1. Presentation Package for Concepts of Physical Fitness 14e
Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Presentation Package for Concepts of Physical Fitness 14e
Section VI: Concept 16
Stress and Health
This lecture will cover the relationships between stress and health. The characteristics of stressful events, appraisal and coping of stress are all discussed.
Mental and physical health are affected by an individual’s ability to avoid or adapt to stress.
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2. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Stress Facts
The American Academy of Family Physicians estimates that 60% of the problems brought to physicians in the U.S. are stress related. Many are the result of stress; others are made worse or last longer because of it.
The American Academy of Family Physicians estimated that stress was related to 60% of the problems brought to physicians in the US. Thus stress has a major impact on health and well-being in our society.
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3. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Sources of Stress
The first step in managing stress is to recognize the causes and to be aware of the symptoms.
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4. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Click for info
on Lab 16a
Types of Stressors
Environmental
Physiological
Emotional*(psycho-social)
There are different types of stressors:
Environmental: heat, noise, crowding
Physiological: drugs, caffeine, tobacco, alcohol, exertion
Emotional (Psycho-social): Life events, relationships, responsibility, pressures
Of the three, psychosocial stressors generally are considered to be the most stressful.
There are many kinds of stressors. Environmental stressors include heat, noise, overcrowding, climate, and terrain. Physiological stressors are such things as drugs, caffeine, tobacco, injury, infection or disease, and physical effort.
Emotional stressors are the most frequent and important stressors. Some people refer to these as psychosocial
stressors. These include life-changing events, such as a change in work hours or line of work, family illnesses,
deaths of relatives or friends, and increased responsibilities. In school, pressures such as grades, term papers, and
oral presentations induce stress. A national study of daily experiences indicated that more than 60 percent of all
stressful experiences fall into a few areas (see Table 1).
See for info on stress among college students
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5. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
Stressors
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Major - create emotional turmoil or require tremendous amounts of adjustment.
Personal Crises (major health problems, death in the family, divorce, financial problems, etc.)
Job/School-related pressures
Major age-related transitions (college, marriage, career, retirement)
Minor - shorter-term or less severe
Traffic hassles, peer/work relations, time pressures, family squabbles
Stressors vary in severity. Because stressors vary in magnitude and duration, many experts categorize them by
severity. Major stressors create major emotional turmoil or require tremendous amounts of adjustment. This category includes personal crises (e.g., major health problems or death in the family, divorce/separation, financial problems, legal problems) and job/school-related pressures or major age-related transitions (e.g., college, marriage, career, retirement). Minor stressors are generally viewed as shorter-term or less severe. This category includes events or problems such as traffic hassles, peer/work relations, time pressures, and family squabbles. Major stressors can alter daily patterns of stress and impair our ability to handle the minor stressors of life, while minor stressors can accumulate and create more significant problems. It is important to be aware of both types of stressors.
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6. Characteristics of Stressful Events
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Characteristics of Stressful Events
Negative
Uncontrollable
Ambiguous
These are some common characteristics of stressful events.
Negative stress is considered harder to accept than positive stress. So while the stress of getting ready for a wedding may be high it is not as bad as worrying about losing a job
Uncontrollable stress is worse than something that you can control. In general, taking what control you have in a situation is about the best way to reduce your level of stress
Ambiguous stress is also harder to accept. This related to the question about job stress. With poorly defined or vague expectations stress is more likely.
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7. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Reactions to Stress
All people have a general reaction to stress.
Walter Cannon’s Fight-or-Flight response
Non-specific stress response
Hans Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome
Alarm
Resistance
Exhaustion
In the early 1900s, Walter Cannon identified the fight-or-flight response to threat. According to his model, the body
reacts to a threat by preparing to either fight or flee the situation. The body prepares for either option through the
activation of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). When the SNS is activated, epinephrine (adrenaline) and
norepinephrine are released to focus attention on the task at hand. Heart rate and blood pressure increase to deliver oxygen to the muscles and essential organs, the eyes take in more light to increase visual acuity, and more sugar is released into the bloodstream to increase energy level. At the same time, nonessential functions like digestion and urine production are slowed. Figure 3 depicts some of the many physiological changes that occur during this process. Once the immediate threat has passed the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) takes over in an attempt to restore the body to homeostasis and conserve resources. The PNS largely reverses the changes initiated by the SNS (e.g., slows heart rate and returns blood from the muscles and essential organs to the periphery).
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8. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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The Stress Target Zone
EUSTRESS
(The optimal amount of stress)
BURN
OUT
(Distress)
RUST
(Hypostress)
This diagram shows that the goal is to obtain some level of stress in your life but not too much. With no stress you Rust Out and with too much stress you Burn Out
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9. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Responses to Stress
Physiological
Cognitive
Emotional
Behavioral
The body responds to stress in a variety of ways:
Physiologically: elevated hr, palms get sweaty, muscles get tense
Cognitive: worry, lack of concentration, forgetfulness
Emotional: anger, hot tempered, panicked, sense of dread
Behavioral: less patient, hurrying, high strung
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10. Contemporary Views of the Nature of Stress
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Contemporary Views of the Nature of Stress
The Process of Stress
Appraisal
Coping
Stressor
Stress
Outcome
This slide shows a contemporary view of stress. This model acknowledges that stress effects people differently. Everyone is exposed to stressors but we might vary in how we appraise a stressful situation and how we cope with that stress
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11. Appraisal of Stressors
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Appraisal of Stressors
High Stress
See stressor as a threat
Stressor
Stress
Appraisal
This slide shows the details of the appraisal process. A given stressor can lead to high or low stress depending on how it is appraised. Seeing stress as an opportunity for success versus an opportunity for failure are key aspects of the appraisal process.
See stressor as a challenge
Low Stress
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12. Health Problems with Excessive Stress
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Health Problems with Excessive Stress
CHD and stroke
Gastrointestinal problems such as ulcers
Impaired immune system
Insomnia
Stress has been related to many specific health problems. High blood pressure and the anger associated with stress has been shown to be related to heart attacks and strokes. Stress can lead to ulcers and other gastrointestinal disorders. Stress also decreases the immune system. Thus it has been shown to increase the risk of colds and to decrease survival from many diseases - even cancer.
Stress also reduces a persons quality of life: Independent of the health effects is the drag it puts on a person's lifestyle.
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13. How Stress Promotes Illness
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How Stress Promotes Illness
Direct effect
Raises blood pressure
Impairs immune system
Indirect effect
Less positive behaviors (exercise, healthy diet, lack of sleep)
More negative behaviors (drinking, smoking, unhealthy diet)
This slide answers how stress leads to illness:
Direct route: In this path the bodies response to stress activates other systems in the body and directly influences our health
- Type A behavior - high blood pressure
- decreased immune system function
Indirect route: In this path the stress causes us to change our behaviors and these behaviors then can compromise our health.
- tendency for less positive behaviors
- tendency for more negative behaviors
Most likely the combination of direct and indirect plays the greatest role on our health.
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14. Stress-Prone Personalities
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Stress-Prone Personalities
Type A
Time-urgency
Competitive
Anger and hostility
Type D – “Distressed”
“Negative Affectivity” or negative emotion
“Social Inhibition,” or the tendency not to express negative emotions in social interactions.
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15. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Click for Lab 16b Info
Hardiness
Commitment
Control
Challenge
Individuals high in “Hardiness” have fewer stress related problems due to the way they perceive stress and the coping mechanisms they use (“approach” coping instead of “avoidance” coping)
Psychologists have proposed a construct called Hardiness that describes a theoretical “stress resistant” personality. People that are Hardy are committed to their life, take control over their situation and see stressors as challenges to overcome rather than opportunities for failure
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16. Additional Favorable Stress Styles
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Additional Favorable Stress Styles
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Optimism
Locus of control
Optimism
Research supports the idea that optimism relates to psychological well-being. Positive emotion may also be an effective coping mechanism for managing acute stress. Positive moods seem to help undo the effects of negative emotion. For example, positive moods have been shown to undo some of the cardiovascular effects associated with negative emotions. Positive moods may also help individuals effectively use additional coping strategies to manage stress.
Locus of Control
People with and internal locus of control generally believe that they have the capacity to impact the outcomes
of stressful events. In contrast, individuals with an external locus of control generally believe that outcomes are
determined by factors other than personal control (e.g., luck, fate, powerful others). You can evaluate your own
locus of control in Lab 16C.
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17. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Summary of Stress
You may not be able to smooth out the surf, but you can learn to ride the waves!
Use this statement as a good summary of the stress relationships.
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18. Concepts of Fitness and Wellness 7e
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Web Resources
Online Learning Center
“On the Web” pages for Concept
This page provides active hyperlinks if the computer is connected to the Internet.
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19. Supplemental Graphics
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Supplemental Graphics
Lab Information
Supplemental graphics follow this slide.
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20. Lab 16a Information Evaluating Your Stress Level
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Lab 16a Information Evaluating Your Stress Level
Return to presentation
Complete the life experience survey.
Summarize your current level of stress. in comparison with the survey scores.
Lab information
Note: The life experience surveys assume that stressors affect everyone in the same way and therefore may not yield highly accurate indicators of stress.
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21. Lab 16b Information Evaluating Your Hardiness
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Lab 16b Information Evaluating Your Hardiness
Return to presentation
Complete the Hardiness survey.
Summarize the score for each dimension of Hardiness.
Discuss whether you feel the scores are useful indicators of your response to stress.
Lab information
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