What it involves
Stress is the normal and physiological response (effort) that all organisms automatically implement when facing any change, in an attempt to adapt to the new situation.
Under the stimulus of external perturbations, our organism triggers a series of reactions at the physiological level (release of cortisol, endorphins, adrenaline and noradrenaline), physical level (increased heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate, body temperature, muscle tension) and psychological level (increased attention and vigilance, greater resistance to fatigue, selective memorization), responsible for our continuous adaptation to the external environment: in their absence, any novelty would be rejected by our organism.
From Normal Stress to Distress
However, when difficult events are repeated, close together, prolonged and intensify or are characterized as insurmountable obstacles, it can be very challenging for the individual to adapt to them, giving rise to so-called DISTRESS (or negative stress).
The effects of distress manifest in physical symptoms (headache, insomnia, ulcer, hypertension, cervical pain, gastrointestinal, muscular, dermatological and gynecological problems) and in psychological symptoms (reduced attention, irritability, hypersensitivity, hypochondria, depressive symptoms, obsessive symptoms, paranoid symptoms, generalized anxiety, panic attacks).
The combination of these symptoms leads to emotional responses of non-acceptance and rejection (“I don’t want to feel bad”, “I don’t want to feel this way”…) that increase the condition of personal suffering.
How to Address Distress
To effectively address the condition of distress, it is therefore useful to act at the physical level, with relaxation and breathing techniques, which allow reducing the condition of tension and the negative effects of stress at the bodily level, and at the psychological level, with interventions aimed at recognizing, accepting and regulating negative emotions (mindfulness).
