Stress And Stress Management

• Stress means Different things to different people
• Something we have all experienced
• A term used to describe a wide range of feelings, emotions, and situations
• Caused by a percieved inability to cope with a demand such as changes to our bodies, routine or living conditions

Looker And Gregson (1997)

suggested that stresscan be "good, bad and ugly"

Good- Excited, challenged, stimulated and creative

Bad-Distressed, Pressured, Have negative effect on Emotions

Ugly - Associated with health Problems, such as Heart Attacks, Depression and Hypertension

Stress as a stimulis

Bad stress could develop into Ugly stress

Is viewed as something which happens to individuals and is caaused by external factors, caused by their environment

Sometimes we can cope with these events and other times we cannot and become stressed

Has roots in engineering

If we visualise a piece of metal under strain, it will resist to a certain point but eventually the load becomes to heavy to bear and the structure will colapse.

Strength: Explains the effects of multiple stressors

Weakness: does not explain why we become ill unlike the GAS model.

1. Events which lead to any sort of major change in an aspect of an individuals life

    Life Events- work, social relationnships, ill health.

    Workplace Stressors- Long hours, Over worked, underpaid, Travel

1. Age-You may go through different stressors dependant on your life stage for example:

•     Childhood:Little control over events and unable to communicate their distress
•     Adolescent: Peer pressure, school/further education, housing
•     Older Adult::Retirement, lack of role, death of spouse

2. Optimisim/Pessimissim

•     Evidence to suggest that optimism carries health benefits
•     Researchers like Martain Sleligman have been studying optimists and pessimists for years, and they have found that an optimistic world view carries certain advantages.
• (http://stress.about.com/od/optimismspirituality/a/optimismbenefit.htm)
•     Optimistic patients recover better from surgery
•     Pessimists have poorer physical and mental health
•     Repsonds emotionally to stress and experience guilt, distress and shame

1. Increased heart rate which realeses adreniline which relates to fight or flight model

2. Blood pumping faster round the body which can lead to headaches and highblood pressure

Cognitive effects of stress such as 

1. Unable to concentrate on specific tasks or activities

2. Difficulty with memory

3. Brain working overtime, not being able to swith off

4. Negative thoughts

1. Stress may make a person overly sensitive and this may lead to them being more teary/upset

2. Stress may effect your confidence and self esteem which may effect your behaviour

1.Withdrawn from family and friends, want to be alone. Which may in turn have consequences such as losing your job or getting into trouble with school/college or uni.

2. May turn to using negative behaviour such as using drink and drugs. Which may lead to getting in to trouble with the police leading to a criminal record.

1. Family may become over protective and constantly ask are u ok? you should do this or do that. Or may even tell you to snap out of it and use negative comments because they dont understand.

2. They will become frustrated and maybe stressed themselves

3. This may lead to arguements and cause break down of relationships between family members

Mistakes can be made more easily through lack of concentration

Care would be less efficiant and clients may feel their care needs aren't being met.

Other staff members may feel let down or frustrated if your not pulling your weight which would have an effect on staff moral and atmosphere within the work setting

Organisation may get a bad name or be open to being sued depending on mistakes a person makes.

You may build negative relationships with neighbours if you become aggressive and violent, or if you not keeping garden tidy. Shouting at kids in the street. 

You may turn to drink and drugs, play loud music, shouting and violence with family and neighbours hear slamming doors. 

general antisocial behaviour