Introductory Psychology

Module 16:

Stress and Health

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Affirmations

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• I learn from my challenges
• I love myself deeply and completely
• I surround myself with people who treat me well

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Recall

• What is CBT?
• What treatment methods could be used to help a person experiencing PTSD?
• What are some different modalities of therapy and what are the benefits of each?
• What is cultural competence?

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Key Integrative Theme

Theme F. Applying psychological principles can change our lives, organizations, and communities in positive ways

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Two Truths and a Lie

Which of these is the lie?

C. Being cheerful can improve your health.

B. Setting your goals high is one of the keys to happiness.

A.People’s levels of happiness generally return to normal after both tragedies and great successes.

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©2022 Lumen Learning

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Section 1 Learning Goals

1 Understand the difference between stimulus-based and response-based stress and the difference between good stress and bad stress

2 Describe different types of stressors, the connection between stressors, job strain, and job burnout

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Deepen your understanding and form connections within these skills:

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What is Stress?

• Stress is a process whereby an individual perceives and responds to overwhelming or threatening events
• Stressors: environmental events that seem threatening or demanding; stimuli that initiate the stress process

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Stressors

• Trauma
• Life changes
• Daily hassles may cause more stress�related illness than life changes
• Job strain
• Job burnout

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Apply It

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ACEs Case Study #1

1 Emily is a 12-year-old girl who grew up in a low-income neighborhood. Her parents are divorced, and her mother struggles with substance abuse. Emily often witnesses her mother's erratic behavior and has experienced neglect and emotional abuse. However, Emily finds solace in her close relationship with her older sister, who provides emotional support and stability in her life.

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ACEs Case Study #2

2 Alex is a 15-year-old from a middle-class family. Their parents are both successful professionals but have demanding careers that leave them with little time to spend with them. As a result, Alex often feels lonely and lacks emotional support at home. However, they have developed a strong bond with their grandparents, who regularly visit and provide them with love and attention.

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ACEs Case Study #3

3 Lisa is a 10-year-old who recently immigrated to a new country with her family due to political unrest in her home country. Lisa witnessed violence and trauma in her early childhood. After resettling in the new country, she attends a supportive school where teachers provide a safe and nurturing environment. Lisa actively participates in extracurricular activities and has made close friendships, which have helped her heal and build resilience.

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ACEs Case Study #4

4 John is a 14-year-old boy who lives in a rural area. He comes from a large family with limited financial resources. John experiences frequent verbal and physical aggression from his father, contributing to a hostile home environment. However, JuJohnan has a strong connection with his teacher, who acts as a mentor and provides guidance and emotional support. Through this positive relationship, John develops a sense of self-worth and resilience.

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ACEs Case Study #5

5 Kiwanti is a 9-year-old girl who lives in a supportive and loving family. She has parents who are actively involved in her life and provide a secure and stable home environment. Kiwanti also attends a school that prioritizes the emotional well-being of its students and offers various opportunities for creativity and self-expression. These positive experiences contribute to Kiwanti’s healthy development and overall well-being.

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Section 2 Learning Goals

1 Describe the fight or flight response and general adaptation syndrome

2 Explain what occurs in the sympathetic nervous system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis during stress

3 Describe how stress impacts the functioning of the immune system

4 Describe how stress and emotional factors can lead to the development or worsening of cardiovascular disorders

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Deepen your understanding and form connections within these skills:

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Reaction to Stressors: Fight or Flight

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Reaction to Stressors: General Adaptation Syndrome

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What happens when we perceive something stressful?

1. The sympathetic nervous system releases adrenaline from the adrenal glands to activate the fight-or-flight response
2. At the same time the hypothalamus releases corticotrophin-releasing factor, a hormone that causes the pituitary gland to release adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)
3. The ACTH then activates the adrenal glands to �secrete cortisol, which helps provide that boost of �energy when we first encounter a stressor, �preparing us to run away or fight

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Effects of Chronic Stress

• Increases in cortisol can significantly weaken our immune system and are associated with depression
• Stress contributes to the development of psychological disorders, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder
• Stress may lead to heart disease, musculoskeletal, nervous system, and endocrine and metabolic disorders, and death

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Psychophysiological Disorders

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Stress and the Immune System

• Stress hormones inhibit the production of lymphocytes, white blood cells that are important in the immune response
• People with high stress levels were more likely to get sick when exposed to a cold
• People under chronic stress showed poorer antibody response following vaccination
• Stress slows down wound healing by impairing immune responses

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Stress and the Cardiovascular System

• A major risk factor for heart disease is hypertension, which is high blood pressure
• Stress increases blood pressure
• Anger and hostility (right) are linked with heart disease
• Negative affectivity, a tendency to experience distressed emotional states involving anger, contempt, disgust, guilt, fear, and nervousness, is linked with hypertension and heart disease

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Depression and Heart Disease

Patients with heart disease have more depression than the general population, and people with �depression are more likely to �eventually develop heart disease and�experience higher mortality than �those who do not have depression

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Stress and Headaches

• Tension headaches are triggered by tightening/tensing of facial and neck muscles
• Stress has been demonstrated to increase sensitivity to pain

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Stress and Asthma

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Section 3 Learning Goals

1 Define coping and differentiate between problem-focused and emotion-focused coping

2 Describe the importance of perceived control in our reactions to stress

3 Explain how social support is vital in health and longevity

4 Identify common stress reduction techniques

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Deepen your understanding and form connections within these skills:

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Regulating Stress: Coping Strategies and Perceived Control

Problem-focused coping strategies are similar to strategies used in everyday problem-solving

Emotion-focused coping consists of efforts to change or reduce the negative emotions associated with stress

Perceived control is our beliefs about our personal capacity to exert influence over and shape outcomes

Greater perceived control improves mental and physical health

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Managing Stress: Social Support

Social support: soothing and often beneficial support of others

• Can take different forms, such as advice, guidance, encouragement, acceptance, emotional comfort, and tangible assistance
• Social support boosts the immune system, lowers blood pressure

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Stress Reduction Techniques

• Exercise
• Relaxation
• Biofeedback

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Regulating Stress

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Regulating Stress

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Section 4 Learning Goals

1 Discuss happiness and the factors that can increase it

2 Describe the field of positive psychology

3 Give examples of flow

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Deepen your understanding and form connections within these skills:

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Elements of Happiness

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Three Types of Subjective Well-being

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Factors Connected to Happiness

• Family and other social relationships are most strongly connected to high SWB
• Marriage generally correlated with happiness
• Happiness increases with age (though u-shaped across the lifespan)
• Often dips during middle adulthood; Called the “paradox of aging” that SWB increases in older age
• Education
• Education correlates with income and other factors that affect happiness, but education alone is a modest predictor.
• Religiosity tends to improve happiness
• People who have the characteristics that are highly valued by their culture tend to be happier
• Attractiveness is generally NOT correlated with happiness (though it may lead to more opportunities, job promotions, etc.)
• Parenthood is generally NOT correlated with happiness (though it may make life more “meaningful”).
• Money does influence happiness, but possibly to a certain extent
• A 2010 study by Daniel Kahneman and Angus Deaton found that in the U.S., emotional well-being (day-to-day happiness) rose with income but appeared to plateau around $75,000 annually
• A 2021 study by Matthew Killingsworth found that well-being continues to increase with income well beyond $75,000, with no clear plateau for most people.

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Life Events and Happiness

When an event that provokes positive or negative emotions occurs, at first we tend to experience its emotional impact at full intensity

In the long run, we adjust and revert to our original baseline happiness levels

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Increasing Happiness

Writing down three good things that occurred each day led to increases in happiness that lasted over six months

Average national happiness scores relate strongly to six key variables

• Per capita gross domestic product (GDP, which reflects a nation’s economic standard of living)
• Social support
• Freedom to make important life choices
• Healthy life expectancy
• Freedom from perceived corruption in government and business
• Generosity

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Positive Psychology

Positive psychology seeks to identify and promote the qualities that lead to happy, fulfilled, and contented lives such as:

• Positive affect, pleasurable engagement with the environment, is associated with greater social connectedness, emotional and practical support, adaptive coping efforts
• Optimism
• Flow is a state involving intense engagement in an activity; usually is experienced when participating in creative, work, and leisure endeavors

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Discussion

What makes you happy?

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Section 5 Learning Goals

1 Understand the importance of habitual behavior in our daily lives

2 Describe research done to learn about habitual behaviors

3 Describe ways to develop healthy, new habits

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Deepen your understanding and form connections within these skills:

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Forming Habits

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Quick Review

• What are various definitions and models of stress, including stimulus-based, response-based stress, fight or flight, general adaptation syndrome?
• What occurs in the sympathetic nervous system, and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal system during stress?
• What are different types of stressors?
• How does stress impact the functioning of the immune system? How does stress lead cardiovascular disorders? asthma and tension headaches?

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Quick Review

• What is coping? How are problem-focused and emotion-focused coping different?
• How does perceived control affect our reactions to stress?
• How is social support vital in health and longevity?
• What are common stress reduction techniques?
• What is happiness? What factors contribute to it? How can people increase happiness?
• What is positive psychology? What does it study? What is flow?

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Attributions

• Illustrations are from Storyset
• Images from Pexels & Unsplash
• Add additional attributions here……
• Remember to add image alt text

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