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Innovative People Solutions |
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| 9th September 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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 A focused and constructive approach ON THIS PAGE: This page contains a technical treatise on stress, its causes and effects and how it is best addressed. Researchers suggest that between 75% to 90% of all visits to the doctor are for complaints that are stress-related. This is not surprising since the wide-ranging physiological changes that result from chronic stress affects all the systems in the body. The same chemicals that are being released in the stress response are triggering physical reactions throughout the body. These hormones direct everything from the immune system to the cardiovascular system to our emotional and behavioural systems. While stress may not be the direct cause of all illnesses, it may make these conditions worse. It appears that the stress response is 'hard-wired' into the brain and that this response system is better suited to dealing with occasional life threatening dangers rather than frequent minor threats. Constant biochemical imbalance resulting from stress, means that these systems start to wear out more rapidly. DEFINITIONS OF STRESS Stress is the response of the body and the mind to demands and expectations. Outwardly there are many signs we associate with stress of which we may or may not be conscious, for example, twitching muscle in the cheek, furrowing of the brow, tensing of the shoulder muscles or clenching of teeth. We might also experience feelings of impatience, anger, frustration or hopelessness. We might describe our reaction as 'butterflies', a knot in the stomach or tightness across the chest. Stress can be defined as a state of physiological and psychological imbalance in the body which has unpleasant emotional, cognitive, behavioural and physiological components. Stress is a state of arousal; a response to a 'stressor', something that threatens safety or well-being and it can be acute or chronic. A real or perceived threat triggers a cascade of chemical reactions in the brain and body. A chronic state of arousal makes people ill; it makes people unhappy and makes them feel out of control. The Health and Safety Executive, HSE defines stress as: “The adverse reaction people have to excessive pressure or other types of demands placed upon them.” Click here to go to the TOP of the page CAUSES OF WORK-RELATED STRESS Work related stress is a complex issue with as many subtle variations as there are people affected by it, but it can be managed by identifying issues at source and finding workable ways to address these. There are a number of recognised work related causes of stress, which include: Under UK law, the Health and Safety Act (1974), employers have a “duty of care” to protect the health, safety and welfare of all employees while at work. The Health and Safety at Work Regulations (1999) places a legal obligation on employers to assess the risks in their workplace and to decide what action should be taken to reduce such risk. Based on extensive research, the HSE categorises workplace stressors into six control areas: A major source of stress stems from Demands made on an individual and include: workload, capacity to do the work, physical hazards and psychosocial environments. This involves identification of unreasonable demands of the job and the extent to which they can be avoided. The extent to which individuals feel that they have Control over how their work is being carried out has an influence on self-esteem and job satisfaction, consequently task design is important. Relationships with colleagues, bosses and clients can be a great source of support but bullying and harassment are a major source of stress. Promotion of positive working relationships is important, while conflict and unacceptable behaviour requires swift action. Role is the extent to which employees are clear about what their job entails. Knowing what is expected of them can greatly reduce stress levels while conflicting roles and insufficient support contributes to work-related stress. Any Change, especially major or frequent change, could result in insecurity. How change is managed and communicated will have a major impact on the level of stress generated. Employee understanding of the reasons for change, employee consultation, training and support all play a significant role in managing stress. Support includes resources and encouragement from management and colleagues. A supportive culture is underpinned by functional, policies, systems and procedures which promote clear communication, support and mutual respect. Click here to go to the TOP of the page WORK RELATED CONSEQUENCES OF STRESS There are clear themes emerging from the research on stress. One is that stress-related illnesses are on the increase and organisations are faced with the rising cost of the consequences of stress. These include: While the pace of business life is increasing human beings seem to be slowing down. Dealing with personal stress is often seen as the individual's responsibility, alone. Sometimes the most difficult part is for the individuals themselves to acknowledge that there is a problem and for management to acknowledge that stress is one consequence of work life. At the same time, stress can be prevented and it is manageable. What is more, management has a legal obligation to do something about stress in the workplace. Effective stress management involves the implementation of practical, supportive policies, systems and procedures, which include preventative as well remedial measures and which will not only enhance the happiness of employees, it will also improve corporate productivity. Click here to go to the TOP of the page WHAT DOES STRESS PREVENTION INVOLVE? STRESS AND PERFORMANCE There is considerable controversy around whether some stress is necessary for motivation or not The neurologist, Walter Canon first recognised that stressors could be emotional as well as physical and found that the 'fight or flight’ reaction was due to the release of neurotransmitters, adrenaline and nor-adrenaline from the adrenal gland. The concept of stress was introduced by a researcher Hans Selye who extended Canon's work. He included the role of the pituitary gland, which controls the secretion of the hormones such as cortisol from the adrenal gland. There is considerable controversy about whether stress promotes motivation and productivity. Selye differentiated between positive and negative stress. According to Selye's model moderate pressure prevents ‘burnout’ and optimal pressure is required for peak performance, while too little pressure leads to 'rust out'. By producing naturally occurring performance and mood enhancing chemicals, this response heightens ability in the short term. Therefore a certain amount of stress is desirable but there is a limit to the amount of pressure that enhances performance and this limit differs from individual to individual. Recent research indicates that as a consequence of some major trauma, resulting in large scale neurochemical and neuroanatomical changes, we can be sensitised or become hyper-sensitive to stress. The timing and nature of the exposure has an influence on slight variations of the response. Research indicates that sensitisation occurs but further investigation is required as to what influences the nature of the event, the age at which it occurs, the influence of environmental support and the changes that are produced. Since a certain amount of stress is necessary, humans have a kind of built in biological thermostat. Sensitisation however, alters the brain's circuitry and we produce too much of the excitatory chemicals or too few calming ones. Too much or constant pressure without recuperation, results in performance deterioration. The constant bombardment by stress related chemicals and stimulation weakens the person's body. Steroid levels rise during long-term stress and can cause stress related health problems. If the stress response is prolonged it can permanently damage health. Click here to go to the TOP of the page THE STRESS RESPONSE We are all programmed to recognise danger as the 'flight-fight' response which we mentioned earlier, places the body and mind on high alert. Noradrenaline acts on organs which prepare the body for fight, and is associated with anger and feelings of being in control. Adrenaline acts on organs which prepare the body for flight and are associated with fear. The problem is that initially the brain cannot tell the difference between real and imagined danger. Another problem is that if the body is kept in this aroused state for too long, both the immune system and the vital organs begin to deteriorate. Some hormones can further suppress the immune system and cause damage to vital organs because of the release of ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone). Chronic and acute stress leads to an imbalance in the body and in the brain. This is evidenced in the elevation of the hormone cortisol in depression and a decrease of the wellbeing neurotransmitter, serotonin. Imaging shows a change in the brain’s electrical patterns, including low metabolic activity caused by the absence of firing neurons in the pre-frontal lobe. This may influence decision making and reasoning. Research indicates that as a result of sensitisation or hyper-sensitivity to a stress stimulus the slightest indication of pressure can trigger the same stress response as a life threatening danger. In these cases the brain re-circuits itself. Even though we perceive the event as a low level stressor, the body responds inappropriately. It appears that the body’s natural steroids rise during chronic stress and these have been linked to heart disease, impaired immunity, cancer and depression. Since stress is a natural individual response to real or perceived danger, it is important that both personal and work related stressors are identified so that preventative or remedial measures might be implemented and stress resilience increased. This is where INNOVATIVE PEOPLE SOLUTIONS can assist Corporations and individuals. We will assist you to implement practical stress management measures. Click here to go to the TOP of the page INDIVIDUAL MANIFESTATIONS OF STRESS We all have our own pattern of 'stressed out' behaviour: drinking more than we should, binge eating or biting our finger nails. Some of the well known noticeable symptoms of stress include : Backache, muscle tension, weakness, blood pressure, head aches, skin rashes and irregular heartbeat. Anxiety, anger, increased irritability, depression, mood swings, withdrawal, insecurity and low-self esteem. The end result might be 'burnout', a state of mind in which feelings of not caring is experienced. Constant fatigue, poor concentration and short-term memory, forgetfulness, irregular sleeping patterns, uncharacteristic errors, increased introspection accident proneness and poor organisation. We are all at risk and no-one is immune from stress. The most beneficial strategy seems to involve increasing our resilience to stress and reducing our stressors. We will all benefit from becoming more informed about stress, from learning to recognise our own pattern of ‘stressed out’ behaviours and by identifying what 'presses our stress buttons'. This will help us to find our own set of stress-busting techniques. Click here to go to the PREVIOUS page Click here to go to the TOP of the page Click here for CONTACT details Click here to go to the NEXT page You will find the following websites informative : www.medicinenet.com/stress/article.html |
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