1. Stress

3. What is Stress?
Defined by Hans Selye – the body’s nonspecifc response to any demand put on it.

4. G. A. S. “General Adaptation Syndrome”
These are the stages the body goes through when responding to stress
3 stages – alarm, resistance, exhaustion

5. Stage 1 - Alarm
The hormone adrenaline is released into the bloodstream, causing many physical changes in the body.
This response to stress is also called the “fight or flight” response.
Some of the physiological responses include increased heart rate and respiration, sweating, digestion slows down or stops, muscles tense, and pupils dilate

6. Stage 2 - Resistance
Energy reserves try to return the body’s internal activity to normal.

7. Stage 3 – Exhaustion
The energy is depleted. If the stress is removed, the body is able to return to normal. If the stress continues, the body keeps going back into the Alarm stage. The constant gearing up of the body to respond puts a lot of extra work on the vital organs. Over time, physical and/or emotional disease can develop.

9. Stress-Related Diseases
Gastrointestinal disorders
Skin disorders
Cancer
Cardiovascular disorders
Menstrual irregularities

10. Stressors Stress can be a motivator and be healthy for the body.
Even though physical threats are a reality and a source of stress, mental/emotional stressors are more common.
This stress is created in a person’s own thoughts or perceptions of a situation.
When the stress is not managed, it will show as headaches, stomach problems, mood swings, and difficulty paying attention. More serious reactions are depression, mental illness, and suicide.

12. Stressors Before Modern Civilization
Need for food
Need for water
Need for shelter
Hunting and gathering
Surviving constant threats in life

13. Stress Management in Ancient Civilizations
Worship
Hieroglyphics
Constellations
Finding the meaning of life

15. Stressors in the Modern World
Unemployment
Financial difficulties
Traffic
Social frustrations
Deadlines homework, career, taxes, bills)

16. Stress Management Today
Eat
Exercise
Hurt self
Prayer and meditation
Medications
Smoking, drinking, drugs
Talking to friends and family
Television, reading, or listening to music