PSYC-110N Week 6 Assignment: Managing Your Stress (GRADED A)

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NURSE JOLLY Chamberlain College of Nursing PSYCH- 110 Managing Your Stress 2 Everyone has dealt with stress at one point or another in th... eir lifetime. Stress is the body’s reaction to certain changes that require not only adjustment, but also response. The human body reacts to these changes with different reactions such as; physical, mental and emotional responses. Stress may occur for any given reason or at any given time and some popular examples of times that stress occurs the most is preparing for an exam, dealing with family problems and even going to a job every single day. Even pleasant events can cause stress like planning a wedding or a retirement party for your loved one. As stated in the text, “For people to consider an event stressful, they must perceive it as threatening or challenging and must lack all the resources to deal with it effectively” (Feldman, 2019). Individuals deal with stress in a variety of different ways, some good and some bad. For example, many individuals surround themselves around loved ones or talking to a therapist. As for others, they may turn to alcohol or lash out at others in emotionally or physically violent outbursts. How do you cope with stress? For me, personally, I tend to turn to social support from others, especially my family and close friends. Social support has shown to document not only mental health benefits, but also improved immune, cardiovascular health and decreased depression and anxiety. My predominant coping strategy seems to be “problem- focused,” meaning that I tend to target the problem or situation that is causing stress and try to limit the amount I put on my body. Social support from others not only allows one to release the emotions and thoughts that they are feeling inside, but it allows for growth and new ideas on how to handle a similar issue moving forward. “Problem-focused strategies aim to remove or reduce the cause of the stressor, including: Problem-solving. Time-management” (McLeod, 2015). Typically, one dealing with stress will go through a process called “general adaptation syndrome.” General adaptation syndrome suggests that certain responses to stress follow similar Managing Your Stress 2 patterns regardless of the cause of the stress itself. (Feldman, p. 463, 2019). For example, certain life events that may cause an individual to experience GAS may include: a relationship breakup, losing a job, health issues and money problems. Ongoing, chronic stress can cause a variation of different health problems for one and even exacerbate some very serious mental health problems, personality disorder and uncontrollable anxiety and depression. Everyone deals with stress in their own way, whether it’s going to the gym to workout, attending yoga, journaling or even focusing on their diet and nutrition. An example that has occurred recently is when I first began nursing school, I was working a full-time job and had just freshly moved out of my parents’ house on my own. Not only did I have to support myself to pay for rent and bills, but now I also had to support myself so I could continue my education and pursue the dream that I always had, to become an RN. This was not an easy situation to adapt too, but with the love and support of others around me, working through it made it more possible and definitely a lot easier. Social support when studied by psychologists is often defined as, “acts that communicate caring; that validate the other’s words, feelings or actions; or that facilitate adaptive coping with problems through the provision of information, assistance or tangible resources” (Scott, 2019). Knowing and understanding that there are people who have my back and support me takes off the unnecessary pressure that I put on myself and reminds me that when times get tough there are people here to help me. All in all, stress is a normal reaction that the human body has when changes occur. Stress can be positive, keeping one alert, motivated and ready to avoid danger if necessary. Stress can also be negative when one faces a continuous situation without any relaxation or relief. When the body becomes overworked, it automatically turns on the “fight or flight response” and allows for necessary action to keep the body protected. Managing Your Stress 2 References: Feldman, R. (2019). Understanding Psychology. [Bookshelf Ambassadored]. Retrieved from https://ambassadored.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781260883817/ Mcleod, S. (1970, January 1). Stress Management. Retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/stress-management.html. Porter, J. (2015, March 23). The Science Of Reading Your Coworkers' Personalities. Retrieved https://www.fastcompany.com/3044030/how-to-get-better-at-reading-and-reacting-to- coworkers-personalities. Scott, E. (2019, October 6). How Social Support Can Help You Relieve Stress in Your Life. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/stress-and-social-support-research-3144460. [Show More]

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