Effects Of Stress On The Body

Stress is very well known for just what it means: STRESS. Its effect on human beings from a local and a global standpoint is far greater than any of us imagine. Stress can overtake one’s body physically, mentally, emotionally, as well as behavioral aspects. This is not something to take lightly. This is actually very serious. If you notice, it’s not just older people that die this day and time with heart attacks, suicide, and things of this nature. People of all ages. Older people, younger people, and even really young people. Children, yes, I said children. Don’t automatically think that stress only affects older people that have lived a longer

There are three different theories that are used when talking about how we react to stress through the physiological aspect or the psychological aspect. The first is part of the physiological aspect of stress called the Cannon Fight or Flight theory which was proposed in 1914. Fight or Flight response is a physiological stress response that evolved to help organisms to survive immediate danger. The theory states that when an organism, human being or animal, faces imminent danger (acute stressor) the body arouses quickly and is ready to act via two different systems. They are the sympathetic nervous system and the endocrine system. The sympathetic nervous system stimulates the adrenal medulla which is part of the endocrine system and is the region that produces the hormones such as adrenaline and noradrenaline. These hormones increase heart rate, blood flow, and glucose levels to prepare the body for an emergency. This response from the body suggests that the body knows how to protect itself and reach homeostasis. These two systems work together to either fight against the danger or flight away from the danger. Lord, King and Pfister in 1976 studied the Fight or Flight response in animals through a very unethical study. They administered chemicals on male hooded Wistar rats which inhibited the neurotransmitters from functioning normally. This made it very difficult for the rats to escape an electric shock. The results of the study suggest that the Flight or Fight response

Stress is defined as “a specific response by the body to a stimulus, as fear or pain, that disturbs or interferes with the normal physiological equilibrium of an organism” (Dictionary.com, n.d.). Stress is part of the health and illness continuum and it can cause illness through physical changes or behavioral changes. The role of stress and pain experienced by an individual can affect their psychological well-being as well as their physical well-being. The psychological factors of stress determine whether or not stress develops into an illness. There are different types of psychological factors or moderators that can be used to alleviate stress and relieve pain. In 2011, a research study showed that blogging may have health benefits in treating chronic pain and illness. (Ressler, et al., 2012) I will attempt to identify and describe the positive and negative effects of blogging in regards to stress and illness.

People are increasingly facing more stress since the Human-Being society became developed and complicated, by ignoring the physical influence to our body, Human’s health suffered considerably from stress. Many people was suggested to solve the stress problem by using psychological approaches, however, the research in recent decades has identified a significant awareness gap between the benefits of physical activities and stress relief. The following paper is aiming at exploring how stress affects physical health and how to relieve stress physically.

In the article,” Chronic stress can wreak havoc on the body” written by Nathan Seppa, he discusses the impact stress has on the body. Stress is a feature of our daily life. One stress in particular is chronic stress. Stated in the article, it states,” Chronic stress is the kind that comes from recurring pain, post-traumatic memories, unemployment, family tension, poverty, childhood abuse, caring for a sick spouse or just living in a sketchy neighborhood.” Chronic stress is around us constantly. According to the article, it states,” Nonstop, low-grade stress contributes directly to physical deterioration, adding to the risk of heart attack, stroke, infection and asthma. Even recovery from cancer becomes harder.” People do not realize that stress

Once your brain has decided there’s a danger, in stressful situations, it sends immediate nerve signals down your spinal cord to the pituitary gland and all the ways to the kidneys where your adrenal gland resides, which is how adrenaline is released. Once released, adrenaline increases the amount of sugar in your blood, increases your heart rate and raises your blood pressure. The brain’s hypothalamus also sends signals to your pituitary gland, which allows the body to release Cortisol: Cortisol is a stress response that allows the blood and sugar pressure to remain high, which helps when escaping from danger. For instance, in an interview, which presents a challenge, simulated the same biological reaction that a threat to your life does.

Stress is a very common everyday thing. People have stress so much that most of the time they don’t even know how much it’s affecting them. Stress can really affect your body, mind, and behavior. It is a normal response to situations that make you feel upset or threatened in a way. Stress is the body’s way of change. The change can either be good or bad.

Dr. McEwen explains what happens to the brain when it is on stress, “The brain perceives and determines what is threatening as well as the behavioral and physiological responses to the stressor, which not only promote adaptation (“allostasis”) but also contribute to pathophysiology (“allostatic load/overload”) when those responses are overused and dysregulated.” (McEwen,1)

Acute stress causes the arousal of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The ANS comprises of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) which prepares the individual for ‘fight or flight’ and the parasympathetic branch, which returns the individual to their original state of relaxation. Part of the SNS response is the sympathetic adrenal system (SAM), this system along with the SNS is collectively called the sympathomedullary pathway. The SNS is activated when the neurotransmitter noradrenaline is released and travels to the organs of the body preparing them for rapid action. Common responses to this would be increased heart rate, increased pupil size and metabolic changes such as a release of

The response of the body to stress is somewhat like an airplane readying for take-off. Virtually all systems (the heart and blood vessels, the immune system, the lungs, the digestive system, the sensory organs, and brain) are modified to meet the perceived danger. During conditions of stress there is a shift in the balance between two branches of the automatic nervous system (ANS) – the Sympathetic Nervous System (SNS) and Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS).During stressful conditions, the activity of the SNS increases to prepare the body for the fight – or fight response. This means that, among other things, there is an increased heart rate, blood flow, and Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) – basically how sweaty our skin is! This response can be thought of as a shift in energy from the process of digestion to the muscles, meaning that the body is ready to take

As a consequent of stress a student’s body, mood, and behavior can, unfortunately, be affected. Correspondingly, other body effects of stress include headaches, angriness, drug abuse, and pain throughout the body, according to MedicineNet. Stress can become a very serious issue if left untreated and can become overwhelming. Chronic stress occurs when stress prolongs and becomes too much for one to handle, according to WebMD. When one cannot handle the stress he or she has encountered, innumerable stress hormones are released into one’s body, and there is a reduction of serotonin in the brain, as stated on WebMD. Consequences of this sudden action, consequently, results in high blood pressure, health issues, heart issues, and strokes, according

Stress can defiantly effect someones day and mood, it can alter your overall behavior and reaction to a certain situation. After creating a 4 day consecutive log of my stressors it made me realize different coping mechanisms that I could use when I am feeling overwhelmed. The first stressor I experienced was while I was at clinical. One of my patients came to the ER for pain in her pelvic region “she stated that she felt and heard a pop in her lower abdomen.” I then performed a transvaginal ultrasound on her(to rule out ovarian torsion), this ultrasound can be very uncomfortable especially if you are already in pain. Ovarian Torsion is a serious and critical matter it refers to the rotation of the ovary; occluding the ovarian artery and or

When our brain detects a stressor the amygdala, an area of the brain that is involved in emotional processing, directs a distress signal to the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus sends a signal to the sympathetic nervous system to activate the fight-or-flight response to direct our body to respond to the imminent physical danger or psychological threat. The fight-or-flight response is known as the first stage of the Hans Selye’s general adaptation syndrome. Consequently, the adrenal glands will produce catecholamines such as epinephrine and norepinephrine into the bloodstream (Copstead & Banasik, 2013 p.14). This results in an increase in heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate and there’s also an increase in blood flow towards the

The frequency of the stress health-related behavior plan for changes is that I am changing the behavior gradually. Therefore, I will engage in the behavior 5 times a week, and I will not engage in the behavior 2 times out of the week. However, I am taking this stress health-related behavior plan for changes one step at a time. Furthermore, some days are better than others, and I try to make myself aware of my actions and behaviors, so I can channel them in a positive manner.

Psychological stress is pressure placed on a person to adapt, cope, or adjust to a situation (Rathus, 2016, p.284). The result of prolonged stress can affect a person’s mood, pleasure experience, and have harmful effects on physical health (Rathus, 2016, p.284). Society in the twenty first century places high demands on people. Technology makes it very difficult to separate work life, school life, and home life. Today, society places a high value on a busy lifestyle for individuals. For example, many places of business are open twenty-four hours a day. In addition to societal pressures, attending a university adds to the stressors a person may experience. Going to school not only includes classroom time but it also includes homework,