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Psychological Effects of Stress

By Tess Thompson

Stress is an integral part of living. Even our ancestors in the Stone Age were not spared and had to face stress-- albeit in the shape of threats from carnivorous animals. Actually, the human body’s stress response (releasing hormones to increase blood supply and strength) evolved exactly from that necessity for saving life. Once the threat or the imminent cause of stress was over, either by fighting and killing the animal or by fleeing the scene, the body reverted back to its normal, relaxed state.

Modern life may have been able to eliminate threat from animals, but it has resulted in entirely new sets of potentially threatening stressors. In the process, we have added another element to stress – that of psychological and emotional stress. As soon as we solve a problem, another one springs up to disturb our mental peace. The human mind sometimes becomes so used to being stressed that it sometimes subconsciously seeks conflict and stress when all is well.

Stress affects your overall health. Chronic stress can result in physiological and psychological disorders. Sometimes, extreme stress and anxiety can result in neurosis and other psychological disorders like anxiety and depression. The mechanism is better explained by understanding the three stages of psychological effects of stress.

• A perceived stressor alerts an individual’s resources and prepares to cope with stress. Emotions are aroused and there is a concomitant increase in attention, sensitivity and vigilance. Along with a calculated effort at self control, various measures for coping with stress are activated. These may be task or defense-oriented, or a combination of the two.
• Continuous stress leads to resistance. This period is characterized by making adjustments to life. Most of the times, resistance involves defending one’s ego one way or the other.
• More often than not, people are prone to use inappropriate coping measures for managing stress. Unresolved stress ultimately leads to exhaustion and more stress.

At every stage, stress reveals its presence as symptoms-- some physiological and others psychological. Unresolved stress can change the entire personality of a person within a few days. Initially, interest in daily activities is lost, and over time, the person starts to lose control over his/her life and becomes totally indifferent to life’s goals. Cognitive ability is hampered, as is the ability to rationalize. These lead to anxiety, mild or clinical depression, and a host of other mental illnesses.

There are numerous ways to relieve stress. Inappropriate techniques are unlikely to resolve stress. There is a theoretical and philosophic framework attached to stress relief, which should be used while deciding on the technique that will resolve conflict and stress in the most effective manner.

References:

http://www.aboutstressmanagement.com/stressrelief/stress-management/people-and-stress/psychological-effects-of-stress.htm
http://www.stressbandit.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=19&Itemid=27