1. Myers’ PSYCHOLOGY (7th Ed)
Chapter 14
Stress and Health
James A. McCubbin, PhD
Clemson University
Worth Publishers

2. Stress and Health Behavioral Medicine Health Psychology
interdisciplinary field that integrates behavioral and medical knowledge and applies that knowledge to health and disease
Health Psychology
subfield of psychology that provides psychology’s contribution to behavioral medicine

3. What is Frustration?
Frustration occurs when we are blocked or hindered from reaching our goal.
Most frustrations are minor. They are the frustrations of daily life: busy signals, or being stuck in traffic. These frustrations are not good for us because they gradually wear us down. Each time we experience a frustration, there is a physiological response” clenched teeth or tightened muscles.

4. What Is Conflict?
Conflict is a situation in which we have to make a choice between alternatives.
For example: you want to buy 2 CD’s, but only have enough money to buy one, so you must make a choice.

5. Four Types of Conflict APPROACH-APPROACH CONFLICT (++)
This is a conflict between two attractive alternatives.
What examples can you think of?

6. APPROACH-AVOIDANCE CONFLICT (+-)
-This is a conflict involving a situation with both good & bad features. This type of conflict can be very distressing.
What examples can you think of?

7. Avoidance-Avoidance Conflict (--)
-This is a conflict involving a choice between two unattractive alternatives. You can’t win, no matter which side you choose.
What examples can you think of?

8. Double Approach-Avoidance Conflict
(+-+-)
This is a conflict involving a choice between alternatives, both of which have good & bad parts to them. This is the type of conflict that we experience most often.

9. All of these conflicts are quite normal.
However a steady diet of conflicts, especially if you are all alone and have no support system or are feeling hopeless, can cause you to make an incorrect or a poor or no decision, which could then lead to physical & psychological illness.

10. WHAT IS ANXIETY?
Anxiety is the feeling that something is wrong & disaster is imminent.
Anxiety results when frustration builds too high or when we are unable to resolve a conflict.
Severe attacks of anxiety can cause: rapid heartbeat, fatigue, chest pain, breathlessness, dizziness, fainting, headaches and feelings of doom.

11. Stress and Illness Stress
the process by which we perceive and respond to certain events, called stressors, that we appraise as threatening or challenging

12. Stress is the physical pressure and strain that result from demands or changes in the environment.
The term stress can refer to certain life events (stressors) or how we react to these changes in the environment (stress reactions).

13. Any type of change can lead to stress, even positive changes.
Conflict, frustration and anxiety can
all lead to stress.

14. Types of Stress EUSTRESS DISTRESS -Bad stress -Good stress
-Any type of stress that motivates us to do something that is desirable.
DISTRESS
-Bad stress
-Stress that is so overwhelming, that it causes us problems.

15. Stress and Illness
Leading causes of death in the US in 1900 and 2000

16. Stress Appraisal Appraisal Response Stressful event (tough math test)
Threat
(“Yikes! This is
beyond me!”)
Challenge
(“I’ve got to apply
all I know”)
Panic, freeze up
Aroused, focused
Appraisal
Response

17. PHYSICAL EFFECTS OF STRESS
FIGHT OR FLIGHT REACTION :
is your body’s reaction to a crisis.
-The body can NOT tell the difference between a psychological threat or a physiological threat and will respond the same way to danger.

18. The major parts of a human that respond to emotional stress are:
The higher brain (the thinking part)
The lower brain(controls body functions)
The adrenal glands (release hormones)

19. Three Examples of Stress
1. Anticipation of an operation.
Going out on a first date.
Accepting the death of a loved one.
All 3 examples involve a psychological change because all deal with mental issues and distress. In each case, the higher brain assumes that threat & danger exist and it signals the lower brain about the emergency. The lower brain secretes the stress hormone, which signals the adrenal glands to send adrenaline to the body. This causes the muscles to tense, a faster heartbeat, and liver to send out more sugar to use in case of fight or flight.

20. If we were to solve the problem quickly, the body would return to normal quickly.
However most of our problems are abstract, rather than physical and hard to solve them, so our bodies remain in the flight or fight response condition. This eventually causes physical problems because we are running at full alert.

21. Pituitary hormone in the
bloodstream stimulates
the outer part of the adrenal
gland to release the stress
hormone cortisol
Sympathetic nervous
system releases the
stress hormones
epinephrine and
norepinephrine
from nerve endings
in the inner part of
the adrenal glands
Thalamus
Hypothalamus
Pituitary gland
Adrenal glands
Cerebral cortex
(perceives stressor)

22. Stressful Life Events Catastrophic Events Significant Life Changes
Unpredictable, large scale events, such as:
earthquakes, combat stress, floods
Significant Life Changes
death of a loved one, marriage or divorce, loss of job, promotion
Daily Hassles
The everyday annoyances, such as:
rush hour traffic, long lines, job stress, burnout

23. Burn-out refers to being worn down from the never ending stress on the job. Certain professions are known to cause burnout.
What examples can you think of?
Stress becomes worse when viewed as a negative & uncontrolled. This will lead to ill health.

24. Stressful Life Events
Chronic Stress by Age

25. Stressors are unavoidable
Stressors are unavoidable. You can’t eliminate stress, but you can manage your reaction to stress by
a) confront the stress
b) handle the problem
c) prevent its reoccurrence

26. Techniques To Reduce Stress
Exercise - serves to increase levels of energy & seratonin
Relaxation
Develop a support system
Biofeedback – is a system for electronically recording & feeding back information on your physiological state so can learn to control reactions & increase your alpha waves & lower blood pressure.

27. Promoting Health Biofeedback
system for electronically recording, amplifying, and feeding back information regarding a subtle physiological state
blood pressure
muscle tension

28. Four Leading Causes of Illness & Death
Cancer
Stroke
Lung Disease
Heart Disease
Which one is the #1 cause of death in the United States?

29. Stress and the Heart Coronary Heart Disease is #1
clogging of the vessels that nourish the heart muscle
leading cause of death in many developed countries
Physical Factors: smoking, obesity, high cholesterol and high fat diet
Psychological Factors: Stress, Type A Personality, anger, depression & negative emotions

30. Stress and the Heart

31. Stress and Disease Psychophysiological Illness “mind-body” illness
any stress-related physical illness
some forms of hypertension
some headaches
distinct from hypochondriasis-- misinterpreting normal physical sensations as symptoms of a disease

32. Stress and the Heart Hopelessness scores Heart attack Death 3.5 3 2.5
1.5 1
0.5
Heart attack
Death
Low risk
Moderate risk
High risk
Men who feel extreme hopelessness
are at greater risk for heart attacks
and early death

33. MEASURING STRESS
Psychologists Thomas Holmes & Richard Rahe designed one of the first instruments to measure stress.
(SRRS) or Social Readjustment Rating Scale measured stress using (LCU) or Life Change Units.
A person taking the SRRS reported changes in his/her life. Different changes were assigned LCUs. Any major life change would increase the score. A person with a high score on the SRRS is more likely to have a stress related illness.

34. Stress and Illness
Stress
resistance
Phase 1
Alarm
reaction
(mobilize
resources)
Phase 2
Resistance
(cope with
stressor)
Phase 3
Exhaustion
(reserves
depleted)
The body’s resistance to stress can
last only so long before exhaustion sets in
Stressor
occurs
General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS theory)
Hans Selye’s (1956) concept of the body’s adaptive response to stress in three stages.

35. ALARM REACTION:
The body sends out emergency signals that stir it up in preparation for an attack-whether it be physical or physiological. The heart rate increases, blood is diverted away from other bodily functions and sent to the muscles needed to react. The organism readies itself to meet the challenge through the activation of the sympathetic nervous system.

36. RESISTANCE
The organism tries to fight back against the attack. The body remains physiologically ready. Hormones are released to maintain this state of readiness. This stage can last for weeks. If the resistance stage lasts for too long, the body can delete its resources. The parasympathetic nervous system returns our physiological state to normal. Thus if the threat is removed, the body and psyche restore themselves back to a normal chemical & emotional balance.

37. EXHAUSTION
If the stress does not let up, continuous “fight or flight” becomes impossible. We become more vulnerable to disease, especially if our resources were depleted by an extended time in the resistance stage.

38. Excessive stress can contribute to both physical diseases and psychological problems.
Our bodies can remain ready for a challenge so long before our resources are depleted and we are vulnerable to disease due to exhaustion.

39. Stress and the Heart
Friedman and Rosenman did research on focusing the connection between developing stress related illnesses and personality types.

40. Stress and the Heart Type A Personality Type B Personality
Term used for competitive, hard-driving, impatient, verbally aggressive, & anger-prone people. Competitive & Distracted, thinking of what will say next, not listening.
Have high blood pressure and heart problems.
Type B Personality
easygoing, relaxed people, open to change, are flexible, enjoy life. Low stress levels. Non-competitive.

41. Managing Everyday Stress
We cope with our stress in one of two ways:
REGRESSIVE COPING-sleep too much, avoid or deny a problem, take it out on family & friends, adopt bad habits: drinking, smoking or doing drugs
TRANSFORMATIONAL COPING-creating something good out of something bad. Admit our anger, address the problem, adjust our priorities and explore solutions.

42. Life-style modification patients
Promoting Health
Modifying Type A life-style can reduce recurrence of heart attacks
Percentage
of patients
with recurrent
heart attacks
(cumulative
average) 6 5 4 3 2 1
Year
Life-style modification patients
Control patients
Modifying life-style
reduced recurrent

43. Promoting Health Aerobic Exercise
Depression
score 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3
Before treatment
evaluation
After treatment
No-treatment
group
Aerobic
exercise
Relaxation
treatment
Aerobic Exercise
sustained exercise that increases heart and lung fitness

44. poor nutrition and sleep)
Stress and Disease
Negative emotions and health-related consequences
Unhealthy behaviors
(smoking, drinking,
poor nutrition and sleep)
Persistent stressors
and negative
emotions
Release of stress
hormones
Heart
disease
Immune
suppression
Autonomic nervous
system effects
(headaches,
hypertension)

45. Stress and Disease Lymphocytes
two types of white blood cells that are part of the body’s immune system
B lymphocytes form in the bone marrow and release antibodies that fight bacterial infections
T lymphocytes form in the thymus and, among other duties, attack cancer cells, viruses, and foreign substances

46. Level of social support
Life events
Tendency toward
Health
Illness
Personal appraisal
Challenge
Threat
Personality type
Easy going
Nondepressed
Optimistic
Hostile
Depressed
Pessimistic
Personality habits
Nonsmoking
Regular exercise
Good nutrition
Smoking
Sedentary
Poor nutrition
Level of social support
Close, enduring
Lacking

47. Promoting Health Complementary and Alternative Medicine
unproven health care treatments not taught widely in medical schools, not used in hospitals, and not usually reimbursed by insurance companies

48. Subfields of Alternative Medicine
Alternative systems of
medical practice
Bioelectromagnetic
applications
Diet, nutrition,
life-style changes
Herbal medicine
Manual healing
Mind-body control
Pharmacological and
biological treatments
Subfields of Alternative Medicine
Health care ranging from self-care according to folk principles,
to care rendered in an organized health care system based on
alternative traditions or practices
The study of how living organisms interact with electromagnetic (EM) fields
The knowledge of how to prevent illness, maintain health, and
reverse the effects of chronic disease through dietary or
nutritional intervention
Employing plan and plant products from folk medicine traditions
for pharmacological use
Using touch and manipulation with the hands as a diagnostic
and therapeutic tool
Exploring the mind’s capacity to affect the body, based on
traditional medical systems that make use of the interconnected-
ness of mind and body
Drugs and vaccines not yet accepted by mainstream medicine

49. The Physiological Effects of Nicotine