Stress Can Be Both Positive And Beneficial. We ordinarily think of stress as a bad thing. It's what you feel after you've lost a job, spouse or friend. Or when you discover you can't make the mortgage next month.
But in small doses, stress can be both positive and beneficial. It can even help us perform better, both mentally and physically. The trick is to understand the difference between "good" stress and stress that can make you ill.
Stress as we now understand it was first defined in scientific terms in the 1930s by a Hungarian-born scientist named Hans Selye. Explaining the phenomenon of what he called the "non-specific response of the body to any demand for change," he actually used two words to define two different kinds of stress. "Distress" was caused by what most of us would call negative stressors (the things that cause stress). But he noted that stress could also be triggered by positive events, such as winning the lottery or getting married. This he called "eustress."
From the body's point of view, both eustress and distress appear essentially the same. Both engage the body's extraordinarily complex "stress response." In a nutshell, here's what happens:
First, the brain registers a need to optimize the body for action. Stressors can come in many forms. You could spot a tiger in your neighbor's yard looking your way and licking its chops. You could be hiking up a steep hill with a heavy pack. Or you could simply think about the consequences of not meeting a deadline for a high-stakes project.
The brain then sends out signals that release hormones — including adrenaline and cortisol — that prime the body to escape from or confront the stressor. Blood pressure and heart rate increase to deliver more blood to the brain and muscles. Another task is to release energy from fat, to fuel the body.
Think of a stress-primed body as a real-life superhero: Memory and other mental abilities are sharper; the heart and muscles are ready to perform at their peak. This is exactly the way you'd like to be, for example, before stepping into a courtroom to argue a big case, while taking an important exam, or when asking someone out.
However, the body can only tolerate the stress response — whether triggered by distress or eustress — for so long before it cries uncle. After a certain point, which varies for each person, fatigue sets in, followed by exhaustion and eventually ill health.
The mystery of how this transition occurs has puzzled scientists for years, though a recent study may have discovered the key. Investigating the cells of rats, scientists found that stress hormones affect how cells are "energized." For a short period of time, stress optimizes the cells' energy levels. But when stress goes on too long, the system breaks down and the cells fail to get sufficient energy, causing weakness and fatigue.
It's another indication that our stress systems were designed to operate only in short bursts. Over the thousands of years of human evolution, the stress response became critical for survival — to escape predators or to pursue prey, for instance. We are wired to function at our peak, physically and mentally, in response to either distress or eustress, whenever the situation demands it.
Unlike the brief survival "emergencies" that shaped the evolution of our stress response on the savannah long ago, modern life creates a barrage of stressors that can tax our bodies far beyond what they were designed to endure. Such illnesses as heart disease, cancer, depression and insomnia can be triggered by a chronically overactive stress system.
If you sense that your stress is chronic, it's time to find ways to change the pattern. On the other hand, short-term stress can vitalize you to do things you didn't think were possible: rescuing a child who's fallen into a raging river, or remembering a key concept during an exam. [ focusonfeelingbetter ]
But in small doses, stress can be both positive and beneficial. It can even help us perform better, both mentally and physically. The trick is to understand the difference between "good" stress and stress that can make you ill.
Stress as we now understand it was first defined in scientific terms in the 1930s by a Hungarian-born scientist named Hans Selye. Explaining the phenomenon of what he called the "non-specific response of the body to any demand for change," he actually used two words to define two different kinds of stress. "Distress" was caused by what most of us would call negative stressors (the things that cause stress). But he noted that stress could also be triggered by positive events, such as winning the lottery or getting married. This he called "eustress."
From the body's point of view, both eustress and distress appear essentially the same. Both engage the body's extraordinarily complex "stress response." In a nutshell, here's what happens:
First, the brain registers a need to optimize the body for action. Stressors can come in many forms. You could spot a tiger in your neighbor's yard looking your way and licking its chops. You could be hiking up a steep hill with a heavy pack. Or you could simply think about the consequences of not meeting a deadline for a high-stakes project.
The brain then sends out signals that release hormones — including adrenaline and cortisol — that prime the body to escape from or confront the stressor. Blood pressure and heart rate increase to deliver more blood to the brain and muscles. Another task is to release energy from fat, to fuel the body.
Think of a stress-primed body as a real-life superhero: Memory and other mental abilities are sharper; the heart and muscles are ready to perform at their peak. This is exactly the way you'd like to be, for example, before stepping into a courtroom to argue a big case, while taking an important exam, or when asking someone out.
However, the body can only tolerate the stress response — whether triggered by distress or eustress — for so long before it cries uncle. After a certain point, which varies for each person, fatigue sets in, followed by exhaustion and eventually ill health.
The mystery of how this transition occurs has puzzled scientists for years, though a recent study may have discovered the key. Investigating the cells of rats, scientists found that stress hormones affect how cells are "energized." For a short period of time, stress optimizes the cells' energy levels. But when stress goes on too long, the system breaks down and the cells fail to get sufficient energy, causing weakness and fatigue.
It's another indication that our stress systems were designed to operate only in short bursts. Over the thousands of years of human evolution, the stress response became critical for survival — to escape predators or to pursue prey, for instance. We are wired to function at our peak, physically and mentally, in response to either distress or eustress, whenever the situation demands it.
Unlike the brief survival "emergencies" that shaped the evolution of our stress response on the savannah long ago, modern life creates a barrage of stressors that can tax our bodies far beyond what they were designed to endure. Such illnesses as heart disease, cancer, depression and insomnia can be triggered by a chronically overactive stress system.
If you sense that your stress is chronic, it's time to find ways to change the pattern. On the other hand, short-term stress can vitalize you to do things you didn't think were possible: rescuing a child who's fallen into a raging river, or remembering a key concept during an exam. [ focusonfeelingbetter ]
" Always consult your doctor before making any changes to diet or exercise "
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