psyc 100 - Tough Content, Stress, and Health

Academic Adjustment

the ability to cope with the demands of post-secondary school

How many first year students met the diagnosis standards of at least one mental illness?

1 in 3

How many first year students reported substance abuse disorders?

1 in 5

How many first year students reported having suicide ideation at one point in their live?

One in Three

How many first year students reportedly planned to die by suicide?

1 in 6

The Biopsychosocial Model of Health

A model that explains health and illness as the result of an interaction between biological, psychological, and social factors

Psychosomatic Medicine

Focuses on biological, psychological, and social contributions to health (including physiological changes in the body)

Psychoneuroimmunology

Studies the interaction of the nervous and immune systems with psychological processes

Ex. A study showed that participants exposed to the common cold were less likely to become ill if they were less stressed

Stress

An external event with negative connotations that threatens one’s well-being, health, or resources.

Stressors

Individual events/causes of stress and can rnanage in their severity

General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

A three-stage physiological response to stress, showing how the body responds over time to sustained stress

Alarm Phase

The first stage, rapid increase in physiological arousal

Resistance Phase

The second stage, where the body’s resources are mobilized to deal with the stress (body tries to cope and resist the stress)

Exhaustion Phase

The third and final stage, where the body’s resources are depleted, leading to fatigue

Epinephrine

Produced by the adrenal medulla, activates the sympathetic nervous system

Cortisol

Released by adrenal cortex in response to stress, regulated blood glucose levels

Problem-Focused Coping

Coping that aims to find solutions that reduce the source of stress (Stopping the stressor itself)

Emotion-Focused Coping

Coping that aims at reducing the emotional response to stress (Stoping the emotions caused by the stressor)

Three types of happiness

Satisfaction with life, Positive feelings, Low negative feelings