Stress can be good or bad. Good stress (eustress) can help dissipate bad stress (distress). Eustress has a beneficial or positive effect on health, motivation, job or academic performance, emotional well-being etc. The eustress that comes from being adequately challenged in the business environment can result in improved quality and increase output that gives overall happiness and feelings of achievement to both the worker and the company management.
In the home front, eustress originated from parents can for instance produce well groomed children. Thus, some level of mental and emotional stress is desirable for health, without which we may decline to apathy or perform below our capacity. The focus of this write-up is on stress which is persistent and long term pressure.
CAUSES
We all feel stressed at on point or the other in our lives. We feel as though we are unable to cope with challenges. This could be as a result of a combination of factors in our personal, social and work lives as well as relationships among family members or with others outside the home, financial problems and physical ailments or disabilities in the family.
IDENTIFYING STRESS
It could be short term or long term.
For short term, we have clenched teeth and hands, tense muscles, sweaty hands and feet, urination and faster heartbeat.
For long term, it can be loss if appetite, headaches, heart problems, increase blood pressure, ulcer, lower resistance to illness, constipation and so on
When these symptoms persist, they could degenerate into more serious conditions like insomnia, difficulty and inability to concentrate during the day, feeling busy while in fact nothing is being achieved, aggression in relationships, sexual problems, excessive fear or worries etc.
COPING STRATEGIES
This is just a means to feel better, not like it is meant to solve the problem. Thus, replace unhealthy coping strategies with healthy ones in order to avoid complicating the problem. Coping strategies should be helpful and productive.
Unhealthy ones include :excessive consumption of alcohol, use of drugs to relax-even when prescribed by the doctor, they have side effects and are better left as last resort, also, smoking and withdrawing from friends, family and activities, binging on junk food for comfort, procrastination and engaging in many activities to avoid facing problems, excessive sleeping and taking out your stress on others I.e. Transferring aggression.
MANAGING STRESS
Acknowledging stress
Time management
Staying healthy
Medication and therapy
Social support
Guiding principles
Good relationship with God
