What stress can do to you?

There are few things we should look into for stress purposes in our own personal behavior and physical reactions. We will be able to control our stress level only if we know how severe it is and what it does to us.

Remember, stress is our body, mental, and emotional reaction to the situation, whether bad, nice, real, imaginary and otherwise. It's the only way you can interpret the situation, not necessarily how the situation is. Unfortunately, when you view the situation as beyond your ability to control, you become stressed out.

Stress will always present itself in different forms. For instance, some people sweat when they're stressed out, others vomit, and others can't concentrate. There are various things that stress can do to you, this include mental disorders, physical symptoms, as well as emotional breakdowns.

The following are the worse but most common effects of stress

• Physical symptoms like headaches, neck pain, swellings, dizziness (vertigo), heart palpitations, chest pain, muscle tension etc.
• Anxiety and worry
• Loss of concentration
• Confusion and poor attention
• Yelling
• Loss of temper
• Irritability
• Memory loss
• Hatred

Click here to view a detailed list of stress symptoms.

Forms of stress

Stress comes from various events (sources) in our lives, both negative and positive. Psychologists distinguish between two types of stress, eustress and distress. Those events of life that make you joyful yet presenting huge responsibilities may stress you but positively. For instance, a new job, a business deal, a new born baby etc. are positive events but they may stress you. This type of stress is referred to as eustress.

There are negative events in life that can depress you. For instance, divorce, death of a family member or a close friend, any form of separation, and other sad events that may causes an increase in your stress level. This type of stress is referred to as depression and it often requires a psychologist to help.

Related topics:

• What is stress?
• Symptoms of stress
• Other causes of Stress
• How can I stress less?
• How stress affects your sinuses?