If you have recently experienced headaches, unexplained fatigue, poor concentration, irritability, aggressiveness, agitation, anxiety, muscle aches, eating disorders, skin problems, or unexpected mood swings, you are most likely a victim. over stress, the unacceptable disease very common today.
What is stress?
Stress is the word used to describe the symptoms that occur in the body due to increased pressures imposed by the external environment or by the person himself. Goal-oriented stress is a valuable motivational tool that can make us great athletes or entrepreneurs. But it can also plunge us into depression and lead to suicide.
When an individual is under the effects of stress, the hypothalamus, which is located in the lower middle part of the brain, activates the adrenal glands to release adrenaline into the blood and the body is prepared to deal with stressful situations.
If this type of internal energy is not released, it is retained in our body, staying in the most vulnerable parts of the body, causing one or more of the symptoms already described. However, it is very common not to recognize that we are under stress and confess that "something" worries us. The most common is to suffer it, deny it or ignore it since our culture is one of "macho and enduring."
In fact, our social and work culture does not accept weak or vulnerable beings, but people capable of responding to the demands of consumerism and social image where the importance of the individual is directly proportional to their power to acquire and accumulate goods to achieve recognition. of others. Thus, the phrase "used to working under pressure" has become a mandatory requirement - raised to value in the workplace - to the detriment of human well-being.
Sources of stress
Among the most common factors that cause stress, there are three: those caused by the environment, those originated in the workplace and those that are caused by the nature of the person.
Among those caused by the external environment are recession, unemployment, war, traffic congestion, long lines, not finding where to park, always in a hurry, and unforeseen situations that are not lacking every day.
The sources of stress in the work environment can be due to inconsistencies in managerial behavior, the threat of massive layoffs, the change of boss, poor communication, constant changes in work processes, lack of control over workloads, lack of clarity regarding job expectations, inadequate recognition systems, lack of support from the boss, way of implementing change in the organization, and poor interpersonal relationships.
In addition, tolerance to stress and ways of reacting vary in each individual according to their personality and character. However, changing your attitude and way of thinking are the first step towards solving problems associated with stress because, most of the time, it is not possible to change the behavior of others or modify the environment.
Personalities: Types A and B
The first step in stress management is to identify the source of our problems and measure its effect on our lives.
In the 1960s, cardiologists Meyer Friedman and Ray Rosenman conducted research on the effects of stress on the body and identified two types of personalities, which they called "A" and "B." “Type A” people are perfectionists and highly competitive, they set very short deadlines to achieve their goals, they need to be instilled in themselves, they are impatient, they can be aggressive if things don't go as planned, they talk a lot about themselves, they need to attract attention and do not know how to listen to others.
"Type B" individuals are informal, self-confident, laid-back, and personable. They are as motivated as "Type A" people. They are patient and perform their tasks in an efficient and calm manner. They know how to listen, transmit fewer signals of anxiety and are less affected by stress since they are not competitive or have the inflexible urgency of time.
Evolve to survive
Our perceptions and attitudes play a fundamental role in the way we react. That is why, when we go through a stressful situation, one of the strategies is to make some changes in our lifestyle, and maintain a balanced and realistic perspective of conflict situations in order to balance tension with relaxation. Which implies making an objective analysis of the situation and making the best decision at the right time.
When dealing with a stressful situation, we tend to use defense mechanisms to deny, justify or rationalize it, and we end up "accommodating" to it and accepting the stress that it entails; Or, we identify the situation and deal with it.
Stress experts recommend four ways to deal with it: modify the situation - either by changing jobs or place of residence -, acquire new skills to reduce or eliminate it, perceive the situation from a different approach or perspective, and / or make changes in personal behavior.
In addition to emotional and psychological balance, it is necessary to attend to the bio-physical aspect of the person. For which it is advisable to maintain a varied and balanced diet, eliminating excess fat and caffeine - cola, tea and coffee - alcohol, tobacco, sugar and salt, among others. As well as practicing some type of non-competitive exercise such as swimming, walking, running, t'ai chi chuan, yoga, bioenergetic gymnastics, or some other type of relaxation techniques in order to release the energy trapped in our body that is the cause of psychosomatic ailments.
Finally, we must not forget that stress is the sign of our times. A certain level of tension can be motivating to make those extra efforts that life challenges often demand of us. The important thing is to maintain balance and continue our process of evolution and re-invention in order to survive. Now, in the midst of this crisis, we have the opportunity to renew ourselves and start, once again, a new life project in parallel with this new century.
