Stress is different things to different people. To a mountaineer it is the challenge of pushing physical resources to the limit by striving to achieve a demanding goal. To the motorist it can be the hassles of heavy traffic and obnoxious exhaust fumes. To the student it can be exam pressure and the struggle of growing up.
However, not all stress is negative. The word eustress has been coined to describe positive stress. Eustress results from exhilarating experiences. It is the type of stress you are likely to experience when you inherit a large amount of money or receive an unexpected promotion or reward. Eustress is the stress of winning and achieving.
Negative stress is distress. It is the stress of losing, failing, overworking and not coping. Distress affects people in a negative often harmful manner. We all experience distress from time to time. It is a normal, unavoidable part of living. Most people need assistance of one sort or another to deal with stress.
Stress results from failure to adequately cope with stressors. Stressors could be loud noise, uncomfortable air-conditioning, debts, ringing telephones, broken relationships, unrealistic deadlines, discouragement, fear, pain and thousands of other things that impact upon us in the normal course of life.
It is impossible to avoid stressors. The only totally stress-free state is death! Stressors will always be there because we live in an imperfect and unpredictable world.
We experience stress as the body adjusts to the external demands placed upon it. Our body constantly seeks to maintain stability and stress is usually sensed as the body readjusts to too much pressure.
Scientists use the term HOMEOSTASIS (homeo = the same; stasis = standing) to define the physiological limits in which the body functions efficiently and comfortably. Stress disturbs homeostasis by creating a state of imbalance. The source of stress may be outside the body or it may originate from within the body in the form of blood pressure, pain, tumours or disturbing thoughts.
We need to assist our bodies to cope with stress because our natural biological stress-adjustors are not ideally suited to the demands of modern living. Our bodies are well suited to cope with the stressors faced by our primitive ancestors. The stressors faced by humans conditioned to a nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle are obviously different to the high-tech lifestyle of today. Our distant ancestors needed chemical responses to stress to enable them to trigger physical flight or fight responses to the perils and pleasures of hunting. These types of responses are inappropriate today. If you physically ran away from your workplace whenever things got on top of you then this would not enhance your standing in the Organization. Conversely if you punch the boss on the nose when he/she gives you a tough time then the resulting dismissal and assault charges will generate considerably greater levels of stress. Consequently we need to develop special skills to deal with special stressors.
We are all very aware of specific stressors that affect us. As already discussed these assume many shapes and forms. In addition to the specific stressors there are also back-ground stressors that can have a more subtle but equally damaging impact on us.
What happens within our bodies when we encounter a stressor? Quite a lot actually. The stressor initially excites the hypothalamus which is the part of the brain under the thalamus controlling body temperature, hunger, thirst and the pituitary gland. The hypothalamus stimulates the pituitary (a cherry-sized gland at the base of the brain) to release a hormone chemical ACTH (an abbreviation for adrenocorticotrophic hormone) into the bloodstream. Once released, ACTH stimulates the adrenal glands to secrete further chemicals that affect various parts of the body. The net effect of this process is that the body becomes charged up on full alert for a fight or flight response. This is why we often feel tense and highly strung when under a lot of stress. Although the body has a feedback system to settle us down again once the crisis passes we often stay alert because our thinking continues to trigger off the response. For example, if you have a deadline to meet with a particular project then the thought of the deadline and all the work you have to process to meet it may cause you to feel stressed.
Over a long period of time the stress response begins to take a toll on the body. One of the prime targets affected is the thymus gland (a mysterious pale grey gland that sits behind the breastbone, above the heart) which plays a key role in the body’s immune system. The thymus gland pumps out millions of lymphocytes each day to patrol throughout the body and to kill off bacterial invaders. Killer cells called macrophages literally eat invading bacteria. They operate in all parts of the body and we depend on them for our survival. Macrophages are weakened by a steroid called cortisol which is released by the adrenal gland when we experience stress. A weakened immune system makes us vulnerable to infection and this is why people under stress often experience regular attacks of colds and flu.
Many types of diseases have been linked with stress including high blood pressure, heart attacks, heart disease, peptic ulcers, migraine headaches, pains in the neck, and certain types of asthma, many forms of cancer, alcoholism, depression and toxicmanias (the overwhelming desire to consume poisons).