Stress

Everyone feels worried or tense sometimes. Stress is the physical and emotional response that’s necessary for dealing with situations that are frightening, confusing or exciting. But if there is too much stress, it can trigger off many diseases and disorders.

What is stress?

Stress is an experience or feeling, which occurs when the pressure to perform a particular task becomes so overwhelming that it becomes impossible for the person to deal with the pressure. We all feel a certain amount of stress in our lives. We do feel worried or tense or upset or even sad and angry at sometime or the other. These are normal feelings but sometimes we become stressed and we are not able to cope with our stressful feelings. In extreme cases, stress can also lead to more serious mental ailments like chronic Anxiety, Depression or Panic attacks.

Stress is the physical and emotional response necessary for dealing with situations that are frightening, confusing, exciting or tiring. But if there is too much stress, it can trigger off many diseases and disorders like Insomnia, Ulcers, High blood pressure, asthma, migraine and more. What can make long term stress so damaging, is the fact that it produces chronic tension. It is like the body is in a state of constant preparation for meeting a challenge.

What is ‘flight’ or ‘fight’ response?

When you are especially stressed, you may develop a flight or fight response. Your breathing may quicken and also become shallow, and your heart may start to race. You mouth will turn dry and your palms will start sweating. These are signs that you are experiencing a ‘flight’ or ‘fight’ response that is inbuilt into your system. This system actually helps you deal with a dangerous situation. This response occurs because stress hormones are released whenever you are feeling threatened.

How to recognize stress within you?

If you are currently facing a crisis, or a situation in which you are not relaxed, look out for these signs of stress: –

BODY CHANGES	FEELINGS	BEHAVIOR
Sweating	Fear	Avoidance
Shaking	Anger	Poor concentration
High blood pressure	Depression	Denial
Racing heart	Restlessness	Escape
Dry mouth	Irritability	Aggression/Violence
Choking sensation	Insecurity
Churning stomach	Confusion

What causes stress?

Stress can be caused by a single factor or a combination of factors. Some of these may include.

• Pressure of school work
• Studying for an exam
• Being bullied or otherwise teased by schoolmates
• Getting into argument with your parents, siblings or friends
• Work overload
• Long working hours
• Insecurity about employment
• Unemployment
• Harassment at work
• Bad relationships
• Financial burdens
• Death of a loved one
• Divorce
• Traumatic event

The stress we feel can become very worrisome under certain situations like during or after a family or a relationship breakup, or because of loss of a loved one, or because of physical or sexual abuse. Some people are equipped to handle stress but many people are not able to withstand it.Some people may start taking drugs or start drinking alcohol to cope with their stress but this will worsen the situation over a period of time. If you are feeling too stressed, then you should seek help instead of using drugs and alcohol to cope with your feelings.

How does stress affect a person?

Different people react to stress in different ways. It may have an effect on your body as well as feelings. Some of these effects include:

• Feeling very tired
• Not being able to sleep at night
• Losing one’s appetite, nausea
• Aches in the abdominal region
• Experiencing frequent headaches
• Feeling pain and aches in the shoulder and neck regions

Your feelings may make you:

• Feel very sad
• Become irritable
• Feel unduly worried or apprehensive
• Become angry easily
• Feel like being on the edge
• Be unable to unwind and enjoy things
• Stop you from concentrating on your work

What should I do to handle my stress?

You can handle your stress in different ways. Among other things you can:

• Stop yourself from suffering in silence
• Talk about your condition with others who can help you handle the stress better
• List all the stressors and then tackle each stressor one by one. It is easier to deal with each stressor one-by-one rather than have many of them troubling your mind at the same time
• Try to relax by doing something different
• Relax by taking a warm bath , listening to music, watching a humorous movie
• Exercising helps as it produces more endorphins in your brain, which help to improve your mood

Who can help me if I am feeling very stressed?

If you are feeling very stressed, then it is important that you turn to someone for help. The person can be:

• Your best friend
• Family member or friend of the family
• Your school teacher or counselor
• A psychologist or counselor in a clinic or hospital
• A  guru, priest, or a spiritual leader
• Person from your community or neighborhood you trust
• An office colleague who can give good counsel

If you are feeling a lot of stress then you may want to speak about your problem with someone on the phone. Talking on the phone is a good way of getting things off your mind immediately and gets relief. Stress or Crisis Helplines are also available in some cities, otherwise reach out through Online Counseling services that are more readily available these days.

When should I seek professional help?

There are times when the stress that you are feeling becomes so overwhelming that you will not be able to deal with it on your own. At such times you need to get professional help. Don’t ignore the situation as the stress will increase and make things worse for you. If you notice the following symptoms or signs, then it is time for you to seek professional help:

• The symptoms of stress are too acute for you to cope with
• Stress is having a detrimental effect on your health
• You are developing physical illnesses very fast or already have them
• Stress makes you feel desperate enough to quit going to school, workplace
• Stress makes you feel like to harm yourself or run away from home
• Your mood becomes very sad and you feelhopeless and think that there is no point in living
• You lose interest in food and cannot get sufficient sleep at night
• You are worried and you feel and think that it is impossible to discuss things with others because they will not understand you or think you are unstable
• Voices in your head are telling you to do certain things or behave in a strange manner
• Used drugs or alcohol to cope with your stress

How can the psychiatrist or psychologist help?

For those who cannot develop their own coping methods to deal with stress, the mental health professional may work out a Cognitive BehaviorTherapy (CBT)program in which the person can be trained in coping skills. Relaxation and stress are two sides of the same coin. Relaxation is the key to coping with stress. The psychiatrist or psychologist can train you in special Breathing exercises to bring about quick relaxation for dealing with situations that make you feel stressed;Progressive muscular relaxation which involves training the brain to distinguish between relaxed and tensed muscles in the body and control them; machine assisted relaxation methods, such as Biofeedback,  to teach control over body tension. Through Cognitive restructuring techniques the person will be taught to recognize and change his or her unhelpful thought patterns and underlying beliefs thatcause emotional distress and negative behaviors in them. This focuses on developing positive thinking patterns and coping skills. Supportive Counseling will be of help in working through problems for people who have a constant stress factor in their lives. Medication may be required for a short time to bring down the extreme levels of stress so that other techniques may be applied.Mindfulness meditation and exercises have also been successfully employed in dealing with Stress.

What can I do to deal with stress?

You can deal with stress in different ways. Here are some ways to deal with stress:

• Examine aspects of life and try to identify sources of stress.
• See what you can do to change these situations, or how you can overcome the source of stress by reappraisal of the situations that seem to be related to it.
• Think of the skills you need to deal with situations, and practice them. In this way, you will increase your personal resources and not find situations so stressful.
• Learn methods of relaxation – frequent holidays, doing things you enjoy, favorite sports and hobbies, dance, music, yoga, or meditation.
• Never take alcohol/tobacco/or addictive substances for stress or medication without the strict supervision of a psychiatrist. They can create a serious and damaging dependency.