CHAPTER

O3
Meeting Life
Challenges
CHAPTER CHECKL0S?
" Introduction

Introduction You are Meaning of Stress

examinationsis commonto allstudents. "
by denied this Nature, Types and Sources of Stres
The challcnge posed about a career. What if youare
thinking the time. . Efects of Stress on Psychologica
perhaps, already
Life poses challenges all
choice? Willyou give up? a young age with no one
to Functioning and Health
loses her/his parents at husband in a car
Think ofachild who woman who loses her
Coping With Stress
ayoung or mentally
her/him;
take care of physically Promoting Positive Health and
bring up children who are "
accident; parents who
who have to spend long nights in call Well-Being
girls/boys Look
challenged; young their sleep during the day time.
catch up on challenge. All of us try
centres and then that life is a big
will find
around yourself and you way. Some of us succeed
while
challenges in our own arenot necessarily
tomeet these stresses. Life challenges
others succumb to such life
how a challenge is viewed.
stressful. Much depends on

Meaning of Stress
emotional factor that causes
bodily or
Stress is a physical, mental or stimuli.
tension. Stress is a form of response towards an event or
mental
stability of aperson and diminish
It may disturbs the psychological and difficult circumstances
his/her ability. All the challenges, problems originated from the Latin
stress is
are responsible for stress. The word These words reflect the internal
word strictus, meaning tight or narrow.
the muscles and
feelings of tightness and constriction (tightening) of
breathing reported by many people under stress.
Stress increases human activity and affects performance as well. However,
high stress can produce unpleasant effects and can deteriorate our
performance.
 77
Meeting Life Challenges

Eustress is the term uscd to describe the lcvel of stress Cognitive Theory of Stress
Lazarus and his
good for you. It is best for achieving peak
that is This theory was propounded by perception of stress is
performance and managing minor crisis. Eustress, colleagues. According to this, the
however, has the potential of turning into distress'. cognitive appraisal of
dependent upon the individual's
includes all those environmental and personal available to deal with them. An
cvents and the resources
Stress largely
which challenge or threaten the well-being of a individual's response to a stressful situation
vents,
they are
p e s o n .
depends upon the perceived events and how
Scressors ae events that cause our body to give the stress interpreted or appraised.
Lazarus:
response. Such events include noise, crowding, conflict, There are two types of appraisal according to
frustration, a bad relationship or the daily commuting perception of a
(i) Primary Appraisal It refers to thepositive,
school or office. The rcaction to external stressors is neutral
ro new or changing environment as
events are
or negative in its consequences. Negative
alkd strain.
INTERNAL STATE RESULT STRESS
REACTION appraised for their possible harm, threat
or
CAUSE

Biological and
psychological
challenge.
Challenge to that has
Harm is the assessment of the darmage
Extenal
reactions leading to] beovercome or
Ntemal
is the
stressor stress experience illness/strain already been done by an event. Threat
(coping, defence) may be
assessment of possible future damage that
appraisals
Psychological Meaning of Stress brought about by the event. Challenge
expectations. It
are associated with more confident
event and
has the ability to cope with the stressful
Nature, Types and the potential to overcome and even
profit from the
Sources of Stress event.

Nature of Stress (ii) Secondary Appraisal It is the assessment of one's

coping abilities and resources and assessing whether
Hans Selye, the father of modern stress research, defined they will be sufficient to meet the harm, threat or
sress as the non-specific response of the body to any challenge of the event. These resources may be
demand. Despitethe cause of the threat, the individual mental, physical, personal or social. If one thinks
will respond with the same physiological pattern of that one has a positive attitude, health, skills and
reactions. social support to deal with the crises, she/he will
Many researchersdo not agree with this definitions. They feel less stressed.
think that the stress response is not nearly as general and This two-level appraisal process determines not only our
non-specific as Selye suggests. Different stressors may cognitive and behavioural responses but also our
produce somewhat different patterns stress reaction. emotional and physiological responses to external
Different individuals may have different characteristic events. These appraisals are very subjective and will
modes of response. Each one of us see thesituation from depend on many factors such as:
our own perspective and it is our ability to meet them Past Experience If one has handled similar situations
and this will determine whether we are feeling 'stressed very successfully in the past, they would be less
or not.
threatening for her/him.
Stress is not a factor that resides in the individual or the Controllable It examines whether one has mastery or
environment. It is embedded (fixed) in an ongoing control over a situation. A person who believes that
Process that involves individuals transacting with their she/he can control the onset of a negative situation or
SOcial and cultural enyironments and attempting to cope its adverse consequencu will experience less amount
with the issues that arise. Stress is a dynamic of stress than those wh ave no such sense of
mental/cognitive state. personal control.
 Allnone PSYCHOLOGY
Class 12
78
Changes in Stress
selt-ontidence can
determine
people experience vary in terms of:
Forexamplc. asensc of situation as a The stresses which
wheher the personis ike
to handle he
outcome of a
us high intensity)
intensity (low intensity long term)
thrcat or a challengc.
The experience and duration
(short-term s
complex)
stressor \ary tnom person (o
person.
complexity (less complex vs more
environmental (noisc,
exernal, i.e.
predictability (unexpected
vs predictable)
These stressor can be brcak-up with a close . on the position of a
social(koncliness, of stress depends
air. pollution, frustration) within the The outCome
experience along
these
dimensions.
triend).psvehological (contlict, particular stressful on the
of stress depend
individual. individual's experiences Thus,
strength of that
person. individuals
Reactions to Stress physiological
health and weak constitution would b
physical
varicty of stress
reactions, which with vulnerable than those who enjoy good health.
poor
Stressors result in a and more mental healeh
behavioural, emotional like
characteristics
may be physiological, Psychological relevant to rhe
self-concept are
cognitive. temperament and will be
stress experience
Physiological Reactions At
the physiological level, experience of stress. The
person, such as
in stress resources of the
activity) plays a key role determined by the support networks. ete
arousal (physical skills, coping style,
related bchaviours. money, social Resources
along
hypothalamus (part of
brain) initiates action Stressor Physical
The Person Money
wo pathways: Types Medical Care, etc.
nervous Characteristics

the autonomic
Environmental

involves
The first pathway
() amount of Psychological
Physiolog Personal
The adrenal gland releases large Social Physical Skills
system. and norepinephrine) Constitutional
Coping Style
catecholamines (epinephrine Dimenslons Vulnerabilities

stream. Intensity Social

into the blood Psychological

physiological changes
seen in Duration
Complexity
Mental Hlealth Support Networks
This leads to physiological Temperament Professional Help
fight-or-flight response.
Ir is a harmful event,
Predictability
Self-Concept
in response to a
reaction that occurs Cultural
Cultural Definitions
attack or threat tosurvival.
the pituitary gland,
and Meanings
pathway involves Expected Response
(ii) The second the corticosteroid (cortisol)
that
Style
which secretes
provides energy. reactions to Stress Appralsal
Emotional Reactions
The emotional
emotions such as fear,
experience stress
include negative Cognitive
depression or even
anger, Behavioural Emotional
anxiety,
cmbarrassment, Physiological response
response

response response
denial. are
behavioural reactions Stress Process
Behavioural Reactions
The A Generel Model of the

virtually limitless, depending

on the nature of the
action (opposition)
stressful event. Confrontativewithdrawal from the Signs and Symptoms of Stress
against the stressor (fight) or
response.
pattern of stress
threatening cvent (flight) are cwo
general categories of Everyone has their ownvaries depending upon our The
Our response to stress Cxperiences.
behavioural responses.
reactions include beliefs personality. carly upbringing and life and
emotional
Cognitive Reactions Cognitive symptoms of stress can be physical, of
and beliefs a degree
about the harm or threat an event poses behavioural. Any symptom can indicate
These include
abou, its causes or controllabili: . stress which, if left unresolved, might have
serious
and intrusive,
rsponses such as inability to concentrate implications.
repetitive or morbid thoughts.
 Meeting Life Challenges 79

These
Types ofStress neighbours are some examples of social stresses.
There are thrce major types of stresses. All threc types of social stresses vary widely from person to person.
stress are
interrelated and are given below: Sources of Stress
[Link] Environmental Stress Stress can be generated by events and conditions.
physical stresses are demands that change the state of Among the most important of these are major stressful
our body.
We fecl strained when we overexert oursclves life events, such as death ofa loved one or perSonal
physically,. lack a nutritious diet, suffer an injury or fail injury, the annoying frequent hassles (problems) of
sleep. our lives.
everyday life, traumatic events that affect
o get enough .
Environmental stresses are aspects of our surroundings Life Events
that are often unavoidable such as air pollution,
crowding, noise, heat of the summer, winter cold, etc. Major life events can be stressful, because they disturb
Another group of environmental stresses are catastrophic our routine and cause upheaval. If several of these life
events or disasters such as fire, carthquake, floods, etc. events that are planned (e.g. moving into a new house)
or unpredicted (e.g. break-up of a long-term
[Link] Stress relationship) occur within a short period of time, we
These are internal sources of stress that we generate find it difficult to cope with them and will be more
ourselves in our minds. These are personal and unique prone to the symptoms of stress.
othe person cxperiencing them. Some of the important
sOurces of psychological stres are: AMeasure of Stressful Life Events
0 Frustration It results from the blocking of needs Holmes and Rahe developed a life event measure of stress. A
and motives by something or someone that measure of stressful life events based on the above scale
blocking us from achieving a desired goal. There known as the Presumptive Stressful Life Events Scale
could be a number of causes of frustration such as has been developed for the Indian population by Singh, Kaur
social discrimination, interpersonal hurt, low grades and Kaur. It is a self-rating questionnaire made up of fifty
in school, etc. one life changes, which a person may have experienced.
Both positive and negative events are taken, believing that
(i) Conflicts It may occur between two or more both kinds of changes cause stress. The respondent's stress
incompatible needs or motives, e.g. whether to score is the weighted sum of all the items/life change events
study dance or psychology. You may want to in the past one year checked by her/him. Some sample items
of the measures are:
continue studies or take up a job. There may be a Life Events Mean Stress Score
conflict of values when you are pressurised to take Death of a close family member 66
any action that may be against the values held by Unexpected accident or trauma 53
you.
Illness of afamily member 52
(m) Internal Pressures It occurs from beliefs based Breack-up with friend 47
upon cxpecctations from inside us to ourselves. Such Appearing for examinations 43
expectations can only lead to disappointment. Change in eating habits 27
Many of us drive ourselves ruthlessly towards The mean number of stressful life events experienced over a
achieving unrealistically high standards in achieving period of one year without producing overt physical or mental
our goals. illness isapproximately two. However, the correlations
between life events and susceptibility to any particular illness
(w) Social Pressures It may be brought about from is low, indicating a weak association between life events and
people who make excessive demands on us. This stress. It has been argued as to whether life events have
Can cause even greater pressure when we have to caused some stress-related illness or whether stress caused
work with them. There are also people with whom the life events and illness.
we face The impact of most life events varies from person to person.
personality clash. Factors such as age at which the event was first experienced,
3. Social Stress frequency of occurrence, duration of the stressful event and
These are produced externally and result from our social support must be studied in evaluating the relationship
between stressful life events and the subsequent illness
Interaction
lnes sin
with other people. Social events like death or episode.
the family, strained relationships, trouble wih
 Allinone PSYCHOLOGY
Clas 1
80
hormones produce marked changes in heart rate,
pressure levels, nmetabolism and physical activity. blog
Hassles
These are the personal stresses
we expcricncc as
such This physical reaction will help us
to funnction more
happenings in our daily lifc, cffectively when we are under pressure for
individuals, duc to the
commuing,
quarrelsomc ncigh of time, but it can be extremely damaging toshort
the peri
as noisy
surroundings, snarls. There in the long-term effects. Examples sof physiological
clcctriity and watcr shortagc, tratlie
bours, very frequent.
are somc jobs in which daily hassles are devastating cffects are release of epinephrine and norepinephrine,
omctimes have slowing down ofthe digestive system, expansion of ajr
Thesc daily hassles may stress peoplc heart rate and
individual. The more passages in the lungs, increased
onscqucnes tor the
theirpsychological well-being. constrictionof blood
vessels.
face daily. the oorer is
Traumatic Events
fire, train
Cognitive Effects
include extreme cvents such as a continuc, one may suf-r
cvents
Thesc
carthquake,tsunami, etc. If pressuresdue to stresssuffering from high
orroad accident, robbery, occur after some lapse mental overload. This level of
Thecftccts of thesc cvents may synptoms of anxiety, individuals to lose their ability
persist as can rapidly cause carer
of time and sometimcs intrusive
and thoughts, etc. Severe decisions. Faulty decisions made at home, in
flashbacks, dreams workplace may lead to arguments, failure, financial lo:
relationships. Professional help
trauma can also strain persist for Cognitive effects of. stress are poor
will be nccded to cope with them if they loss of job etc. short-term memory Cans.t
is over. concentration and reduced
many months after the cvent
Behavioural Effects
Check Point 01 the form of eating le
the Latin word. Stress affects our behaviour in
I. The word 'stress 'is originated
from
nutritional food, increasing intake
of stimulants such.
ofpossible future damage that may of cigarettes, alcohol
2 is the assessment caffeine, excessiveconsumption
be brought about by the event. tranquillisers, etc.
includes all those environmental
events,
and personal and other drugs such as
3.
have side effects y
which challenge or threaten the well-being of aperson. Tranquillisers can be addictive and
incompatible needs coordination and
as loss of concentration, poor behavioural effects of
or more
may occur between two
or molives.
varies depending upon our
persona dizziness. Some of the typical
O. Our response to stress patterns, increased
experiences. (True false) stress seen are disrupted sleep
liy, early upbringing and life absenteeism and reduced work performance.
Effects of Stress on C Examination Anxiety
Psychological Functioning
Examination anxiety is a fairly common phenomenon that
uncasiness that occur betorC,
and Health involves feelingsof tension or
people experience
during or after an examination. Many and find it helplul
physiological in nature.
Many of the effects of stress arestress associated with the
examinations
feelings of anxiety around
motivating and create the pressur
There are four major effects of some ways, as it can be
performance.
stressed state. These are as
follows: that is needed to stay focused on one's
characterised as 'evaluative
Examination stress has been debilitan
Emotional Effects stress' and produces
apprehension' or 'evaluative different
no
Those who suffer from stress are likely to experience
effects
behavioural, cognitive and physiological High stress can

mood swings and show erratic behaviour that may from those produced by any other stressor. C o n c e n t r a t i o n
and

alienate them from family and friends. In some cases, interfere with the student's preparation,
performance. Examination stress can
cause test anxiey are
this can lead decrecasing confidence, leading to more which adversely affects test performnance.
Persons
who
2
seriousemotional problems. For example, feeling of
situations

evaluative
high in test anxiety tend to perccive
anxiety and depression, increased physical tension,
e x a m i n a t i o n s

for
personally threatening. While preparing OVeriew and
wey

increased psychological tension and mood swings. one must spend enough time for study,
difficultics
one's strengths and weaknesses, discuss
Physiological Effects teachers and classmates, plan a revision
timetatble

When the human body is placed under physical or

importati

notes, space out revision periods and most

psychological stress, it increases the production of examination day concentrate on stav1ng cal
certain hormones, such as adrenaline and cortisol. These
 81
Meeting Life Challenges

Stress and Health Stress and the Immune System

the workings of
When stress is continucd, it affects physical hcalth and Stresscarn cause illness by impairing
immune system guards the
impairs psychological functioning. leople expericnce the immunc system. Thc within and outside
haustion and attitudinal problems when the stress due body against attackers, both from
Psychoneuroimmunology focuses on the
demands trom the cnvironment and constraints are the body. immune
links between the mind, the brain and the
Oo high and little support is available from family and It studies theeffects of stress on the immune
ends. The physical cxhaustion is seen in the signs of system.
chronic fatiguc, wvcakncss and lowencrgy. The mental system.
immune
xhaustion appears in the form of irritability, anxiety, Thewhite blood cells (leucocytes) within the
feelings ot helplessnes and hopclessness. bodies (antigens)
system identify and destroy foreignproduction of
This state of physical. enmotional and psychological such as viruses. It also leads to the are:
haustion is known as burnout. Stress can produce antibodies. Some of the white blood cells
cells
hanges in the immunesystem which results in illness. " T cells which destroy invaders, T-helperT-helper
Srress has been implicated in the development of which increase immunological activity.
cells are attacked by the HIV virus which causes
ardiovascular disorders, high blood pressure, as well as
pvchosomaticdisorders including ulcers, asthma, AIDS.
ergies and headaches. Researchers estimate that stress " Bcells which produce antibodies.
plays an important role in fifty to seventy per cent of all . Natural killer cells which involves in the fight against
physical illness. Sixty per cent of medical visits are both viruses and tumours.
primarily for stress-related symptoms.
Stress can affect natural killer cell cytotoxicity which is
General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS) of major importance in the defence against various
infections and cancer. Reduced levels of natural killer
Selve studied the issue of stress by subjecting animals to a
variery of stressors such as high temperature, X-rays and cell cytotoxicity have been found in people who are
insulin injections, in the laboratory. He also observed patients highly stressed.
with various injuries and illnesses in hospitals in which he Research reveals that immune functioning is better in
noticed a similar pattern of bodily response in all of them.
He called this pattern the General Adaptation Syndrome individuals who receive social support. Psychological
(GAS). stress is accompanied by negative emnotions and
ACCOrdingto him, GAS involves three stages: associated behaviours like depression, hostility, anger
(i)Alarm Reaction Stage The presence of a noxious and aggression. Longterm stress produces obsessive
(deadly) stimulus or stressor leads to activation of the behaviours,panic attacks etc. Painful physical sensation
adrenal-pituitary-cortex system. This triggers the release sometimes is misunderstood as heart attack.
of hormones producing the stress response. Now the
person is ready for fight. People under prolonged stress are more prone to
(iü) Resistance Stage If stress is continued, the resistance irrational fears, mood swings, phobias, depression,
stage begins. The parasympathetic nervous system calls anger, irritability etc. These negative emotions deeply
tor morecautious use of the body's resources. The
organism makes efforts to cope with the threat, as affect our immune system. How negative emotions
through confrontation.
weaken our immunesystem is explained in the
(ii)Exhaustion Stage Continued exposure to the same following figure.
stressor or additional stressors drains the body of its
resources and leads to the third stage of exhaustion. The Angry outburst
physiological systems involved in alarm reaction and throwing tantrum
withdrawal
resistance become ineffective and susceptibility to Feeling of
stress-related diseases such as high blood-pressure Fear Hopelessness Weakened Mental or
becomes more likely. Anger Immune Physical
Selye's model has been criticised for assigning a very limited Hostility System illness
role to psychological factors in stress which are important for
the determination of suress. How people tackle the stress is Stress Hormones
dependent on their perceptions, personalities and biological Relation of Stress with liness
constitutions.
 Allinone PSYCHOLOGY
84 Cass 1 Meeting Life

Overcoming Unhelpful Habits

Time Managememt Unhelpful habits such as perfectionism, avoidance,
The major wav to reduc¢ ime slCs IN t0 change oncs Exercise

perception of timc. The central priniple of ime procrastination, ctc are strategies that help to cope in the the
lifesc
short-term stress. It is
approval. Re
managennent is to spend onc's ime through doing the . Perfectionists These are persons who have to get
things that one value or that hclp one to ahicve oncs managing w
everything just right. They have difficulty in varying
goals. It depends on bcing realistic and do aparticular standards according to factors such as time :avallable,
effect on red

work within a certaintime peiod. Physical exe

consequences of not bcing able to stop work and
cffort needed.
the a r e s t r e t c h i n

Rational Thinking aerobic exer

Avoidance It prevents something bad from
Many stress-related problens occur as a resul of
distorted thinking. Thinking and tecling are closcly and refuse to accept or face it. happening etc. The stre
and aerobic

connected. \Vhen we arc stressed, we recall to ncgative Procrastination It means the action of delaying or body.
thoughts and images from the past, which affect our postponing something. People who procrastinate
Studies sug
perception of the present and the future. deliberately avoid confronting their fears of failur
maintainge
Sone of the principles of rational thinking are: rejection. in the face
" Challenging distorted thinking and irrational
beliets. Development of Positive Health C Res
Driving out potentially intrusive negative anxicty Health is astate of complete physical, mental, , social and
spiritual well-being and not merely the absence of die
In recent
and provoking thoughts. understan

" Making positive statements. or infirmity. Various factors have been identified which Resilience

facilitate the development of positive health. the maint

Improving Relationships Positive health comprises the following constructs: challengir

The key toan cffective relationship is communication capacity -
which consists of three cssential skills i.e.: " a healthy body. adversity.
" high quality of personalrelationships. feelings o
(i) listening to what the other person is saying, " a sense of purpose in life.
self-relia
(ü) expressing how you feel and what you think Resilient

(ii) accepting the other person's opinions and self-regar. trauma, s

mastery of life's tasks. psycholo=

feelings, even if they are different fromn your own. Resilienc
Jealousy and sulking (bad mood) behaviour should be resilience (the ability of people to feel better quickly resources

avoided to improve relationships. after something unpleasant) to stress, trauma and i.e. 'peop
change. what', I
Self-care Factors that act as stress buffers and facilitate positive and othe
skills).
The berter way toprepare physically and emnotionally health are:
and to tackle the stresses of everyday life is by keeping Diet
ourselves healthy, fit and relaxed. Our breathing Positiv
patterns reflect our state of mind and emotions. A balanced diet can lift one's mood, give more energy, Positivet
ted
When we are stressed or anxious, we tend towards muscles, improve circulation, prevent illness, strengthen having a
rapid and shallow breathing from high in the chest, the immunesystem and make one feel better to cope wi leading t
with frequent sighs. stresses of life. The key to healthy living is to eat three " having
The most relaxed breathing is slow, stomach-centred main meals a day and eat a varied well-balanced diet. a sensE
breathing from the diaphragm, i.e. a dome like muscle Quantity of nutrition require for healthy living depends
berween the chest and the abdominal cavity. accept
on one's activity level, genetic make-up, climate andhealt of oth
Environmental stresses like noise, pollution, space, history. Some people are able to maintain a healthy ic
light, colour, etc can all exert an influence and weight, while others become obese. When we are taking
mood. These have a noticeable effect on ouron our failure
ability to stressed, we seek 'comfort foods' which are high in tats.
cope with stress and well-being. salt and sugar. being
humo
help
propc
 Meeting Life Challenges 85

Exercise
Positive Thinking
[Link] change with the widest popular The power of positive thinking has been
increasingly
4 p p
Regular exercise plays an important role in
r o v a l .

recognised in reducing and coping with stress. Optimism

managing [Link] stress and it has a positive has been linkedto psychological and physical well-being.
efect on reducing tension, anxicty and depression. Peoplediffer in the manner in which they cope. For
Physicallexercises that are cssential for good health cxample, optimists(positive thinker) tend toassume
stretching exercises such as yogic asanas and that adversity can be handled successfully, whereas
aerobic exercises such as jogging, swimming, cycling, pessimists (person whoexpects bad outcome) anticipate
etc. The stretching cxercises havea calming effect disasters.

and
aerobic CxerCises increase the arousal level of the Optimists use more problem focused coping strategies and
body.
seek advice and help from others while pessimists ignore
Srudies suggest that fitness permits individuals to the problem or source of stress.
maintain general mental I and physical well-being even
inthe face of negat1ve life events.
Social Support
availability of
Social support is defined as the existence and
O Resilience and Health people on whom we can rely upon and people who care,
value and love us. Someone who believes that she/he
In recent years, there has been a lot of research in mutual
onderstanding resilience in children and adolescents. belongs to a social network of communication and
Resilience is a dynamic developmental process referring to obligation experiences social support.
the maintenance of positive adjustment under Perceived support, i.e. the quality of social support is
challenging life conditions. It has been described as the
capacity to bounce back' in the face of stress and
positively related to health and well-being. Social network,
adversity. Resilience has been conceptualised as reflecting i.e. the quantity of social support is unrelated to well-being.
feelings of self-worth and self-confidence, autonomy and It is very time consuming and demanding to maintain a
self-reliance. large social network.
Resilient individuals are able to overcome the effects of Social support can help to provide protection against stress.
trauma, stress and adversity and learn to live People with high levels of social support from family and
psychologically healthy and meaningful lives. friends may experience less stress when they confront a
Resilience has recently been defined in terms of three stressful experienceand they may cope with it more
resources: I HAVE (s0cial and interpersonal strengths ), successfully.
ie. 'people around me Itrust and wholove me no matter
what', IAM (inner strengths ), i.e. 'respectful of myself Socialsupport may be in the form of tangible support or
and others' and I CAN (interpersonal and problem solving assistance involving material aid, such as money, goods,
skills), ie. "find ways to solve problems I face'. services, etc. For example, a child gives class notes to his
friend whowas absent in the class due to sickness.
Positive Attitude Instressful events informational support is provided by
Positive health and well-being can be realised by family members and friends. For example, astudent faced
having a positive attitude. Some of the factors adifficult board examination who was previously informed
leading to a positive attitude are: by his friend about the difficult nature of examination
having afairly accurate perception of reality. could successfully pass the examination by adopring
asense of purpose in life and responsibility. necessary preparation and coping strategies.
aceptance and tolerance for different viewpoints Further supportive friends and family members provide
of others. emotional support to the individual. Emotional support
asserts that the individual is loved, valued and cared for.
taking credit for success and accepting blame for
failure. Research has suggested that social support effectively
"being open to newideas and having asense of reduces psychological distress such as depression or anxiety
humour with the ability to laugh at oneself which during times of stress. There is growing evidence that social
nelp us to remain centred and see things in a
support is positively related to psychological well-being of a
person. It gives mental health benefits for both the giver
proper perspect1ve. and the receiver.
 reaction
che mobilisation
involving

emergency
adrenal
and sympathetic activity.
86 chrough in
which
energy resources han
Exhaustion
It is a state
r e s p o n s i v e n e s s

is reduced to a
up and
Check Point 02 been used

concept of GAS? that uses

m i n i m u m .

It is che interactions
|immunologicalamotg
Psychoneuroimmunology
1. Who gave the
eperience
subjective
is a
and
2. Cheative
visualisation
(uefalse ) activilles.
o behavioural,
neuroendocrine,

imagination. covert
Lmager and vert and processes o fa d a p t a t i o n .

include both
Strategies
process of trying to manage demand,
It is the
3COpiNg

o Coping appraised as taxing or exceeding one's

(Thuefalse) pvcess!?
coping as adynamic resource
cOnCePualised in physical
significantrole
4 Who to plaa that are abilities for adaptive and
posiie
estimated
Ls These are
5.
illness and disease. from unbidden Life Skills enable individuals
to deal effectively wiÆ:
behaviour that
interference
reduces the risk
of
the environment.

thoughts. maintenance of positive adjustmeny

TERMS TO KNOW Ir is the conditions.
Resilience
that disrupt or
threaten challenginglife
response to events under
S Stress It isour psychological functioning.
Optimism It is
the tendency to seek out, remember, a
physical and
todisrupt our are events or
situations in our oexpect pleasurable experiences.
Stressors These healthy body, good
that cause stress.
e Positive Health It includes a in life. a
balance within a sense of purpose
environment
physiological relationships,
S Homeostasis It is a state of interpersonal
and change.
the body. resilience to stress, trauma
the General
It is the first stage of
Reaction
SAlarm (GAS) characterised by an
Adaptation Syndrome

!.