What are the different types of stress? Being a state of disturbance caused by aggression – Initially, stress was defined as a physiological response of the body to an exhausting, dangerous or distressing situation. The body then produces specific hormones. This notion was later extended to any state of disruption caused by a confrontation with danger, a physical or psychological threat, a difficult environment. We talk about the stress of an exam, a sentimental breakdown, a competition, an accident, noise, or pollution. A priori, this state is not pathological. Stress is seen as something natural.
What Are the Different Types of Stress?
We already know that our reactions to stressors differ according to the individual. This article explores different types of stress. You will find the peculiarities of family, social and professional stress, or whether the individual in question is a woman, a man, or a child. On this, identify what are the different types of stress. Let’s start with social stress.
1 – What Is Social Stress?
Social stress is the influence of one or more people on the members of a group. This influence can lead to a change in behavior, attitude, opinions … individuals from this group, and can thus cause social pressure. Indeed, men are sociable beings and in a group, men influence each other. This can be a stressor. According to several studies, social stress can lead to health risks. Here are some examples:
US researchers conducted a study in 2010 * to define the relationship between exposure to social stress and inflammatory diseases. Healthy participants were put in a situation of social stress in two different ways. The study concluded that people who are more sensitive to social stress (in the cells of the nervous system) tend to develop the more inflammatory activity.
Another study ** published in 2011 by German and Canadian researchers found that urban life created more stress and anxiety-related areas of the brain than living in the countryside. In order to demonstrate that this activity was causing social stress, practical situations were implemented with the participants. Other epidemiological studies have already shown that urban populations are more likely to develop psychological disorders including depression, schizophrenia, and anxiety.
[ ** Source: Nature, 474, 498-501 (June 23, 2011) Law: 10.1038 / nature10190 City living and urban upbringing affect neural social stress processing in humans (NHS Vignette). ]
2 – What Is Family Stress?
As the name suggests, family stress is caused by the family environment. Indeed, family life can bring his joys as his sorrows!
In a couple, harmony depends on a lot of things. The education of children can be a sensitive subject. Sometimes the tasks at home and the worries of others interfere with family relationships and cause stress.
When one or more events disturb the peace of the home, the family adapts to the new situation and tries to find its balance, until the arrival of the next stressor.
Family With a Lack of Genuine Communication
In a family where there is a lack of genuine communication and exchange between members, it can be easy for family stress to settle there. This is why learning to communicate better within the family unit is one of the bases to better fight against stress. You need to encourage dialogue and listening between family members: for example, if your child seems stressed, it’s up to you, the parents, to invite them to speak about it. Regularly talking together is an effective way to better understand each other and to help children express what they feel. In these discussions, everyone must be free to say what they think, what they feel, doubts and joys. Do not hesitate, it’s important to tell other family members that you love them, that you care about them.
Struggling against stress also means adopting a healthier life. Tobacco and alcohol are fake friends to relax and reduce minor anxiety, they are rather real enemies for health! So, grow a healthy body … in a healthy home! When it is tidy and clean, admit that it’s still better, it feels good, and we have clearer ideas when the environment around us is positive! Feel good in your body, well in your home, and with others: you have to be open to friends, colleagues, neighbors, and accept their help when it is necessary, because everything is not settled in family, and an external, beneficent look, can solve many problems. Finally, remember, if you know how to manage your stress effectively, you will set a good example for your children to cope with their own stress.
3 – What Is Female Stress?
This is not typically feminine stress, since stress is an inherent body reaction to the human in general, in the face of a stressor. But some stressors are found more often in women than in men.
The family sphere is no longer the same as that of our grandparents. But it is nice to say that the roles are now shared, whether she wants it or not the woman continues to assume most of the time the responsibility for the education of children and the holding of the house, which she combines with a professional career. In our modern society, she also reserves time for leisure, which is added to her already busy schedule.
The factor of age would have a role here. It turns out that younger women are less likely to develop stress than men. On the other hand, this tendency is reversed when they go beyond the menopausal phase. Hence, the hypothesis put forward by German researchers that estrogens make it possible to better manage stress.
Did you know? Generally, women choose to do sport (exercise) to cope with stress. A woman who runs a home and a job is more exposed to stress, although it is clear that every woman experiences her stress one way or another.
4 – What Is Male Stress?
This is not typical male stress, since stress is an organ reaction inherent to the human in general, in the face of a stressor. But some stressors are found more often in men than in women.
The image of the strong man, who never cries, remains anchored in the minds, even if the mentalities change gradually. Man must then manage the gap between his inner feeling and the face he believes he must present to society.
On the other hand, stress can be seen by men as flattering to their ego, in the sense that stressed people are often seen as important people, with responsibilities. They will be less likely than women to see their doctor in case of symptoms and wait until it happens. Less accustomed to sharing their emotions with others, they can turn to physical activity to manage their stress.
The consequences of stress in humans also have their particularity. In extreme cases, men develop alcohol problems more often. It should be noted that suicides are much more numerous in men than in women.
Men are asked to be zen and to have self-control. It is advisable to have responsible friends, conscientious relatives, and to exchange with the people in the same marital, professional case as you to see how their stress manifests itself and especially how they overcome them.
5 – Recognize and Understand the Stress of the Child
We sometimes forget that children, like adults, can be stressed. They also live situations, events that cause anxiety and anxiety. Their crying or their crises are sometimes misinterpreted, attributed to a phase of their growth or their character.
It is easy to recognize a manifestation of stress in children in the event of a serious emotional shock, such as separation or death. The child will usually complain of stomach pain, lose appetite, or show signs of depression.
In case of family stress, where everyone is already concerned about their own concerns, it can be difficult to spot signs of stress in the child, because he usually does not talk about it and will be locked in on himself to oppose his parents or to complain for no reason. Here are the signs of stress to look for:
► Physical signs of stress: minor sleep disorders, stomachaches, or headaches …
► Psychological signs of stress: lack of concentration, difficulties at school.
► Some behaviors revealing stress: nervousness, nibbling, parental avoidance.
On the other hand, situations that may seem insignificant to the adult are just as much a source of stress for the child. It can be a violent classmate at school, an overly authoritarian adult, daily pressure with phrases like “do not do this, do not do that” or “hurry up”. The insidious repetition of these factors can cause a lot of damage.
Back to school is a particularly important change. Usually, the family marvels at any new acquisition of the child. When he arrives at school, he is confronted with the fact that he is not necessarily the best everywhere. It will take a while to understand this change and accept it.
Listen and Accompany Stressed Children
Their way of dealing with stressors again depends on several factors, including their emotional environment. If he is valued, if he feels listened to, a child will feel inner well-being. But their personality, as for adults, plays a role. From birth, it is possible to see that some infants adapt very easily to changes and that others have more difficulties. Knowing that novelty and discovery are potentially stressful, we understand that not all children are willing to welcome it in the same way. But new learning is numerous in a child’s life (reading, cycling, etc.). If the entourage is very present to accompany him, these discoveries will be very well assimilated by force of practice and experience.
In our modern societies, adults have a well-regulated life that leaves little room for improvisation. Some will tend to impose this frantic pace on their children. The succession of activities and the constant search for performance offer little respite and a free moment.
We ask parents to pay close attention to their child’s emotions. Because children are very sensitive to stress.
6 – What Is Work Stress?
Many employees are affected by stress at work. Work stress can be positive when it is well controlled. But it can be negative when it overwhelms the employee. Negative stress at work can have significant consequences and lead to burnout.
Work stress, job stress, psychosocial risks, suffering at work: this category has several names and forms.
Definitions of Work Stress According to INRS and WHO
According to the NIRS (National Institute for Research and Safety for the Prevention of Accidents at Work and Occupational Diseases), we talk about stress at work when a person feels an imbalance between what is asked of him to do in the professional setting and the resources available to respond to it.
According to WHO (World Health Organization), work-related stress is the set of reactions that employees may have when faced with professional demands and pressures that do not match their knowledge and skills, their abilities, and question their ability to cope.
Positive Stress and Negative Stress
Like stress defined in general, it is positive when it can be mastered by the person and helps the person to perform a requested task, but becomes negative as soon as he settles down and submerges the individual.
Stress causes are sometimes difficult to identify. First, they are not immediately reported by the people involved. Then, the common attitude is to deny their existence or to attribute them to a badly adapted position. It can manifest itself following verbal aggression, physical, or incivilities. It is sometimes a feeling of malaise, a negative feeling at work. It is also born of harassing behavior.