Priya Stress

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REVIEW OF LITERATURE:

Definition of Stress:
Stress is defined as “a state of psychological and physiological imbalance
resulting from the disparity between situational demand and the
individual's ability and motivation to meet those needs.”

Dr. Hans Selye, one of the leading authorities on the concept of stress, described stress
as “the rate of all wear and tear caused by life.”

Stress can be positive or negative:


1. Stress is good when the situation offers an opportunity to a person to gain
something. It acts as a motivator for peak performance.
2. Stress is negative when a person faces social, physical, organizational and
emotional problems.

Factors that are responsible for causing stress are called stressors:
Causes of Stress
The major causes of stress at work or in organization:

FIGURE:4.1
Career Concern: If an employee feels that he is very much behind in the corporate
ladder, then he may experience stress. If he seems that there are no opportunities for self-
growth, he may experience stress. Hence, unfulfilled career expectations are the
significant source of stress.

Role Ambiguity: It occurs when the person doesn't know what he is supposed to do,
on the job. His tasks and responsibilities are not clear. The employee is not sure what he
is expected to do. It creates confusion in the minds of the worker and results in stress.

Rotating Work Shifts: Stress may occur in those individuals who work on different
work shifts. Employees may be expected to work on day shift for some days and then on
the night shift. That may create problems in adjusting to the shift timings, and it can affect
not only personal life but also family life of the employee.

Role Conflict: It takes place when people have different expectations from the person
performing a particular role. It can also occur if the job is not as per expectation, or when
a job demands a certain type of behavior that is against the person's moral values.

Occupational Demands: Some jobs are more demanding than others. Jobs that
involve risk, and danger are more stressful. Research findings indicate, job that cause
stress needs constant monitoring of equipment and devices, unpleasant physical
conditions, making decisions, etc.

Lack of Participation in Decision-making: Many experienced employees feel


that management should consult them on matters affecting their jobs. In reality, the
superiors hardly ask the concerned employees before taking a decision. That develops a
feeling of being neglected, which may lead to stress.

Work Overload: Excessive workload leads to stress as it puts a person under


tremendous pressure. Work overload may take two different forms:
1. Qualitative work overload implies performing a job that is complicated or beyond
the employee's capacity.
2. Quantitative work overload is a result of many activities performed in a prescribed
time.

Work Underload: In this, case, too little work or very easy work is expected on the
part of the employee. Doing less work or jobs of routine and simple nature would lead to
monotony and boredom, which can lead to stress.

Poor Working Conditions: Employees may be subject to poor working conditions.


It would include bad lighting and ventilation, unhygienic sanitation facilities, excessive
noise, and dust, presence of toxic gasses and fumes, inadequate safety measures, etc. All
these unpleasant conditions create physiological and psychological imbalance in humans
thereby causing stress.

Lack of Group Cohesiveness: Every group is characterized by its cohesiveness,


although they differ widely in its degree. Individuals experience stress when there is no
unity among work group members. There are mistrust, jealousy, frequent quarrels, etc.,
in groups and this lead to stress to employees.

Interpersonal and Intergroup Conflict: These conflicts take place due to


differences in perceptions, attitudes, values and beliefs between two or more individuals
and groups. Such conflicts can be a source of stress for group members.

Organizational Changes: When changes occur, people have to adapt to those


changes, and this may cause stress. Stress is higher when changes are significant or
unusual like transfer or adoption of new technology.

Lack of Social Support: When individuals believe that they have the friendship and
support of others at work, their ability to cope with the effects of stress increases. If this
kind of social support is not available, then an employee experiences more stress.
Certain factors outside the scope of an organization also cause stress:
The main causes of stress outside work or organization:

FIGURE:4.2

Civic Amenities: Poor civic amenities in the area in which one lives can be a cause of
stress. Inadequate or lack of public facilities like improper water supply, excessive noise
or air pollution, lack of proper transport facility can be quite stressful.

Life Changes: Life changes can bring stress to a person. Life changes can be slow or
sudden. Gradual life changes include getting older, and abrupt life changes include death
or accident of a loved one. Sudden life changes are highly stressful and very difficult to
cope.

Frustration: Frustration is another cause of stress. It arises when goal-directed


behavior gets blocked. Management should attempt to remove barriers and help the
employees to reach their goals.

Racial, Caste, and Religious Conflicts: Employees living in areas, which are
often prone to conflicts among people based on differences seen in their race, caste and
religion do suffer more from stress. In the case of a religion, the minorities and lowercaste
people (especially in India) are subject to more stress.
Personality: We can classify people as ‘Type A’ and ‘Type B’.
The ‘Type A’ people:
1. They feel guilty while relaxing.
2. They get irritated by minor mistakes of self and others.
3. They feel impatient and dislike waiting.
4. They also multitask and prefer to do several things at one time.

The ‘Type B’ people are exactly opposite and hence are less affected by stress due
to the above factors.

Technological Changes: When there are any changes in technical fields, employees
are under the constant fear of losing jobs or need to adjust to new technologies. It can be
a source of stress.

Career Changes: When a person suddenly switches to another job, he is under stress
to shoulder new responsibilities adequately. Under-promotion, over-promotion,
demotion and transfers can also cause stress.

Following habits can remarkably help to relieve stress:


• Regular meditation,
• Physical exercise, Focused thinking,
• Control of anger,
• Managing Depression,
• Maintaining calmness in stressful situations,
• Having a positive attitude towards life, Harmony towards self and others, etc.

Hang on there. There's no need for that. What you need is a quick relaxation
fix. Instead of going off on one, pick an on-the-spot tip from our experts to turn tension
to calm.

What Are the Symptoms of Stress?


Stress can affect all aspects of your life, including your emotions, behaviors,
thinking ability, and physical health. No part of the body is immune. But, because people
handle stress differently, symptoms of stress can vary. Symptoms can be vague and may
be the same as those caused by medical conditions. So it is important to discuss them with
your doctor. You may experience any of the following symptoms of stress.

Emotional symptoms of stress include:


• Becoming easily agitated, frustrated, and moody
• Feeling overwhelmed, like you are losing control or need to take control
• Having difficulty relaxing and quieting your mind
• Feeling bad about yourself (low self-esteem), lonely, worthless, and depressed
Avoiding others

Physical symptoms of stress include:


• Low energy
• Headaches
• Upset stomach, including diarrhea, constipation, and nausea
• Aches, pains, and tense muscles
• Chest pain and rapid heartbeat
• Insomnia
• Frequent colds and infections
• Loss of sexual desire and/or ability
• Nervousness and shaking, ringing in the ear, cold or sweaty hands and feet
• Dry mouth and difficulty swallowing
• Clenched jaw and grinding teeth

Cognitive symptoms of stress include:


• Constant worrying
• Racing thoughts
• Forgetfulness and disorganization
• Inability to focus
• Poor judgment
• Being pessimistic or seeing only the negative side.

Behavioral symptoms of stress include:
• Changes in appetite -- either not eating or eating too much
• Procrastinating and avoiding responsibilities
• Increased use of alcohol, drugs, or cigarettes
• Exhibiting more nervous behaviors, such as nail biting, fidgeting, and pacing

What Are the Consequences of Long-Term Stress?


A little stress every now and then is not something to be concerned about.
Ongoing, chronic stress, however, can cause or exacerbate many serious health problems,
including:
• Mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, and personality disorders
• Cardiovascular disease, including heart disease, high blood pressure, abnormal
heart rhythms, heart attacks, and stroke
• Obesity and other eating disorders
• Menstrual problems
• Sexual dysfunction, such as impotence and premature ejaculation in men and loss
of sexual desire in both men and women
• Skin and hair problems, such as acne, psoriasis, and eczema, and permanent hair
loss.
General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS):
GAS, which Hans Selye identified in 1950, is a response to long-term exposure to
stress.
Selye found that we cope with stress in three distinct phases:
1. The alarm phase, where we react to the stressor.
2. The resistance phase, where we adapt to, and cope with, the stressor. The body can't
keep up resistance indefinitely, so our physical and emotional resources are gradually
depleted.
3. The exhaustion phase, where, eventually, we're "worn down" and we cannot function
normally.

The effects of stress on your body:


Stress is the body's reaction to any change that requires an adjustment or response.
The body reacts to these changes with physical, mental and emotional responses. Stress is
a normal part of life. Many events that happen to you and around you, and many things
that you do yourself, put stress on your body. You can experience stress from your
environment, your body and your thoughts.

Common symptoms of stress include:


• A fast heartbeat.
• A headache.
• A stiff neck and/or tight shoulders.
• Back pain.
• Fast breathing.
• Sweating, and sweaty palms.
• An upset stomach, nausea, or diarrhea.

Over time, stress can affect your:

Immune system: Constant stress can make you more likely to get sick more often.
And if you have a chronic illness such as AIDS, stress can make your symptoms worse.

Heart: Stress is linked to high blood pressure, abnormal heartbeat (arrhythmia), blood
clots, and hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis). It's also linked to coronary artery
disease, heart attack, and heart failure.

Muscles: Constant tension from stress can lead to neck, shoulder, and low back pain.
Stress may make rheumatoid arthritis worse.
Stomach: If you have stomach problems, such as gastroesophageal reflux disease
(GERD), peptic ulcer disease, or irritable bowel syndrome, stress can make your
symptoms worse.

Reproductive organs: Stress is linked to low fertility, erection problems, problems


during pregnancy, and painful menstrual periods.
Lungs: Stress can make symptoms of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD) worse.

Skin: Skin problems such as acne and psoriasis are made worse by stress.

An extreme reaction to stress is a panic attack. A panic attack is a sudden, intense


fear or anxiety that may make you feel short of breath, dizzy, or make your heart pound.
People who have panic attacks may feel out of control, like they are having a heart attack,
or are about to die. Panic attacks may happen with no clear cause, but they can be brought
on by living with high levels of stress for a long time. For more information on panic
attacks, see the topic Panic Attacks and Panic Disorder.
How stress affects your thoughts and emotions:
You might notice signs of stress in the way you think, act, and feel. You may:
• Feel cranky and unable to deal with even small problems.
• Feel frustrated, lose your temper more often, and yell at others for no reason.
• Feel jumpy or tired all the time.
• Find it hard to focus on tasks.
• Worry too much about small things.
• Feel that you are missing out on things because you can't act quickly.

How stress affects you depends on many things, such as:


• Your personality.
• What you have learned from your family about responding to stress.
• How you think about and handle stress.
• Your coping strategies.

How does stress affect health?


The human body is designed to experience stress and react to it. Stress can be
positive, keeping you alert and ready to avoid danger. Stress becomes negative when a
person faces continuous challenges without relief or relaxation between challenges.
As a result, the person becomes overworked, and stress-related tension builds.
Stress that continues without relief can lead to a condition called distress, a
negative stress reaction. Distress can lead to physical problems including headaches, upset
stomach, elevated blood pressure, chest pain and trouble sleeping. Research suggests that
stress can also bring on or worsen certain symptoms or diseases.

Stress also becomes harmful when people turn to alcohol, tobacco, or drugs to try
to relieve their stress. Unfortunately, instead of relieving the stress and returning the body
to a relaxed state, these substances tend to keep the body in a stressed state and cause more
problems. Consider the following:
• The Health and Safety Executive says around 9.9 million working days are lost
each year to stress, depression or anxiety.
• Occupations with some of the highest rates of work-related stress are education,
health and social care, public administration and defence.
• The NHS says psychological problems, including stress, anxiety and depression,
are behind one in five visits to a GP.
STRESS MANAGEMENT

WAYS TO MASTER STRESS:


CHANGE LIFESTYLE HABITS:

• Well-balanced diet, reduce caffeine, junk food. Eat slowly.


• Regular exercise (provides a physical release for anger, tension).
• Adequate sleep (sleep helps your body recover from stress).
• Leisure time (take a break from your worries by doing something you enjoy and
schedule the time to do it).

CHANGE STRESSFUL SITUATIONS:

• Time and money management.


• Assertiveness (let others know what they can expect from you and how much time
you are willing to give them. Learn to say “no” to things you don’t want to do when
feeling overwhelmed by activities.
• Problem-solving. (Escape for a brief time to give yourself a chance to collect your
thoughts and calm your emotions (a walk, listen to your favorite music).
• Improve relationships that are important to you. Share your feelings with friends and
family. Don’t cope alone.
• Take active steps to manage your environment (recognize things that cause you
stress and eliminate or change what you can).
• Learn to focus on a task or job while you are doing it. (Fight the tendency to let your
mind wander to some other problem or task).

CHANGE YOUR THINKING:


• Look at things more positively (reframing). It’s easy to be critical and to find the
negative in people and things. For a week, try to find the positive instead. You may
expect too much from others and yourself.
• Keep an open mind about change (view change as an opportunity for growth and
healing.
• Reduce negative self-talk: pessimistic thinking, self-criticism, over-analyzing.
• Awareness of mind traps: unrealistic expectations, taking things personally, allor-
nothing thinking.
• Keep a sense of humor.
• Remember there are always options and alternatives in reaching your plans and goals
if things do not go as we would wish them to. Be flexible!

LEARN TO RELAX:

• Deep breathing, stretching, body scan, meditation, mindfulness, visualization, yoga,


hypnosis, exercise, progressive muscle relaxation. The actual method of relaxation
depends on what works best for you. The important thing is to regularly spend time
doing something that you enjoy and at which you do not feel pressure to succeed.
STRESS MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES:
Avoid unnecessary stress:

Not all stress can be avoided, and it’s not healthy to avoid a situation that needs to
be addressed. You may be surprised, however, by the number of stressors in your life that
you can eliminate.
• Learn how to say “no”: Know your limits and stick to them. Whether in your
personal or professional life, refuse to accept added responsibilities when you’re
close to reaching them. Taking on more than you can handle is a surefire recipe for
stress.
• Avoid people who stress you out: If someone consistently causes stress in
your life and you can’t turn the relationship around, limit the amount of time you
spend with that person or end the relationship entirely.
• Take control of your environment: If the evening news makes you anxious,
turn the TV off. If traffic’s got you tense, take a longer but less-traveled route. If
going to the market is an unpleasant chore, do your grocery shopping online.
• Avoid hot-button topics: If you get upset over religion or politics, cross them
off your conversation list. If you repeatedly argue about the same subject with the
same people, stop bringing it up or excuse yourself when it’s the topic of discussion.
• Pare down your to-do list: Analyze your schedule, responsibilities, and daily
tasks. If you’ve got too much on your plate, distinguish between the “should” and
the “musts.” Drop tasks that aren’t truly necessary to the bottom of the list or
eliminate them entirely.
Alter the situation:
If you can’t avoid a stressful situation, try to alter it. Figure out what you can do
to change things so the problem doesn’t present itself in the future. Often, this involves
changing the way you communicate and operate in your daily life.
• Express your feelings instead of bottling them up: If something or
someone is bothering you, communicate your concerns in an open and respectful
way. If you don’t voice your feelings, resentment will build and the situation will
likely remain the same.
• Be willing to compromise: When you ask someone to change their behavior,
be willing to do the same. If you both are willing to bend at least a little, you’ll have
a good chance of finding a happy middle ground.

• Be more assertive: Don’t take a backseat in your own life. Deal with problems
head on, doing your best to anticipate and prevent them. If you’ve got an exam to
study for and your chatty roommate just got home, say up front that you only have
five minutes to talk.
• Manage your time better: Poor time management can cause a lot of stress.
When you’re stretched too thin and running behind, it’s hard to stay calm and
focused. But if you plan ahead and make sure you don’t overextend yourself, you
can alter the amount of stress you’re under.

Adapt to the stressor:

If you can’t change the stressor, change yourself. You can adapt to stressful situations and
regain your sense of control by Changing your expectations and attitude.
• Reframe problems: Try to view stressful situations from a more positive
perspective. Rather than fuming about a traffic jam, look at it as an opportunity to
pause and regroup, listen to your favorite radio station, or enjoy some alone time.
• Look at the big picture: Take perspective of the stressful situation. Ask
yourself how important it will be in the long run. Will it matter in a month? A year?
Is it really worth getting upset over? If the answer is no, focus your time and energy
elsewhere.
• Adjust your standards: Perfectionism is a major source of avoidable stress.
Stop setting yourself up for failure by demanding perfection. Set reasonable
standards for yourself and others, and learn to be okay with “good enough.”
• Focus on the positive: When stress is getting you down, take a moment to
reflect on all the things you appreciate in your life, including your own positive
qualities and gifts. This simple strategy can help you keep things in perspective.

Accept the things you can’t change:


Some sources of stress are unavoidable. You can’t prevent or change stressors
such as the death of a loved one, a serious illness, or a national recession. In such cases,
the best way to cope with stress is to accept things as they are. Acceptance may be
difficult, but in the long run, it’s easier than railing against a situation you can’t change.

• Don’t try to control the uncontrollable: Many things in life are beyond our
control— particularly the behavior of other people. Rather than stressing out over
them, focus on the things you can control such as the way you choose to react to
problems.

• Look for the upside: As the saying goes, “What doesn’t kill us makes us
stronger.” When facing major challenges, try to look at them as opportunities for
personal growth. If your own poor choices contributed to a stressful situation, reflect
on them and learn from your mistakes.
• Share your feelings: Talk to a trusted friend or make an appointment with a
therapist. Expressing what you’re going through can be very cathartic, even if there’s
nothing you can do to alter the stressful situation.
• Learn to forgive: Accept the fact that we live in an imperfect world and that
people make mistakes. Let go of anger and resentments. Free yourself from negative
energy by forgiving and moving on.

Make time for fun and relaxation:

Beyond a take-charge approach and a positive attitude, you can reduce stress in
your life by nurturing yourself. If you regularly make time for fun and relaxation, you’ll
be in a better place to handle life’s stressors when they inevitably come.
• Set aside relaxation time: Include rest and relaxation in your daily schedule.
Don’t allow other obligations to encroach. This is your time to take a break from all
responsibilities and recharge your batteries.
• Connect with others: Spend time with positive people who enhance your life.
A strong support system will buffer you from the negative effects of stress.
• Do something you enjoy every day: Make time for leisure activities that
bring you joy, whether it be stargazing, playing the piano, or working on your bike.
.
Adopt a healthy lifestyle:
You can increase your resistance to stress by strengthening your physical health.
• Exercise regularly: Physical activity plays a key role in reducing and preventing
the effects of stress. Make time for at least 30 minutes of exercise, three times per
week. Nothing beats aerobic exercise for releasing pent-up stress and tension.
• Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs: Self-medicating with alcohol or drugs
may provide an easy escape from stress, but the relief is only temporary. Don’t avoid
or mask the issue at hand; deal with problems head on and with a clear mind.
• Get enough sleep: Adequate sleep fuels your mind, as well as your body. Feeling
tired will increase your stress because it may cause you to think irrationally.

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