The stress disaster

The stress disaster

In psychological perspective, stress refers to a mental perception associated with strain and pressure that alters emotional and physical functioning. According to a current survey in the United States, stress has been factored one of the chronic epidemics affecting people, especially those between the ages of 25- 35 years. Often, stress results from a complex system of causal factors such as social issues, spiritual factors, environmental interaction, and socioeconomic factors. On my end, workplace struggles, social image, and management of personal relationships appear to be the most stress-producing incidents in my life. Particularly, the stress that I experience occurs in multiple forms impacting on psychological, physical, and emotional aspects of life. More so, this manifests through anxiety, depression, relationship conflict, anger, and social withdrawal, among others.  While problem-focused coping styles such as work partnership and emotional focused solution such as talk therapy appear to manage my stress levels, it is certain that stress is a complex aspect resulting from internal and external factors that control human life.

Often, stress is a condition inherent in brain function. This means that it has a direct effect on how the brain controls other bodily functions.  Research by Deacon shows that occurrence of stress triggers the amygdala, which is known to be a brain component that controls emotional processing (2). Subsequently, a distressful signal is sent to the hypothalamus, which then, as a command Centre of the brain responsible for hormonal production, communicates with the body nervous system, thus triggering physical reactions such as heightened sense, rush of adrenaline and increased heart rate (Deacon, 2).  This means that occurrence of stressful incidences creates a pattern of reactions in the brain that induces hormonal response that activates physical reactions. Notably, according to Deacon, continuous stress leads to increased buildup of cortisol that impairs brain function leading to conditions such as loss of socialization and interaction avoidance (3). In extension, increased cortisol is also said to induce shrinkage of prefrontal cortex, which makes the brain become receptive to stress factors (Deacon, 2). Perhaps, this explains why when I experience even minor stress at the workplace, it must lead to depression.

In line with understanding the stress factor and its relationship to overall health, different models have been discovered and purpose to outline how stress is related to medical, psychological, and social models. In this case, the medical model observes stress as a physical disorder of the inner self (Lehman et al.,5). As such, it assumes that stress is a syndrome or a disease, and also, it’s a condition subject to neurophysiology, neuroanatomy, and neurotransmitters function. Ideally, this means that this model perceives stress as a medical condition with a physical cause and, therefore, subject to treatment with medications particular meant to change the brain chemistry (Lehman et al.,4). Notably, change of brain chemistry means change of emotional response and, therefore, Perception moods and anxieties. This not only resolves stress but also the overall body health that had been impacted by stress factor. On the other hand, social model provides that stress results from symbolic interaction and personal life experiences (Lehman et al.,3). More openly, this model provides that the impact of a stressor depends on one’s interpretation or meaning of that stressor to his or her life. For example, the impact of personal relationship stressors, such as separation to me, would mean financial strain. This creates stress factors subject to health defects such as high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and obesity, which can be deemed as an effect to overall health. Nonetheless, the psychological model observes stress in terms of the relationship between cause and degree of vulnerability and the relationship between mind and body effect (Lehman et al.,9). In this case, the model implies that mental state determines degree of physical suffering, while the degree of vulnerability implies that body suffering such as depression results from the vulnerability to react to stressors. It basically means that even with a minor stressor, one is likely to suffer. Precisely, this means that overall, body health is a result of mental state degree of vulnerability to stress reaction.

Often, health is determined by internal and external factors. While internal factors are inherent on physique and biological models, external factors are attributed to situations and include things like social relationships employment, isolation nutrition, and life events such as trauma (Habib,9). Certainly, engagement with these factors determine the state of the body’s immune system. For example, stress from job conflicts and stigma related to things like weight increases stress me, and as seen earlier, this means increased buildup of cortisol, which is a hormone believed to alter the functionality of the body’s immune system. Hence, in this light, it is imperative to note that external factors have a direct correlation with psychological and overall body health.

Coping strategies

While the epidemic of stress appears overwhelming, there are always coping skills that can be applied to relieve the burden. They occur in two sets, including problem-focused solution, and emotion-focused solutions. Problem-focused solution targets to eliminate the causal factor of stress (Saleh, 3). For example, in my part-time workplace, I have partnered with a colleague assigned the same task as me, such that I would eliminate the perception of workload, which appears to induce negative stress in me. On the other hand, I have always avoided situations that place me in the context of self-doubt in terms of social image. Moreover, I opt to stay single to avoid personal relationship stress associated with separation. With regard to emotional focused solutions, Saleh notes that coping strategies on this niche focus on reducing the negative emotions induced by stressors (4). More openly, they establish a balance between the fight or flight emotional response. Some of the strategies applicable in this method include mindful meditation, talk therapy, and finding a balance (Saleh, 5). Consequently, applying this strategies have appeared to resolve my emotional stress where finding a balance by working efficiently helps undo anger induced by workload. On the other hand, talk therapy with professionals helps undo emotions of humiliation caused by fake personal relationships. Then, mindful meditation such us body relaxation and mental imagery help me undo with emotions of low self-esteem associated with social image. Hence, from personal experience, it is ideal that although chronic stress is overwhelming, such problem and emotion-focused strategies can help manage it.

To conclude, stress is a complex epidemic resulting from an array of causal factors that are both innate and external.  Phenomena, such as change in brain chemistry, mental state, and production of cortisol among others, are identified as the models explaining the physiological, sociological, and psychological states of stress and its impact to the overall body health. However, problem coping skills such as partnership in the workplace and talk therapy are the identified strategies that help me cope with workplace, personality, and relationship stress affecting my life. Therefore, to my colleagues who might be going through the same incidences of stress, I would advise that the above emotional and problem-focused methods would work effectively. However, more solutions such as social partnership, cognitive behavioral therapy, rest, and body to mind integration exercises can as well help outdo or control the effects of such stressors.

Work Cited

Deacon, Brett J. “The Biomedical Model Of Mental Disorder: A Critical Analysis Of Its Validity, Utility, And Effects On Psychotherapy Research.” Clinical Psychology Review, vol 33, no. 7, 2013, pp. 846-861. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2012.09.007. Accessed 1 Mar 2020.

Lehman, Barbara J. et al. “Rethinking The Biopsychosocial Model Of Health: Understanding Health As A Dynamic System.” Social And Personality Psychology Compass, vol 11, no. 8, 2017, p. e12328. Wiley, doi:10.1111/spc3.12328. Accessed 1 Mar 2020.

Walinga, J. (2020). 16.3 Stress, Health, and Coping in the Workplace. [online] Opentextbc.ca. Available at: https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontopsychology/chapter/15-3-stress-health-and-coping-in-the-workplace/ [Accessed 1 Mar. 2020].

Yaribeygi, Habib, et al. “The impact of stress on body function: A review.” EXCLI journal 16 (2017): 1057.

Baqutayan, Shadiya Mohamed Saleh. “Stress And Coping Mechanisms: A Historical Overview.” Mediterranean Journal Of Social Sciences, 2015. Richtmann Publishing, doi:10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n2s1p479. Accessed 1 Mar 2020.