Have you ever said the words, “This job/my life, or ________ is so stressful!” Or fill in the blank with something else along those lines?
Most people believe that stress is something that happens in their lives. They believe it is the result of outside circumstances beyond their control.
We are stressed if our work is too difficult. We get stressed when people in our lives aren’t doing what we want them to do. We are stressed when it’s been too long since a vacation. We stress over deaths, weddings, major purchases and a host of other things.
We talk as if stress is something outside ourselves — a condition of things in our external environment.
But, contrary to popular belief… it’s not.
Health professionals will tell us that stress is a contributing factor in many physical ailments — heart attacks, asthma, high blood pressure, stroke and many others. There are several diagnoses in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV, the diagnostic tool of therapists and psychiatrists, that describe many stress-related disorders.
Bottomline: too much stress is a killer.
Have you ever wondered why some people seem to handle stress better than others do?
One person may have all the life circumstances that typically cause stress in one’s life but seem to be just breezing through his or her day, seemingly without a care. While another person gets a flat tire on the way to work and has a total melt down.
How can this be explained?
Most of the difference is found in the mind. It’s the subtle differences between the way those two people think.
The good news is, there are plenty of stress management techniques that you can use to lessen the effects that stress has on you.
Because, whether you’re aware of it or not, you choose how you react to situations, consciously or unconsciously. Those who have chosen to control their negative reactions and thoughts will be able to deal with stress far more effectively.
Now that you know what stress is, check out the top 5 causes of stress.