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Everyone encounters stressful situations on an almost daily basis, from minor pressures that we hardly notice, to occasional traumatic situations which can cause ongoing stress. Many of us do not realise that some forms of stress, known as eustress, can have a positive effect on our performance, and instead refer to those experiences which cause us negative distress as stressful.

In recent decades, stress, its causes and our bodily response to stress have been the subject of numerous psychological studies. Today, stressful events tend to fall into one of three key categories:

Acute - Short-term events which do not last long but if traumatic, can have a lasting impact on us.

Episodic Stress - Situations which are also short-term but which we find ourselves in regularly, such as rushing to work or other recurring stressful experiences in the workplace.

Chronic - Ongoing stresses which last into the long-term. These may include the stress of illness or the friction of a fractious relationship.

What are some common examples of these stressors, and what techniques can people use to avoid them or reduce the stress that they cause?

Work Stressors

We spend much of waking lives at work, so it is perhaps unsurprising that the workplace is a key source of stress. A survey published by the American Psychological Association in 2012 found that as many as 70% of Americans reported suffering from workplace stress.

Professional strain can take its toll on the individual concerned, but can also cost employers dearly, with 13.5 million sick days estimated to have been linked to stress between 2007 and 2008 in the UK alone.

Separating work-related tasks from leisure and family time, such as resisting the urge to catch up with emails in an evening, can help prevent workplace stress from spilling into other areas of your life.

Personal Appearance

Do you worry about spots, wrinkles, weight or balding? If you do, you are in good company. Concerns over our personal appearance can have an exaggerated effect on people's confidence and their self image.

Take weight worries, for example. Whilst researching the sources of everyday stress, psychologist Allen Kanner and his colleagues developed Hassles and Uplifts Scales, ranking stressors in terms of their impact on people's lives. Of those surveyed, more than half admitted to worrying about their weight, placing it at the top of Kanner's Hassles Scale (Kanner et al, 1981).

A study published in the International Journal of Sport Psychology reported that undertaking activities such as exercise can help boost self esteem in a study of middle-aged participants (Alfermann and Stoll, 2000).

Social

The pressure to conform and be seen to succeed in everyday life can encourage stress, and the aspiration towards ideals and success nurtured in the media can be unrealistic and unhelpful. Ideas of a desirable body image, for example, have been linked to both negative self images and eating disorders.

The stress created by our environment can also have lasting consequences. Iian Meyer of the UCLA School of Law noted the effect that social pressures can have on health. Studying the stress experienced by social minority groups who are commonly subjected to various forms of prejudice, such as being excluded by the wider community, bullied or encouraged to internalise discrimination, Meyer developed the concept of "minority stress", the experience of which can in turn lead to mental health problems (Meyer, 2007).

Competition

Despite the health-related drawbacks of experiencing stress, it can also impact our performance in more positive ways. The pressure we feel to meet a deadline, accomplish a goal or meet the demands of a schedule, for example, can motivate us to improve our performance. In contrast to the distress that we usually refer to as 'stress', this type of stress is known as eustress.

In competitive sports, eustress can encourage athletes to focus on training for a match and to commit to practise when they would rather do other things, but we all experience it to some degree in the form of pressures in everyday life, such as the need to pass exams at school.

Health Worries

Fears over one's own health or the wellbeing of a relative or friend are a common cause of stress.

The experience of an illness, and the loss of control over events, can lead to persistent worry about both the current and possible future situations. Paradoxically, the stress caused by health worries can itself lead to problems and the body's reaction to stress, General Adaptation Syndrome, can have physical effects as we deplete our energy reserves to cope with a stressful situation.

Life Changes

When moving homes, people will often tell you that moving home is one of the most stressful events you will experience in your life. More generally, any situation which requires change, positive or negative, requires us to adapt to new circumstances and can be a source of stress. Such events can include leaving home, commencing a new job and starting a family.

Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe produced an inventory of life-changing events known as the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS) which, surprisingly, ranks the act of moving home as the 28th most stressful life change. Far more severe are changed in relationships, such as a partner's death or separation (Holmes and Rahe, 1967).

Financial Worries

Even outside of a recession, financial worries can affect us all and lead to unnecessary stress which can be a burden to yourself and those close to you.

Loans, ever-increasing bills, the ability to pay off credit cards, being able to live comfortably and retire when we wish all contribute to a sense of financial insecurity.

Kanner's Hassles Scale found that a feeling of not being able to pay bills and live comfortably, as well as the burden of supporting others financially to be a key strain in our everyday lives (Kanner et al, 1981).

Whilst improved management of money can alleviate financial stress, the unique situation of each individual makes a one-size-fits-all solution to this source of stress impossible. Left unaddressed, however, financial worries can have a significant effect on our lives and can impact on relations with close friends and family.

Relationships

Even the happiest of relationships can be a source of stress for both parties involved. Cohabiting can bring a host of problems, from the loss of a personal 'breathing space' to having to adapt to the different habits of a partner. Over time, these demands can impact on relationships and lead to stressful arguments, leading to a vicious circle which can lead to break-ups. Yet, the Hassles and Uplifts Scales (Kanner et al, 1981) rates good relations with partners and friends as the two most significant factors which can help to improve our wellbeing and counteract life's stresses.

Whilst compromise is needed on both sides for a relationship to endure, it is a practise which might not always lead to a reduction in stress for those involved and can even become the focus of arguments. A study in the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy has, however, identified "mindfulness" as a factor in reducing relationship stress (Barnes et al, 2007). This practise requires an awareness of the feelings of the other partner and an understanding of the impact one's own actions might have on those around us.

Bereavement

Understandably, the loss of a loved one can be one of the most painful experiences a person can endure. The shock or enduring worry of losing a friend or relative can lead to stress, especially when the person we lose is a relative or close friend.

Events during and shortly after loss, such as end-of-life care and funeral arrangements contribute to stress and it can take a long time to adjust to not being able to meet or speak to the person, and acceptance of the new circumstance is difficult.

Past Events

Past events can be a key source of stress. Whilst any danger a person has experienced may have passed, the stress of the trauma can continue to affect them for many years afterwards. The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs estimates that around 50% of women experience a traumatic event at least once in their life, and are more prone to be victims of sexual violence than men. However, 60% of men also experience trauma, a difference which it attributes to males being more likely to be involved in accidents.

Persistent stress which lasts long after a traumatic event has passed is often identified as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a condition which the NHS estimates to affect a third of people who experience trauma.

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10 causes of stress (and how to avoid them)

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10 Sources Of Stress (and How To Avoid Them)

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Everyone encounters stressful situations on an almost daily basis, from minor pressures that we hardly notice, to occasional traumatic situations which can cause ongoing stress. Many of us do not realise that some forms of stress, known as eustress, can have a positive effect on our performance, and instead refer to those experiences which cause us negative distress as stressful.

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Personal Health

In moderate doses caffeine has mainly positive effects for most people. But it increases production of cortisol, which can lead to health problems including anxiety, weight gain and heart disease.

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Credit Credit Gracia Lam

As my brother neared the end of a smooth, swift recovery from open-heart surgery to bypass an 80-percent blockage in his heart's most important artery recently, he reverted to a longstanding habit of downing many cups a day of strong coffee. I objected, but he insisted that the caffeine doesn't affect him, meaning it doesn't disturb his sleep.

But when I noticed how easily he became upset or angered by minor irritations many times a day, I decided to look into what is known about the bodily effects of so much caffeine and whether it might contribute to the harmful effects of stress on the heart.

Caffeine is by far America's leading nonprescription drug, regularly consumed by some 90 million adults each day in coffee, tea, soft and energy drinks and some prescription and over-the-counter medications.

Amounts can range widely. An 8-ounce cup of brewed coffee may contain 95 to 165 milligrams of caffeine, while a cup of instant coffee delivers 63 milligrams. One ounce of espresso has 47 to 64 milligrams; 8 ounces of brewed black tea, 25 to 48 milligrams; 8 ounces of brewed green tea, 25 to 29 milligrams; 8 ounces of cola, 24 to 46 milligrams, whereas a 12-ounce energy drink can contain as much as 300 milligrams. Much smaller amounts of caffeine can be found in chocolate, decaffeinated coffee, some candies and even some foods like waffles.

Don't misunderstand. I'm not against caffeine. I drink about two and a half cups of caffeinated coffee a day, "watered" down with lots of milk. And I occasionally snack on a few chocolate-covered coffee beans.

In moderate doses caffeine has mainly positive effects for most people. It is a central nervous system stimulant that increases alertness, relieves fatigue and improves concentration and focus. For sports participants, it can enhance endurance. It may even boost weight loss by temporarily suppressing appetite and prompting the body to produce heat and energy when digesting food. Consumed in moderation, coffee has even been linked to a reduced risk of several kinds of cancer.

If not for caffeine, I suspect there'd be a lot more accidents involving drivers who fall asleep at the wheel. I dare not drive long distances without a mug of coffee at my elbow, and often have a cup before going to a concert, opera or play. But I also know not to overdo it lest I become tolerant to caffeine's stimulating effect and it no longer helps me remain awake when it really counts.

The Food and Drug Administration advises a maximum daily intake of 400 milligrams, the amount in two to three cups of caffeinated coffee, depending on the brand and roast. But what if, like my brother, you are consuming six or more cups of coffee a day? Even if your sleep is not disrupted, that amount of caffeine has been associated with an irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, jitteriness, irritability and anxiety, all of which can have untoward effects on cardiovascular function.

Caffeine increases secretion of the body's main stress hormone, cortisol, best known for fueling a fight-or-flight response to a perceived threat or crisis. Produced by the adrenal glands when stimulated by the hypothalamus and pituitary gland, cortisol diverts other bodily functions to permit a quick, effective response to stress or danger.

A sudden jolt from cortisol prompts your blood pressure to rise, heart to beat faster and energy level to soar, which no doubt enabled some early humans to escape a hungry lion in pursuit. Few of us today have to worry about becoming prey to a wild beast. Still, many live in a near-constant state of biochemical stress with the body's alarm system turned on high all day long.

A constant outpouring of too much cortisol can result in a number of health problems, including anxiety, depression, problems with memory and concentration, trouble sleeping, weight gain and - yes, dear brother - heart disease.

Although the cortisol responses to caffeine are reduced in people who consume it every day, they are not eliminated, a controlled trial by a multidisciplinary research team demonstrated. In a report published in 2005 in Psychosomatic Medicine, the team, led by William R. Lovallo, an expert on stress at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, concluded that "chronic elevations of cortisol secretion may have implications for long-term health."

Among the possible harmful effects the team listed are impaired responses by the immune system and central nervous system, memory deficits and changes in the workings of the brain's frontal lobe and limbic system involved in critical factors like problem solving, judgment, motivation, attention, memory, learning, emotions and empathy.

For those at risk of heart disease, perhaps the most serious adverse effect of excessive caffeine consumption is its ability to raise blood pressure. As Dr. Lovallo's team reported, "daily caffeine intake does not abolish the blood pressure response to caffeine" even in healthy young men and women.

Other studies have shown that in people with hypertension or at risk of developing it, cortisol responses to caffeine are exaggerated. In an earlier study, Dr. Lovallo and colleagues found that "borderline hypertensives and those with a positive family history have more rapid and prolonged cortisol responses to caffeine than do low-risk persons."

My brother has long been treated for hypertension and is now very conscientious about staying on a low-sodium diet. But maybe it would be even more helpful if he also reduced the amount of caffeine he regularly consumes, replacing some of that caffeinated coffee with decaf, a suggestion he categorically rejected when I offered it.

I've since found another cardiovascular reason for my brother and others to consider reducing the amount of cortisol that routinely travels through their bloodstream. A 2012 British study of 466 healthy men and women, average age 62, who had no history or signs of coronary heart disease found that in the 40 percent who reacted to a stressful task with a significant rise in cortisol, calcium deposits in their coronary arteries increased significantly over the course of three years. High calcium levels are associated with more arterial plaque and a greater risk of heart attack.

Even in a sample of healthy young women, researchers have found that a stress-induced rise in blood pressure was associated with a 24 percent increased chance of developing calcium deposits in their coronary arteries 13 years later.

So, as with most other good things in life, with caffeine, moderation is the key to maximizing the benefits while minimizing the risks.

Jane Brody is the Personal Health columnist, a position she has held since 1976. She has written more than a dozen books including the best sellers "Jane Brody's Nutrition Book" and "Jane Brody's Good Food Book."

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page D6 of the New York edition with the headline: Love Your Coffee Supersize? Your Heart Doesn't. Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe

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Personal Health In moderate doses caffeine has mainly positive effects for most people. But it increases production of cortisol, which can lead to health problems including anxiety, weight gain and heart disease.

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Between domestic duties and emotional labor, research shows, women are more stressed than men are - but it doesn't have to be that way. Here's what the data says, and how to take care of yourself.

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Credit Credit Till Lauer

"I was a workaholic. I love to create things, grow them and solve problems," said Meng Li, a successful app developer in San Francisco. "I didn't really care about my mind and my body until they decided to go on strike."

Ms. Li said her stress led to insomnia. When she did sleep, she experienced "problem-solving dreams," which left her feeling unrested when she woke up. "After I became a first-time mother, I quickly realized between work and family, I was so busy caring for other people and work that I felt like I'd lost myself," she said. "I'd put my own physical and mental needs on the back burner."

It's a common story - one we frequently ridicule and readily dismiss (for example, when we call women nags), despite the growing sum of research that underscores the problem. Women are twice as likely to suffer from severe stress and anxiety as men, according to a 2016 study published in The Journal of Brain & Behavior. The American Psychological Association reports a gender gap year after year showing that women consistently report higher stress levels. Clearly, a stress gap exists.

"The disparity is not really news to me, based on my training as a clinical psychologist," said Erin Joyce, a women and couples therapist in Los Angeles. "It's been well documented in our Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, for example, that prevalence rates for the majority of the anxiety disorders are higher in women than men."

Skeptics may argue that this is merely reported data, playing down the disparity (and along with it, women's experiences) altogether. Dr. Joyce said the skepticism also lay in the fact that many men feel the same pressures as women in terms of fulfilling responsibilities at work and home. In other words, we're all really, really stressed.

"The difference, however, is in the nature and scope of these responsibilities in the home environment in particular," Dr. Joyce said. For example, the United Nations reported that women do nearly three times as much unpaid domestic work as men. The problem is, housework is often overlooked as work, even though it is often as laborious (or in some cases, more so) as any paid job.

As the scholar Silvia Federici put it in 1975, the unpaid nature of domestic work reinforces the assumption that "housework is not work, thus preventing women from struggling against it, except in the privatized kitchen-bedroom quarrel that all society agrees to ridicule, thereby further reducing the protagonist of a struggle."

It's not just inside the home, though. Research from Nova Southeastern University found that female managers were more likely than male managers to display "surface acting," or forcing emotions that are not wholly felt. "They expressed optimism, calmness and empathy even when these were not the emotions that they were actually feeling," the study said.

Surface acting is a prime example of "emotional labor," a concept that the writer Jess Zimmerman made familiar in a 2015 essay for The Toast. The essay sparked a massive thread on MetaFilter, with hundreds of women speaking up about their own experience with emotional labor: the duties that are expected of you, but go unnoticed.

These invisible duties become apparent only when you don't do them. I'm reminded of the time I went on an emotional labor strike. I asked my husband to manage an event we were both invited to, and when we showed up two hours late, per his mistake, all eyes were on me. "We expected you much sooner," the host said - only to me.

Like domestic labor, emotional labor is generally dismissed and not labeled work, but research shows it can be just as exhausting as paid work. Emotional labor can lead to insomnia and family conflict, according to a study published in Personnel Psychology. Sure, circumstantial stress, like losing a job, may lead to these same issues, but emotional labor is not circumstantial. It's an enduring responsibility based on the socialized gender role of women.

Like Ms. Li, many women try to manage the added stressors to reach what Dr. Joyce said was an unattainable ideal. "Some professional women aspire to do it all: reach the top of the corporate ladder and fly like supermom," she said.

When women don't reach this ideal, they feel guilty and even more stressed. After her own bout with this, Ms. Li took a step back to regroup, then used her experience to build Sanity & Self, a self-care app and platform for overworked women. "The realizations I had in that process helped me gain insights and ultimately got me ready to incorporate self-care into my daily life," she said.

The stress problem extends beyond mental health when you consider the link between chronic stress, anxiety and heart health. Worse, most of what we know about heart disease - the leading cause of death in both men and women - comes from studies involving men, but "there are many reasons to think that it's different in women," Harvard Medical School reported.

For example, women are more likely to experience disturbed sleep, anxiety and unusual fatigue before a heart attack. Stress is so normalized, it is easy for women to shrug off those symptoms as simply the consequences of stress. Many women also do not experience chest pain before a heart attack the way men do, which leads to fewer women discovering problematic heart issues.

While research is beginning to explore these differences, Harvard reports that women are "much more likely than a man to die within a year of having a heart attack" and "many women say their physicians never talk to them about coronary risk and sometimes don't even recognize the symptoms."

The good news is, women are more likely than men to take charge of their stress and manage it, the American Psychological Association reports. Here are a few methods to do so.

The concept of self-care is often confused with overindulging or treating yourself, but at its core, self-care is much simpler than that. "The basics of adequate sleep, healthy diet and exercise are a good place to start," Dr. Joyce said. "Support from trusted relationships is vital, including professional support from various health and wellness providers if stress is becoming increasingly overwhelming."

Disconnecting from stressors like work and home responsibilities is also obviously important, but much easier said than done. Ms. Li said she built the Sanity & Self app to help women ease into self-care when they may not have much time to do so. The app includes various self-care sessions ranging from two to 45 minutes. You can choose from breathing exercises, pep talks, writing prompts and fitness routines, among other options.

It is also useful to understand what causes your stress in the first place. "Get really specific with what's stressing you out," Ms. Li said. "We often chalk up our stress to broad experiences like work, but work stress can take many different forms. Is a colleague being disrespectful of your time? Is a boss disempowering you in your day-to-day decision making? These are different kinds of stressors and can benefit from different kinds of self-care."

Working with a therapist can help you discover these triggers, too. "In part because of the greater emphasis on overall health and wellness in society as a whole, more men and women are employing healthier methods of self-care for stress, like exercise, meditation and psychotherapy or talk therapy," Dr. Joyce said. The mental health resource Psychology Today includes a database where you can find therapists that deal with women's issues.

Thanks to skepticism about the gender disparity in stress, it is easy for women to feel their added anxiety is unwarranted or overblown. This is why it is important to seek validation - reminders that no, you're not crazy, and the amount you have on your plate is kind of a lot. "This is important for individual, the family, the kids and the society," Ms. Li said.

Bookstore self-help sections are a good place to start. "I feel super validated when I stand in front of the self-help section in Barnes & Noble, because every book is tackling an issue I had," Ms. Li said. "I feel less alone and like it's not that bad. When we built our app, we wanted to give women the same sense of validation. It's O.K. to feel not O.K., and we want to help you get through it."

Ideally, your spouse or partner will be supportive, rather than dismissive, of your stress. It is important to talk through these issues before they come to a head. "Women working outside of the home should make an effort to have a conscious conversation with their partners about more equitable sharing of household and family responsibilities," Dr. Joyce said.

Of course, in an ideal world, these conversations wouldn't need to happen. Paradoxically enough, the effort falls on women to convince their loved ones that emotional labor exists, then to campaign for equal help. If only this was a task you could monetize.

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There's a Stress Gap Between Men and Women. Here's Why It's Important.

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Between domestic duties and emotional labor, research shows, women are more stressed than men are - but it doesn't have to be that way. Here's what the data says, and how to take care of yourself. "I was a workaholic. I love to create things, grow them and solve problems," said Meng Li, a successful app developer in San Francisco.

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We already know many students-from elementary school to high school-experience stress at school. According to whitesands tampa, stress is the major factor which can lead students into drugs (visit miami drug rehab), it is important that parents are always making sure that they are doing their best. The question parents should be asking themselves is "why?". Knowing what is causing your child stress at school is the first step toward helping him or her overcome it.

Knowing how to better manage school stressors helps students experience less stress, allowing them to perform to their fullest potential.
Keep reading to find out the biggest cases of school stress for students.
11 Things That Could Be Causing Your Child Stress At School

Many students worry about getting a good grade or simply making time to study if there is more than one upcoming test. Test stress doesn't just affect struggling students, either-high-achievers usually experience a lot of stress about doing well on tests.

When your child is overwhelmed or frustrated by homework, it makes it harder for him or her to complete assignments. This can cause a stressful cycle where homework piles up and your child doesn't have the time or energy to complete it all-leading to even more stress.

Whether it's advanced-level classes or the amount of studying required, a heavy workload can be a major source of stress for students. This is especially common for older high school students as they start making their post-secondary plans.

Students with poor organizational skills tend to experience more stress in school. This is usually because they aren't properly prepared with the tools or the understanding needed to learn. If those organization skills don't improve they may continue to fall behind, leading to more stress and frustration about school.

Students with busy schedules can quickly become overwhelmed because they are left with no free time to relax. As your child progresses from elementary school to high school, the amount and difficulty level of schoolwork increases-and students without good time management skills can experience even more stress.

Not getting enough sleep makes it difficult for students to concentrate and learn effectively. This can lead to feelings of stress for your child when he or she isn't able to perform well in class or on assignments. In fact, studies have shown that students who don't get the required 8-10 hours of sleep each night are more likely to feel stressed than students who do.

For many children, the thought of getting called on in class and speaking in front of their classmates can be terrifying. This can be particularly true if your child struggles to keep up in a subject or area (common examples are math and reading).

A lack of support from parents or teachers, even if it's only perceived, can add a lot of stress to students. They may feel that a lot is expected of them, but that they don't have a strong enough support system (whether emotional or practical) to achieve their goals. This is another cause of stress can affect high-achieving students in particular.

Making a major move can be a stressful time for many students, whether it's starting at a new school or making the transition from elementary school to high school. New classes, new teachers, and new routines can all be stressful for students, and take time to adjust to.

As they progress through school and start taking more advanced classes, the increased difficulty can cause stress for students. This is very common for teens entering their high school years. As classes get harder, it's important to address challenges early so your child can catch up before he or she falls too far behind.

A routine including dedicated homework time and a consistent sleep schedule helps guide students through their day. When changes to the usual routine start to happen, your child may find it more difficult to manage his or her time, leading to more stress.

Is Your Child Struggling With School Stress?

Find out how you can help your child deal with stress at school or contact an Oxford Learning Centre near you to learn how our tutors can help.

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11 Common Causes of School Stress For Students | Oxford Learning

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We already know many students-from elementary school to high school-experience stress at school. According to whitesands tampa, stress is the major factor which can lead students into drugs (visit miami drug rehab), it is important that parents are always making sure that they are doing their best.