Newsletter #187 Is tension good and stress bad?
Newsletter about nature and science
Is tension good and stress bad?
Both tension and stress can have healthy aspects. But generally, stress tends to be viewed as something negative. Of course, stress is simply the English translation of the Dutch word spanning. That doesn’t help us much. Stress is often described as a physical reaction to external stimuli and situations that are perceived as threatening. These bodily reactions are not specific to the type of stimulus.
Acute stress triggers the production of adrenaline in the adrenal medulla. This causes your heart rate to rise, your breathing to accelerate, your hands to sweat, and your body to enter a state of heightened alertness. If stress persists, production of hormones such as cortisol from the adrenal cortex begins. Energy is mobilized, while your immune system is suppressed. Over time, that leads to damage.
How to get away from stress? Entire courses have been designed for it, books have been written, and much money is made. Breathing deeply is never a bad idea when it comes to stress.
The whole system of stress responses has, of course, a functional background. It works in both humans and animals in the same way. In a direct confrontation with a crisis situation—say, the threat of a rock wall collapsing, several enemies suddenly appearing, or your offspring being in danger—all alarm bells go off. Everything is geared toward a fast and hopefully effective response. That can be a matter of life and death, which is why natural selection strongly favors it. These responses sharpen your focus. The same happens just before a sports competition or a public performance. In such cases, people speak of positive stress.
But when misery lasts longer, all available energy is used to try to escape from it. Understandable, but it comes at a price: it can weaken immunity, affect appetite, or undermine social skills. The result can range from vomiting, inflammation, and abnormal behavior to exhaustion and cardiovascular disease. And that applies just as much to you and your fellow humans as to pets, zoo animals, and wildlife.
The environment plays a big role. City dwellers react more strongly to negative stress, something that can even be measured in brain activity. Or perhaps it’s just that more “stress frogs” live in cities? In any case, a green environment helps reduce stress.
What to do about stress?
In the case of acute stress, the key is to prevent panic. You can do that by consciously focusing on your breathing. It also helps to practice and prepare for stress situations you may expect—and even write a protocol for them.
Chronic, long-term stress is more complicated. Where possible, you can try to avoid stress factors in the environment (noise, heat, harassment). But mental problems and workload are often not so easily removed. This is where many therapeutic approaches come in. These often involve things like time management, breaking problems down into smaller pieces, relaxation through activities ranging from yoga, pets, music, meditation, or painting, to sports. Simply having someone to listen can already make a big difference.
And sometimes, with severe, prolonged stress—whether recent or from the past—you must absolutely seek professional help. Trauma counseling requires expertise. Surprisingly effective treatments may exist, such as linking eye movements to the memory of a traumatic experience.
In any case: deep breathing is always useful, and often it helps to do it consciously for a moment, before handing control back to your automatic breathing pilot.
Tips for dealing with stress
In acute stress, try to focus on your breathing for a moment—this prevents panic reactions.
Acute stress situations are often foreseeable; think in advance how you want to handle them. Check if there are protocols, and if not, write them down for yourself.
Chronic stress must be addressed, especially if it leads to sleep deprivation, irritability, fatigue, and exhaustion. Seek help—and at least a listening ear.
Some problems will fade over time, but facing them and making them discussable often already reduces stress.
Walking in nature—and actually looking around instead of staring at your phone—is always a good idea.
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