Affective Distress and Its Impact Related to Health Psychology

Affective Distress and Its Impact

Health Psychology: Affective Distress and its Impact

Stress is a significant part of daily life for most people. It can take its toll on a person if he or she does not understand good techniques that can be used to mitigate its effects. One of the biggest problems with stress, other than not knowing how to manage it, is that too much stress can trigger the fight of flight response in some people (Taylor, 2005). When that occurs, the person generally experiences what is called a panic attack or an anxiety attack. These usually only last a few minutes, but they can linger for much longer periods of time in some cases. Panic and anxiety are debilitating (Petersen, Maier, & Seligman, 1995). Often, the person insists that he or she is dying. An ambulance is called or the person is rushed to the emergency room, only to find out that there was no real danger. Sometimes one panic attack is all a person will ever have. Other people have hundreds or thousands over their lifetime.

Of course, not every person who is in a stressful situation will panic. Some people take out their stress in other ways. They may become jittery, or they may get angry. Road rage is common when drivers get under too much stress, but is all of that really necessary? The level of stress that someone perceives himself or herself to be under may directly affect how much stress that person feels (Taylor, 2005). In other words, if a person is placed in a situation that most people would agree is highly stressful, but that person does not find it stressful, than it is not a problem for that person. Some people are simply more optimistic than others, and optimism about life and stressful situations is something that can be learned if a person desires to lower his or her stress levels (Seligman, 1990).

For people who are constantly under stress, there can be a myriad of health problems. Upset stomachs, digestive problems, headaches, ulcers, and even heart attacks can be caused by too much stress. That is why learning how to manage stress is one of the most important things a person can do for overall health. It would be better to eliminate the majority of the stress, but that is not always possible. Most people have to work for a living, and they may encounter stressful job situations. They may also find that they have stress at home if they do not get along well with other family members or if their home life is difficult due to alcoholism, illness, or other kinds of problems. The good news, however, is that there are ways to manage stress and help lower the impact of it on a person's life (Taylor, 2005).

People who want to lower their stress levels must make time for themselves. That can be difficult at first, but it is vital that a person learn to spend time alone. Freeing oneself up from the demands of other people - even for an hour - can significantly relax and refresh one to the point that the world looks less threatening. Relaxation, deep breathing, and meditation are all good ways to reduce stress, and many of them can be done to a certain extent even in the midst of chaos. One of the reasons people panic is that they do not breathe properly (Petersen, Maier, & Seligman, 1995). They breathe from their chest and not their diaphragm, so they get too much oxygen (hyperventilation) and throw off the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in their bloodstream.