1. Module 21
Health, Stress & Coping

2. INTRODUCTION Stress Panic Disorder
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person becomes so worried about having another panic attack that this intense worrying interferes with normal psychological functioning
Panic Attack
period of intense fear or discomfort in which four or more of the following symptoms are present:
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3. INTRODUCTION
Stress
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4. APPRAISAL Primary appraisals
refers to our initial, subjective evaluation of a situation, in which we balance the demands of a potentially stressful situation against our ability to meet these demands
Three different primary appraisals (examples)
irrelevant: ________________________
positive: ____________________________________________________
stressful: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. APPRAISAL (CONT.) Primary appraisals Harm/loss appraisal
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6. APPRAISAL (CONT.) Primary appraisals Threat appraisal
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7. APPRAISAL (CONT.) Primary appraisals Challenge appraisal
means that you have the potential for gain or personal growth
need to mobilize your physical energy and psychological resources to meet the challenging situation
elicits positive emotions, such as eagerness or excitement
usually less stressful than harm/loss or a threat appraisal

8. APPRAISAL (CONT.) Appraisal and stress level Galvanic skin response
measure of how much a person’s hand sweats due to physiological arousal and not to normal temperature changes

9. APPRAISAL (CONT.) Same situation, different appraisals
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10. APPRAISAL

11. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES
Fight-flight response
directs great resources of energy to the muscles and the brain
can be triggered by either physical stimuli that threaten our survival or psychological situations that are novel, threatening, or challenging
involves numerous physiological responses that arouse and prepare the body for action
fight or flight

12. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Sequence for activation of the fight-flight response
appraisal
physically or psychologically threatening stimuli can trigger the fight-flight response and negative emotional feelings
fear, rage
hypothalamus
simultaneously activates two stress-related responses: it triggers the pituitary gland to release a stress fighting hormone called ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone)
activates the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system

13. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Sequence for activation of the fight-flight response
sympathetic division
activated by hypothalamus
triggers a number of physiological responses
Parasympathetic division
activated by the hypothalamus
returns the body to a more relaxed, calm state

14. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Sequence for activation of the fight-flight response
fight-flight response
increases heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, secretion of excitatory hormones, and many other responses
prepares body to deal with impending threat

15. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)

16. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Psychosomatic symptoms
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psychosomatic is derived from:

17. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)

18. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Development of symptoms
Genetic predisposition
most of us inherit a tendency that targets a particular organ or bodily system for weakening or breaking down
heart, blood vessels, stomach lining, or immune system
different individuals who are in similar stressful situations experience different kinds of psychosomatic symptoms
Lifestyles
smoking, being overweight, not exercising, or taking little time for relaxing

19. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Development of symptoms
Threat appraisals
some of us are more likely to appraise situations as threatening
elicit negative emotions
trigger fight-flight response
psychosomatic symptoms
poor lifestyles and too many threat appraisals
can damage or break down body organs that may have already been weakened

20. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
General adaptation syndrome
GAS, refers to the body’s reaction to stressful situations during which it goes through a series of three stages (gradually increase the chances of developing psychosomatic symptoms
Alarm stage
initial reaction to stress and is marked by activation of the fight-flight response
causes physiological arousal
Resistance stage
the body’s reaction to continued stress during which most of the physiological responses return to normal levels but the body uses up great stores of energy

21. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
General adaptation syndrome
Exhaustion stage
the body’s reaction to long-term, continuous stress, marked by actual breakdown in internal organs or weakening of the infection-fighting immune system

22. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Mind-body connection
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Mind-body therapy
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23. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)
Immune system
body’s defense and surveillance network of cells and chemicals that fight off bacteria, viruses, and other foreign or toxic substances
psychoneuroimmunology
study of the relationship among three factors
central nervous system
endocrine system
psychosocial factors

24. PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES (CONT.)

25. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES
Kinds of stress
Hassles
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Uplifts
Major life events

26. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES
Kinds of stress
Adjustment disorder
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condition includes these symptoms
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28. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Situational stress
Frustration
the awful feeling that results when your attempts to reach some goal are blocked
Burnout
refers to being physically overwhelmed and exhausted, finding the job unrewarding and becoming cynical or detached, and developing a strong sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment in this particular job

29. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Situational stress
Violence
posttraumatic stress disorder
a disabling condition that results from personally experiencing an event that involves actual or threatened death or serious injury, or from witnessing such an event, or hearing of such an event happening to a family member or close friend
number of psychological symptoms
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30. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Conflict
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Approach-approach conflict
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31. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)

32. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Conflict
Avoidance-avoidance conflict
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33. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)

34. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Conflict
Approach-avoidance conflict
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35. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)

36. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Conflict
Five styles of dealing with conflict
Avoidance
by avoiding or ignoring conflict, it will disappear or magically go away
Accommodation
hate conflicts and tend to please people and worry about approval
Domination
go to any lengths to win, even if it means being aggressive and manipulative

37. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Conflict
Five styles of dealing with conflict
Compromise
recognize that others have different needs and try to solve conflicts through compromise
Integration
try to resolve conflicts by finding solutions to please both partners

38. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Anxiety
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39. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Conditioned emotional response
results when an emotional response (fear or anxiety) is classically conditioned to a previously neutral stimulus
Observational learning
form of cognitive learning
results from watching and modeling
does not require the observer to perform any observable behavior or receive a reinforcer
Anxiety (according to Freud)
when there is an unconscious conflict between the id’s and superego’s desires regarding how to satisfy a need (ego caught in the middle)
ego’s solution: create a feeling of anxiety

40. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)
Positive stress
Eustress
pleasant
desirable
stress that is healthful and keeps us engaged in situations

41. STRESSFUL EXPERIENCES (CONT.)

42. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Hardiness
combination of three personality traits:
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43. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Locus of control
a continuum
one end is the belief that you are basically in control of life’s events
what you do influences the situation
belief is called an internal locus of control
other end is the belief that chance and luck mostly determine what happens
you do not have much influence
belief is called an external locus of control

44. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Optimism Versus Pessimism
Optimism
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Pessimism

45. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Positive Psychology
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46. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS

47. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Type A Behavior 1970’s (impatient, hostile, workaholic)
Type A
refers to a combination of personality traits that include and overly competitive and aggressive drive to achieve
hostile attitude when frustrated
habitual sense of time urgency
rapid and explosive pattern of speaking
being a workaholic
Type B
characterized as being easygoing, calm, relaxed, and patient

48. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Type A Behavior 1980’s-1990’s
Type A
defined in the 1980’s as
being depressed
easily frustrated
anxious
angry
some combination of these traits
defined in the 1990’s
specifies an individual who feels angry and hostile much of the time
may or may not express these emotions publicly

49. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Type D Behavior
defined as chronic distress in terms of two emotional states
negative affectivity
worry
irritability
gloom
social inhibition
shy and reserved
lacking self-assurance

50. PERSONALITY & SOCIAL FACTORS
Social Support
refers to three factors:
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51. KINDS OF COPING Appraisal Secondary appraisal
deciding to deal with a potentially stressful situation by using one or both of two different coping patterns
Problem-focused
Emotion focused

52. KINDS OF COPING Problem focused
means we try to decrease stress by solving the problem through seeking information
changing our own behavior
taking whatever action is needed to resolve the difficulty
Emotion focused
means we do things primarily to deal with our emotional distress
seeking support and sympathy
avoiding or denying the situation

53. KINDS OF COPING