How stressed are we really, and is it all bad?
Modern life is full of stresses that did not even exist a decade ago. Women, especially, bear the brunt of unrealistic expectations when it comes to appearance, work and family, which are only exacerbated by the proliferation of social media.
“Am I fit enough? Why is my tummy not flat? When should I start worrying about kids? When is my next pay cheque coming in? Am I advancing fast enough in my career? Why did that hot breakup shot of me in my new bikini on Instagram only get 10 likes?”
Signs that we’ve crossed the threshold from productive stress to detrimental stress includes increasing feelings of anxiety and dread which interfere with our functioning.
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To add to the stress, scientists (and media) say we're more stressed than ever. But is stress always a bad thing? Maybe not; it all depends on how you channel it, and into what. Some stress is considered useful.
Without it, we can't do our best work or live our best life. And while women and men don’t necessarily respond differently to stress, women are more vulnerable to a range of mental health conditions which tend to heighten stress.
According to the Australian Psychological Society’s Stress and Wellbeing survey, we can now add social media overuse and reliance to more “traditional” stresses such as personal finances, family issues, personal health and trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
The report’s findings, based on 1521 responses, were worrying: 35 per cent of Australians reported experiencing distress; 36 per cent experienced depression symptoms; and 26 per cent said they suffered from above normal levels of anxiety.
Associate Professor Lana Williams from the School of Medicine at Deakin University said that “when you're seeing figures like 35 per cent of the population, you're not talking about a small percentage of people – this is a significant finding, especially if you take into consideration the fairly large proportion of people participating”.
So how do we deal with it? First, find out what stress actually is.
What is stress?
Chronic stress – which Professor Williams says is stress that lasts, is persistent and affects one’s thoughts, feelings and behaviours – is particularly harmful to our overall health and wellbeing.
Biologically speaking, during times of chronic stress, the endocrine system responds by releasing corticosteroids (stress hormone) for a prolonged period of time, which can lead to health issues such as high blood pressure, heart disease, insomnia, suppression of the immune system, a decline in mental health and more.
When experts speak about stress being bad for us, this is primarily the type they are referring to.
However, stress is not all bad, and, if managed effectively, is in fact instrumental to our happiness and performance.
Professor Meaghan O’Donnell, a clinical psychologist at Phoenix Australia and professor at the University of Melbourne, says the best way to think about stress is through the prism of performance: “A useful way to think about stress is to recognise that it helps us maximise our performance.
"When we are stressed, our body releases a series of hormones including adrenalin, which sends blood to our muscles and readies them to do the task.”
According to Professor O’Donnell, stress is essential to good mental health, a motivating force without which many of us would descend into intolerable levels of boredom and tedium.
“We need a certain level of stress to help us do our best. Stress is really important for us – boredom, lack of stimulation, all those things are detrimental to our mental health; we need passion and drive in our lives, and stress fuels that,” she says.
A classic example of good stress is preparing for a job interview. Because we feel we have to create a good impression, the stress we feel and our associated bodily response motivates us to do certain things, such as take time to prepare for the interview, rehearse, research the company and actually turn up and perform at our best.
How to deal with it
Often, knowing how stressed we are is the first step to finding ways to deal with it. “There is a growing body of research which backs yoga and meditation as effective in reducing stress,” Professor Williams says.
“Physical activity, socialising with friends and doing things you enjoy are all central to establishing that work-life balance that will ultimately lead to a reduction in stress.”
Crucial to having a good relationship with stress is finding ways to manage it. Over time, good management of stress can lead to increasing our ability to perform at higher and higher levels.
Getting stress to work for us, and not against us, is an especially important skill in high-performance jobs. The holy trifecta of good, quality sleep; healthy eating and physical exercise are effective means of raising stress tolerance.
“In order to build stress resilience, all those three things need to occur. While we all know each of the above are good for us, I’m not sure people have made that link that together they protect our mental health and build resistance to stress,“ Professor O’Donnell says.
And while an increased tolerance for stress can help people excel and perform even better, Professor O’Donnell cautions against pushing your stress levels too far. “There is a certain point where our performance drops off because our stress levels have become too high, and this is detrimental for our health.”
Are you burning out?
Signs that we’ve crossed the threshold from productive stress to detrimental stress includes increasing feelings of anxiety and dread which interfere with our functioning.
This includes uncontrollable worry (where thoughts about the future go around and around in your head making us feel more anxious) or feeling unmotivated to do anything. People might describe this as feeling burned out or exhausted.
So what can we do to ward off that burnout?
“A balanced life is the key to managing stress, and if something is out of balance then think about your priorities and what is important to you,” Professor O’Donnell says.
“If your stress levels aren’t helping you, then prioritise healthy eating, physical exercise, and good sleep. Decrease your alcohol and other substance use.”
“Take time to consider what makes you relaxed, and how you wind down when you’re stressed. There is a strong link between thinking and feeling: how you think will impact on how you feel.”
Worry, defined by cyclical thoughts usually to do with the future, that don’t go anywhere – is associated more with anxiety; while rumination, the act of constantly going over something that’s already happened, is linked to depression.
Experts recommend we listen to your thinking, which is the key to how we feel. If you notice you’re worrying, develop strategies to manage it.
Professor O’Donnell says useful strategies include not second guessing what others are thinking, breaking big tasks into small achievable steps, and having dedicated worry time.
So next time you find yourself worrying about something at work or thinking back to that comment you made at a party months ago, try to pull back and evaluate your thoughts critically – preferably while meditating or during a gym session with a good friend.
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