Understanding Stress & Stress Responses

Overview

• Stress is a psychobiological response to internal or external stressors.
• Its components affect how we think, feel, and behave.
• Reactions to stressors are called stress responses.
• Initial physiological reactions are involuntary, while psychological responses aren't, providing a degree of control.
• Psychological responses are divided into emotional and cognitive changes.
• Emotional equilibrium is difficult to maintain due to anxiety, tension and irritability.
• Cognitive changes involve distorted perceptions, difficulty concentrating and forgetfulness.
• Constant intrusion of thoughts related to the stressor occurs.
• Problem-solving is less effective under stress.
• Stress is perceived when individuals believe they lack the ability to cope with demands.
• Believing we can cope results in an unsettling experience, rather than stress.
• Stress can range from motivating to causing physiological and psychological disorders.
• Strategies for coping with stress and improving wellbeing are examined.

Internal and External Stressors

• Stressors are stimuli that produce stress.
• These can be conditions, thoughts, feelings, people, objects, situations or events.
• Can be physical or psychological, internal or external.
• Internal stressors originate within the individual, like personal problems.
• External stressors originate outside, such as homework or threats.
• Stress results in physiological and psychological responses.

Acute and Chronic Stress

• There are two types of stress: acute and chronic stress.
• They are primarily distinguished by the duration of the experience.
• Acute stress is brief and specific.
• Typical outcomes are elevated blood pressure or reduced motivation.
• Acute stress can be beneficial, releasing adrenaline and improving problem-solving or physical performance.
• Severe acute stress can lead to significant mental health problems.
• Chronic stress continues for a prolonged time, due to ongoing demands, pressures, and worries.
• It can be debilitating and harmful to health and wellbeing.
• The stressor need not remain physically resent to cause the effects.
• Recollections of the stressor can sustain chronic stress.
• Stress can be cumulative.
• Physiological arousal and bodily changes can rise and stay high if opportunities to recover are limited

Fight-or-Flight-or-Freeze Response in Acute Stress

• Fight-or-flight-or-freeze response and General Adaptation Syndrome are models describing physiological stress responses.
• They describe patterns of involuntary, physiological changes.
• The fight-or-flight-or-freeze response is acute, while General Adaptation Syndrome is chronic.
• Immediate threat triggers rapid physiological changes.
• The body activates this response without conscious control.
• The purpose is survival.
• The reaction depends on the situation and threat proximity.
• Fight-or-flight-or-freeze is an involuntary response to threatening situations.
• Reactions include confronting the threat, escaping or remaining still:
  • Fight: Confronting and fighting off the threat.
  • Flight: Escaping by running away to safety.
  • Freeze: Remaining still and silent to avoid detection.
• Reactions prepare the body for action, occurring before full cognitive processing.
• Occurrences depend on situation and individual.

Fight or Flight Reactions

• When wellbeing is threatened, the options are to fight or escape.
• Non-essential systems direct energy to those that will help outrun or outfight the threat.
• Physiological stress response has two parts occurring sequentially.
• The amygdala detects a threat signal, sending a signal to the hypothalamus.
• The hypothalamus communicates through the nervous and endocrine systems, playing a role in monitoring and adjusting bodily processes.
• The hypothalamus activates the sympathetic nervous system, stimulating the adrenal medulla to secrete adrenaline and noradrenaline into the blood stream which activates organs and boosts physiological processes.
• In the second part, the hypothalamus stimulates the pituitary gland to secrete stress hormones from the adrenal glands' cortex such as cortisol, for longer-lasting alertness. Bodily changes include:
  • Increased heart rate and blood pressure.
  • Redistribution of blood supply to skeletal muscles.
  • Increased breathing rate.
  • Increased glucose secretion by the liver.
  • Dilation of the pupils. Suppression of non-essential functions. Once threats have ceased, the parasympathetic system restores normal functioning. Sympathetic functions like an accelerator, while parasympathetic are like car brakes.

Freeze Reaction

• Sometimes fight or flight is impossible, resulting in a freeze state.
• The body remains motionless and silent.
• Body movements and vocalisations stop.
• The racing heart slows, blood pressure drops, and tense muscles collapse
• Before immobility, there's a reflexive orienting response with hypervigilance.
• Apparent frozen state is called tonic immobility, seen in animals playing dead.
• This immobility has adaptive value for animals, avoiding detection and conserving energy.
• Freezing can be maladaptive, such as in job interviews or during exams.
• Tonic immobility can be useful if movement provokes attacks.
• The actions are useful when immobility increases chances of escaping once predator loosens grip.
• Freeze state initiates parasympathetic nervous system dominance over sympathetic.
• It's a highly aroused physiological state with energy conservation and action readiness.
• The organism has one foot on the accelerator and one on the brake.
• The animal can quickly switch to a fully energised state for flight.

Role of Cortisol in Chronic Stress

• Cortisol is a primary stress hormone with wide-ranging functions.
• It is involved in both acute and chronic stress responses.
• Cortisol acts slowly with longer-lasting effects.
• It maintains elevated arousal in the body.
• Bloodstream cortisol levels are measured to indicate level of stress.
• Cortisol energises the body, increasing blood sugar and enhancing metabolism.
• Cortisol turns off non-essential bodily systems, like reproductive functions and growth hormone.
• This way body's energy supplies can be concentrated on dealing with stress.
• Cortisol has anti-inflammatory effects by blocking white blood cell activity but suppresses the immune system.
• A healthy stress response involves increasing cortisol levels quickly, then stopping.
• Prolonged activation due to stimuli is harmful to physical and mental health.
• Excessive cortisol impairs immune system functioning, increasing vulnerability to disease.
• Elevated levels contribute to fat tissue buildup and weight gain by increasing appetite and fat storage.
• Health problems include colds, flu, hypertension, digestive issues, obesity, high blood sugar, and diabetes.
• Impaired cognitive performance and mental disorders can occur.

The gut-brain axis (GBA)

• The gut-brain axis is a communication link between the central and enteric nervous systems.
• It involves direct/indirect pathways between cognitive/emotional areas and the gastrointestinal tract.
• Feelings trigger stomach upsets, and gut disruptions affect mood, behavior and cognitive functions.
• The gut microbiota and brain communicate, with microbiota affecting mental processes and behavior.
• Gut microbiota influences serotonin production and interacts with chemical agents in distant organs.
• The gut-brain-microbiota axis is a complex circuit, where imbalances affect the entire axis.
• The gut-brain axis extends to the autonomic, endocrine, immune, and stress response systems.
• Gut-brain axis disruptions affect endocrine, immune system functioning, and stress responses.

Gut Microbiota

• Each individual's gut microbiota comprises all the microorganisms in the digestive tract.
• The term 'enterotype' refers to one's unique combination of gut microbiota which is affected by diet, infection, disease, lifestyle and aging.
• There is no standard healthy gut microbiome, but it includes microbiota richness, diversity, stability, resilience, and resistance to change.
• Gut dysbiosis refers to an unbalanced gut microbiome.
• Microbiomes and balance disturbances are associated with changes in neurotransmitter production, nervous system and immune system impairments, and stress.
• Research studies effects of antibiotics, probiotics and faecal transplants in germ-free animals.
• Their effects studied were effect on bacteria and how changes in microbiome activity in the nervous system and psychological processes.
• Infant antibiotics affects gut and brain connection.
• Faecal transplants from depressed people to rats result in behaviours associated with depression.

Links with Stress

• There are bidirectional links between gut microbiota and stress.
• Stress disrupts gut microbiota, with the microbiota influences susceptibility to stress.
• Studies found that stress impacts the composition on a number of animals.
• Stressors and maternal separation change the gut microbiota.
• High maternal stress impacts the infants gut composition.
• Manipulating the gut microbiota helps in healing by improving the bacteria and promoting interactions etc reducing the response and effects.
• Brain and the gut communicate via neural, hormonal, and immunological messages.
• Network is disturbed when people experience stress.
• Stress may affect blood flow, gastric secretions, and movement causing development of gastrointestinal disorders.
• Gut microbiota are considered a part of the gut-brain axis.

Selye's General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)

• Hans Selye researched both immediate and long-term stress in the 1930s.
• Rats were exposed to tail-pulling, temperature and electrical shocks etc.
• Stress patterns were seen as similar, with enlarged adrenal glands, gastrointestinal ulcers, etc.
• Stress is non-specific by internal or external stressors.
• Stress is the body’s physiological response to demands to adapt itself to new conditions.
• Emergency, illness, injury, or work initiates sympathetic responses.
• Non-specific reactions occur regardless of the stressor.
• The natural reactions are responses to everyday challenges.
• GAS is a three-stage of psychological response to stress. Which will occur regardless of stress
• GAS is non-specific.
• In General Adaptation Syndrome are similar, there are is running from a dangerous situation that will have an outcome.

Stages of GAS

• GAS comprises alarm reaction, resistance, and exhaustion.
• Alarm reaction occurs when the person becomes aware of the stressor.
• The stage comprises shock and counter shock phases.
  • Shock: body's ability to deal with the stressor falls below its normal level, resulting in decreases in body temperature and blood pressure, and loss of fluid from body tissues.
  • Counter Shock: sympathetic nervous system is activated and the stressor increases, resulting in heightened arousal.
• General defensive reaction with alertness ready to respond According to Selye the source of the stressor is not dealt and energy is sill needs the body will response to cope and adapt. During the resistance stage the body's resistance to the particular stresses above normal. But physiological arousal will remain normal although levels are slower. processes will shut down, e.g digestion. If the stage is successful to return to normal balance.

Exhaustion

• If the stressor isn't dealt with successfully, then it might reach the stage of exhaustion.
• During the exhaustion stage, alarm reaction changes may reappear as they were, but now the body is incapable to sustain it's resistance and resources such as stress the hormone has all depleted.
• So now at this point you are more susceptible to the mental and disorders. Changes might be fatigue, sleep disturbance, severe loss and depression. In extreme cases if the stress continues the organism will die. Over all that exhaustion stage brings about singe physical wear and tear, because they are trying to deal with the stress. The hormones are responsible for those types of stages that occur because it is triggered from a resistance to exhaustion.

Strengths and Limitations of the GAS

• GAS model extended Cannon's findings and further awareness the links between stress and disease.
• Model also identified biological processes associated with the body's system like hormones was confirmed.
• Eventually it’ll lead to illness.
• Everyone has the general predicts and automatic physiological process.
• Overlooks, our the system. Does not count cognitive affects.

Stress as a psychological process

• Prior experience with stress, the levels of everything will differ on impact to the effects to the stressor.
• Developed by RIchard and is to look at the factors when their is a stressful event.
• What does the event mean to he individual and the judging system.
• People respond with event. Stress does not result in the new and always there is someone.
• Evaluation of the apprising process depend on the impact.
• It is all subjective. -Two individuals may assess and act as a result.

Primary and Secondary appraisals

• This Model distinguished two types of appraisal and how they would act after receiving a stressor or new.
• The process is in two steps, primary appraisal and secondary appraisal.
• Primary – evaluate if the new even will have stake or worth judging.
• Primary decides whether the new is irrelevant, stressful, or beneficial.
• Harm losses are damage after lost jobs or items.
• Threat potential and the likelihood and the outcome if you might.
• Change - is something the is growing with from withing the even

Stess

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Strengths and limitations of the Lazarus and Folkman model

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Strategies for coping with stress

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Coping flexibility

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