Stress Outline Definition and measurement Stress events and

Stress

Outline • Definition and measurement • Stress events and reactions – body, behavior, emotion, and cognition • • Disorders Stress mediators Stress immunity links Health

Stress Definitions • Coping process triggered by an event • Stressors are environmental events (either objectively “good” or “bad”) • Stress reactions are the physical, psychological, and behavioral responses

Stress Process

Psychological Stressors • event forces a person to change or adapt • Categories: – Catastrophic events – Life changes and strains – Chronic stressors – Daily hassles

Measuring Stress • Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) – life change units measured – such as, marriage, divorce, job loss • Life Experiences Survey (LES) – perceptions of event critical • Interviews and Daily Dairies

Stress Responses

Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome

SAM and HPA Systems

HPA

Other Responses to Stress • Behavioral Responses – jumpiness, shaky voice, self-medication with alcohol • Emotional – grumpy, fatigued, depressed • Cognitive – ruminative thinking – catastrophizing – other processes • problem-solving errors • impaired decision making

A story of two frogs. . . Once upon a time, there was a frog who was dropped into a pot of hot water. Feeling the intense heat, she immediately jumped out and saved her life (“good stress”). But, there was another frog who was put into a pot of cold water which was set on a burner over low heat. One degree at a time the temperature increased, but the frog became accustomed to the heat, stayed in the pot and eventually was boiled (“bad stress”).

Some Classic Stress Disorders • Burnout/Depression/Anxiety • Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a prime example – trauma induced anxiety disorder • soldiers • childhood sexual abuse

PTSD • Determined by: – Perception of the Situation – Inability to Cope • Result: – Effects on general state of physical and mental health

PTSD Symptoms • Re-experiencing – intrusive flashbacks – nightmares • Avoidance and numbing – avoiding reminders – inability to remember important aspects of the trauma – loss of interest in activities and life in general – feeling detached from others and emotionally numb – sense of a limited future (you don’t expect to live) • Symptoms of PTSD: anxiety and arousal – difficulty falling or staying asleep – irritability – difficulty concentrating – hypervigilance (constant “red alert”) – feeling jumpy and easily startled

Effects on Hippocampus • Cell death in hippocampus • Small hippocampus = more vulnerable

Stress Mediators

How Stressors Are Perceived • Cognitive appraisal of the stressor • Influence of cognitive factors weakens somewhat as stressors become more severe – Lazarus et al. (1965)

Cognitive Appraisal

Cognitive Influences

Prediction and Control • predictable versus unpredictable – intense and relatively short period, especially • controllable versus uncontrollable – perception of control reduces stress

Coping Resources and Coping Methods • Resources – money – time • Methods – problem-focused – emotion-focused

Social Support • quantity • quality • situation – right type

Stress, Blood Pressure, and Support

Stress and Personality • “Disease-prone” personalities tend to: – stress viewed as long-term, catastrophic threats, brought on by self. – pessimistic about ability to overcome • “Stress-hardy” or “disease-resistant” – stress is short term – dispositional optimism (adds four years to life)

Stress and Gender • Males tend to get angry and/or avoid stressors – “fight-or-flight” pattern. • Females are more likely to help and get help – “tend and befriend” style.

Stress and Immunity

Immune System • Nonspecific – high temperature – macrophages (“big eaters”) • Specific – Lymphocytes (“memory cells”) • T-cells • B-cells

Acute or “Good” Stress • Increased traffic of lymphocytes and macrophages • related adrenal secretion (SAM) • enhances responses for which there is an immunologic memory – beneficial for cancer tumour cell, but pathologic for autoimmune or allergic responses

Chronic or “Bad” Stress • Reduced traffic of lymphocytes and macrophages • Associated with increased HPA activity • increased severity of many common illnesses

Stress and Cardiovascular System • Repeated activation of “fight or flight” linked to coronary heart disease, hypertension, and stroke. • Physical reactions depend partly on one’s personality (hostility)

Healthy Behavior

Goals of Health Psychology • Encourage people control risk factors • Understand the role played by stress in physical health and illness.

Health-Endangering Behaviors • Smoking • Alcohol • Unsafe Sex

Sleep x x x

Encouraging Healthy Behavior • Factors: – feel personal threat – understanding of seriousness of the illness – belief that a particular practice will reduce threat – cost less than benefit

Stages of Readiness • • • Precontemplation Contemplation Preparation Action Maintenance

Reducing Stress

Coping Strategies • Cognitive coping strategies – cognitive restructuring • Emotional coping strategies • Behavioral coping strategies • Physical coping strategies – progressive relaxation training

Rational Emotive Thinking (Albert Ellis) Activating Event Beliefs (self talk) Consequences A B C The ABC’s of Rational Emotive Thinking!!!

Thinking becomes a threat if. . . (-) recall A helpless doubt B C

Irrational Thinking • • Perfectionist thinking Overgeneralization Disqualifying the positive Jumping to conclusions • Magnifying / Minimizing • Emotional Reasoning • Shouldaholism / Mustrabation

Thinking creates a solution if. . . (+) recall A opportunity affirmation B C