What Is Stress ?

Stress is a word that is tossed around on a daily basis. People find themselves stressed out, stressed to perform, under too much stress and even too stressed to think. But, what is stress exactly?

That is an interesting question that really doesn’t have a single, pat answer. The dictionary defines stress as a constraining force or pressure. The American Institute of Stress says that no single explanation fits this word. What is stress, it seems is defined very personally. The things that answer the question what is stress for one person might not fit the bill for another. Despite some disparities, however, there are a number of common stressors that many people face.

Stress At Work

Many people find they define what is stress in a single word. That word? Work! Stress at work is very common, even in people who enjoy and love their jobs. There is almost always a pressure to perform, a desire to excel, deadlines to meet, customers to please and bosses to avoid. Whether stress at work actually answers what is stress for a person or not depends on how they react to the pressures on a daily basis. Some people are able to take work stress in stride, deal with it and leave it in the office. Others carry the baggage around with them everywhere they go. In the process, work stress takes its toll on their lives, minds and body.

Stress At Home

Whether this comes in the form of trying to keep up with bills, family members or just cleaning a house, many people find their answer to what is stress centers around home life. Bad relationships, strained financial situations, work schedules that only begin when the front door is opened at the end of a long day - these can all cause a great deal of stress at home. Again, the implications depend a lot on how individuals react to the individual stressors at home. Some people take them in stride and even enjoy a little pressure. Others find the burdens of relationships, financial misfortunes and housekeeping are too much to handle.

Other Stresses

Not all work comes from work and home life. There are plenty of other sources of stress in the world. Depending on how a person reacts to them, these things can all cause negative stress in a life: world politics, crime, traffic, crowds, natural disasters and more.

What is stress is a very unusual question. What stresses some people simply seems like enjoyment to others. The only real universal truth in the stress equation involves the need to combat it at its source. When stress piles up and continues over the long haul, a person can suffer physically, mentally and even spiritually.

Childhood Depression

Childhood depression doesn’t seem like it should exist, because the time of being a child should be filled with thoughts of family, school and friends and not worry and anxiety. Yet it’s an increasing problem in our society for many reasons. First, children are subject to the same problems as adults simply because they’re human. They suffer stress, have family problems and may be born with a predisposition towards depression due to genetics. Second, depression is now diagnosed correctly more often than it was in the past.

Childhood depression makes itself known in a number of ways. The child may experience frequent high and low emotional states. Children who are depressed often don’t want to leave the house and play with friends. Another symptom is a change in school performance. If he or she once did well in school and then loses interest, it can be a sign the child is depressed. Another frequent symptom is a lack of interest in normal activities. Early intervention is important in order to prevent progression of the disorder.

Childhood depression can be treated. Parents who think their child may be depressed can take certain steps to re-engage the child in a number of ways. The first thing you should do is try to get your child interested in something. It can be a social or athletic activity or even certain toys. Another important step to take is getting your child to talk to you regularly, but be careful of responding with only criticism. Just like in adult depression, childhood depression means the child is having problems with self esteem. Your goal is to build up feelings of self-worth so coping mechanisms are stronger.

One of the important steps you can take for treating childhood depression is working with your child to develop appropriate responses to situations. Life is always going to have those moments when you have to overcome perceived failure or difficult situations. If you child doesn’t know how to respond and only gets frustrated, then childhood depression can take hold.

When you decide your child is experiencing depression, you need to try and uncover any particular causes. For example, if he or she is having trouble at school then perhaps there’s a problem between your child and another child. Or if your child suddenly withdraws for no apparent reason, then you might need to have your child work with a therapist to investigate possible emotional or sexual abuse (there will be other signs too obviously). Another common cause of childhood depression is an unsuspected learning disability.

Many children are not good at communicating what they’re thinking or feeling. That means you have to make an extra effort to “interpret” the situation. There are many treatment options if the self-help treatments don’t work. These treatments are similar to the ones used to treat adult depression.

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Bipolar Depression

Bipolar depression is just what the name implies. It’s a disorder that involves major swings in mood. One day you may be happy and ready to take on the world, and the next day feeling as if you don’t even want to get out of bed. It’s a very difficult disorder which is confusing and fatiguing. The mood swings can even happen in the space of a single day. If you’ve ever had one of those days where you went from feeling happy and successful to feeling like a failure, then you have an idea of what it’s like to have bipolar depression. But imagine the swings happening regularly in your life – maybe even every day.

Bipolar depression is about a lot more than moods though. The highs and lows can be very extreme. In fact, people with bipolar depression have often have euphoric highs which lead them to act irrationally. While feeling euphoria, the person may believe they are invincible. For example, a bipolar person may think they can’t lose at the casino and gamble all the household money. Or the person may decide to go shopping and buys everything in sight without regard to fiscal responsibility.

It’s not too difficult to imagine how a person with bipolar depression can bring about devastation for a family. On the opposite end of the euphoric state is the depressed state. The state of depression can follow quickly and is especially low because of the memory of the short lived euphoria. You go from top of the world to not wanting to even get out of bed. Of course, not everyone has such extreme swings, but even lesser states of euphoria and depression can be difficult and confusing.

When someone is bipolar and holds a job, it’s not hard to imagine the potential consequences. Rash decisions made during the high period can be very harmful to the job. Some people with bipolar depression get hyperactive and think they can do anything whether or not they’re qualified.

Bipolar depression can be brought on by substance abuse. Drug users are commonly diagnosed with bipolar depression and studies are researching whether the propensity for drug use and the manic or bipolar depression are related. Once you are diagnosed with bipolar depression, it will most likely have to be managed the rest of your life. Even children can develop bipolar depression though it’s frequently misdiagnosed as hyperactivity or attention deficit disorder.

Bipolar depression is a complicated medical issue but treatment works well. Treatment usually includes medication to even out the moods and psychotherapy to teach the person how to be aware of the onset of the mood swings. As researchers continue to study the problem, it’s fully expected that new treatments will be developed.