Reflection On Emotion, Stress And Health

According to Janeway1, “stress is a physical or psychological stimulus which, when impinging upon an individual , produces strain or disequilibrium”.1 Stress is a biological, physiological and behavioural response to environmental demands. An appropriate amount of stress has protective and adaptive functions however a high amount of stress can cause pathological changes or even death.4 Exposure to stress can lead to painful emotions such as anxiety or depression, as well as physical illness.3 People under an overwhelming amount of stress may experience tachycardia, palpitations and rapid breathing.7

Feeling gloomy, sad, or depressed can take a toll on people’s health. When we experience negative emotions we might not get enough sleep, make unhealthy dietary choices such as eating unhealthy and consuming drugs and alcohol. In order to avoid these unhealthy choices Dr. Barrett’s research has shown that labeling each emotion correctly can trigger the body to make the appropriate decision on how to deal with the problem rather than leading us to make “bad” choices. Emotional granularity can make each individual experience the world and themselves to the best of their abilities. It can help each person create a better sense of

We are exposed to various emotions everyday, whether it is at work, at school, on the street, or even at home. An emotion could be described as an individual’s reaction to an event, in which that individual is aware of his/her own feeling. There are two types of emotions, positive and negative. Positive emotions could include feelings such as love, joy, and bliss. Negative emotions could include feelings like fear, anger, and anxiety. Social psychologists are under the impression that negative emotions are stronger than positive emotions. Emotions have physiological as well as mental components. This means that there is some form of arousal and thinking involved. Now that we know a little about emotions, one might ask, what are the basic

Jennifer S. Lerner, author of Emotion and Decision Making, talks about how our emotions can actively affect our actions. In Lerner’s book, it states, “We start with emotions arising from the judgement or a choice at hand, a type of emotion that strongly and routinely shapes decision making.” Our emotions cause us to make certain decisions in our everyday lives. For example a person who is feeling nervous and anxious about a specific outcome of a risky situation may choose a more safe route. A person who admires an organization may donate money. In both cases, our the way we feel about something or someone determines how we address a situation and how we treat someone or something. In some way our emotions act as our conscience in each situation we go through that requires us to choose an outcome .

Stress is the process of measuring and responding to a threatening or challenging event. If it lasts a short time it can actually be beneficial and can mobilize the immune system to fight off infections and heal our wounds. Stress has an arousal property that motivates us to solve our problems. Extreme or prolonged stress on the other hand can be very harmful and can lead to chronic disease. Stressors fall into three categories: Catastrophic, significant life changes, and daily hassles. All can be bad for us.

Attempts to define “emotion” have proved to be rather difficult. Instead of searching for a comprehensive definition, Gross (2011) describes the three core features of emotions. First, emotions occur when an individual decides that a situation is relevant to his or her goals. Second, emotions are multi-faceted, and involve both subjective and physiological experiences, as well as behaviors. The third feature involves the authoritative nature of emotions. They have the powerful ability to interrupt ongoing processes, assert their priority over other activities, and force their way into awareness. For example, some traditions describe emotions as “disorganized interruptions of mental activity” (Salovey & Mayer, 1989). Emotions are such an

Emotions are used in everyday life, whether it be just a simple smile that makes happiness disperse in your brain, or a death of a loved one that causes sadness. The basic emotions are joy, interest, surprise, sadness, anger, disgust, contempt, fear, shame, and guilt. The way we see emotion in ourselves and others can be very complex because we sometimes assume they feel a certain way just based on their actions or even facial expressions. When emotion is discussed in psychological terms, it is not based on one thing, instead it’s a mix of bodily arousal, expressive behaviors, conscious experience. Many theories try to explain how emotion works.

You might feel satisfied after having a good night’s sleep, nervous before exams and finals, or angry when you stub your toe. However, a person’s emotions can also lead them to make bad decisions

Emotions are a necessary part of our whole humanity. They may be more than we have learned to be comfortable with, but they are not too much.

Stress affects your health without you even realizing it. Constant headaches or trouble sleeping would be something stress causes often. This can get bad enough which leads to serious health problems such as obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Stress effects your body with things like muscle

The major focus of this chapter was stress and the effect it has on the body. Stress is the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events, called stressors, that we appraise as threatening or challenging. The concept of appraisal is the important part here. Stress can be affected through this psychological filter, either making the stressor feel threatening or challenging. The way we perceive it can have either positive or negative effects. Stress, when perceived negatively can lead to issues such as coronary heart disease or increased susceptibleness to colds (Myers, 2014).

more of a feeling, although the emotions usually come along with stress. Which is no surprise

Stress affects the body in many different ways. Many doctors estimate that stress is involved in more than half of all illnesses (Sapolsky, 21). Stress may cause or prolong an illness or increase its severity. Epinephrine and norepinephrine are hormones that are released during a stress reaction that affect organs throughout the body. As a result from the hormones being secreted, the heart begins to beat more rapidly, muscle tension increases, blood pressure raises, and heavy breathing may occur. This reaction is known as the fight-or-flight response. The fight-or-flight response energizes the body to either confront or flee from a threat. Heredity, learning, and injuries all play a role in determining where or when a stress related illness may occur in a particular individual (Sapolsky, 22).

The discovery of intense emotions has the power to create urgency for individuals, which result in sudden and sometimes irrational decisions.

Stress is something that affects many people each and every day. Life is full of hassles, deadlines, frustrations, and demands. For some people stress is so common it is a way of life. Stress can be very harmful and or helpful. It could help motivate you to meet a deadline and perform a task under pressure. Stress can also be very harmful, such as memory problems, moodiness, aches and pains, and eating more or less.