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Coping with Stress in Middle and Late Adolescence

Personal Development

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Objectives:

Recognize the sources of one’s stress;
Illustrate the effects of stress on one’s system; and
Identify personal ways of coping with stress for healthful living.

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Activity: Write the emotions in the box that you identify with:

ANXIOUS STRESSED WORRIED

FEARFUL LOW LONELY

OVERWHELMED HELPLESS FRUSTRATED GUILTY ANGRY

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Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

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What did you do about it?��What did you feel?��What would you do differently in the future?��What were your thoughts?

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STRESS

It is the reaction of the mind and body to stimulus that causes tension on the well-being and disturbs the state of calm or equilibrium of a person.

Stress is now understood as a way of life crisis (Masih & Gulrez, 2006) affecting any individual regardless of their developmental stage (Banerjee & Chatterjee, 2016).

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Stress According Psychologist

Beneficial Stress
Destructive Stress

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Three (3) Views about Stress

Stress as STIMULUS

Stress as RESPONSE

Stress as RELATIONAL

Stress as STIMULUS - Caused by situations (which often called stressors) that may be life threatening or life changing. Examples: Car accident, breakup with boyfriend or girlfriend, and separation from loved ones.

Stress as RESPONSE - This is the aspect of stress emphasized by Selye (1956), the way the body reacts to challenging situations. It involves the interactions between the hormones, glands and nervous system where adrenal gland drives the production 7 of cortisol (produces energy to an action) and release norepinephrine (triggers the body’s reaction; increased heart rate, higher blood pressure,) or better known as “stress hormone”.

Adolescent’s physical response to stress is faster than that of an adult. Simply because the part of the adolescent’s brain, the prefrontal cortex, that assesses danger and directs action during stress is not fully developed.
Prolonged or chronic situations that involved both cortisol and norepinephrine affect the body to wear down fast. And that is the reason why is often causes fatigue, aging, and illness caused by low immune system.
Example: Your mother is too stressed due to financial instability and it causes her to higher blood pressure

Stress is RELATIONAL - Lazarus and Folkman's (1984) definition of stress reflects very clearly this way of thinking. - Assessment here means that when a person allows reasoning to prevail and weigh the relevance or irrelevance of situation. Example of this is a flight delay.

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Healthy Stress

It can motivate, energize, and produce fruitful actions.

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Two sources of Stress

External Stressors – comes from the outside of you like certain situations and people. Example: Major life changes, such as death of a loved one. Work or school.
Internal Stressors – coming from within your thoughts that caused you to feel fearful about the future and personal beliefs, which include your own expectations. Example: Negative self-talk, Unrealistic expectations

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Some possible sources of stress for teenagers includes:

School demands (test and homework) and frustrations
Negative thoughts and feelings about themselves
Change in their bodies
Problems with friends and/or peers at school
Unsafe living environment or neighborhood

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Some possible sources of stress for teenagers includes:

Separation or divorce of parents
Chronic illness or sever problems in the family
Death of a loved one
Moving or changing schools
Taking on too many activities

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Some possible sources of stress for teenagers includes:

Family financial problems
Moving to new home and school
Dating
Too high parental and school expectations
Sports and extracurricular activities

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Some possible sources of stress for teenagers includes:

Job Hunting
Social backwardness
Too many things to do
Not achieving something that you really wanted
Thinking about future

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Some possible sources of stress for teenagers includes:

Dealing with sexual feelings
Worrying about neighborhood or world problems
Feeling guilty

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Stress Responses

Fight

Aggressiveness
Toughness of body
Stomp, kick
Anger, rage
Knot in stomach, nausea, vomiting

Flight

Restless legs and feet
Feeling trapped
Anxiety/ adrenaline
Wide eyes
Tense

Freeze

Feeling numb
Heart pounding
Sense of dread
Pale skin
Holding breath/ restricted breathing

The body is a finely tuned machine that can change quickly to do what we need it to do, like react to stress. The body has two systems –
The voluntary system does what you want it to do – walk, talk, move.
The involuntary system keeps the body running even without you thinking about it – breath, sweat, digest

The body has 2 different nerve pathways in the involuntary system.
One works while we are relaxed, and the other works when there is an emergency.

Some teens become overloaded with stress and when it happens, they are not able to manage it well.
As such, the stress leads to anxiety, withdrawal, aggression, physical illness, or negative coping skills such as drug or alcohol use.
When we sense a situation as difficult or painful, changes happen in our minds and bodies to prepare us to respond to the danger.
This is “fight, flight, or freeze” response includes a faster heart and breathing rate, increased blood to muscle of arms and legs, cold or clammy hands and feet, upset stomach and sense of dread.

The same process that turns on the stress response can turn it off.
As soon as we determine that a situation is no longer dangerous, changes will happen in our minds and bodies which will help us relax and calm down.
This “relaxation response” includes decreased heart and breathing rate and a sense of well-being.
Teenagers that develop a “relaxation response” and other stress management skills feel less helpless and have more choices when responding to stress

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Teens can handle stress with the following behaviors and techniques:

Exercise and eat regularly
Avoid excess caffeine intake which can increase feelings of anxiety and agitation
Avoid illegal drugs, alcohol and tobacco
Learn relaxation exercise (abdominal breathing and muscle relaxation technique).
Develop assertiveness training skills. For example, state feelings in polite firm and not overly aggressive or passive ways: (“I feel angry when you yell at me”, “Please stop yelling”)

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Teens can handle stress with the following behaviors and techniques:

Rehearse and practice situations which cause stress.
Learn practical coping skills
Decrease negative self-talk: challenge negative thoughts about yourself with alternative neutral or positive thoughts.
Learn to feel good about doing a competent or good enough job rather than demanding perfection from yourself and others.
Take a break from stressful situations.
Build a network of friends who help you cope in a positive way.