Stress and its role in everyday life. Stress in a person's life

Homeostasis (from the Greek homoios - identical, stasis - state, stagnation) is the constancy of the internal environment, a stable state of the body, which is supported by coordinated physiological processes. To maintain normal functioning, nothing in the body should deviate greatly from the norm. A strong deviation is a disease, an excessive deviation is death.

Stress concept

Stress translated from English (stress) - tension, effort, pressure.

The concept of stress was developed in the 1930s by Canadian endocrinologist Hans Selye, who, building on the previous work of his colleagues, later defined stress as “a nonspecific response of the body to any demand.”
Please note, this is important: stress is not the requirement itself, but the response to it!
The answer to the same situation may be different for different people.

What does it mean: nonspecific response? When we shiver in the cold or sweat in the heat, when the pulse quickens and blood pressure rises when walking or running - this is a specific response at the level of body physiology.
But all these changes have one thing in common - they require restructuring, adaptation to the difficulty that has arisen. This is a non-specific answer. And it is formed at a deeper - biochemical level with the participation of the so-called stress hormones: cortisol, adrenaline, etc. The main task of these hormones is to ensure the emergency release of reserve energy for an adequate response.

Everything that affects us causes the need to adapt to this impact in order to keep the body in a normal state.
Moreover, the emotional coloring of the impact does not matter. What is important is the intensity of the body’s need for restructuring. Sorrow and joy of equal strength can cause the same nonspecific demand for adaptation to a new situation.

This response occurs in three stages (phases):
anxiety phases (fight or flight),
resistance phase (mobilization of the body’s regulatory mechanisms) and
phases of exhaustion (if stress lasts too long or exceeds the strength of the defense).
These stages are united by the concept general adaptation syndrome.
The body forms a response to a challenge by changing previously set parameters of homeostasis (stability due to changes - allostasis).

Allostasis- the process by which the body, responding to influences, maintains the constancy of its internal environment.

Impact of stress on health

In the short term, allostasis is important for adaptation and survival. When the impact stops, stress reactions turn off.
Chronic stressors create a situation where these reactions are triggered too often, creating allostatic load. We can say that allostatic load is constant stress.

Since a shift in the set point of one system affects other physiological systems, chronic stress creates a different state of equilibrium in the internal environment of the whole body.
In other words, allostatic load is a state of pre-disease, premature aging (such as wear and tear of a thing as a result of use). Unlike mechanisms and things, the body has the ability to recover, and if there is no opportunity to recover, this load will lead to illness.

Sometimes this term is used to refer to external influences that force the body to make efforts to maintain stability.

Stress or distress?

Meaning of the word stress has changed over the past decades. Nowadays, stress is usually considered to be the inability of the human or animal body to respond adequately to emotional or physical challenges (real or imagined). This is what Hans Selye called distress.

Distress from English distress - grief, suffering, malaise.

Signs of “stress-distress” can be defined at the cognitive (cognitive), emotional, physical or behavioral level.

Cognitive signs : shortsightedness, low self-esteem, poor concentration, memory impairment, etc.

Emotional Signs include moodiness, anxiety, excessive worry, irritability, tearfulness or hysterical laughter, agitation, and feelings of loneliness. Depression is also included on this list because it is seen as a form of exhaustion resulting from chronic emotional stress.

Physical symptoms : pain of various types, intestinal upset (bear disease), nausea, dizziness, chest pain and rapid heartbeat.

Behavioral symptoms of stress may include increased (or decreased) appetite, drowsiness or insomnia, social withdrawal, procrastination or neglect of responsibilities, increased drinking, smoking or drug use, and nervous habits such as nail biting.

To avoid or not to avoid stress?

It cannot be avoided, because life without stress is impossible. Stress in a person’s life (as an adequate response to external or internal influence) is a natural bodily reaction.
Any activity triggers the stress mechanism.
But distress is an undesirable phenomenon. And to avoid it, you need to train your body and psyche.

How does stress affect your health?

Any training (physical education, hardening, fasting, etc.) causes tension in the body in order to maintain homeostasis. For it to be useful, three basic conditions must be met.

The force of impact (tension) should not exceed the adaptive capabilities of the body, but sufficient to have the desired training effect.
Duration - within the resistance phase (do not lead to exhaustion).
Have enough time to restore used reserve energy. The heavier the load and less training, the longer it takes to recover. Interestingly, under normal conditions the body restores slightly more than was expended. This is the effect of training.

As for the psyche, here training is, first of all, a philosophical attitude towards life, the formation of positive emotions, .

To avoid chronic stress, you need to streamline your daily routine, work and rest. Restful and adequate sleep, a healthy diet and lifestyle are essential. Bad habits are the cause of chronic stress - these are the same allostatic loads, which are mentioned above.
An orderly, healthy and active lifestyle, pleasant experiences and timely rest (periods of silence and doing nothing) - this is life without stress (distress).

Beginner level

Stress in a person's life

This work examines the problem of stress in a person’s life, what is its impact on personality development, how it affects the biological systems of the human body and the psyche as a whole. The reason for our conflict in relation to the world around us is explained, as well as why there are many events and circumstances in our lives that provoke us to a stress reaction. But whether this provocation will develop further is answered by isisidiology, which offers a new look at this problem.

Introduction

Previously, few people thought that he was constantly under stress. Let's say, to a person who lived a hundred, or even two hundred years ago, our every-minute, even imperceptible and automatic actions would seem quite eventful. And this is primarily due to the fact that we operate with large volumes of information. Because due to the “technological breakthrough” that humanity has achieved, the pace of our lives has increased greatly in recent times. The term “stress” was first introduced into physiology and psychology by Walter Cannon in his classic works on the universal human reaction “fight or flight.”

Renowned stress researcher and Canadian physiologist Hans Selye in 1936 he published his first work on the general adaptation syndrome, but for a long time avoided using the term “stress”, since it was used largely to refer to “neuro-psychic” tension (the “fight or flight” syndrome). It was only in 1946 that Selye began to systematically use the term “stress” to define and denote general adaptive tension.

Nowadays, the topic of stress is becoming increasingly popular. It manifests itself both in scientific discussions and in journalistic materials, despite the fact that in science there is still no single point of view in explaining the causes and mechanism of stress. Thus, K. Cooper, F. Dave, M. O'Dryscoll in the monograph "Organizational Stress" note that there are significant differences in understanding the true meaning of "stress", which are reflected in a huge number of approaches to its definition.

Psychologists, when choosing a definition for the category of stress, conflict, frustration or crisis, proceed mainly from intuitive or stylistic considerations. All this leads to great terminological confusion. American scientists T. Holmes and R. Reich, based on many years of research, have compiled a list of the most common changes in life that cause stress. From their findings, they realized that many questions usually arise to which a person under stress finds ambiguous answers, for example: what is stress in his life, does it always lead to negative consequences?

In this work we will look at the concept of stress from a different angle, from the perspective of new knowledge - Iissiidiology. Stress is a tensor (tension, dissonance), a qualitative difference in the interpretation of the same information.

1. The concept of stress in psychology

The word "stress" came to us from the English language and translated means "pressure, pressure, tension." Selye was the first to define stress. Following this definition, stress is characterized by multiple changes in the human body and his personality.

Hans Selye, in the last period of his scientific activity, divided stress into two components:

eustress; the concept has two meanings: “stress caused by positive emotions” and “mild stress that mobilizes the body.” It has a positive effect on a person, mobilizes him, improves attention, reactions, mental activity, increases the adaptive capabilities of the body;
distress- a negative type of stress that the body is unable to cope with; it undermines human health and can lead to serious illnesses; the immune system suffers from stress; under stress, people are more likely to become victims of infections, since the production of immune cells drops noticeably in moments of physical or mental stress.

For many people, the word "stress", just like the words "success", "failure" and "happiness", has different meanings, so it is very difficult to define it, although it has become part of our everyday speech. Most often, stress is simply a synonym for distress - grief, unhappiness, malaise, exhaustion, neediness; or effort, fatigue, pain, fear, need to concentrate, public humiliation, loss of blood; or even an unexpected huge success leading to the disruption of the entire way of life. Understanding these processes may involve both a negative and a positive assessment. Any of the listed phenomena, their signs and symptoms, can cause stress, but none of them can be isolated and said: “This is stress,” because this term is multifunctional.

We sometimes need stress in order to adapt to certain environmental conditions, and our attitude to this alarming event depends on many factors. Moreover, what matters is not whether the situation we are faced with is pleasant or unpleasant, but only the intensity of the need for restructuring or adaptation. Under favorable conditions, stress can be transformed into a harmonious state of a person, in which he feels that there are problems and he is able to solve them. No weakness or depression. And if unfavorable, it leads to a state of neuro-emotional tension, then a person’s mood deteriorates, self-esteem drops and a stressful state arises.

We can say that stress is one of the components of the development of every person. The more positive information our ideas about ourselves or something are structured, the more energy (potential) it has, the more the information is creative and does not create opportunities for the manifestation of tensorism [I] in the form of negative thoughts, choices, decisions which act destructively on our body, then energy is spent on balancing tensors and remains in our consciousness as life experience. Due to the experience gained, it is already possible to find many positive motivations for a repeat situation. Therefore, the tensor will be used to a lesser extent as destruction and will be perceived by us as creative, that is, motivating effort and life achievements.

The stimulating, creative, formative influence of stress in complex processes of work and learning is very important.

[I] Tensor is a conditional concept. In some conditions of manifestation, the tensor will cause dissonance, inconsistency (tension, misunderstanding, resistance) of the information relationships of one thing in relation to something else, while in other conditions it manifests itself as the compatibility of these relationships.

2. Types of stress and their impact on human development

Psychologists have carried out a broad classification of types of stress - not only ideas have changed, but also individual terms reflecting the concept of stress.

In the scientific and popular literature of the last two decades, which separated us from Selye’s developments, one can find such categories of stress as physical, nervous, oxidative, osmotic, somatic, thermal, adrenaline, traumatic or post-traumatic, financial, youthful, industrial stress, social stress, pain stress. It is interesting to note that each of these terms reflects a completely special event, in its essence almost completely different from the event described by any other term, but in general their effects can be divided into physiological and psychological. Physiological stress is characterized by tension in biochemical functions, and psychological stress is characterized by a violation of the harmony of the individual, its imbalance.

Psychological stress, consisting of an informational and emotional component, occurs during information overload, when a person, having set a goal, does not keep up with the pace that the life situation has created for him. Physiological stress is characterized by the direct effect of a certain stimulus on a biological organism. Psychological stress relates more to internal states. Here it is necessary to analyze the significance of the situation itself and consider the characteristics of the individual.

There is often a combined interaction of these types of stress on an individual. We often either do not realize the connection between physical and mental disorders or realize it belatedly. We may feel some discomfort without realizing that our conditions are stressful. Personal defense mechanisms and our reluctance to leave comfortable states in order to experience the stressful discomfort again prevent us from becoming more fully aware of stress.

Emotional stressful stimuli are very relevant for human development - those that may not pose an objective danger to the body, but are perceived by the psyche as dangerous. This can be especially clearly appreciated in the example of children, for whom even a loud voice or swearing can be such a stressful stimulus. This can also include psychological aggression, painful emotional experiences - in a word, everything that has a traumatic effect on the psyche.

Questions arise: why some people, experiencing difficult life situations and negative mental influences, quickly adapt to the surrounding reality, while others, even with minor troubles, fall into a state of stress with the subsequent complication of circumstances and the further development of any symptoms of body diseases. Does religiosity, nationality, geographic latitude, skin or hair color, or the manner of holding a fork at the table play a role in this? Are different people equally prone to stress - say, a 22-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman?

I propose to consider the answers to these questions from the perspective of new knowledge - Iissiidiology. Stress is an almost inevitable consequence of almost all aspects of modern life, but there are unexplained individual differences in the susceptibility of people. There are many directions of development and different forms of existence of proto-forms (people, animals, plants, minerals, molecules, atoms, etc.) Humanity develops according to its characteristic type of synthesis of specific characteristics - these are multi-level manifestations of the qualities “All-Love-All- Wisdom" (through human sensuality, emotionality) and "All-Will - All-Mind" (human mentality, intellect).

Many other forms of self-consciousness of various proto-forms create their characteristic ideas about themselves and the reality surrounding them on the basis of completely different energy-informational relationships than we have, and the development of these proto-forms occurs according to other types of synthesis. We form common energy-informational relationships with these forms of self-consciousness, which manifest themselves through our perception system. Many proto-forms in the form of projections are manifested in our perception system through biological systems: various parts of the brain, cells, molecules, atoms, elementary particles.

“Wedged” into the process of our perception, these proto-forms evoke in our self-awareness unconscious, inexplicable reactions: either a feeling of thirst, hunger, fatigue and the need for peace; or sudden aggressiveness or bloodthirstiness characteristic of predators; or unaccountable fear, fear and horror, which unconsciously motivate in us one and only desire - to run away without looking back or hide somewhere far away.

Every day of our life is made up of some kind of deeds and creative realizations, and each time this process stimulates the individual reprojection of our self-consciousness into some of the directions of synthesis characteristic of different proto-forms. This process in our life creativity occurs through stress in order to gain individual experience and synthesize certain qualities in our further evolution.

How exactly does the tensor manifest itself in a person’s life? The situation heats up to a certain critical level, and with the appropriate mental state, the opportunity arises for the manifestation of this dissonance, as a result of which our reactions to the stimulus arise.

Before making a choice, we first consider different quality ideas and try to connect them with existing experience. Each of the possible qualitative options of our choices is tied to inertial intervals of space-time of different lengths and, as a “projection” of previous decisions (with inherent tensors), is superimposed on each subsequent choice. The higher the degree of awareness, the higher its effectiveness and the fewer corresponding stressful situations are attracted to annihilate tension when the synthesis of human qualities does not occur (“All-Love-All-Wisdom” and “All-Will-All-Mind”).

It turns out that none of the situations we experience happens by chance - this process is consistent. At first, everything is comprehended through a greater number of trials and errors made in life, which were caused by the activity of destructive qualities (anger, irritation, dissatisfaction, which, of course, can also manifest themselves in different situations at different levels). But subsequently, when analyzing the results obtained, we have the opportunity not to act “blindly”, but to take conscious actions, foreseeing in advance most of their possible consequences. Each of our actions depends on the developed abilities of perception to form or avoid specific events and situations.

The better (more consciously) we make a choice, the faster the undesirable circumstances of our life will change and be resolved for the better. To learn how to make high-quality (altruistic-intellectual) choices, you need to strive to become an “observer” of all events occurring in life, and not just a “participant” in them.

Proto-Form (issidical term) is any realized form of self-consciousness that manifests itself in our realities as a wave reflection of the processes of simultaneous and absolute synthesis of different qualities inertially occurring in it.

3. Changes in the functional state of the body, biochemical processes in it

Usually we are accustomed to noticing only strong nervous shocks that affect our health, accompanied by sobbing, headaches... But more dangerous are long-term, unmonitored stress that exhausts the body. When studying stress, researchers have encountered certain difficulties. As it turns out, it is quite difficult to determine which organ or system remains free from stress. The obligatory participants in stress are easier to name: these are the structures of the brain (hypothalamus and pituitary gland), endocrine glands (adrenal glands) and the autonomic nervous system. The main part of the hormonal mechanism that restores the body after changes caused by stress are adrenal hormones.

So what happens to the body under stress?

The brain sends a signal to the adrenal glands, which produce stress hormones - adrenalin and then cortisol. Adrenaline immediately turns on the body’s mobilization reaction, for example, to run away. Cortisol returns systems from an extreme to a normal state; this hormone is synthesized in the adrenal glands when the body is faced with a sharp change in conditions and is mobilized to fight. Metabolic processes also increase, more glucose appears in the blood, inflammatory processes are suppressed, sensitivity to pain decreases, etc. At the same time, the human brain, whose chemical receptors are also excited by cortisol, sends continuous commands to the adrenal glands to reduce the production of this hormone as it is dangerous for the body in long-term “use”.

If stress is short-lived, this feedback mechanism allows cortisol levels to return to normal. In the opposite case, a disease of the body or its self-destruction may occur, or, for example, when the level of cortisol in the blood increases, the level of another hormone increases - MMP9, which makes the walls of blood vessels more susceptible to rupture and the formation of blood clots, which, in turn, increases the risk of heart attack and death from it. How quickly a person reacts to stress and recovers from it depends on the quality of the genotype.

Iissiidiology explains that associative behavior is already inherent in the human genome along the ancestral line and is realized as a result of a genetic predisposition to egoistic realizations (associated with the adaptation of our personal individual form in the world). Each person's perception system and biological organism are different.

The human genome contains a large number of different genes from other proto-forms - plants, animals, minerals. As a result of the mental-sensory dynamics of self-awareness, activation of parts of the genome characteristic of certain parts of the brain occurs. And when these areas are activated under stress, the brain receives impulses that are also characteristic of some proto-form

All psychosomatic reactions are expressed in the body through the activity of the endocrine system through the production of hormones, and if we do not monitor, for example, fear, then it is still reflected in the work of parts of the brain and is perceived as a danger of possible consequences for the biological form.

Thus, we rarely consciously respond to the different types of stress to which we are exposed. We usually only notice stress that affects us negatively. But with sufficient conscious interest in a positive and altruistic response to life situations, it is possible to control and change the activity of certain genes in DNA molecules, thereby preventing psychosomatic disorders in the body.

4. Phases of stress and a person’s resistance to them

Our body, when faced with an unusual influence, first responds to it alarm reaction, followed by the phase resistance to stressors(factors causing stress). But if stressors continue their impact on the body, then the third phase may begin - the phase exhaustion of coping with stressors. This happens when the resources of the protective forces are exhausted, and the body becomes ill.

So, at the first stage of a collision with a factor that we define for ourselves as stressful (anxiety reaction), defense mechanisms are activated, catecholamines and corticosteroids are released, which at the physiological level prepare the body for action. Selye proved that the most important stress hormone in humans, cortisol, stimulates vital processes in adaptation to stress.

At the first stage of stress, a person’s self-control weakens. He gradually loses the ability to consciously and intelligently regulate his own behavior. Psychological contact in communication disappears, alienation appears. A characteristic emotional feature of this phase is the experience of anxiety and anxiety.

To get through the first stage more quickly, Iissiidiology gives the “two-minute rule” for getting out of a conflict situation. When we make decisions in a critical situation, our brain imposes its egoistic realizations and profitable arguments, which we perceive as “our personal benefit” and if, despite all sorts of egoistic provocations of the mind, we make a more positive decision in our choice, knowing what we are for we do this, - tensority in consciousness is annihilated and the time for further implementation of stress is reduced.

The main thing for us in any situation- quickly decide to make a radical choice. All our other choices with various consequences remain outside our dynamics and interest in non-positive implementations is gradually decreasing. Stress occurs when we live our lives unconsciously and are not responsible for our choices. By motivating ourselves with positive ideas about everything that surrounds us, we organize our understanding of life and peace of mind.

At the second stage - gradual adaptation to a difficult situation and active resistance to it. This level is ensured by spending a larger than usual amount of vital energy. Signs of an anxiety reaction in the body practically disappear. At this stage, addiction to stress occurs under the prolonged influence of harmful agents, during which the body undergoes a restructuring and adaptation to changed conditions. An example would be health conditions such as “athlete’s anemia”, “sports tachycardia”.

This stage involves a loss of effective conscious self-control. The duration of stress varies from person to person - from a few minutes and hours to several days and weeks. Having exhausted his energy resources, a person feels empty and tired. However, not always, even when the first two phases are activated, a person finds a positive way out of the situation, which delays the search for new tactics and strategies of behavior and keeps the individual in a stressful state.

At the third stage, the body is exhausted if the stressor is too intense. The body's overall resistance drops sharply. The result can be burnout, illness, or death if the stressor continues or if the body does not receive the necessary help and support.

Of course, different people react differently to the same stimuli. Everyone knows this from their own personal experience. Some people remain calm in a difficult situation, while others get lost. Someone, even for an insignificant reason, can “explode” and say offensive words, while others will explain themselves completely calmly. It all depends on the character, the individuality of the person and the availability of acquired means of protection against stress.

If we ask ourselves why we have experienced stress over the past month, then, after analyzing the situations, we will understand that most of the cases that lead to stress are nothing more than its provocateurs. But which situation will turn into a stressful one depends on the person himself, the awareness of his choices and interest in understanding this part of his perception.

The psychological literature also actively discusses the concepts stress availability And stress resistance, since they largely determine whether a person will experience distress in response to a certain event. Stress resistance is characteristic of physically healthy, emotionally stable individuals with an active life position, low anxiety and adequate self-esteem. Stress tolerance is characteristic of individuals who are passive, dependent, highly anxious, or prone to depressive and hypochondriacal reactions.

Psychologist Sh. Melnik believes that any problem consists of 50% of facts that we can control, and 50% of the influence of another person and circumstances that do not depend and are not under our control. If we consciously control only our 50%, then we are responsible for our actions, and on the other 50% we do not waste our energy on resisting the circumstances of life. This rule, according to Sh. Melnik, makes us the master of the situation: “This also means that you have an incentive for further active actions. Don't expect conditions or people around you to change, instead take responsibility for what you do. Changing your emotional or physical state will allow you to be part of the solution rather than part of the problem.”

change your attitude to circumstances;
adapt your physiological response;
take steps to solve the problem.

The position of a person who is ready to develop psychological invulnerability is a movement towards his goal in life: “I wonder what situation today will throw at me to test my capabilities?” Many studies show that a person responds positively to stress only if he is able to view stressful events as a challenge that rewards effort. When talking about stress management techniques, it is helpful to think about the positives that can be taken from most stressful situations. When a person is able to put this ability into practice, he overcomes the biggest obstacle to becoming resilient to stress.

The ability to transform negative perceptions of situations into positive ones is the culmination of stress management. Having learned to control them, which we unexpectedly find ourselves in, we transform them into exciting and valuable life experiences, automatically believing that they allow us to demonstrate our best qualities and make our lives more productive and fulfilling.

So, your choice is whether you allow events to get the best of you or whether you control them yourself and, accordingly, be able to accept stress as an opportunity that can be used effectively.

I suppose that it is not yet possible to completely control every stressful situation in our lives, but we are capable of controlling many of our mental reactions to stressful circumstances. It's not easy, but it's possible! So the main principle of dealing with stress is constant self-monitoring and analysis of the significance of the situation itself personally, as well as the subsequent impact of stress on life. It is necessary to show more love for people and try to create a friendly environment around yourself. Research shows that feelings of social attachment and love significantly increase people's resistance to stress factors.

To sum up, we can say that the main reason that troubles happen in our lives is that we are too afraid of complications in life and protect ourselves from them by constantly being in a tense state. At the same time, we continuously show interest in our destructive states in order to avoid possible troubles for us. Therefore, we create drama and tragedy out of our lives, simulating all kinds of troubles, reacting negatively to them in advance.

When we find ourselves in a stressful situation, we can take a shorter path to forming a positive reaction and understanding why we are given such situations in life. We need to promptly find positive motivation that will convince us that our previous subjective ideas are not related to our current fears, and that we are just gaining individual life experience through specific conditions or repeated stressful situations.

They must be perceived as an intermediate state between the current moment and, even more so, the harmonized state that we strive to achieve in relationships with people around us and the world, as necessary processes that ensure the quality of our future life. But motivation is also formed on the basis of some life experience. If we lack it, then it is better to focus on sensory perception and accept a difficult situation as a given. And then gradually images and a reasonable justification for its solution will appear in our self-awareness.

5. Stress is the “aroma and taste of life”

Our whole life, one way or another, is associated with stress. Stressful situations occur in the life of every person, and the presence of stressful impulses in all spheres of human activity is beyond doubt. Stress has a significant impact on both physical health, mental state, and social and psychological functions of a person. It is reflected in all aspects of our creative life and leaves a certain imprint on all our capabilities and ways of interacting with the world around us.

Despite the fact that stress provokes many diseases, according to G. Selye, there is no point in avoiding it, since “stress is the aroma and taste of life, and only those who do nothing can avoid it... We should not, and unable to avoid stress. Complete freedom from stress would mean death."

The problem with our prolonged stress is that all the troubles that happen in our lives correspond to the quality of our own mental states. Life does not take into account how “bad” or “good” we are according to society, the main thing is how we personally evaluate ourselves and transform our personal existence. We ourselves resonantly (by our interest) attract many stressful and unpleasant situations into our lives.

There is only one way out - to saturate our creativity in life with a positive and trusting attitude towards people and the entire world around us, combining it with a deep understanding of the causes of the circumstances of our lives. In fact, even just one minute of visualizing how a situation is changing for the better reduces fear and fills our existence with positive emotions.

Therefore, the main thing in life is to accept stress not as a turning point, but as a certain stage, the resolution of which will open up great opportunities for our development. Iissiidiological assessment of the scientific characteristics of stress and their awareness helped me understand the following:

stress allows me to identify shortcomings in my perception;
there is an urgent need to analyze and work with your stress;
subsequent changes in ideas about myself and the world around me make a significant contribution to my becoming a better person - as a Person with a capital P.

7. Book “Stress resistance. How to remain calm and effective in any situation"

8. Book “Organizational stress. Theories, research and practical application”,

9. Book “Theory of stress and psychophysiological research. Emotional stress”, author R. Lazarus

10. Article “Reflections on the quality of elections”,

11. Article “Self-control, awareness and the position of a “third-party observer” in stressful situations”,

12. Article “Ghosts in our genes”, authors - site editorial board

13. Article “Motivation as a mechanism for the work of self-awareness”, author Iirrfflyirriss Luurrffm

In the eye of the beholder
Stress is inherited
Approaching old age
How to cope with stress

To the question “is it possible to live without stress?” Hans Selye, the founder of research in this field, responded: “Life without stress is death.” In homeopathic doses, stress stimulates us; in equine doses, it kills us; it’s all about balance. How to find it?

Birth is the first and perhaps the most serious stress in a person’s life. From the aquatic environment the child enters the airy one, from the world of penumbra - into a bright, colorful world: new sounds, smells, images, temperature changes... In response to all this disgrace, the baby screams and... adapts.

The body prepares for the stress of childbirth in advance: the adrenal glands begin to secrete the hormone cortisol, which helps to survive the emergency and adapt to new conditions (the adrenal glands during this period are the largest in size relative to the body and after the birth of the child they rapidly decrease).

Throughout life, a person will more than once encounter a variety of stress factors - both physiological (pain, cold, heat, hunger, thirst, physical overload) and psychological (job loss, family problems, illness or death of loved ones). And each time this will be accompanied by a cascade of physiological and behavioral reactions.

Short-term moderate stress (SMS) is an extremely useful thing. Not only does it not undermine our strength, but, on the contrary, it trains and strengthens the body.

First of all, defense mechanisms are improved. The effect of CUS on the immune system was comprehensively studied by Dr. Firdaus Dhabhar from Stanford University (USA) - however, mainly in rodents. In one study, he found that rats kept in cramped conditions for a period of time experienced a massive mobilization of three key types of immune cells - monocytes, neutrophils and lymphocytes. This process was triggered by stress hormones - norepinephrine, adrenaline and corticosterone (an analogue of cortisol). In other work, Dr. Dhabhar showed that stress improves the effectiveness of vaccines. Mice exposed to minor stress during vaccinations demonstrated a more pronounced immune response compared to animals from the control group, and the observed effect persisted even 9 months after the procedure.

Even more impressive results were obtained when studying the effect of CUS on the development of skin cancer in mice. It turned out that mildly stressed rodents developed fewer tumors after 10 weeks of exposure to UV rays than those who lived quietly.

Analyzing the results obtained, the author recalls: in nature, a stressful situation rarely occurs without damage. The body has no choice but to prepare in advance for a possible injury and ensure rapid healing. In humans, Dhabhar believes, similar mechanisms operate. This is indirectly evidenced by the study of blood samples from patients preparing for surgery on the kneecap. A few days before the intervention, the number of key immune cells in their blood increased.

Short-term moderate stress has a beneficial effect on cognitive function. A person automatically concentrates on the problem, his perception sharpens, his endurance increases, and his working memory used in solving problems improves. This effect is fully felt by students during the session: information pops up in your head that you didn’t seem to know.

It can change social behavior. Scientists from the University of California at Berkeley (USA) discovered that in rats, mild stress brings “comrades in misfortune” closer together. This occurs as a result of an increase in the level of the hormone oxytocin in the brain. But the opposite effect is observed under acute stress: the behavior of rodents becomes aggressive - “every man for himself.” Something similar happens in people suffering from post-traumatic syndrome after an accident or combat: they withdraw into themselves and show aggression. The question arises: where is the line beyond which normal physiological stress ends and pathological stress begins?

The founder of the stress theory, Canadian scientist Hans Selye, tried to answer this question. In the first case, the scientist spoke about beneficial stress (eustress), as a result of which the functional reserve of the body increases, adaptation to the stress factor occurs and the stress itself is eliminated. Interestingly, eustress can be triggered by both positive and negative events: an upcoming date, wedding planning, an exam, a high school reunion, a roller coaster, a job interview... Even a divorce will trigger positive stress in one person, and negative stress (distress) in another. In fact, distress occurs when the struggle with the source of tension has been prolonged and the body’s adaptive capabilities have been exhausted - the body has entered the stage of exhaustion.

The concept of stress was introduced by Canadian endocrinologist Hans Selye in the 1940s. More precisely, the term “general adaptation syndrome” first appeared, which over time evolved into “stress.” By it, the scientist understood “a nonspecific response of the body to any demand presented to it.” Non-specific in the sense that our body can react to completely different events - be it the death of a friend or winning the lottery - in a similar way. Selye was the first to notice that stress is nothing more than an adaptive mechanism that allows you to meet an irritating factor in combat readiness. This reaction ensures the survival of the species, improving the functioning of all body systems. True, this only happens if the stress is short-term. Prolonged overexertion leads to the opposite effect - emotional and physical exhaustion.

What determines whether your stress will be beneficial or destructive? From you!

In the eye of the beholder

Our state and well-being are determined not so much by the intensity of stress as by our attitude towards it. To paraphrase a well-known phrase, we can say that stress is in the eye of the beholder. People with a positive attitude and low levels of anxiety tend to cope with stress more easily, and their stress is more often positive. And vice versa: for neurotics and emotionally unstable, anxious people who tend to dramatize everything and do not believe in their own strength, any exam, interview or quarrel turns into distress. We can say that such people have a disrupted adaptation mechanism. It is a common belief that women cope with stress better than men. And this is true - but only if your stress levels are low. If the tension is too high, men have the advantage. This is especially noticeable in a sudden stressful situation - for example, on a highway. Men more often retain a clear mind and the ability to make quick and adequate decisions, while women often “freeze.” These gender differences have a physiological basis. Men initially have higher levels of cortisol, and when it increases in a stressful situation, their body adapts faster. Women, on the other hand, are highly sensitive to cortisol, and they need more time to recover from a sharp spike. In addition, female sex hormones weaken the feedback mechanism of the adrenal cortex, which leads to a restrained or untimely response to stress.

Dr. Shelley Taylor from the University of California in her book “The Care Instinct” formulates the difference in reactions to stress this way: men prefer to act - fight or flight; women - solve the problem amicably, come to an agreement, take care and make friends (tend and befriend). Australian scientists from the Prince Henry Institute of Medical Research and Monash University explain the assertive male response to stress by the action of the SRY gene (it is normally absent in women). Among other functions, SRY regulates the secretion of adrenaline, norepinephrine, dopamine and the activity of the sympathetic nervous system, prompting a man to fight or flee.

And researchers at King's College London discovered another gene for stress resistance that is not associated with gender. Scientists have noticed that depressive disorders develop in response to minor stress only in a small group of people. It turned out that these people are carriers of a certain form of the 5-HTTLPR gene, which encodes the transfer of serotonin. In nature, this gene is presented in two variants - short (S) and long (L). Carriers of the short version more often suffer from depression, manic-depressive disorders, and social phobias.

The first stage of the response to stress is the anxiety reaction. The body's defenses and resources are immediately mobilized, the senses and brain activity are activated. The adrenal glands secrete adrenaline and norepinephrine, boosting the immune system, as well as increasing heart rate, breathing and blood pressure. Blood flow to the brain and limbs increases, and to the digestive organs, on the contrary, decreases. The existing reserves of fat and glycogen begin to be actively spent, increasing blood sugar levels. Thanks to this, the muscles are saturated with energy and nutrients. To avoid potential blood loss in a dangerous situation, blood vessels constrict and blood clotting increases.

The alarm reaction is followed by a stage of resistance, or resistance. At this stage, the adrenal glands secrete cortisol, as a result of which the functioning of all systems is normalized and our body copes with stressors.

Stress is inherited

The stress experienced by parents can have long-term consequences for future generations. This is evidenced by epigenetics - a science that describes the mechanism of transgenerational inheritance.

One of the most impressive studies of epigenetic memory of stress comes from professor of psychiatry and neurobiology Rachel Yehuda. She studied disorders in pregnant women who were witnesses or victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York. Almost half of the expectant mothers experienced a noticeable decrease in cortisol, indicating the development of post-traumatic syndrome. And more than a year later, their 9-12 month old babies showed similar symptoms! It turns out that stress can be transmitted from mother to child during fetal development.

In the future, parents continue to have a tremendous influence on the child’s resistance to stress. In the first years of life, a child experiences a strong need for the care of his mother and the warmth of her body. If mom and dad constantly avoid contact and ignore the baby's cries, separation distress increases. It leaves an imprint on his future life.

According to various studies, feelings of anxiety and worry that are not eliminated in early childhood reduce the expression of genes encoding GABA receptors, and this leads to depression and other mental disorders in the future.

Approaching old age

Children and the elderly are the worst protected from stress. In the former, the protective mechanisms are not yet fully formed; in the latter, they are already beginning to fail. Elderly people are especially vulnerable to physical stress: wounds heal more slowly, and a common cold develops complications. It is much more difficult for an 80-year-old grandfather to adapt to changes in temperature, pressure and humidity than for his 20-year-old grandson.

The brain gradually loses the ability to regulate cortisol levels, and as a result, many older people (especially women) feel constantly anxious. Moreover, stress itself ages. Emotional overload causes shortening of telomeres - areas at the end of chromosomes that continuously divide.

The shorter the telomeres, the older the cell. Professor Elizabeth Blackburn, winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, found that women experiencing chronic stress have shorter telomeres than their peers by up to ten years. Long-term stress disrupts the functioning of the respiratory, immune, digestive, reproductive, cardiovascular and other systems.

A number of scientists believe stress is one of the causes of cancer. Chronic distress causes neurological disorders ranging from insomnia and depression to cognitive loss and dementia. Scientists from Ohio State University (USA) found that mice plunged into chronic stress had difficulty finding an emergency exit from the cage, which they knew very well until recently. Therefore, it is very important to learn how to cope with stress with minimal losses.

How to cope with stress

There are proven ways to increase your stress resistance and learn to cope with stress with minimal losses.

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

Test

discipline: management

on the topic: psychological structure of personality,

the role of stress in human life

Psychological structure of personality

Without a doubt, every adult, even a teenager, has heard and used the word “personality” more than once in life. The police are engaged in establishing identities, at school they write essays about the personality of this or that literary character, and they study the identities of significant people in history. Indeed, this word has many meanings. But not everyone understands what a human personality really is.

More than six billion people live on Earth, and each of them is unique.

But we all differ not only in skin or eye color, height or build, facial expression or gait. Each person is unique in their inner world, which is never fully revealed to others. Yes, some features of the inner, spiritual world can be repeated among people, but it is not for nothing that they say that each person has his own self.

Even in ancient times, the sages said that in order to know the world, first of all, you need to know yourself. Having learned where the roots of his particular behavior come from, it is much easier for a person to understand other people and evaluate their behavior and actions. It is not for nothing that one person can be called stingy and boring, and another - a merry fellow, but a coward - all these are qualities included in the concept of “personality”. Of course, one may wonder, is every person an individual? But if, through logical conclusions, we reach the conclusion that not everyone (and there will always be people ready to dispute this), then thinking about the human personality will not have the same importance. Dozens of thinkers have thought about the topic of human personality, and more than one book has been written on this topic.

To the question of what personality is, psychologists answer differently, and the diversity of their answers, and partly the divergence of opinions on this matter, reveals the complexity of the personality phenomenon itself. Each of the definitions of personality available in the literature (if it is included in the developed theory and supported by research) deserves to be taken into account in the search for a global definition of personality.

Personality is most often defined as a person in the totality of his social, acquired qualities. So, Personality is a person taken in the system of his psychological characteristics that are socially conditioned, manifest themselves in connections and relationships that are social in nature, are stable, and determine the moral actions of a person that are of significant importance for himself and those around him.

Let's consider the structure of personality: - this is a system of ideas about personality, generalizing the procedurally hierarchical substructures of personality with the subordination of lower substructures to higher ones, including substructures of abilities and character superimposed on them

Components of personality structure

Short name of the substructure.	This substructure includes	The relationship between biological and social
Directional substructure	Beliefs, worldview, personal meanings, interests	Social level (almost no biological level)
Substructure of experience	Skills, knowledge, habits	Socio-biological level (much more social than biological)
Substructure of reflection forms	Features of cognitive processes (thinking, memory, perception, sensation, attention); features of emotional processes (emotions, feelings)	Biosocial level (more biological than social)
Substructure of biological, constitutional properties	The speed of nervous processes, the balance of excitation and inhibition processes, etc.; gender, age properties	Biological level (social level is practically absent)

Hierarchical personality structure
(according to K.K. Platonov)

The most important components of the personality structure are abilities, temperament, character, volitional qualities, emotions, motivation, social attitudes.

Abilities are individual psychological characteristics of a person, which are the conditions for the successful implementation of a given activity and the dynamics of mastering knowledge, skills and abilities. A significant contribution to the development of the general theory of abilities was made by our domestic scientist B.M. Teplov. The concept of “ability,” he argues, contains three ideas. “Firstly, abilities mean individual psychological characteristics that distinguish one person from another... Secondly, abilities do not refer to any individual characteristics in general, but only those that are related to the success of performing any activity or many activities... In “Thirdly, the concept of “ability” cannot be reduced to the knowledge, skills or abilities that have already been developed by a given person.”

TEMPERAMENT (lat. Temperamentum - proper ratio of traits from tempero - mix in the proper state) - a characteristic of an individual from the dynamic characteristics of his mental activity, i.e. tempo, speed, rhythm, intensity, the mental processes and states that make up this activity. Temperament is a personality quality formed in a person’s personal experience on the basis of the genetic determination of his type of nervous system and largely determines the style of his activity. Temperament refers to the biologically determined substructures of personality. There are four main types of temperament: sanguine, choleric, phlegmatic and melancholic.

In psychology, the concept of CHARACTER (from the Greek charakter - “seal”, “minting”) means a set of stable individual characteristics of a person that develop and manifest themselves in activity and communication, determining the typical modes of behavior for it.

CHARACTER is a personality quality that summarizes the most pronounced, closely interconnected and therefore clearly manifested personality properties in various types of activities. Character is the “framework” and substructure of personality, superimposed on its main substructures. Not all human features can be considered characteristic, but only significant and stable ones.

Volitional qualities cover several special personal properties that influence a person’s desire to achieve his goals. Emotions and motivation are, respectively, experiences and motivations for activity, and social attitudes are people’s beliefs and attitudes.

The role of stress in human life

There are no people who don't have problems. We successfully cope with most of our difficulties on our own. But some events may seem insoluble for us and our loved ones and “knock us off track” for a long time. We are talking about stressful situations.

The word "stress" in origin means limitation or oppression, and "distress" means being in a state of limitation or oppression. As soon as a person’s nervous system perceives an external threat, the body immediately reacts to it: the pulse quickens, blood pressure rises, and muscles tense. All this is the mobilization of mechanisms that prepare the body to protect itself from danger, thanks to which man was able to preserve himself as a biological species. However, life in modern society often requires us to suppress such reactions. The human body is designed in such a way that if stress is immediately followed by a physical reaction to it (a person enters into a fight or runs away), stress does not cause much harm to him. But when the psychological response to stress is not released, the body remains in a state of tension for a long time and the negative effects of stress begin to accumulate in the body. This is the so-called Chronic stress, stress to which the body has not responded appropriately in a timely manner, is what plays an important role in the occurrence of many diseases.

Stress is a common and common phenomenon. We all experience it from time to time - maybe like the feeling of emptiness in the pit of our stomach when we stand up to introduce ourselves in class, or like increased irritability or insomnia during an exam session. Minor stress is inevitable and harmless. Excessive stress is what creates problems for individuals and organizations. Stress is an integral part of human existence, you just need to learn to distinguish between an acceptable degree of stress and too much stress. Zero stress is impossible.

By reducing individual performance and well-being, excessive stress comes at a cost to organizations. Many employee problems that affect both their earnings and performance, as well as the health and well-being of employees, are rooted in psychological stress. Stress directly and indirectly increases the costs of achieving organizational goals and reduces the quality of life for large numbers of workers.

1. Stress reaction.

Unfavorable factors (stressors) cause a stress response, i.e. stress. A person consciously or subconsciously tries to adapt to a completely new situation. Then comes leveling, or adaptation. A person either finds balance in the current situation and stress does not produce any consequences, or does not adapt to it - this is the so-called MAL-ADAPTATION (poor adaptation). As a consequence of this, various mental or physical abnormalities may occur.

In other words, stress either continues for a long time or occurs quite often. Moreover, frequent stress can lead to depletion of the body’s adaptive defense system, which, in turn, can cause psychosomatic diseases.

2. Passivity.

It manifests itself in a person whose adaptive reserve is insufficient and the body is not able to withstand stress. A state of helplessness, hopelessness, and depression arises. But this stress reaction may be temporary.

Selye believed that complete freedom from stress meant death. Stress not only helps to cope with an acute critical situation, but also - when repeated or prolonged - contributes to the effective launch of specific, usually more economical, adaptive reactions. Stress develops in a child during the prenatal period. Their cause may be the mother's movements, creating a moderate O 2 deficiency, in the struggle for which the child develops motor activity, and this accelerates the formation of many systems of his body. If the mother overeats and her blood contains excess nutrients, the motor activity of the fetus, on the contrary, decreases and its development is inhibited.

Childbirth creates stress not only for the mother, but also for the newborn. Moderate childhood stresses that arise during children's playful interactions, positive and negative emotions that form as the child gets to know the world around him, physical activity and periodic cooling can contribute to physical, emotional and intellectual development. Children who swim regularly begin to walk 3 months earlier than usual; they get sick 3 times less often, and their vocabulary is 3-4 times greater than that of children who do not swim.

Moderate stress can help improve mood and performance, provide an analgesic effect, which seems important during periods of increased demands on the human body: during exams, when a surgeon performs complex operations, during public speaking. Hence, it can be assumed that insufficient expression of stress reactions may be a factor unfavorable for health.

4. The dangers of stress for health

The adverse effects of stress on health may include:

hopelessness or uncertainty of a situation to which it is difficult to adapt (natural disasters and wars, loss of loved ones);

high intensity or duration of stress reaction, resulting in depletion of adaptive reserves;

personal or biological characteristics that determine the weakness of anti-stress defense;

use of techniques that are dangerous to health and life to protect against stress.

Adverse effects on human health are inherent in physical and, even more often, psycho-emotional stress. Thus, noise, which in itself is not associated with any danger to humans, can nevertheless cause a state of anxiety and, like other stressors, inhibit the activity of the stomach, disrupt digestion in general and cause neuroses.

TO emotional Signs of chronic stress include:

mood changes,

increased anxiety and antipathy towards people,

the appearance of irritability, fatigue and absent-mindedness.

TO behavioral Manifestations of chronic stress include:

the appearance of indecision,

sleep disorder,

overeating or loss of appetite,

decreased quality of work and increased absenteeism,

increase in accidents,

more frequent smoking and drinking alcohol.

TO somatic signs of stress include:

cardiac arrhythmias and palpitations,

pain and feeling of chest compression,

difficulty breathing,

bloating,

abdominal pain and diarrhea,

frequent urination,

decreased libido and impotence,

menstrual irregularities,

tingling in the arms and legs,

pain in the head, neck, back, lower back,

sensation of a lump in the throat,

double vision,

blurred vision, skin rashes.

Assessing the diagnostic role of these phenomena, it is noted that fatigue, hopelessness, depression are more often than chest pain prognostic symptoms of sudden death. The above phenomena, however, most often form the picture of neuroses.

Women usually experience acute stress more easily than men; they adapt to stress factors more economically physiologically, but at the same time experience greater mental discomfort than men. Women suffer from neuroses more often than men. Some acquired personality traits also matter. Personal “type A”, characterized by a 3-7 times greater tendency to stress and the development of coronary artery disease in connection with this, compared to the parameters of “type B”. Type A people are characterized by a high pace of life, competitiveness, persistent desire for recognition from others, aggressiveness, and leadership qualities.

People are divided into externalities And internals.

Externals characterized by avoidance of difficult situations, blaming other people or “fate” for one’s difficulties, low achievement motivation, and the desire to obey other people.

Internals they prefer constructive strategies for coping with difficulties, trying to see their source in themselves. (A Chinese proverb says: a wise man looks for faults in himself, a foolish man looks for faults in others). Internals are confident in their abilities, are highly responsible and resistant to stress. They view any event as an incentive to develop their own capabilities. This type is formed in childhood under two conditions:

a) the presence of an object of imitation;

b) parents providing independence in solving life problems.

The type of adequate strategy in stressful situations is obviously determined by strength, mobility, balance of nervous processes and other properties of the body. In people, psychological methods are often used to assess the tendency to stress, for example, assessing anxiety on the Spielberger and Hanin scale, analyzing color preferences - the Luscher test.