Monday, November 8, 2010

Stress is good :-)

Stress is simply a fact of nature -- forces from the outside world affecting the individual. The individual responds to stress in ways that affect the individual as well as their environment. Hence, all living creatures are in a constant interchange with their surroundings (the ecosystem), both physically and behaviorally. Because of the overabundance of stress in our modern lives, we usually think of stress as a negative experience, but from a biological point of view, stress can be a neutral, negative, or positive experience.
99% of stress is talked about in a negative way, so I'm going to try something a little different and talk about the positive sides of stress (if anything, maybe this will make you relax some :-) you never know!). You need stress to a certain degree, you just can't let it take control of you. When the brain perceives physical or psychological stress, it starts pumping the chemicals cortisol, epinephrine (adrenaline) and norepinephrine into the body. Instantly, the heart beats faster, blood pressure increases, senses sharpen, a rise in blood glucose invigorates us and we're ready to rock...... stress is actually a burst of energy; it's our bodies telling us what to do! Good stress is the type of emotional challenge where a person feels in control and provides some sense of accomplishment. It can improve heart function and make the body resistant to infection, experts say. Far from being something we need to eliminate from our lives, good stress stimulates us. Seriously.. pause and think about it... when is it that you get the most done? When there's a deadline a.k.a STRESS. When you have a deadline you have to perform, this adds stress to your routine but it makes you rise to the occasion and get the work done. So see? There's actually a tiny bit of good in procrastinating...just don't make it a habit. And for goodness sakes people... RELAX!