Signs of Stress

You go to a party where you know almost no one. Your throat suddenly feels dry and you develop a nervous cough. Your best friend, in the same situation, tends to giggle a lot, even when there's nothing to giggle about. Later on, when you and your friend feel at home with the group, you find that the cough and the giggle disappear. Or maybe you were not aware of them at all.

There are many signs of stress. The signs vary from person to person and from time to time in the same person. A cough, a giggle, a nagging pain in the back—all these can be symptoms of stress. Some people get physically sick with nausea and diarrhea, while others have nightmares. Still others drink alcohol or use drugs. Some people get angry and loud when they are under stress, while others withdraw and get very quiet.

There is a tendency, however, for any one person to respond to stress with the same symptom. The first step in coping with stress is become aware of how your own body responds. That will enable you to recognize when i are under stress.

The Stress Mechanism

Whenever the brain perceives a stressor, it activates the body. In the brain is an organ called hypothalamus. The hypothalamus is a control center. It tells the body that a stressor is sent by activating two systems. The autonomic nervous system releases adrenaline into the bloodstream. The endocrine system releases hormones that travel through the bloodstream to the adrenal, thyroid, and other glands. When the two systems are activated, the heart rate increases and blood pressure rises. In addition, blood leaves the stomach area and goes to the arms, legs, and brain.

There is no need to digest food if the brain says it is time to run or fight. Scientists call this arousal of the body under stress the fight-or-flight mechanism. It prepares the body for action.

The initial response to stress is called the alarm stage of the stress mechanism. The next stage is the resistance stage. In this stage the bodу tries to resist the stressor. The length of stage depends on the nature of the stressor and its intensity and on the body's ability to adapt to it. Once people get used to a stressor, they do not experience as much emotional stress.

Eventually, however, if a severe stressor continues too long, the third stage of the stress mechanism occurs. This is called the exhaus­tion stage. Quite simply, the body's ability to resist the stressor is used up. It can no longer resist the stressor. In the most extreme cases, the person who reaches the exhaustion stage dies.

While death as a result of prolonged stress is rare, other physical damage is not. Even when people get used to a stressor, their bodies may continue to react. For example, when Rita graduated from high school and went to work in a large office, she found herself exposed to a great deal of noise. Typewriters clattered all day long. Telephones rang constantly. Machines hummed and rattled endlessly. As a new employee, Rita was extremely conscious of the noise and felt acute stress. Her pulse and blood pressure rose. She had many second thoughts about the job. Moreover, she de-loped headaches and indigestion frequently. After a while, however, Rita became used to the office. She adapted to noise—at least emotionally—and became less aware of it. But even though she adapted emotionally to the stressor, her body continued to react. In time, her health was affected. She developed an ulcer, which is a stress-related disease.

Living with stress is not always simple. You ly not be doing as well as you think you are.