STRESS, HEALTH, & COPING

Abbey Petersen, Ashley Murray, Stephanie White, Kaytlin Yates

What is Stress?

Forces from the inside or outside world affecting the individual

It is usually thought of as a negative experience, but from a biological point of view, stress can be a neutral, negative, or positive experience.

Common Causes & SignsStress happens when people feel like they don’t have the tools

to manage all of the demands in their lives.

CAUSES:•Death•Divorce•Losing your job•Major illness/injury•Marital Separation•Marriage•Pregnancy•Retirement •Jail

SIGNS:•Increased irritability•No concentration•Nightmares•Headaches•Decreased appetite•Feelings of guilt•Poor self-esteem•Decreased sex drive•Aches & Pains•Negative Attitude

:

Types Of Stress

DON’T LET THIS BE YOU!

Stress can make

you do crazy

things!!!!!

Eustress• It is the type of stress you experience right before you have the

need to exert physical force. It prepares the muscles, heart, and

mind for the strength needed for whatever is about to occur.

• When the body enters the fight or flight response, it will experience

eustress.

• This type of stress will cause the blood to pump to the major

muscle groups, and will increase the heart rate and blood pressure

to increase. (Adrenalin)

Stress that the mind and body undergoes when the normal routine is constantly adjusted and altered. Your mind is not comfortable with this routine, and craves the familiarity of a common routine.

There are actually two types of distress Acute Stress- Acute stress is the type of stress that comes immediately with

a change of routine. It is an intense type of stress, but it passes quickly. Acute stress is the body's way of getting a person to stand up and take inventory of what is going on, to make sure that everything is OK.

Chronic Stress- Chronic stress will occur if there is a constant change of routine for week after week. Chronic stress affects the body for a long period of time. This is the type of stress experienced by someone who constantly faces moves or job changes.

Distress

3 Common Reactions to Stress

Acute stress response: This is most commonly linked to sudden, unexpected events.

Delayed stress response:Signs and Symptoms may not occur for days, months, or years.

Cumulative stress response:

Commonly called a “burnout”. This is many stressors accumulated over time and then they lash out.

Resilience

Resilience: The capacity to adapt well despite significant adversity and to

overcome serious stress.

Resilience has been defined as “a dynamic process encompassing positive adaptation within the context of significant adversity”

3 Parts of Resilience Resilience is dynamic, not a stable trait, which

means a given person may be resilient at some periods but not at others. It is more evident in middle childhood than earlier.

Resilience is a positive adaptation to stress. For example, if rejection by a parent leads a child to establish a closer relationship with another adult, that child is resilient.

Adversity must be significant. Some adversities are comparatively minor and some are major. Resilient children overcome conditions that overwhelm many of their peers.

Challenges and Coping in Children (Table 8.2)

1965: All children have the same needs for healthy development.

1970: Some conditions or circumstances are harmful for every child.

1975: All children are not the same.

1980: Nothing inevitably causes harm. Indeed, both maternal employment and preschool education, once thought to be risk factors, typically benefit children.

1985: Factors beyond the family are very risky for the child.

1990: Risk-benefit analysis finds that some children seem to be “invulnerable” to, or even to benefit from circumstances that destroy others.

1995: No child is invincibly resilient.

2000: Risk-benefit analysis involves the interplay among all three domains including factors within the child. Most people overcome problems, but the problems are real.

2009: The focus is on strengths, not risks.

HealthThe body responds to stress by releasing hormones. These

hormones can make Blood Pressure, Heart Rate, and Blood sugar levels go ↑↑↑.

Stress can cause health problems including:

• Depression/Anxiety• Obesity (comfort from food)• Heart Disease• High BP• Menstrual Problems• Acne/Skin Problems• Can worsen ulcers

Coping Coping refers to efforts to manage your stress. 2 types of coping are adaptive coping and

maladaptive coping. Adaptive coping- Confronting the problem

directly Maladaptive coping- Using drugs or alcohol to

escape.

Some researchers believe that people have different ways of coping for different situations. Meaning a lot of different styles for different people and situations.

Coping Strategies

There are many different strategies good and bad…

GOOD BAD

Relaxation- yoga, meditation, zumba. Aggressive Behavior

Talking or writing about it Overeating

Exercise Smoking

Social support- therapy. Excessive Alcohol & Drugs

Develop a new attitudeTake care of your bodyConnect with others

Video

http://www.5min.com/Video/How-Stress-Affects-Your-Body-326727483

Relaxation Time

Let’s relax for a couple minutes….Think about happy things…..Stop for a few minutes and put out all the stresses in your

life and just RELAX

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FShJt54nbNQ

Question

True/FalseIs maladaptive coping a good strategy for coping?