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Healthy
Living > Coping With Stress
Though Stress is
frequently talked about, there remains some
certainty as to what exactly stress is.
Often times it is
considered to be something that 'happens' to
someone, as specific as consideration for a big
promotion or a physical injury. Others feel stress
is what happens to our physical and mental selves in
response to a specific event (increased heart beat,
nail biting, etc).
Though it's true that
stress involves events and our response to them,
these are not the crucial factors. Our unique
thoughts about these situations in which we find
ourselves are the most critical factors.
When something
happens to us, we instinctively evaluate our
predicament mentally. We evaluate just how
threatening is is to us, how we will cope with the
situation, and what skills we posses that will
assist us.
If the decision is
made that the demands of the situation outweigh the
skills we have, we may label this situation as
'stressful' and react with the classic 'stress
response'. If our arsenal of coping skills is
greater than what the situation demands, the
predicament is deemed 'non-stressful'.
In reality, everyone
sees situations very differently and use a variety
of coping skills. For this reason, all will respond
differently to similar situations.
How an individual
perceives stress and reacts determines it's impact
on our health. Some are motivated and invigorated by
stressful events in their life, while others respond
in a manner that can have a negative effects on
their social, mental, and physical well being.
If one typically
reacts in a negative way his health and happiness
may suffer. By truly exploring ourselves and our
unique reactions to stress provoking situations, we
can ultimately learn handle stress more effectively.
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