Stress, Health, and Coping

Stress – the lingo  Experiencing events that are perceived as a danger.  The event = stressor  The reaction = stress response

Causes – IB?  Traumatic Events  Common Events:  Controllability – viewing traumatic pictures study  Predictability – rats and shocking study  How do you prepare for stressful events?  Galvanic Skin Response (GSR)

Internal Conflicts  Independence vs. Dependence  Intimacy vs. Isolation  Cooperation vs. Competition  Impulses vs. Conscience

Psychological Reactions to Stress  Stress activates the body’s fight/flight response – the sympathetic nervous system and stress hormones  Anxiety and PTSD  Anger and Aggression  Correlation between stress in animals and aggression  Apathy and Depression  Learned Helplessness  Cognitive Impairment  Emotional arousal can interfere with cognition

Physiological Reactions to Stress  Fight or Flight Response  Liver releases sugar  Metabolism increases  Heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate increase  Hypothalamus activates sympathetic NS, also activates the pituitary gland to release ACTH  General Adaption Syndrome – a set of responses to stress  Alarm, Resistance, Exhaustion

Stress and Health  Psychophysiological disorders – disorders in which emotions play a major role  Stress is a major factor in heart disease  Psychoneuroimmunology – study of how the body’s immune system is impacted by stress  Stress and common cold study  Correlation between support groups and health

Psychological factors and Stress  Psychoanalysis – unconscious conflict is the source of all stress  Behaviorism – stress is learned based on prior experiences  Cognitive Approach – attitude is a major factor in stress (optimism vs. pessimism)  Personality – hardiness?  Commitment, control, challenge  Type A

Coping  Trying to manage stress  Problem-focused: think about problem solving  Emotion-focused: resolve the emotions, not the problem  Support groups  Sharing has been found to reduce stress and decrease likelihood of illness  Writing activity study

Managing Stress  Biofeedback – receive real time information about one’s physiological state to gain more control  Relaxation Training  Exercise  Cognitive Behavior Therapy – try to change methods of thinking and reinforce behaviors that support those changes