The Effects of Stress on the Body

The Effects of Stress on the Body

Stress is a normal, and often unavoidable factor in our everyday lives, but are we really aware of the harmful effects it can have on our bodies? Our bodies are designed to both experience and react to stress, but, for many of us, our stressors are either too prevalent, or too major, making them difficult to cope with, and leaving our bodies in a vulnerable and unhealthy state. I will be speaking with you about the two primary types of stressors: major and minor; along with the tolls they are capable of taking on us, and tips on how to manage stress effectively.

Minor stressors are also commonly called "daily hassles"—because, more or less, that's exactly what they are. Daily hassles are the "irritators" we encounter on a daily basis, such as: your child spilling their freshly poured cup of Kool-Aid all over your new couch, tripping over the dog, dropping your favorite ring down the toilet, arguing with your spouse or a significant other, having a large amount of work that needs to be done, and many more. Picture your day, and imagine it consisted of several minor stressors, like those I previously mentioned—this should not be a difficult task. By the end of the day, you're going to be stressed out—and this is because all of those minor stressful events have been accumulating all day long. This accumulation is not just occurring each day and then it starts over the next, but it spans from day to day throughout your life. This can lead to physical symptoms, such as: upset stomach, chest pains, headaches, higher blood pressure, sleep apnea, insomnia, skin conditions, asthma, and arthritis, and it can even make you more susceptible to certain diseases, like heart disease. Stress is also able to lead to emotional disorders and changes in one's personality; many people develop depression. It has been estimated that about 43% of all adults suffer adverse health effects from stress. The symptoms of minor stressors are very similar to those of major stressors.

Major stressors are commonly known as "Major Life Events." Major life events include: the death of a family member or a close friend, experiencing a traumatic incident, losing your job, living in poverty, and much more. These are the types of stressors that need not accumulate in order to cause us a great amount of stress—each of these events alone has got that covered. Like I said, major stressors can cause the same symptoms that the accumulation of minor stressors can: headaches, chest pain, insomnia, etc. This is the type of stress for which it is most common for people to resort to drugs and alcohol in an attempt to relieve their stress. But instead of relieving the stress and returning the body to a relaxed state, these substances tend to keep the body in a stressed state and are capable of causing more problems. Though stress can also be utilized to keep us alert and ready to avoid danger, it has been deemed a hazard of the workplace, because stress can also inhibit our ability to function properly and immediately. Thus, it is crucial to manage stress promptly and appropriately.

In order to manage stress effectively, you must evaluate the issue at hand. Think: What can I do to fix the problem, if anything? How can I prevent this from happening in the future? If the issue was fixable and preventable—well, now you know what NOT to do, but don't waste your time dwelling on what you could have or should have done differently...just remember for future reference. For major life events, this process may be much more difficult—you can't just push the issue out of your mind, and in most cases, major life events are much more difficult to prevent and fix. But, once the issue has been addressed and evaluated, I would suggest speaking to someone before the stress takes it's toll on your life, such as a friend, a family member, or even a professional. As much as you might not want to talk about the issue at hand, it is much healthier to speak about what is on your mind and to listen to and accept, if not utilize, the viewpoints of others. So, don't just stress about it, talk about it! It feels much better to talk about the issue, than to keep it bottled up inside.

So, although minor and major stressors are capable of taking a toll on our mental and physical health, you should not let stress control your life, be in control of your own life! And, although we can never fully escape the effects of stress, we can do our best to not dwell on what is stressing us out, because, in the end, that will just stress us out more! So, remember: manage your stress levels effectively, in order to live a happier, and healthier life.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Stress

[crabbeas]

2. Your use of pausing after each sentence was good. It's important not to speak too fast and let your audience really understand what you are saying and I think you did that.

3. You used vocalics well. You emphasized words in specific places and that really kept my attention. Also I think that the place that you did your speech was chosen well because there was not much in the background to distract the audience. You were able to keep the audience focused.

[crabbeas]

1. I think you chose a very important topic as most people suffer from stress, especially us as students. I know that I am often stressed out but besides that, I didn't have much information about it.

[ldgoof]

1.The pace of the speech is very good. It is never too fast or too slow. It stays fairly conisistent as well, with no parts that seem to drag on or overly rushed 2. The tone is also consistent. so many times i have seen a person get overly emotional or stressed out while giving a speech, and it is good that this does not happen here. The flow of the speech is excellent as well. Each point blends smoothly into the next with good transitions and occasionally questions to fill the gaps.

[allareri]

@allareri 3) I also thought that the speaker in this speech did an extraordinary job in giving the speech a good pace and using a variety of different tactics, such as asking questions, to keep bringing the audience back in or deeper into the topic. The pace of the speech allowed for the conveyance of the information to be easily received.

[allareri]

@allareri 2)I really enjoyed learning about all the effects of stress and I thought that the speaker presented this information in a very clear and concise manner. It was intriguing and interesting in learning how something people deal with everyday can cause such a large variety of physical and mental side effects.

[allareri]

1) I thought the speech had a good attention grabbing opening. The first bit of the speech really drew me in because it starts off right away by mentioning a topic that just about everyone deals with. Once my attention was drawn I was really into what the speech had to say about stress.

[ajm030288]

I like the way you open up with a question for us to think about as you go through the paper. Also how towards the end your voice gets excited. Your voice tone is very good thoruhgout the paper it kept me engaged in what you are saying. Your face however looks really disinterested in the topic at hand. Your speech was very informative and kept me thinking. You clearly know your facts and I like the way you gave examples of how to stress less. Over all a good speech. Good Job!!

[1brownb]

You show a lot of emotion on your face at some points during the speech. To me, this shows that you are knowledgeable about your topic and also that you care and enjoy your topic. This makes your speech very strong. In addition, you speak with ease. It doesn't seem like you are trying hard, and gives the impression that this is a very natural thing for you! That is a great thing! Another thing that you did well was pause in perfect increments. You gave the audience time to stay attentive!