What is Stress
True or false: stress is the same as anxiety.
False
Stress is usually caused by external triggers or stressors, whereas anxiety is caused by excessive worry regardless of a trigger or stressor being present.
The negative stress response. A type of stress that results from being overwhelmed by demands, losses, or threats.
Distress
The irritating demands of everyday life.
Daily stressors/hassles
FYI: daily positive things are known as daily uplifts.
This is the term for bad coping skills/mechanisms.
Maladaptive
Can be used to impair a person in a way that may temporarily mask or alleviate stress.
Substance use
(There are other helpful ways to deal with stress or mental health)
True or false: all stress is bad.
False
Some stress can be beneficial.
Any stress from events over a short period of time and have clear endpoints.
Acute stress
The term used for past abuse.
Trauma
A coping strategy in which people change their way of thinking about the stress by approaching it differently.
Appraisal-focused coping
Refusing to acknowledge that something is wrong.
Denial
This is the term used for an accumulation of stressors.
Pileup
Any stress that is experienced for a long time.
Chronic Stress
Events such as starting to drive, graduating, attending college, getting married, having a baby, death of a loved one, and other developmental milestones are known as:
Major life events
A coping strategy in which people directly confront a stressor to reduce or eliminate it.
Problem-focused coping
The irrational delay of tasks despite potentially negative consequences.
Procrastination
This stress response includes either facing or running away from a perceived threat.
Fight or flight response
The positive stress response. A type of stress that results from challenging, enjoyable tasks (sports).
Eustress
Anticipated events/situations that do not happen.
Nonevents
A technique used to identify self-defeating beliefs or cognitive distortions and reframe them to be reasonable and adaptable.
Cognitive restructuring
The term used when one exaggerates the negative consequences of events or decisions.
Catastrophizing
Describe what homeostasis means.
Homeostasis is a process by which we maintain a stable internal environment while adjusting to conditions, such as stressors.
Stress that arises when one is expecting to encounter a stressor, such as having to give a presentation in front of class.
Anticipatory
The awareness of one’s internal states and surroundings. Focus on thoughts and feelings without judgment. The goal is to be more aware of your surroundings, emotions, and thoughts and be grounded in the present moment instead of worrying about the past and future.
Mindfulness
The strategy for managing a stressful situation in which a person does not address the problem directly but disengages from the situation and averts attention from it.
Avoidance coping