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What is stress?
Condition where human responds to changes from its normal balanced state
It is perceived as a challenge, threat, or danger
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What is a stressor?
- Anything that is perceived as threatening
- Can be Internal or External
- Are neither + or -
- BUT have +/- effects on the individual
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What are examples of internal & external stressors?
- Internal
- Illness
- Hormonal Changes
- Fear
- External
- Noise
- Cold Temperature
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Adaptation
Changes that result from response to a stressor
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Local Adaptation Syndrome (LAS)
What are the 2 types
Localized response to stress involving a specific body part
- Type #1 - CNS responds to Pain
- Rapid & automatic to prevent injury
- Need to be functioning neurologically
- Example: Touching hot stove
- Type #2 - Inflammatory Response
- Local response to injury or infection
- Prevents spread
- Promotes healing
- Example
- Cutting finger (pain, swelling, heat, redness)
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General Adaption Syndrome (GAS)
- General response to stress
- Three states (alarm, resistance, exhastion)
See Figure 42-2
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When coping & defense mechanisms no longer effective
High levels of anxiety, disorganized behavior
Crisis
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Most common response to stress
Considered a signal warning of danger
Described as a feeling of uneasiness, discomfort, dead, apprehension
Anxiety
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What are the 4 Levels of Anxiety?
- Mild
- Increasing alertness & perceptual fields
- Only level considered positive
- Moderate
- Increased muscle tension
- Butterflies in stomach feeling
- Slight increases in respiration & pulse
- Severe
- Extreme fear
- Emotional distress affecting day to day life
- Impairing of learning
- Verbal communication problems
- Tachycardia, hyperventilation
- Panic
- Loss of control in dread & terror
- Lack of rational thought
- Chest pain, chest pressure, choking feeling
- Poor motor control
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Behaviors used to decrease stress & anxiety
Coping Mechanisms
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What are the 2 categories of coping mechanisms?
Task Oriented Reactions
Defense Mechanisms
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What are the 3 types of task oriented reactions (involving coping mechanisms)
- Attacking
- Attempt to overcome obstable
- Can be constructive (assertive problem solving)
- Can be destructive (aggression & hostility)
- Withdrawl
- Physical or emotional withdrawal from threat
- Admitting defeat, apathy, guilt, isolation
- Compromise
- Substitution or negotiations of one's goals
- Most constructive of the three
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Defense Mechanisms are
A coping mechanism
- Unconscious reaction to stressor to protect self-esteem
- Usually for mild to moderate anxiety
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What is Developmental Stress?
List some examples
Stress that occurs as person progresses thru the normal stages of life
Each age has certain tasks to achieve that cause stress
- Infant learning to trust others
- Toddler potty training
- Young adult developing independence
- Middle-Age adult accepting physical signs of aging
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What is Situational Stress?
List some examples
Stress that is not predictable as one progresses thru life
- Examples
- Illness, injury
- divorce
- Loss (home, loved ones, relationship)
- Starting a new job
- Role changes in life
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Compensation (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Overcome a weakness by overdoing a strength
Bad student who excels at sports, so plays lots of sports
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Denial (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Refusing to acknowledge a condition that is disturbing
Woman who finds lump on her breast but will not week medical treatment
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Displacement (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Displacement of emotion from one to another
Employee angry at boss, comes home and kicks the dog
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Introjection (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Incorpating the values or qualities of another person into his/her own ego structure
Important for formation of conscience during childhood
Older sibling telling younger sibling not to talk to strangers is expressing the parents values upon the younger sibling
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Projection (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Attributing one's thoughts or impulses on to someone else
A person who is denying sexualo feelings for a coworker accuses that coworker of sexual harassment
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Rationalization (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Trying to give a logical explanation for questionable behavior
aka Behavior Justification
Patient forgets to keep doctor's appointment says "if I didn't have to wait 3 months to get an appointment, I wouldn't have forgotten"
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Reaction Formation (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Developing behavior patterns that are the opposite to what he or she would really do
Married woman is attracted to her husband's best friend but acts rudely to him
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Regression (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Returning to an earlier method of behaving
Children will regress to soiling self or demanding a bottle when ill
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Repression (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Excluding anxiety producing event from conscious awareness
Father does not remember shaking his crying baby
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Sublimation (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
Substituting socially acceptable goal for one that is socially not
Someone who is aggressive & violent becomes a star football player
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Undoing (Coping Mechanism)
A defense mechanism
- An act / communication used to negate a previous one
- Commonly seen in domestic abuse
Physically abusive husband will buy his wife flowers the following day
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