscle relaxation– technique for relaxing skeletal muscles. The technique is based on the assertion that muscle tone and the nervous system are interconnected. Therefore, if you can relax your muscles, the tension in the nervous system will decrease. When doing muscle relaxation, you need to strongly tense the muscle and then relax it as much as possible. The muscles are worked in a certain order:
- dominant hand from fingers to shoulder (right for right-handers, left for left-handers)
- non-dominant hand from fingers to shoulder
- back
- stomach
- dominant leg from hip to foot
- non-dominant leg from hip to foot
Breathing exercises. Breathing exercises to relieve stress allow you to regain control over your emotions and body, reduce muscle tension and heart rate.
- Belly breathing. As you inhale, slowly inflate your stomach, then draw air into the middle and upper sections of your lungs. As you exhale, release the air from the chest, then draw in the stomach a little.
- Breathing on a count of 12. While inhaling, you need to slowly count from 1 to 4. Pause – count 5-8. Exhale on a count of 9-12. Thus, the breathing movements and the pause between them have the same duration.
Autorational therapy. It is based on postulates (principles) that help change the attitude towards a stressful situation and reduce the severity of vegetative reactions. To reduce stress levels, a person is recommended to work with his beliefs and thoughts using well-known cognitive formulas. For example:
- What does this situation teach me? What lesson can I learn?
- “Lord, give me the strength to change what is in my power, give me peace of mind to come to terms with what I am not able to influence and the wisdom to distinguish one from the other.”
- It is necessary to live “here and now” or “Wash the cup, think about the cup.”
- “Everything passes and this will pass” or “Life is like a zebra.”
Psychotherapy for stress
Psychotherapy for stress has more than 800 techniques. The most common are:
Rational psychotherapy. The psychotherapist teaches the patient to change his attitude towards exciting events and change incorrect attitudes. The main impact is aimed at a person’s logic and personal values. The specialist helps you master the methods of autogenic training, self-hypnosis and other self-help techniques for stress.
Suggestive psychotherapy. The correct attitudes are instilled in the patient, the main impact is aimed at the person’s subconscious. Suggestion can be carried out in a relaxed or hypnotic state, when the person is between wakefulness and sleep.
Psychoanalysis for stress. Aimed at extracting from the subconscious mental traumas that caused stress. Talking through these situations helps reduce their impact on a person.
Indications for psychotherapy for stress:
- a stressful state disrupts the usual way of life, making it impossible to work and maintain contact with people;
- partial loss of control over one’s own emotions and actions against the background of emotional experiences;
- formation of personal characteristics - suspiciousness, anxiety, grumpiness, self-centeredness;
- a person’s inability to independently find a way out of a stressful situation and cope with emotions;
- deterioration of somatic condition due to stress, development of psychosomatic diseases;
- signs of neurosis and depression;
- post-traumatic disorder.
Psychotherapy against stress is an effective method that helps you return to a full life, regardless of whether the situation has been resolved or you have to live under its influence.
How to recover from stress?
After the stressful situation has been resolved, you need to restore your physical and mental strength. The principles of a healthy lifestyle can help with this.
A change of scenery. A trip out of town, to a dacha in another city. New experiences and walks in the fresh air create new foci of excitement in the cerebral cortex, blocking memories of the stress experienced.
Switching attention. The object can be books, films, performances. Positive emotions activate brain activity, encouraging activity. In this way they prevent the development of depression.
Full sleep. Devote as much time to sleep as your body requires. To do this, you need to go to bed at 10 pm for several days and not get up on the alarm clock.
Balanced diet. The diet should contain meat, fish and seafood, cottage cheese and eggs - these products contain protein to strengthen the immune system. Fresh vegetables and fruits are important sources of vitamins and fiber. A reasonable amount of sweets (up to 50 g per day) will help the brain restore energy resources. Nutrition should be complete, but not too plentiful.
Regular physical activity. Gymnastics, yoga, stretching, Pilates and other exercises aimed at stretching muscles help relieve muscle spasms caused by stress. They will also improve blood circulation, which has a positive effect on the nervous system.
Communication. Hang out with positive people who put you in a good mood. Personal meetings are preferable, but a phone call or online communication will also work. If there is no such opportunity or desire, then find a place where you can be among people in a calm atmosphere - a cafe or a library reading room. Communication with pets also helps restore lost balance.
Visiting a spa, bathhouse, sauna. Such procedures help relax muscles and relieve nervous tension. They can help you get rid of sad thoughts and get into a positive mood.
Massages, baths, sunbathing, swimming in ponds. These procedures have a calming and restorative effect, helping to restore lost strength. If desired, some procedures can be performed at home, such as baths with sea salt or pine extract, self-massage or aromatherapy.
Techniques for increasing stress resistance
Stress resistance is a set of personality qualities that allows you to endure stress with the least harm to health. Resistance to stress may be an innate characteristic of the nervous system, but it can also be developed.
Increased self-esteem. The dependence has been proven - the higher the level of self-esteem, the higher the resistance to stress. Psychologists advise: develop confident behavior, communicate, move, act like a confident person. Over time, the behavior will develop into inner self-confidence.
Meditation. Regular meditation several times a week for 10 minutes reduces anxiety levels and the degree of reaction to stressful situations. It also reduces aggression, which promotes constructive communication in stressful situations.
Responsibility. When a person moves away from the position of a victim and takes responsibility for what is happening, he becomes less vulnerable to external influences.
Interest in change. It is human nature to be afraid of change, so surprise and new circumstances often provoke stress. It is important to create a mindset that will help you perceive change as new opportunities. Ask yourself: “What good can a new situation or life change bring me?”
Striving for achievement. People who strive to achieve a goal experience less stress than those who try to avoid failure. Therefore, to increase stress resistance, it is important to plan your life by setting short-term and global goals. Focusing on results helps you not to pay attention to minor troubles that arise on the way to your goal.
Time management. Proper time management eliminates time pressure, one of the main stress factors. To combat time pressure, it is convenient to use the Eisenhower matrix. It is based on the division of all daily tasks into 4 categories: important and urgent, important non-urgent, not important urgent, not important and non-urgent.
Stress is an integral part of human life. They cannot be completely eliminated, but it is possible to reduce their impact on health. To do this, it is necessary to consciously increase stress resistance and prevent prolonged stress, starting the fight against negative emotions in a timely manner.
According to the US National Institute of Mental Health, about 40 million adults in this country suffer from anxiety and worry, and even more suffer from depression-related illnesses.
Why does modern man suffer so much?
It is estimated that about 18 percent of all people suffer from some form of mental illness. And most other people are subject to too much stress in their lives, especially between the ages of 18 and 55. Some people suffer for specific reasons, namely brain damage, genetic mutations, specific injuries or chemical imbalances. However, in most cases, people suffer from various intensified forms of what is observed in all other people. Some people simply have more of a hard time in life because of particular social conditions or because they are more prone to developing some form of mental health problem.
Sources of stress in the modern world
So why is there so much stress, anxiety and depression in today's world? Evolutionary psychologists say that part of the problem is the mismatch between the modern environment (with its cities, bureaucracy, inequality and mass media) and the environment of evolutionary adaptation (tribal life on the savannah). To explore this possibility, this article will explore several ways in which the modern world is most different from the one in which people's early ancestors lived. Here are five reasons why the modern world creates so much stress, anxiety and depression.
You interact with a wide variety of people
As you meet new people throughout your life, you are exposed to a huge variety of different skills, knowledge and values. Diversity is the source of much good in this world. Diverse groups of skilled people tend to produce much better solutions than homogeneous groups. However, modern diversity also puts a lot of strain on the human brain, especially when it comes to diversity of values. A person has a family. A person also has colleagues, friends, acquaintances. People also join church communities and hobby groups that meet weekly or monthly, in real life or online. Perhaps your family members are Democrats, your colleagues are Republicans, and your friends are generally communists. Your family members love country music, your coworkers love rap and pop, and your friends love rock music. Some of these differences are minor, and some may be a determining factor. In particular, it can generate serious emotional stress, leading to stress and depression.
You are held to higher standards
You watch television and everyone there is so beautiful. You are not that beautiful. How many people in a tribe of 150 people look like Rosario Dawson? How much like Jamie Dornan? You watch television and everyone is so rich. Entrepreneurs are always successful. Authors are always published. People's houses look much better than yours. You watch the Olympic Games and realize that you can neither run nor swim. And you understand that you would have shown nothing in synchronized diving. Only one hundredth of one percent of the world's population gets the chance to showcase their talents, their wealth, and their beauty in front of the public. And these are the people you compare yourself to. This is an unattainably high standard. It's not surprising that you might want to be the prettiest member of the tribe, have the most resources, or be known because you're the best at a particular task. Sometimes you can set a similar goal and realize it. But in the modern world we are not talking about a tribe consisting of 150 people, but about the population of the Earth, which is more than seven billion. Wanting to be among the elite is a recipe for disappointment.
You live more specialized
Aristotle read all the intellectual works that existed in Greece in his time, and then himself created an impressive body of new knowledge. Even up until the 17th century, if you were smart enough and had enough free time, you could study an impressive portion of the academic knowledge that existed at that time. You could read all the "classics". You could study mathematics, philosophy, rhetoric and so on. From the 17th century to the 20th century, you could no longer learn all of human knowledge, no matter how smart you were. But if you worked hard, you could become an expert in one field, such as mathematics, physics, philosophy or history. By 1950, you were lucky if you managed to become an expert in a sub-field, such as Chinese history. Now, if you are lucky, you will be able to master a sub-sub-sub-sphere, such as the history of the first century of the Chin Dynasty, told from the point of view of the servants. Today you need to work very hard to become an expert in even the smallest areas. And the return on this work is the smallest in the entire history of mankind.
Markets have become more efficient
If you provide a product that no one else can provide, you can charge a high price and make a significant amount of money. However, this won't last long. If your profit margin is really high, other people will notice the opportunity and open their own store to compete with you. This will lead to lower prices. If competition is strong enough, prices can fall to a level where they barely cover the cost of producing the product. As consumers, people love it. As entrepreneurs, they hate it. The same dynamics are observed in the labor market. If you have a skill that virtually no one else has, you can charge a high price. However, if your salary is high enough, other people will notice and begin to learn the skills that will allow them to compete with you.
The innovation process has accelerated
People live in amazing times, new discoveries are made every year in almost every scientific field. Every year new gadgets appear on the market. And existing technologies are constantly being improved and improved. Everyone knows that computers are accelerating. Until recently, computer clock speeds have doubled approximately every 18 months since the invention of the first computer. Now your smartphone is much more powerful than the computers that NASA used to carry out the Apollo project. There are reasons to believe that the rate of improvement and development has peaked and is beginning to slow down. However, people are constantly finding new ways, such as parallel computing, to continue to accelerate development.
conclusions
These are the five main differences between the modern world and prehistoric life on the savannah. And these five differences may help explain in large part why there is so much stress and anxiety in the modern world. Based on these data, we can further explore how each of these factors affects a person's basic psychological needs. And thanks to this, you can even try to find solutions to some common modern problems.
Introduction
The many conflicts that accompany our lives often lead to additional nervous stress on a person, to stressful situations, and to the need to manage stress.
The concept of “stress” was borrowed from the field of technology, where it refers to the ability of various bodies and structures to withstand load. Any structure has a strength limit, exceeding which leads to its destruction.
Transferred to the field of social psychology, the concept of “stress” includes a whole range of personality states caused by a variety of events: from defeats or victories to creative experiences and doubts. Some experts believe that stress is the pressure in the world that leads to a state of emotional discomfort. Others believe that emotional discomfort is stress caused by pressures or conditions called stressors.
In general, stress is a common phenomenon. Minor stress is inevitable and harmless, but excessive stress creates problems for both individuals and organizations, making it difficult to complete assigned tasks.
The topic of this course work is relevant for modern society, because people constantly face stress at work, on the street and at home. This topic is especially significant for managers, because the stress experienced by employees can have a destructive impact on both themselves and the organization as a whole.
The purpose of this course work is to learn how to manage stress in order to learn how to reduce the inevitable harm that they bring, to find out the meaning of stress in modern society, its impact on a person in various spheres of life.
Coursework objectives:
1. Describe the basic terms associated with the concept of “Stress”.
2. Analyze the causes and consequences of stress among workers.
3. Develop measures to regulate stress levels.
4. Learn methods of dealing with stress.
The essence and nature of stress
Causes and sources of stress
The word “stress” came into Russian from English and in translation means action, tension, effort, external influence. Stress is a state of increased nervous tension or overexertion caused by any strong impact. The doctrine of stress first appeared in connection with the work of the world famous Canadian physiologist G. Selye (1907-1982). He formulated the universal concept of stress.
At its core, stress is a way to achieve the body's stability in response to a negative factor. Modern life situations lead to a sharp increase in psychological stress on a person. An important prerequisite for the creation of the doctrine of stress was the need to solve the problem of protecting humans from the effects of adverse factors.
The original understanding of stress referred to the body's nonspecific response to any factor. Further study of stress by G. Selye's followers was devoted to the psychological mechanisms of stress, as well as their role in the development of diseases resulting from emotional overstrain. Due to the appearance of a large number of works on this topic, a new concept has come to science - “emotional or psychological stress.”
What is stress? G. Selye gave it the following definition: “Stress is a nonspecific response of the body to any demand presented to it.” While conducting his research, he accidentally discovered a phenomenon that he called general adaptation syndrome (GAS), and ten years later the term “stress” appeared in his work.
The classic model of general adaptation syndrome includes three stages of stress development (anxiety, resistance, exhaustion) and reflects a physiologically oriented approach to stress. Contemporary stress research also focuses on other aspects of stress: psychological (eg, mood changes, negative emotions, and feelings of helplessness) and behavioral (eg, directly confronting or trying to learn about stressors). All three aspects are important for understanding workplace stress and stress management practices in modern organizations.
However, stress is not just nervous tension. In humans, the most common stressor, i.e. the factor causing stress is an emotional stimulus.
Causes of stress. The list of causes of stress is endless. International conflicts, instability of the political situation in the country, and socio-economic crises can act as stressors.
Organizational factors. A significant part of stress-provoking factors is associated with the performance of our professional duties. The following organizational factors can be identified that can cause stress:
b overload or too little workload;
b role conflict (occurs if an employee is presented with conflicting demands);
b role ambiguity (the employee is not sure what is expected of him);
b uninteresting work (a study of 2,000 male workers in 23 occupations showed that those who have more interesting work show less anxiety and are less susceptible to physical ailments than those doing uninteresting work);
b bad physical conditions (noise, cold, etc.)
b incorrect relationship between authority and responsibility;
b poor channels of information exchange in the organization, etc.
Another group of stress factors could be called organizational-personal, since they express a person’s subjectively anxious attitude towards his professional activity.
Organizational and personal factors. German psychologists W. Siegert and L. Lang identify several typical “fears” of workers:
fear that you won’t be able to do your job;
ь fear of making a mistake;
l fear of being left out by others;
b fear of losing your job;
l fear of losing one's own self.
Stressors are also an unfavorable moral and psychological climate in the team, unresolved conflicts, lack of social support, etc.
To this whole “bouquet” of stress of an organizational and production nature can be added problems in a person’s personal life, which provide many reasons for unfavorable emotions. Trouble in the family, health problems, “midlife crisis” and other similar irritants are usually acutely experienced by a person and cause significant damage to his resistance to stress.
Thus, the causes of stress are not much of a secret. The problem is how to prevent stress that affects the causes that cause it. The basic rule here suggests itself: we need to clearly distinguish stressful events that we can somehow influence from those that are clearly not in our control. It is clear that if an individual can influence the crisis situation in the country or in the world, the inevitably approaching retirement age, etc., it will be very little. Therefore, such events should be left alone and focused on those stress factors that we can actually change.
Factors that cause stress, or so-called stressors, affecting workers today include:
1. stress factors outside the organization;
2. group stress factors;
3. stress factors associated with the organization;
Take a closer look at them.
1. Stress factors outside the organization.
Stress at work should not be limited to events and conditions that occur in the workplace. Any organization is an open social system, and its elements - employees - are naturally influenced by external factors, such as changes in society, economic and financial conditions, changes in their personal lives (family problems, aging, death of a close relative, birth of a child, etc.). P.).
Thus, it can be said that an unsatisfactory financial situation can encourage people to take on additional work, resulting in reduced leisure time and increased stress. Family crises are also a serious stress factor for workers. There is also evidence that in families where both spouses work, a stressed husband can “transmit” his stress to his wife.
2. Group stress factors.
Group stress factors include the following:
1) lack of group cohesion - the lack of opportunity for an employee to feel like a member of the team due to the specifics of the workplace, due to the fact that the manager does not allow or limits this opportunity, or because other group members do not accept him into their ranks, can be a source severe stress, especially for workers with a high desire for affiliation;
2) the presence of intrapersonal, interpersonal and intra-group conflicts - the presence of serious contradictions or incompatibility of individual characteristics of the employee’s personality, for example, his personal goals, needs, values, with those socially approved in the group where he works, which means he is forced to constantly be, communicate, interact , is also a serious stress factor.
3. Stress factors related to the organization.
The causes of work-related stress have been studied for a long time, and the list of potential stressors is long. It contains physical factors that turn the workplace into a hostile environment (high temperature, noise, crowded conditions, etc.), as well as a host of psychosocial factors caused by a specific combination of labor, organizational and social characteristics of the workplace. The most well-established stressors associated with the work environment include:
§ uncertainty about the future - for many workers, a constant stressor is the fear of losing their job due to layoffs, inadequate performance indicators, age or for another reason;
§ inability to influence one’s work - as many researchers note, the extent to which a person influences one’s work may be associated with a stressful state. Repetitive, mechanical work and responsibility for things over which people have no control are particularly stressful for some workers;
§ the nature of the work performed - the complexity of the tasks being solved, independence in work, degree of responsibility, working conditions: degree of danger when performing work, noise level, etc., as the results of numerous studies show, can also be attributed to factors that often provoke stress in people workers;
§ role ambiguity and role conflict - both of these conditions are perceived as stressors in most cases. Here, role ambiguity refers to uncertainty in the relationship with the person playing a particular role, and role conflict refers to various incompatible expectations regarding significant people at work;
§ specific organizational structure - for example, the matrix structure of the organization, which involves double subordination, is often a source of stress for an employee who is forced to simultaneously carry out the orders of two managers;
§ stressful management style - frequent use of methods of unjustified pressure and threats is one of the strongest stress factors for subordinates;
§ the pressure of the work schedule - shift work, and especially work on a staggered schedule, often creates the need for a number of psychological and non-work life changes that are potential stressors. On the other hand, very busy work schedules that make it difficult or impossible to simultaneously meet work and personal needs can also be a significant stressor for people in a variety of work situations.
All of the above conditions are potential stressors, not factors that automatically cause stress. Reactions to these stressors vary from person to person. Sensitivity (sensitivity) or stress resistance (tolerance) is influenced by a number of situational and personal variables.
The above-mentioned factors (extra-organizational and group) in a certain sense manifest themselves at the level of the individual. The development of stress is influenced by both individual situational factors and the character and characteristics of the individual.
For example, for an individual who is unable to set clear priorities for himself, a severe stressful situation may be the need to reconcile the roles of an employee and a family member (when the time factor and the corresponding demands at work conflict with the demands made by the family and vice versa).
Researchers also name such individual character traits as authoritarianism, rigidity, imbalance, emotionality, excitability, psychological stability and the need for achievement, etc. as factors contributing to susceptibility to stress. However, most attention has been paid to the character of the so-called type A.
Cardiovascular disease specialists began studying different character types and corresponding behavioral patterns back in 1950 in order to predict the possibility of heart attacks. At the end of the 1960s. Friedman and Rosenman began studying polar character types A and B from the point of view of susceptibility to stress. They defined the Type A personality as “the combination of actions and emotions that can be observed in every person who is in a state of constant and tireless struggle to do more and more in the shortest possible time and even, if necessary, in spite of the efforts of other people and circumstances " Initially, based on research, it was believed that type A is most susceptible to stress and one of its most serious consequences - heart attacks.
However, some modern studies do not confirm these data. Such results may be due to the fact that people of type A, often “constructing” stressful situations for themselves, at the same time usually know how to vent their stress and cope with it better than people of type B. It is believed that susceptibility to stress contributes to not so much the impatience characteristic of Type A, but anger, hostility and aggressiveness.
Another important personality trait is the individual's perception of control over a situation. Although control over the situation in the workplace is often determined organizationally, phenomena such as the individual's predisposition to take responsibility and the so-called “learned helplessness syndrome,” the seminal study of which was carried out by Seligman, cannot be ignored.
Important factors are also:
Ш The nature of the stressor is one of the most important situational factors that determine people's reactions; the fear of losing one's job is likely a greater stressor than, for example, being assigned to an undesirable shift. But this factor does not represent some exceptional threat that causes stress; A combination of different factors can just as easily lead to stress. Small everyday troubles, overlapping each other, can lead to the same result as in the case of one serious event.
Ш The combination of present and absent stressors is also important in determining individual reactions. Poor relationships with coworkers and other people at work, for example, are a potential source of stress, but it has also been noted that good relationships can help reduce negative reactions to other stressors.
Ш The duration of exposure to a stressor is another situational factor that influences individual sensitivity. The daily lack of opportunity to influence the demands of work is more likely to lead to stress than temporary overload at work, caused, for example, by the illness of a colleague. Finally, as the researchers point out, the predictability of the stressor is also important: unpredictable stressors are more likely to cause negative reactions.
The starting point of the problem of a chemically dependent person is tension (stress). It can be triggered by stress factors that cause negative emotions. Such a factor can be almost anything - from family problems to financial problems, and so on.
So, tension (stress)- This is mental discomfort caused by negative emotions. When a person says that he “feels bad at heart,” this is exactly the case. People who are at risk of drug or alcohol addiction are completely unable to cope with stress. Every little thing brings them to the extreme and into a bad mood - even a broken nail can become a strong stress factor.
One of the main skills in life is relieve tension. Mental discomfort will not go away on its own; you need to make an effort. You can imagine a person like a steam boiler. To work properly, it needs to release excess steam through special valves. Only in our case, steam is tension, and valves are various ways to reduce it and completely eliminate it.
A person with an immature or negative mindset not only increases stress levels, but also does a poor job of using their “valves.” If we can change our thinking to a mature and positive one, we will learn not only to use the “valves” correctly, but also to reduce the number of sources of tension. It is our thoughts and attitude towards life that create most of them. Learn to think correctly and you will be able to control stress.
Everyone is more or less affected by negative emotions. But it is the ability to “let off steam” in time and switch to something else that allows you to relieve stress. Most of you have tried some healthy way of relieving stress, something related to positive emotions. It could be:
- any type of activity where energy is consumed (sports, family affairs, participation in social life);
- pleasant conversations with friends or in a club of interests;
- a hobby or job that brings you pleasure;
- spiritual life (reading the Bible, praying, or going to church).
As your alcohol or chemical addiction developed, you stopped having the normal social life you had before. You have stopped using your favorite activities (natural methods) to relieve stress. Yes, many sometimes tried to quit. Many of you have tried to give up alcohol or drugs. But then the stress factor overtook you again. Something happened that created discomfort that had to be stopped in any way. And you stopped—returning to drinking, using chemicals, or both.Since the reasons for creating stressful situations were not excluded by you, they happened again and again. No matter how much you quit, you still return to bad habits. In a word, you are in "rat race", where they simply moved in a circle.
Let's face the truth and rely only on the facts.
The use of alcohol and/or chemical substances could not go unnoticed. These substances have greatly affected you and your psyche, and therefore your behavior. If it was difficult for you before, now you have completely lost your normal, harmonious connection with yourself and the rest of the world. The world sounds dissonant with you, this creates an additional wave of stress, which (again) you try to “quench” with additional portions of ethanol or chemicals.
Your behavior leads to awkward situations, people close to you begin to distance themselves, and you again experience pain and other negative feelings. Stop! It seems to you that you can’t, that all these powders, pills and alcohol will not let you go, that your body will not let you quit and will require these substances again and again. But the truth, the very inconvenient truth, is that it all happens only in your head! It is your thoughts that provoke addiction, and nothing else. Your thoughts determine whether you stop or not. Whether you want to stop or not.But you have to stop, otherwise something else will stop you:
You will commit a crime and serve time in prison,
You will be overtaken by madness and destruction of the body.
In the end there will always be death - either immediately or a little later.
Changing the “pole” of thinking from negative to positive is the only way out of the vicious circle of alcohol and drug addiction. This program will help you start on this path, the path of reducing stress and returning to a normal, healthy life. The truth is that comfort and harmony with yourself and the world around you is possible without the use of alcohol and drugs. Moreover, good condition and peace of mind are achieved only by a healthy lifestyle.
First of all, you need to learn how to reduce tension and neutralize stressful situations. You can avoid creating tension only by recognizing its source.
Recovery chart
Let's immediately begin to figure out what will help you recover, and what you need to get rid of without fail. For clarity, let's draw a diagram by dividing a sheet of paper into two parts with a horizontal line. At the top there will be something that will help you get rid of addiction, at the bottom, respectively, those things that will “pull to the bottom” and from which we will get rid of.
At the top we will immediately note the three most important points. You could say these are the “three pillars” on which the recovery program stands. These “three pillars” are called: Honesty, Humility and Desire. There are three spheres, one of the “whales” is responsible for each.Honesty is responsible for your desire not to lie. The main task is to stop lying to yourself. If you lie to yourself, say that there is no problem, you will not be able to solve it. You also won’t be able to find the source of stress unless you are as honest with yourself as possible. For example, a stress factor is your job. But you constantly repeat to yourself: “I must go to work, I must love (endure) it, because... Be honest with yourself, admit that this work is the source of your emotional discomfort. Only after this will it be possible to search and find a solution to this problem.
Once you stop lying to yourself, you will be free from self-deception and will be able to accept that you are not in control of your addiction situation. How many times have you been told that you can stop whenever you want? Accepting your powerlessness and the fact that chemicals alter your consciousness is the first step towards recovery.
Humility(second name - Submission) is responsible for getting rid of such a negative character trait as pride. This is a very important area. Only by mastering Submission and conquering your pride (or even arrogance) will you be able to adequately assess your life and what is happening around you. By becoming humble, you can accept your situation as it is.
Humility manifests itself in:
- you recognize and accept as a proven fact that your thinking has a negative “pole” and needs to be changed;
- you lower your ego to a normal, adequate level;
- you can develop qualities such as patience and tolerance towards others, and also demonstrate them towards others;
- you are able to understand other people's feelings.
Desire cannot be faked. If you give yourself the wrong attitude, you will hold out for a while, but then you will fall apart again. If you want to be sober and lead a healthy lifestyle not for yourself, but so as not to get fired from your job, or to keep your spouse in the family, this is the wrong mindset. You must have the desire to heal for yourself.
How to find this real, sincere and strong desire in yourself? The answer lies in the first two pillars. Only complete Honesty to yourself and Submission will help you determine guidelines for yourself, understand why you want to be cured. Belief in a Higher Power will also greatly help (everyone has their own, call it whatever you like - God, Krishna...) and that it always helps in fulfilling strong desires.
So, we've dealt with the top part of the sheet. These attitudes indicate mature, balanced, positive thinking. Now is the time to deal with those “weeds” that sprout in thinking and fundamentally change it, making it negative and immature.
As we understood at the very beginning, stress (or tension) is the main catalyst for chemical dependency. Let's look at the main factors that provoke tension.
The main “weed” is resentment. She persecutes, without exception, everyone who suffers from chemical dependency. A person overthinks himself, remembers what offended him, returns to this situation again and again, and so on, to the point that he may begin to hate his offender or even himself. To relieve such strong tension, the “help” of alcohol or drugs is required. Resentment is cured by forgiveness.
Pride prevented you from accepting that there was a problem. Because of her, you didn’t hear the people close to you who were trying to help you. Having developed humility, we accept the situation as it is and take responsibility for ourselves and our dependence on ourselves, and do not shift it to other people and circumstances.
Criticism (condemnation)– is also a very big “weed”, it causes harm both to the one who is criticized and to the one who criticizes. When we criticize someone, our criticism usually destroys the positive attitude, and the situation between you and the person you are criticizing will be tense, to say the least. Criticism also allows you to avoid admitting your own mistakes, which prevents you from moving up the ladder of recovery. Sincere praise sounds better than criticism. If you praise, you will feel how the relationship immediately becomes warmer.
Open your mind and eradicate intolerance. Nobody is perfect, including you. Moreover: what you cannot tolerate in the people around you is inherent in you. Therefore, do not judge others and you will not be judged. And you want to be perceived as you are, right?
Fear anything makes a person very vulnerable. Try to overcome it. Faith will help you in this struggle. Faith and hope are what will help you, if not completely get rid of, then at least minimize your fears. Along with fear, you will also get rid of despair.
Guilt creates a lot of stress. Those people who are suppressed by feelings of guilt hate their conscience. Her rejection does not allow them to look at their actions correctly. People who treat their conscience as a friend know how to correctly explain all their actions. If something happened wrong, they will try to correct it, but will not “drive” themselves into stress because of it. You need to learn to accept failures and your mistakes with calm.
We love everything feel sorry for yourself . It’s easier to feel sorry for yourself than to pull yourself together and start changing the situation. Instead of constantly whining and complaining about how bad everything is and causing yourself mental suffering, develop confidence in your abilities and start changing your life. Self-confidence is no less important than desire.
Dishonesty– one of the main enemies of the first “whale”. It is dishonesty that prevents you from understanding yourself and identifying the sources of discomfort. Cultivate honesty in yourself, and it will gradually begin to bear positive fruit.
Conclusion
You may be surprised that many of the qualities listed below the line at the bottom of the page are common to many people, including those who do not abuse alcohol or drugs. The secret is that the type of our thinking determines our spirituality. Each of the “weeds” kills her, and the opposite quality helps her rise to the highest level.
Many people who have recovered from drug or alcohol addiction say that what helped them most in their struggles were spiritual practices: prayer, meditation and service to others. If you believe in a Higher Power and try to change your life by bringing love into it, you will succeed.
Remember the main thing: everything that is around you depends on your thoughts. If you want to change the world around you, put things in order in your thoughts.