Stress, Health, and Coping

Stress: Experiencing events endangering well-being.
Stressors: Events causing stress.
Stress Responses: Reactions to stressors.
Traumatic Events: Situations of extreme danger.
Reactions after traumatic event:
- stunned and dazed
- passive and unable to initiate tasks
- anxious and apprehensive
Controllability: Uncontrollable events are more stressful.
Predictability: Predictable events are less stressful.
Major Changes: Life changes requiring readjustments can be stressful.
Internal Conflicts: Unresolved issues causing stress.

Reactions range from exhilaration to anxiety, anger, discouragement, and depression.
Anxiety: Common response to stressors.
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD):
- Detachment from everyday life.
- Repeated reliving of trauma.
- Sleep disturbances and difficulty concentrating.
- Overalertness.
Anger and Aggression: Common reaction to stressful situations.
Apathy and Depression: Withdrawal and apathy are also common.
Learned Helplessness: Apathy and inaction in response to uncontrollable events.
Cognitive Impairment: Difficulty concentrating and logical thinking.

Fight-or-Flight Response: Body's mobilization to attack or flee.
- Liver releases extra sugar.
- Hormone release
- Increased metabolism, heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing rate.
- Muscle tensing.
General Adaptation Syndrome:
- Alarm: Body mobilizes to confront threat.
- Resistance: Organism attempts to cope with threat.
- Exhaustion: Depletion of physiological resources.
Physiology of PTSD: Neurobiological abnormalities.
- Increased blood flow in anterior cingulate gyrus and amygdala.
- Damage to the hippocampus.

Chronic stress can lead to physical disorders and impair the immune system.
Psychophysiological Disorders: Physical disorders with emotional roots.
Coronary Heart Disease (CHD): Narrowing of blood vessels.
Psychoneuroimmunology: Study of stress effects on the immune system.
Health-Related Behaviors: Stress affects likelihood of engaging in healthy behaviors.

Psychoanalytic Theory: Neurotic anxiety stems from unconscious conflicts.
Behavioral Theory: Stress responses learned through association.
Cognitive Theory: Optimism helps response to stress; pessimism hurts.
Hardiness: Commitment, control, and challenge in face of stress.
Finding Meaning: Finding meaning in trauma leads to positive life changes.
Type A Pattern: Competitive, impatient, hostile behavior linked to heart disease.