Handling Stress Essay -- essays research papers

Handling Stress This essay is about handling the stress of University studies. We will be looking into many ideas and different people ¹s views on how to handle stress. I will also be giving my own opinions on how I think stress can be controlled or relieved. The first thing we must do is ask ourselves one very important question,  ³what is stress ²? WHAT IS STRESS? According to an Australian born physician, Hans Selye (1979), stress is the nonspecific response of the body to any demand made upon it. The body responds in many ways. One is to the loss of blood and the other is to the lack of sleep. Both of these are nonspecific responses, however all demands made on the body evoke generalised, nonspecific responses. For example, they all unable you to concentrate as would normally be expected, they activate one ¹s sympathetic nervous system, and they also increase the amount of the hormone epinephrine that is being released into your body. When people say they ¹ve been under going alot of stress they are usually referring to a couple of unpleasant experiences. Now that we have an idea on what stress is the next question we should ask ourselves is  ³what is or can cause stress ². CAUSES OF STRESS There are many different things that cause stress. One may be if you have a big term paper due and you want to do your best to impress your seminar leader. Another may be peer or family related. All in all it is things, events, situations, and people that cause stress. It is how we perceive them that will determine whether or not stress will be a result from the encounter. Not only negative situations are the cause of stress. Joy and happiness can also cause stress even though they are positive. In a sense, it is we then who choose our own stressors. Selye noted that with the absence of stress there is death. Current researchers are also discovering that too little stress may be a major cause of depression or boredom. It is therefore up to us to choose the best Handling Stress # stressors and the optimal level of stress. Since we have now begun to understand the definition of stress as well as the causes we now ask ourselves  ³what can I do to control my stress ²? CONTROLLING STRESS There have been many studies done on the managements of stress. One group of researchers found out that many university students tended to gain weight their first year away from home. These  ³... ...e as some are for one ¹s emotional well being. There are even some that help with both. All in all stress seems to occur depending on one ¹s perception of events, people, and daily things for stress occurs on different occasions for different people. Handling Stress # REFERENCES Adams, J.D. (1980). Understanding and Managing Stress, San Diego: University Associates. Kalat, J.W. (1993). Introduction to Psychology: third edition. Pacific Grone: Brooks/Cole Publishing Company. Pfeifer, J.E., and Ogloff, J.R.P. (1990). Making the Grade:Strategies for Succeeding at University. Lincoln: JEP and JRPO Rathbone, J.L. (1969). Relaxation. Philadelphia: Lea and Febiger. Rhines, K.L. (1985). Stress and Disease. Pleasantville: Human Relations Media Inc. Romano, J.L. (1984). Stress Management and Wellness: Reaching beyond the counselor ¹s office. Personnel and Guidance Journal, 62 (9), 533-537. Ross, J. (1993). The Original Student Calendar, Winlaw: Polestar Calendars Ltd. Williams, J.M., Decker, T.W., Libassi, A. (1983), The impact of stress management training on the academic performance of low-achieving college students. Journal of College Student Personnel, 24 (6), 491-494. Word Count: 2062