Stress -Natural response

The primary need of all the species on the planet is to stay safe and protected. Human species are the weak animal by nature. They can’t fly like birds and run like rest of the animals. In the woods, they are exposed to all sorts of threats from different predators. Because of their weakness and threats posed by other animals, they developed flight/fly response to the external threats.

Stress is a flight/fly response which provides the sufficient instantaneous energy that allows them either to fight with the animals threatening them or simply, run away from the place of the threat to a safer place. Either of these demands energy to cope up with the situation.

So, stress is a natural response to stay safe and protected. How the skin protects the body from the external surrounding, stress protects you from the external dangerous ambience.

The stress response is part of the evolution and is a source of evolutionary energy.

Two points are worth to remember in this discussion.

a)            Firstly, it is an automated natural response based on the demanding situation.

b)            It is an instant boost of energy for a very short period of time which dies off after a certain period.

In the woods, if there is a movement in the bushes then the brain is programmed to naturally fear, worry or doubt to assume the probable presence of tiger/lion behind the bushes. Fear/worry/doubts are the trigger points for the stress response.

But, unfortunately, in the modern days, the same stress response which is supposed to protect and safeguard us is causing all kinds of modern lifestyle diseases. This is really ironical.

"How the skin protects the body from the external surroundings, stress protects you from the external dangerous ambience"

Locus of stress?

In today’s scenario, one encounters stress in every aspect of the life. Stress emanates while driving, in traffic, children education, in office, at home and so on. What is that which causes stress? This is a genuine question. Is that external situation that causes the stress or the internal experience to the situation causes the stress? If it is the external situation such as office causing stress then the office should be stressful to all of the employees uniformly. But, in reality, the same office is stressful for some while it is enjoyable for others.

The external office is the same for all.But, the internal experience of the office varies from person to person. Hence, stress is not external but very much internal.

Knowing this fact, if one blames the external situation such as office then it is mere his ignorance. So, it is good to revise the location of the stress if one tends to blame the external situations. Those external situations are simply the triggers but not the causes for the stress. Your experience to the situation plays the key role in deciding the locus point of the stress.

Here is a question: Are you clear on the locus of stress? Please review your recent stressful situations and analyse sensibly the exact locus of the stress.

"The locus of stress is pretty much internal in contrast to the belief that stress comes from the external surroundings."

Word Power - Part2

FASHION STATEMENTS

“I am stressed”. “Life is hectic”. “Office is frantic”. “I am dead tired”.These are some commonly and widely used statements of young’s and matured likewise. These have become the fashion statements of the modern world. Please do remember the power of words and effects on our emotional state. Whatever the words that were repeated will get reinforced and finally, those become our property. So, do not carry stress on our shoulder. It is not a PhD degree to carry along with us to feel proud of.

Stress is not a property that one wants to carry along as a title and hence, discard those fashion statements right away if you have developed such habits knowingly or unknowingly.

What kind of words that you listen and talk?

It is time now to review the words that are commonly exchanged in your surroundings. Importantly, review the people to whom you commonly interact on day to day basis.

Word Power - part1

Here is a typical example of conversation of two people, “this morning, I drove to the marketplace and the traffic was really heavy & driving was truly hectic. After collecting the items in the shop, I was standing in the queue; all of a sudden the guy who stood in front of me in the queue dropped his shopping cart to the cashier, rushed to the refrigerator section to collect a pocket of milk which he apparently forgot in the first round of shopping. It was really irritating and I wasted my time because of someone’s mistake. Somehow, I managed to squeeze my other activities to go right time for my appointed meeting with my boss.

How do you feel when you hear such a conversation? On hearing this conversation, there is a feel that life seems to be hectic. The cause for one to feel this way is the words that were used in the conversation.

Here is an example of another conversation. This morning when I got out into the balcony, the day appeared bright. The sunlight was perfect enough to provide such an ambience. The sound of the birds in my small garden was really smoothening enough and it was a perfect start of the day as I enjoyed my morning coffee in this serene surroundings. As I drove the car, my neighbour who was taking his dog for the morning stroll greeted me “Good morning” ” with a big smile. As I crossed half to the office, the traffic became intense and that gave me a break and an opportunity to listen to the recorded motivational speech of my favourite business leader. Eventually, I reached office late but in the right time to go for the meeting with the clients.

On hearing this conversation, there is a sense of positive feel. Again, what makes one feel this way is the words that were used in the conversation. So, words have POWER when repeated multiple times. Words alter our emotional state.

Words have POWER when repeated multiple times. Words alter our emotional state.