Everybody gets stressed. Stress can come when you are doing a simple everyday task, such as trying to get a taxicab during rush hour or beating a deadline at work. It can also come during really grave times, when you are resolving a marital conflict or about to lose a loved one.
The lucky ones among us get through their days cheerfully despite the stress. Others are so overwhelmed by it that they cannot function normally.
Many situations create tension and pressure in our lives. The secret is to know how to better cope with them.
Various stress forms
Dr. Bernardino Vicente, director of the National Center for Mental Health in Mandaluyong City, Philippines, says the first step is to know the various forms of these stressors.
Normal, serious
Normal garden-variety stressors include eustress, a productive kind of stress. The pressure parents exert on a child to study is an example. "Parents frequently admonish their children to study more or promise him a bike if he gets good grades--that pressure on the child is productive stress," says Vicente.
Serious but unproductive forms of stress. Examples include losing your job or a death in the family.
Internal, external
Internal stress is psychological. Says Vicente: "[It's up to you.] Your doctor says you have goiter and you may have to undergo an operation. Even if it is not yet confirmed, just the thought of going under the knife already stresses you."
External stressors are evident, such as when you are hurrying to work and get a flat tire. Driving in Manila can be stressful; so is going to malls on weekends.
Based on origins
Biological stressors are illnesses like colds, cough or flu, or changes in the body such as during pregnancy.
Environmental factors, such as air and noise pollutants, can be stressors. A high level of lead in the air may cause road rage, according to Vicente.
Social stress results from interaction with people, such as constant rejection by others, or achieving popularity but always finding yourself talked about negatively.
Personal circumstances and standards, like having financial problems or believing you are unattractive, are great stressors. Your boss may just want a one-page report, but because you expect much of yourself, you become stressed by the assignment.
Traumatic stresses are life-threatening or life-changing situations: seeing a relative die in a traumatic way, being kidnapped or experiencing disaster. "We've seen this kind of stress in Bicol [a southern region in the Philippines], where people get flashbacks of what happened when the supertyphoons hit their homes," says Vicente. "This may cause post-traumatic stress disorders and have a long-lasting effect on people."
Workplace stress
The most prevalent stressors come from the workplace: long working hours, deadlines, unusual demands from bosses.
The nature of one's work also determines how stressful the job is. "Rescue and emergency workers, police officers, surgeons--these [people] are all [exposed to] very stressful work," says Vicente.
Some big stressors are easier to handle, while small stressors that people sometimes take for granted can cause injury. Often, if left unmanaged, stressful events pile up and lead to chronic fatigue syndrome, also known as burnout or overstress.
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome is similar to depression. "A person suffering from the syndrome is often tired and [no] drive," relates Vicente.
"One symptom of burnout is a change in values. You see this in government agencies, where there is too much frustration in the bureaucracy," he adds. "Employees lose their initiative and idealism. They just go through the motions of working."
Constant stress also manifests physically, says Vicente. "Many illnesses, like asthma, migraines, ulcers and certain skin disorders, are exacerbated or made worse by stress."
The notion that too much stress can kill also has basis. "There are people with what is called a cardiac personality--aggressive, hostile, very competitive," says Vicente. "Because they want to do a lot of things in a short period of time and their lifestyle is very stressful, there is often that possibility of a heart attack."
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