Stress

What is Stress?

Stress in general terms is any form of tension that one may experience physically or psychologically. Any type of event, medical condition, or thought can also lead to stress in the body or mind. Additionally, in physics, people describe stress as any type of force that can produce physical strain on the body. This term was later taken to also express a psychological condition where a person suffers from a particular kind of emotional tension. In 1915, stress became a word to also describe a certain psychological condition.

When the body reacts to certain demands or challenges then it goes through stress. Furthermore, stress doesn’t need to be always negative. Stress can be also positive as well and can be an effective response to avoid certain dangers and lead you to personal growth in work or personal life. Moreover, stress is the root cause of many medical conditions and vice versa. If you do not cope with your stress effectively, it may also start to affect your daily life and lead you to other serious issues like cancer as well.

What makes Psychological Stress different than Physical Stress?

Physical stress occurs when there is any type of internal or external change in the environment that activates a motoric fight-or-flight reaction. Whereas, psychological stress is all about dealing, responding, and regulating emotion and behavior to certain external or internal events or circumstances. Moreover, an example of mental stress is getting stuck in traffic, getting your work done on a short deadline, or having problems in a relationship.

On the other hand, you can explain psychological stress with examples like hemorrhage, cold exposure, noise, and starvation. Interestingly, you may develop physical stress because of mental stress and vice versa. For example, stress can lead to heartburn, vomiting, and acid refluxes whereas, physical stress like strain or sprain can mentally cause you discomfort leading to stress.

What are the Types of Stress?

When we talk about mental or psychological stress then there are three types of stress depending on the severity or levels of stress an individual is suffering from mentally. They are as follows:

Acute stress

Short-term stress that usually resolves on its own and also brings back an individual to a normal state of mind is acute stress. Also, it can be due to overwhelming responses to joyful events like a roller coaster or job interview, or work presentation stress.

Episodic acute stress

If someone experiences stress frequently in a pattern or periodic basis then it can be the episodic type of acute stress. Working on important work deadlines or getting into a new college environment can also cause you this type of stress. Also, this stress can resolve with proper mental calmness and relaxation time. If you do not take care of this stress then it can accumulate together and turn into long-term or severe stress form.

Chronic stress

This is the long-term stress that some individuals may also go through. Furthermore, it starts to affect your body as well. Resolving this type of stress may take time and may also need psychological experts. Long-time stress at work can also lead to chronic stress that can affect your relationship along with physical symptoms like headaches on daily basis.

Eustress versus Distress

According to Hand Selye, stress also has two categories stress does not necessarily mean negative stress. Furthermore, eustress makes someone get proper energy and motivation to push to bring out certain changes through response or behavior. It also helps an individual to have a positive outlook on certain situations like times of sickness. Whereas, negative stress is known as distress that negatively affects your mind. Both of them work to protect or improve themselves from certain situations. Mindset is the biggest factor that decides also if you will cope with certain situations or events in form of eustress or distress.

What are the Signs that you might have Stress?

Stress itself is a symptom of other underlying conditions and you may also directly experience stress along with other signs like:

• Feeling uncomfortable while breathing
• Panic attack
• Anxiety
• Sore eyes
• Feeling like crying
• Overwhelming feeling
• Blurry eyesight
• Problems with sleeping
• Tiredness
• Chest pain
• Irregular blood pressure
• Indigestion
• Constipation 
• Heartburn
• Acid refluxes
• Feeling more alert
• Lacking focus on details
• Unable to recall or remember things for a moment
• Getting indecisive
• Messing up everything 
• Unable to complete your tasks
• Everything around you feels irritating
• You cannot keep your mind calm
• Taking intoxicants to relieve stress
• Going through some kind of personal or professional life problem
• Feeling much distraction in and around you
• Little to no interest in doing something
• Apetite level changes
• Feeling angry 
• Headaches
• Overthinking certain stuff
• Avoiding people or places 
• Grinding teeth
• Biting lips or teeth
• Unable to maintain libido
• Socially isolate themselves
• Feeling sick without physical symptom
• Sleeping too much/less

What are the Causes of Stress?

There are innumerable causes of stress and many things can also trigger stress. Moreover, such stressors or stress triggers include:

• Lack of sleep
• Too much excitement or energetic
• Tiredness during the day
• Mood swings
• Deadlines pressure during work or study
• Losing close people
• Additionally, there may be a financial crisis 
• Also, problems in a relationship
• Too much work or academic load
• Moreover, experiencing any type of abuse
• Illness
• Injury
• Overthinking
• Also, going through major phases of life like marriage
• Feeling too much pressure
• Facing obstacles in your life
• Too much responsibility burden on you during work or study
• Unemployment
• Experiencing unfortunate events of discrimination and hate during work
• Pandemic in your area
• Unfortunate climate crisis in your place
• Exposure to too much unfortunate news stories
• Also, feeling demotivation
• Parenting
• New changes in your work or personal life external environment
• Also, you may be getting very busy in your life
• Too much workload from the office or school piling up in your life
• Urge to control the certain situation but unable to do so

What are the health complications that occur due to Stress?

It is true that psychological stress can lead your body to experience different types of ill effects. Stress can lead you to health complications like:

• Heart disease
• Obesity
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes gets worsen
• Worsen Asthma
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Alzheimer’s disease
• Gastrointestinal problem
• Constipation issues for a long time
• Concentration and memory impairment
• Strokes
• Abnormal heart rhythm
• Shrinking of brain
• Substance abuse addiction
• Insomnia
• Hypersomnia
• Sleeping disorders
• Changes in appetite
• Weight gain/loss
• Anti-social behavior
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Tissues in the body damage
• Ulcers
• Neck ache problems
• Allergies
• Low libido problems
• Sexual impotence
• Burnout
• Respiratory infection

What are the treatment methods to cope with Stress?

Home remedies for stress include:

• Exercising
• Meditating
• Practicing relaxation techniques
• Use herbal supplements 
• Aromatherapy
• Consuming herbal teas
• Writing down your feelings
• Connect with nature
• Walk on grass
• Strategies to manage time
• Listening to favorite music
• Practicing breathing exercise
• Getting sunlight
• Practice mindfulness
• Stretching your tense muscles
• Taking quick walk
• Get into a body spa
• Take a break from work
• Daily do something you love

Herbal medicines for stress also include:

• Kava
• Valerian
• Chamomile
• Lavender
• Passionflower
• Lemon Balm
• Ginger
• Reishi
• Matcha
• Maca
• Hops
• Skullcap
• Motherwort
• Oats
• Turmeric
• Apple cider vinegar
• Ashwagandha

Medical treatment for stress includes:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Antidepressant usage
• Schizophrenia
• Getting into emotional support and motivational communities
• Identifying and preventing stress triggers
• Checking up on balancing sleep
• Psychotherapy
• Peer specialist help
• Psychological counseling
• Mindfulness workshops
• Stress management technique

Medicines for stress also include:

• Melatonin
• Sertraline
• Celexa
• Prozac
• Fluoxetine
• Citalopram
• Amitriptyline
• Paxil
• Alprazolam
• Sedative (CNS depressant) medications
• Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
• Beta Blockers
• Propranolol
• Atenolol
• 5-HTP
• Clonazepam
• Chlordiazepoxide
• Diazepam
• Triazolam
• Temazepam
• Lorazepam
• Venlafaxine
• Prazosin
• Paroxetine
• Buproprion
• Benzodiazepines
• Anti-convulsant 
• Glutethimide
• Ethchlorvynol 
• Methyprylon
• Fluvoxamine

Conclusion

Stress in general terms is any form of tension that one may experience physically or psychologically. Any type of event, medical condition, or thought can also lead to stress in the body or mind. Physical stress occurs when there is any type of internal or external change in the environment that activates a motoric fight-or-flight reaction. Whereas, psychological stress is all about dealing, responding, and regulating emotion and behavior to certain external or internal events or circumstances.

When we talk about mental or psychological stress then there are three types of stress depending on the severity or levels of stress an individual is suffering from mentally. According to Hand Selye, stress has two categories stress i.e. Eustress and Distress. Also, stress itself is a symptom of other underlying conditions and you can directly experience stress along with other signs. Moreover, seek medical help from psychiatrists, counselors, peer specialists, and other mental health practitioners if stress affects you too much.

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