Inquiry question: What is stress?
The first round of research: What causes us stress?
Feelings of stress are normally triggered by things happening in your life which involve: being under lots of pressure, facing big changes, worrying about something, not having much or any control over the outcome of a situation, having responsibilities that you’re finding overwhelming, not having enough work, activities or change in your life, and times of uncertainty.
There might be one big thing causing you stress, but stress can also be caused by a build-up of small pressures. This might make it harder for you to identify what’s making you feel stressed, or to explain it to other people. (1)
Stress can be a positive thing – helping an individual to grow, develop, be stimulated, and take action. However, if stress exceeds a person’s ability to cope it can impact their mental and physical health in a range of ways.
In the days of the caveman, stress often came in the form of physical threats that required individuals to react quickly and decisively. The body helped out by releasing a surge of ‘stress’ hormones (notably adrenaline and cortisol) to accelerate the heart rate, raise blood pressure, increase blood glucose (sugar) levels, and enhance the brain’s use of glucose. This stress response meant that the caveman was instantly ready to respond to danger.
Modern-day stressors are more likely to be psychological in origin and prolonged in nature (eg: work-related stress, financial worries, interpersonal relationships, chronic illnesses). But they can still set off your body’s stress response and, over time, can have a range of negative impacts on the body’s systems – brain, cardiovascular, immune, digestive, musculoskeletal, and so on.
People deal with stress in different ways and the ability to deal with stress changes throughout life. Those who have developed effective strategies to deal with day-to-day stressors are less likely to develop physical and psychological symptoms. (2)
Stress is normal and, to some extent, a necessary part of life. Despite it being something everyone experiences, what causes stress can differ from person to person.
For instance, one person may become angry and overwhelmed by a serious traffic jam, while another might turn up their music and consider it a mild inconvenience. A fight with a friend might follow one person around for the rest of the day, while another might easily shrug it off.
What’s causing you stress may already be something you’re abundantly aware of. But given the importance of keeping stress in check when it comes to mitigating the effects it can have on your physical and mental health, it’s worth opening yourself up to the possibility that other factors may be at play, too. Craft your stress-reduction plan with all of them in mind. (3)
Common external causes of stress include:
- Major life changes
- Work or school
- Relationship difficulties
- Financial problems
- Being too busy
- Children and family
Common internal causes of stress include:
- Pessimism
- Inability to accept uncertainty
- Rigid thinking, lack of flexibility
- Negative self-talk
- Unrealistic expectations / perfectionism
- All-or-nothing attitude (4)
Sources:
1) https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/stress/causes-of-stress/
2) https://www.southerncross.co.nz/group/medical-library/stress-causes-symptoms
3) https://www.verywellmind.com/what-are-the-main-causes-of-stress-3145063
4) https://www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/stress-symptoms-signs-and-causes.htm
I hope this gave a clear understanding of how we get stressed. Thank you for reading.
Hey Kiara!
I just read your blog post and I really liked it! It is obvious that you have done a lot of research and completely understand the topic. Additionally to that reading your article is very easy and nice, everything is well explained and easy to understand.
The only thing I would maybe change is the overall structure of the article. You often started your paragraphs with positive sounding aspects about stress to then turn over to the opposite. This is a wonderful stylistic device but I wouldn’t use it that often because the positive arguments kinda lose worth because you already know that there’ll be a negative aspect if you know what I mean. Despite from that I really like your post and the one thing I may have criticized could also be more a personal preference.
I am very excited for new things from you to come!
Helene
Hi kiara,
I really like this topic because stress is a very common thing and this will help a lot of people understand what stress is and stuff like that. the external and internal causes of stress where very interesting I found and would like to here more about that in the future.
Hi! I really enjoyed this post and reading about stress. I think people comonly miskate good stress and bad stress. I know I personally do! I reallt found the information about cavemen and stress back then. The only thing I was wondering is what kind of effect stress cam have on the different symptoms in the body. I found the external and internal causes of stress super interesting to learn about. This blog was really fun to read and I hope to be able to read more of your sometime in the future.
Hi! I really enjoyed this post and reading about stress. I think people commonly mistake good stress and bad stress. I know I personally do! I really found the information about cavemen and stress back then. The only thing I was wondering is what kind of effect stress can have on the different symptoms in the body. I found the external and internal causes of stress super interesting to learn about. This blog was really fun to read and I hope to be able to read more of it sometime in the future.
Hey Kiara,
I found your article very informative and well said. The idea of our bodies having this protection mechanism is very encouraging. While there are a few differences between good and bad stress, the reaction in our brains is very much the same for either. I would be interested in knowing maybe a few coping strategies that either work best or that you would suggest.
Thanks,
Josh