Lecture 1.5- E1 Flashcards
Stress and Physical Adaptation
What is Stress?
It is the body’s reaction to harmful forces (Stressors) that are capable of disturbing our homeostasis.
- body’s way of responding to a challenge
characteristics of stress
Real or perceived
Short or long-term
Isolated or recurrent
what is routine stress
everyday issues like work, school, etc.
what is episodic acute stress
Transient, out-of-the-ordinary events such as loss of job, death in the family, major illnesses, etc.
what is traumatic stress
Life threatening events such as war, famine, assault, major accidents, etc.
Anxiety
The vague, uneasy feeling of discomfort or dread, which is often accompanied by an autonomic response (fight or flight)
Stressors
Any physical, physiological, or psychological force that is capable of disturbing our homeostasis equilibrium.
physical could be increase HR, nausea
Homeostasis
A state of dynamic equilibrium of the internal body. It is maintained by the ever-changing processes of feedback and regulation in response to external or internal stimuli.
if we are cold our body will increase HR to warm up
Adaptation
Response of an organism to stress to restore homeostasis and equilibrium.
- putting a jacket on when cold
What about an individual can affect their response to stress?
Age, General Health, Social Support, Genetic Influences (history mental illness in family) , and Nurture Influences (family doesnt handle stress well)
important to remember
your patient may be doing well and appear healthy on paper but are they really doing great? do they have support they need, are they eating healthy and enough, etc
fear vs anxiety
fear is the stress response from immediate danger
anxiety is the stress response just from your thoughts
Stressor characteristics
The Type of Stressor: routine, episodic, traumatic
Persistence of Stressor: chronic or short (PA school- 15 months of hard then done)
Perception of Stressor: How we perceive the stressor ( if you have good insurance you may not be scared if your house burns down, contrary is no insurance and you lost everything, etc)
Origin of Stressor: Endogenous (internal) or Exogenous (external)
example of endogenous and exogenous stressor
endogenous- dehydration from disease, anxiety about falling in a cheer competition
exogenous- mental stress from work (work is the stressor), recent death of spouse
what reactions can a stressor produce in a person?
similar responses in different people, different responses in similar people, similar or different responses in the same person at different times
factors that can vary stress
- properties of the stressor (severity or duration)
- time of life, prof Jensen lost her job a month ago would’ve been stressed bc husband in school vs now husband has income and insurance too
- conditioning of patient being stressed
How does stress affect the two ANS pathways?
Activates sympathetic, deactivates parasympathetic
what is eustress
mild, brief, controllable periods of stress that can be perceived as positive stimuli to emotional and intellectual growth and development
- may not feel good going through but will help in the end
What is the pathway and effect of cortisol?
Corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH in the hypothalamus) -> adrenocorticotropic releasing hormone (ACTH in the pituitary) -> cortisol (adrenal glands)
-Alters metabolism and increases blood glucose levels.
-Decreases inflammatory response.
