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Hello dear blog readers! You can often hear that it is worth taking care of your nerves and worrying less, as this can cause a lot of diseases and, in general, does not lead to anything good. Therefore, today we will talk about how significant the impact of stress on human health is and is it always as negative as we used to think?
What is it?
The definition itself looks something like this: «stress is the reaction of the body to stimuli, new conditions.» And both negative and positive. That is, a long-awaited meeting or an unexpected gift that you have dreamed of all your life will also be quite dangerous factors.
But somehow it is rather difficult to systematize or designate the causes themselves, the irritants. Since each person is individual, with a certain type of temperament, experience and resources gained, character traits.
For example, if for one person the loss of a loved one is a tragedy, then for another, a broken favorite mirror will cause almost the same emotions.
Similarly, with the consequences, the slightest shock, even a pleasant one, can provoke someone to develop a chronic disease, while another person who allowed himself to cry, let out suffering and pain due to a divorce, will not feel any health problems.
Regarding the novelty of the situation. A person gets used to everything and deadlines in the office may not qualify as stressful over time.
For example, you need to cross the road to get to a bus stop. You have done this a lot of times, especially if this section of the road is regulated by a traffic light. Why, quite unconsciously, you wait for the green light, and then go.
But for a person who has lived all his life in the outback and first came to a big city, such a walk threatens to be not so calm and measured. It is quite normal if he experiences anxiety, restlessness, horror, and even physical discomfort.
History of occurrence
The first changes that occur in the body due to exposure to stimuli were noted by the physiologist Walter Cannon around the early 1900s. He found that in response to frustration, adrenaline begins to be actively released from the adrenal medulla.
Moreover, frustration can be completely different, ranging from hunger to fright from a sharp sound.
And in 1936, Hans Selye conducted a series of experiments on rats, after which he introduced the word «stress» into the terminology. The results showed the same type of reaction of caudates to physical influences in relation to them:
The appearance of ulcers on the gastric mucosa
There is inhibition of the functions of the gastrointestinal tract. Digestion of food is not the most important process at the moment of trying to survive and cope with a source of danger. Or rather, completely unnecessary.
For example, why should we digest food or feel hungry when we are fleeing from a predatory animal or a criminal? Ulcers appear because if such shocks happen often enough, the process of digestion is disturbed.
Have you heard that during a long hunger strike you can’t eat up to satiety, because you can die? The secretory and motor functions of the gastrointestinal tract are inhibited, almost atrophied and unable to cope with unexpected food.
Enlargement of the adrenal cortex
If the cortical layer grows, the production of cortisol is activated, and excessive. This leads to metabolic disorders, the activity of the nervous and immune systems. What threatens with obesity, headaches, high blood pressure and high blood sugar.
Thymus reduction
The thymus is a key, important organ of the immune system. Lymphocytes are formed in brain stem cells, and subsequently enter the thymus gland and are converted into T-lymphocytes.
It is after this transformation that they become able to fight various viruses and infections.
And a decrease in the thymus leads to a decrease in immunity, so a person runs the risk of «catching» a number of dangerous autoimmune, infectious diseases.
Stages of development of stress
Mobilization
At this stage, the person experiences anxiety, the pulse rises, along with pressure, breathing quickens. All attention is focused on the source of danger, the irritant.
There are situations when consciousness narrows, that is, a person does not notice anything around at all, loses the sense of time and himself in space. For example, this happens to women during childbirth. Minutes can feel like hours and vice versa.
The instinct of self-preservation is triggered, all the resources of the body are mobilized to repel the offender or flee, in general, to survive.
If the irritant weakens its influence, the anxiety subsides and the condition gradually returns to normal.
resistance
If the threat does not disappear, the stage of resistance begins. It is during this period that a person adapts to new circumstances. His body uses all the resources, even those that were «reserve», just to cope with the danger.
Disorganization
Gradually, resources run out, resulting in exhaustion, both physical and psychological. The body is no longer able to resist and it is extremely necessary for it to replenish its reserves of energy and strength.
It is during this period that chronic diseases make themselves felt and new ones appear.
Negative reactions
Physiological
- The level of sugar in the blood rises. And since glucose is the source of energy, over time, a person feels a breakdown. Because the over-excitement and resource mobilization that comes with challenging situations simply leads to exhaustion.
- Among other things, a frequent increase in blood sugar can trigger the onset of diabetes.
- A decrease in leukocytes due to the gradual extinction of the thymus, that is, the thymus gland. Interruptions in work affect the immune system, as a result of which the protective functions of the body are reduced.
- The thymus gland is also responsible for cell regeneration, respectively, a person who often experiences stress looks older than his years.
- Muscle tissues and cells are destroyed due to the fact that the person does not have time to recover and rest. After all, what is the first reaction to stress? The whole body tenses up and is ready to run, fight, defend. And because of the destruction, a person constantly experiences pain in the muscles and joints.
- Violation of the blood supply due to the fact that capillaries expand. Organs do not receive enough of the necessary nutrients, oxygen, hormones, and so on. So, there is a failure in the operation of all systems. First of all, the most vulnerable and weak points make themselves felt.
- When capillaries expand, they tend to burst, forming hematomas.
- Difficulties in metabolic processes lead to a malfunction, cells begin to actively produce toxins, that is, harmful substances. And they are not excreted, but accumulate, gradually poisoning the body.
- Cholesterol rises, and with it the risk of a heart attack.
- Blood pressure rises, which causes headaches.
- Decreased libido, sexual arousal. And along with it, the opportunity to conceive a child, to endure.
- Sleep disorders appear, mainly insomnia.
- Depression, from which it is sometimes not so easy to recover, especially without qualified help.
Emotional
- Intrusive thoughts may be disturbing.
- Bouts of anger, panic or hysteria.
- Frequent mood swings as a reaction to the slightest stimulus.
- Loss of interest and excitement and, as a result, the loss of the meaning of life.
- Decrease in self-esteem, as a person ceases to believe that he will cope with adversity. And with each new complexity, he becomes more and more convinced of his inability to confront problems.
Behavioral
- Short temper and irritability lead to conflicts, both at work and in personal life. As a result, relationships are destroyed. The emotional state worsens due to a feeling of total loneliness or misunderstanding, rejection by others.
- Due to depression, there is a risk of suicidal behavior. That is, when a person periodically makes attempts to commit suicide until one of them succeeds.
- Efficiency is reduced, and this threatens not only with the loss of work, but also with increased stress with all the ensuing negative consequences. Because the loss of a source of income makes it impossible to take care of security, saturation and satisfaction of needs.
Intellectual
Due to the fact that there is a failure in the production of cortisol, that is, the stress hormone, and also due to an increase in the productivity of glucocorticoids, changes occur in the hippocampus, and this eventually affects intellectual abilities. For example, there are problems:
- With concentration. A person loses the ability to concentrate on the important and notice not only some details, but also events taking place outside. Absent-mindedness can lead to victimization, when, due to the fact that a person does not track events in the surrounding reality, he gets into unpleasant situations, becoming a victim, for example, of a robbery.
- With memory. Up to the ability to formulate thoughts. A person forgets words, terms, what he was going to do a couple of minutes ago, and so on.
- With perception. A person is sometimes unable to adequately perceive what happened and draw conclusions, process information in a quality manner. Therefore, sometimes the slightest failure seems like a huge unbearable tragedy. Or really dangerous moments are devalued.
Due to all the above consequences, the ability to learn is also reduced. The efficiency of intellectual labor drops significantly.
Positive reactions
Despite the fact that little is believed in the miraculous beneficial consequences of the difficulties experienced, they are. So what’s good:
Development
An increase in adrenaline levels calls for action. It is difficult to sit still and try to relax at such a moment. And by acting, a person may well cope with the problem itself, which caused unnecessary stress.
In addition, it often happens when a person is able to become active and perform actions only under the influence of an emotional shock. That is, it develops, advances, and achieves success by stepping out of its comfort zone, trying new things and trying to creatively adapt to change.
So we can safely say that frustration is the engine of progress. Few people made brilliant discoveries, living a measured and calm life, spending their free time on the couch. No, usually some difficulties are pushing for the search for solutions that will help improve the situation.
Strengthening relationships
In addition to the fact that at the moment of anger a person is able to destroy everything that he managed to build and create, problems, in fact, can bring them together. Usually it is when we get into trouble that we understand whether we can trust a friend or not. Then it becomes clear who you can rely on, and with whom it is better not to intersect.
Therefore, it is precisely the one who gave a helping hand in difficult times that is valuable. We want to be useful to him in return, the level of trust is growing, the closeness, respectively, the connection is strengthening, forming friendly, faithful and valuable relations for many years.
Self-concept
If you manage to emerge victorious from trouble, to cope with any difficulty, a person feels self-respect. He understands that he can be sure that he is able to withstand a lot and come up with a solution to even a very difficult problem.
And self-confidence pushes for risk, achievement and deeds.
In addition, positive experience allows you to withstand more serious situations in the future.
Completion
As you can see, stress has both positive and negative properties. The main thing is that it does not turn into acute or chronic, when insomnia, irritability, apathy and a number of diseases really occur, it is important to relieve stress in time and relax, rest, recover.
You will find the most effective ways to deal with stress by clicking on this link.
Good luck, take care of yourself and be happy!
The material was prepared by a psychologist, Gestalt therapist, Zhuravina Alina