Examine the contributory factors in the stress process (e.g. life events, personality, lack of social support, coping strategies) and the link between stress and illness.
High levels of stress are experienced at the onset of depression cases. In the stress process, a victim passes through four stages. They include a demand; appraisal of the demand and capability to deal with the demand; negative response to the demand; and stress, which affects performance or behaviour. Negative stress can reduce individual desire to undertake life-enhancing experiences, while excessive stress can lead to mental illnesses. Major contributory factors in the stress process include life events, lack of social support, personality, and coping strategies. This discussion examines these factors based on how they directly or indirectly contribute to different stages of the stress process. Additionally, a link between stress and illness is also evaluated.
Different stressors come up throughout an individual’s life that may get them hurt and perhaps cause major emotional damage. Some of the most common life events leading to stress include the death of a loved one, divorce, moving to a new place, major injury or illness, and financial challenges. When dealing with such stressful things in life, Michopoulos et al. (2017) suggested that other health issues such as inflammation, an irregular immune system, digestive challenges, anxiety, and sleep difficulty can develop. People have different ways of coping with daily stressors depending on their capabilities and strength. Heir et al. (2019) notes that among the major life events above, the death of a loved one causes the highest levels of stress, considering that it directly affects the emotional wellbeing of a person. Consider Holmes and Rahe (1967) Social Readjustment Ratings Scale (SRRS) . See attached notes.
Different recommendations have been put forward for dealing with stressful life events. According to Saccomanno et al. (2020), one should not remain stuck at the onset of a stressful life event. They should take action to get physically moving to avoid mounting a lot of pressure on the mind. This should be coupled with moments of mindfulness and accepting the situation. When one understands and accepts the situation, they are likely to be in control of their emotions. Through exercise, one would improve their health, productivity, and also longevity. However, everyday habits also contribute to how a person deals with life events. For instance, getting enough sleep and eating a balanced diet, and exercising regularly are habits that ensure a person is resilient to challenges encountered in life.
Numerous studies (e.g. ) have shown that social support to be essential in stress management. A person is likely to face genetic and environmental vulnerabilities in the absence of social support. As a result, their resilience to stress is affected to a great extent. According to Nyarko (2022), positive social support shields one from trauma-induced disorders and leads to psychological wellbeing. Although evidence-based interventions in increasing social support are widely undeveloped, studies have revealed how brain mechanisms are dependent on social support for positive outcomes in a patient’s mental health. Examining the neurobiological characteristics of resilience to stress, the sympathetic nervous system is key in understanding stress response and resilience.
Chung et al. (2019) indicate that the sympathetic nervous system increases the heart rate by increasing blood pressure and slowing digestion, which enhances the body’s ability to deal with stress. With a lack of social support, the sympathetic nervous system is not tuned, which leads to high stress. In that regard, the ability to cope with stress is highly dependent on the neurochemical stress response, which social support helps optimise. It helps to keep the HPA-axis and noradrenergic activity at optimum at the onset of stressful events and also terminates the response to the stress when the stressor is non-existent.
Everyone is faced with stressful events every day, but they handle them differently, which is highly dependent on personality differences. You need to include recent statistics here. (See: Health and Safety Execute and/or Office of National Statistics)
Personality influences resilience to stress and how they seek help, such as by reaching out to others. Other personality traits may lead to being avoidant, which could cause detrimental physical and emotional symptoms (Greene, Cowan, and McAdams, 2020). In the personality model, the different factors include neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. Although researchers have not effectively linked a person’s stress response abilities to their personality, they have offered clues on how it may influence response. What about
The environment where a person studies or works may determine how a person responds to the stressors. For instance, in a highly social workplace, some personalities, such as introverts, may experience stress while extroverts would be comfortable. Extraversion and openness character traits are essential in adopting a positive outlook on life and mitigating stressful events. Similarly, conscientiousness traits may guide a person to be competent, dutiful, and covert a sense of purpose, which help in overcoming daily challenges. Greene, Cowan, and McAdams (2020) indicate that neuroticism is associated with withdrawal coping strategies for stressful events. Those people with agreeableness traits are more likely to reinterpret different situations and grow from them. Thus, character traits are crucial in understanding how a person deals or copes with stressful events in life. WHAT ABOUT: Friedman and Rosenman longitudinal study of 3,000 men monitored for coronary heart disease (CHD) and by means of conducting interviews they allocated the participants to three personality types. (Marks, et al., 2011, p. 402). The type A personality showed characteristics of ‘excessive competitiveness, impatience, hostility’ (attributes of stressful behaviour) whereas the Type B were much more relaxed and quieter (Ogden, 2012, p. 331) +++
Coping involves adjusting one’s behaviour, traits, and routines to respond to the unusual demands caused by the stressors. When coping strategies in a person are tuned, adapting to different routines and behaviours uses greater energy than what was needed before. When such episodes are prolonged, the levels of stress-related hormones may rise, which may lead to physical breakdown and illness (Labrague et al., 2018). For instance, moving to a new home or having problems in marriage, or financial problems may lead to elevated stress-related hormones. The coping strategies may vary among people or across different personalities. For instance, having a rigid coping strategy may restrain the ability to respond to stressful situations, while coping flexibility leads to easy adaptation to new demands. Thus, coping strategies may affect how different people deal with stressful situations, reducing or contributing to more stress. Mention Lazarus and Folkman (1984) re coping. Mentioned in class. EXAMPLE: Beckman and Syme (1979) measured the social support for 4,700 individuals over a nine year period: the results showed ‘that increased social support predicted a decrease in mortality rate’ (Ogden, 2012, p. 330). Arnetz et al., (1987) found that an unemployed group who received psychosocial support on top of their benefits ‘showed better immune functioning than those who received benefits only’ (Ogden, 2012, p. 330).
People adopt different coping strategies to protect themselves from damage depending on the situation, personality traits, and environment. One of the coping strategies most people adopt is lowering expectations, which shields a person from disappointments (Noyola, Sánchez, and Cardemil, 2020). Others may engage in problem-solving while others maintain emotional composure. Also, some people can distance themselves from the source of stress, while others may adopt a religious perspective, which helps them cope. Thus, different coping strategies may contribute to the stress process, which can be positive or negative. Offer a range of research findings in this area. Include the research findings of Brown and Harris (1989)… coping strategies and/or social support can act as a buffer against stress.
When evaluating individual lifestyles, stress-reducing activities should help the overall approach applied to coping with stress. Most people across the globe have adopted different types of drugs to cope with stress. Some include alcohol, caffeine, tobacco, and injection drugs (Jouhki and Oksanen, 2022). Support this with statistics. Although these drugs help reduce or postpone stressful episodes, they contribute to negative health effects such as damage to body organs and even increased mental damage. Evidence. Thus, one should employ stress-reducing activities that foster positive overall health outcomes when choosing coping strategies. They include quality sleep, a balanced diet, regular exercises, relaxation and mindfulness activities, and avoiding addictive drugs. With such practices, one could cope better with stressful situations throughout their life. Avoid the use of ‘one.’
*Stick to facts. The misery of stress is equally experienced in mind and the body. It includes tiredness, tension, and headaches. Numerous studies (which ones?) have sought to understand how stress operates at the biological level. For instance, Pozolotina (2021) found that stress undermines the capacity and ability of the body to deal with inflammation. A link between stress and illness exists; however, the evidence about possible mechanisms is not comprehensive. Instead of directly linking stress to illness, the associated factors surrounding stress are blamed for ill health. For instance, Pozolotina (2021) indicated that stressed people are likely to engage in health-destructive behaviours such as smoking and drug abuse, inadequate sleep, and avoidance of exercise. Similarly, stressed people may not take a healthy diet. As a result, these lifestyle issues affect the biochemical pathways that define their health. What does other research suggest?
When linking stress to illness, scientists first understood the body’s response to the circulating cortisol. The cortisol molecules are known to exert effects on different parts of the body using specific receptors. When one is experiencing stress, the sensitivity of these receptors changes, and they can become resistant to activation from the cortisol molecules. This activation system is essential in maintaining the body’s immunity to disease. However, with stress and resistance to activation, the immunity is low, making the body vulnerable to illnesses. In that regard, the body cannot strongly fight bacteria causing diseases, which leads to deterioration of health. Add references to substantiate these assertions. You need to include the research findings of Selye (1950).
The stress process is responsible for affecting behaviour and leading to illnesses. Although many factors may lead to stress, major factors include life events such as the death of a loved one, lacking or having inadequate support, engaging in ill coping strategies, and having ineffective personal traits. Different contributory factors influence levels of stress and the capacity to deal with life stressors. When adopting coping strategies, it is recommended that a person should choose positive mechanisms to cope. Additionally, by understanding one’s state of mental health and personality traits, one can measure the stress level to handle. As indicated, Scientists have linked stress to both mental and body illnesses. Although not directly, stress has been associated with reduced immunity, which leads to disease. Stress has also been linked to destructive lifestyle behaviours such as drug abuse, lack of sleep, and bad food choices. Thus, life stressors and the response among people determine how their health is affected.
Remember to be objective.
You have put a lot of emphasis on personality factors.
Brown, G.W. and Harris, T.O. (1989). Life events and illness. London: Unwin Hyman.
References
Chung, Y.M., Lou, S.L., Tsai, P.Z. and Wang, M.C., 2019. The efficacy of respiratory regulation on the parasympathetic nervous system is appraised by heart rate variability. Journal of Medical and Biological Engineering, 39(6), pp.960-966.
Greene, R.E., Cowan, H.R., and McAdams, D.P., 2020. Personality and coping in life challenge narratives. Journal of Research in Personality, 86, p.103960.
Heir, T., Bonsaksen, T., Grimholt, T., Ekeberg, Ø., Skogstad, L., Lerdal, A. and Schou-Bredal, I., 2019. Serious life events and post-traumatic stress disorder in the Norwegian population. BJPsych Open, 5(5). Put the full title of the journal. Add page nos.
Jouhki, H. and Oksanen, A., 2022. To get high or to get out? Examining the link between addictive behaviors and escapism. Substance Use and Misuse, 57(2), pp.202-211.
Labrague, L.J., McEnroe–Petitte, D.M., De Los Santos, J.A.A. and Edet, O.B., 2018. Examining stress perceptions and coping strategies among Saudi nursing students: a systematic review. Nurse Education Today, 65, pp.192-200.
Michopoulos, V., Powers, A., Gillespie, C.F., Ressler, K.J. and Jovanovic, T., 2017. Inflammation in fear-and anxiety-based disorders: PTSD, GAD, and beyond. Neuropsychopharmacology, 42(1), pp.254-270.
Noyola, N., Sánchez, M. and Cardemil, E.V., 2020. Minority stress and coping among sexual diverse Latinxs. Journal of Latinx Psychology, 8(1), p.58.
Nyarko, F., 2022. War, stress and mental health in adolescence: the role of meaning-making, social relations, emotional intelligence, and cognitive skills. Tampere University.
Saccomanno, S., Bernabei, M., Scoppa, F., Pirino, A., Mastrapasqua, R. and Visco, M.A., 2020. Coronavirus lockdown as a major life stressor: does it affect TMD symptoms?. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(23), p.8907.
In order to paint on a wider canvas you need to use a greater range of references for your work to achieve a high grade. Include at least 15-20 references. The ones below are important to include in your essay
Lazarus, R.S. and Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer. IBSN 0-8261-4191-9.
Selye, H. (1973). The evolution of the stress concept. American Scientist, 61, 692-699.
Selye, H. (1950). Adaptive Reaction to Stress. Psychosomatic Medicine, 112, 149–157.
