Understanding the Self

Chapter 11
Taking Charge of
Taking Charge of One’s
One’s Health
Health

Username:  Alvarez, Vincent Julius

 Dela Victoria, Rammel Angelo
 DeAsis Christian Kevin
“Tension is who you think you should be.
Relaxation is who you are.”
- Ancient Chinese Proverb

• The world is full of adversities and challenges.

• Human Beings have the innate capacity to meet
challenges and bounce back from setbacks.
• People are bombarded with experience that cause
anxiety, frustrations, stress, and discontent.
• Some end their lives to be free from discomfort
and pain.
Stress come from Latin word stringere, which means “to draw tight”

Stress defined in different academic fields:

In physics, stress is a In psychology, it is a state

force or pressure Of anxiety produced when
applied to a material. events and responsibilities
exceed one’s coping abilities.

In physiology, stress is
the rate of wear and
tear of the body.
Dr. Hans Selye “Father of scientific
research on stress”
Define stress as “the non-specific response of the body to any demand
made upon it”

Ancient Philosophies

• Eastern Philosophies:
stress is the absence of inner peace
• Western Philosophies:
stress is the loss of emotional control
Stressor is a stimulus that is perceived to be a threat or that
which causes stress (Seaward, 2017)
Types of Stressors:
Bioecological influences - are biological and ecological factors that affect our
biological rhythms. Possible BEO influences are environmental toxins noise pollution
and solar pollution.
Example : Seasonal affective disorder depression due to small amounts of sunlight
exposure for a long period of time.
Psychointrapersonal influences – refer to the perception or judgements of stimuli
that are created through one’s mental activities involving thoughts, values, beliefs,
attitudes and opinions.
Social influences – are influence by social factors financial insecurity, violation of
human rights, etc. In college setting stressors involved are roommate dynamics, peer
pressure, academic deadlines, professional pursuits, intimate relationship, sexuality,
friendships, etc.
Technostress is the overwhelming emotions cause by the outpouring
amount of information from online technology .
Examples include:
• Privacy issues
• Identity theft
• Internet gambling
• Access to internet pornography

Digital Toxicity, commonly known as screen addiction, is a

neurological stress or burnout resulting from constant use of
smartphones and other devices.
Digital Dementia refers to the excessive reliance on the smartphones
digital devices that impairs the brain from storing information either
short or long term memory.
Stress Responses
Fight-or-flight response refers the body’s physiological arousal to overcome threat. This activates several
physiological mechanism in the body as it sets the body to prepare for movement and energy production.

10 Physiological Processes or Mechanisms:

1. Increase heart rate
2. Increases in blood pressure
3. Ventilation to supply working muscles with oxygen for energy metabolism
4. Vasodilation of arteries to the body’s periphery with greatest muscle mass
5. Serum glucose for metabolic processes during muscle contraction.
6. Free fatty acid mobilization as an energy source for prolonged activity
7. Blood coagulation and decreased clotting time in the event of bleeding
8. Muscle strength
9. Decreased gastric movement and abdominal blood flow to allow blood to go to working muscles
10. Perspiration to cool body-core temperature
Effect of Stress on Health and Well-Being
Effects of stress in 3 Categories:
1. Physical effects including headaches, upset stomach, difficulty
in breathing, sleep problems, muscle tension or pain, loss or
increase in appetite, and low sex drive.
2. Psychological effects such as memory impairment, poor
concentration, increased panic, irritability or anger, sadness and
depression.
3. Behavioral effects like violent outburst, drug or alcohol abuse,
social withdrawal poor eating habits, lack of interest in doing
things and feeling unable to cop[e with ones’ circustances.
Stress impacts on 4 domains
of well-being
1. Physical well-being - stress triggers the molecular changes
that affects bodily organs. Making the individual susceptible to
many illness
2. Psychological health - stress affects individuals ability to learn
and remember which could lead to anxiety and depression.
3. Spiritual well-being - stress may impair the ability of
individuals to identify their basic purpose in life and live to
their full potential.
4. Social well-being – stress affects relationships with family,
friends, coworkers and loved ones.
 Stress Management

The stress bucket analog helps

people sustain healthy level
of stress by making them
aware when and how they
become stressed.
Strategies in Managing Stress
First step – people are able to recognize the stressors and their
emotional and physical reaction to stress.
Second step – people determine which stressors can and cannot be
modified

2 General Strategies:
1. Problem-focused strategies - used to change the intensity of stress
by managing tasks over a period of time to lessen exposure to stress

2. Emotional-focused strategies – applicable to situation s that cannot

be changed.
Effective Coping Techniques
to manage stress
1. Reframing – twisting positively or redirecting people’s thoughts to an optimistic
belief system.
2. Time and money management – financial stress occurs when one is living beyond
their means
Brian Luke Seaward (2017) suggested tips to incorporate in life routine:
3. Make and follow budget
4. Live a sustainable life
5. Freeze you credit card
6. Keep a spending journal
7. See each purchase as an investment
8. Consolidate debt and pay it off
Tips for financial freedom:
1. Adopt a healthy attitude about money
2. Make sound financial goals
3. Put your money to work for you
4. Remember that you are the best financial adviser to yourself
Tips of using time effectively:
1. Set healthy boundaries regarding the use of social media
2. Do not multitask
3. Make technology serve you rather than you serving it
4. Get good night’s sleep
5. Be assertive
6. Have a personal schedule each day and follow it
7. Cultivate networking site
8. Watch less television
3. Journaling another way for stress management It provides a
healthy way for one to vent out thoughts and feelings.

• Unexpressed thought and frustrations can eventually

become toxic in one’s system.

• One can write for each night about the things that one is
grateful for in a gratitude journal .