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Overview • Related Body Systems: All • Related reading from text: Chapters 3 and 5 • Content Overview—the following topics are included in this unit:

1. A review of the relationship between stress and health. 2. A review of the General Adaptation Syndrome. 3. Examination of your personal "stress style". 4. The influence of negative thinking in the experience of stress. 5. The role of stress management skills and social support in the

experience of stress. • Objectives—knowledge, skills, and attitudes. By the end of this

lab, each student will be able to: 1. Describe the impact of various types of stressors on the human

body. 2. Identify the major sources of stress in his/her life. 3. Identify his/her primary ways (both positive and negative) of

coping with stressful events and/or circumstances. 4. Identify the extent to which she/he engages in negative thinking

patterns in everyday interactions and/or stressful situations. 5. Observe and record the impact of a relaxation exercise on their

heart rate and blood pressure. 6. Observe the impact of the introduction of a social performance

stress situation. 7. Observe the impact of the addition of social support to the social

performance stress situation. 8. Experience a social support exercise.

• To be completed prior to the laboratory:

ü Worksheets 6-A, 6-B, 6-C, and 6-D (note: In order to complete Worksheet 6-A, you will be required to watch one television news broadcasts prior to completing the survey).

• Before leaving the lab, you need to complete and turn in:

1. Exercise 1: Negative Thinking. 2. Exercise 2: Relaxation Response. 3. Exercise 3: Social Performance Anxiety. 4. Exercise 4: Impact of Social Support on Social Performance

Anxiety.

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Stressful Thinking

Stress is the “wear and tear” our bodies experience as we adjust to our continually changing environment; it has physical and emotional effects on us and can create positive or negative feelings. As a positive influence, stress can help compel us to action; it can result in a new awareness and an exciting new perspective. As a negative influence, it can result in feelings of distrust, rejection, anger and depression, which in turn can lead to health problems, heart disease, and stroke. With the death of a loved one, the birth of a child, a job promotion, or a new relation, we experience stress as we adjust our lives to these changes. Why do different people react differently to the same stress situation? Why do similar life events evoke such varying reactions as depression, anxiety, hostility, elation, and even indifference? The answer points to one of the most powerful and useful notions in stress management: our experience of stress is influenced by our thoughts and perceptions. In technical terms, our cognitions influence our reactions to stress. We have already seen that cognitions are central to the definition of stress. We experience stress when we appraise a threat to our well-being and when we appraise coping resources to be unavailable or ineffective. It is not surprising that cognitive modification strategies are central to most approaches to stress management. Specifically, they are targeted towards changing destructive and distorted negative thoughts Psychologists have slightly differing perspectives of why negative thinking can cause stress. Some emphasize the harmful effect of maladaptive or self-defeating thinking. Specifically, such cognitions do not contribute to self-worth, health, or effective problem- solving. Others emphasize the irrational quality of stressful cognition, that is, the extent to which it contradicts reason or the facts. Regardless of perspective, the first step in changing stressful thinking is to identify it when it is present. To assist in this task, an impressive list of nearly 50 types of cognitive distortions have been identified. Those most widely applied in stress programs fall into three general categories: making inferences, evaluating how important these inferences are, and attributing responsibility or control. Knowing these types of stressful thinking can help sensitize you to your distorted thoughts. Section I. Distortions in Making Inferences In a sense, we are all scientists trying to figure out the problems and questions that come from living in a complex world. The manner in which we draw conclusions, or make inferences, can contribute considerably to stress. Here are some of the most common problems people have in making inferences: All-or-None Thinking. All-or-none thinking involves viewing the world in rigid dichotomous, either/or categories, and not leaving room for “in-between” alternatives.

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Example: Matt is preparing a report for class. Although he is getting an A in the class and can afford a relatively low grade on this assignment, he still puts in extra effort. He even cancels a weekend hiking trip he had planned months ago. He thinks, "I must get an A on this paper; any lower grade would represent failure.”

Fortune-Telling. Few people can tell the future, and no one has a perfect crystal ball. And yet we engage in fortune-telling whenever we act as if we know the precise outcome of some event, precluding the possibility of the unexpected. Perhaps the most frequent form of fortune-telling is “nay-saying” which involves underrating one’s coping ability or the possibility of a positive outcome. Nay-sayers assume things are always bad, they look only at the dark side and overlook the positive. They are needlessly defeatist, pessimistic or helpless.

Example: Geraldine has just lost her job as a clerk in a local clothing store. She liked her work, but the slow season is approaching. She thinks, “This is the last good job I’ll ever have. I’ll never find a job like this again.”

Mind-Reading. While mind-readers in the circus might make their living by reading minds, in everyday life attempts at “mind-reading” can be a source of needless stress. It can be dangerous to act as if we know what others want, think, or feel without asking them.

Example: Jose is looking for a job. He starts reading the want ads to his wife. After she criticizes the first four or five, Jose thinks, “Why does she think I don’t have what it takes?”

Selective Abstraction. Those who engage in selective abstraction make up their minds too early, on the basis of little evidence. They are likely to form a conclusion based on one isolated detail of an event, ignoring other evidence.

Example: Suzanne has just organized a party at work. Nearly everyone is having a good time. However, John is bored. Suzanne concludes, “My party is a complete failure.”

Overgeneralization. Overgeneralization is similar to selective abstraction. However, instead of forming a hasty conclusion on one piece of evidence, the overgeneralizer takes conclusions already formed (regardless of the evidence) and inappropriately applies them to other situations.

Example: Jimmie has concluded that he is “all thumbs” and cannot solve mechanical problems. His mother asks him to glue a leg back onto a table. Without thinking, he replies, “I can’t do that. I’m just a mechanical dunce.”

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Arbitrary Inference. Most forms of distorted thinking involve leaping to conclusions. However, many people find it useful to think of it as a separate and distinct category. Here one draws inference arbitrarily in the absence of relevant evidence, and makes conclusions on the basis of the wrong facts or emotional evidence. Thinking is oversimplified.

Example: Martin was driving to work one day and had a small accident. Another driver bumped into the rear of his car and damaged his bumper and left signal light. Although in actuality the damage was relatively slight, Martin thought: “My car is totaled. It’s now a piece of junk.”

Section II. Distortions in Evaluating Importance Once you’ve made an inference or answered some question concerning stress, you can make things worse depending on how good, bad, or personally significant you judge things to be. Thinking with “Shoulds, Ought To’s and Musts.” Psychologist Albert Ellis in his characteristic racy style, invented the word musturbation to describe a special type of stressful thinking. Musturbation is a “bad habit” in which one turns wishes and desires into “shoulds,” “ought to’s” and “musts”. Our simple wants seem to become dire necessities. In reality, few things are absolutely necessary for life to go on, although many things might well be desirable. Confusing the two can create considerable stress.

Example: Felix is writing a report for his history class. He has typed his paper six times. It seems that every time he finishes typing, he finds a small error (a missing period or a spelling error), so he types the paper over. His thinking is, “this paper has simply got to be perfect; I can’t erase or cross out errors. That’s not good enough.”

Awfulizing. “Awfulizers” exaggerate the importance of negative events. They take too seriously the consequences of unmet “musts”. Life has its share of frustration and disappointment, and it is healthy to recognize them. However, we awfulize when we turn simple disappointments, frustrations, and hassles into disasters. Few things merit the label “catastrophe,” or “the end of the world.”

Example: Alice has been dating John every week for nearly a month. One weekend John fails to call. Alice thinks, “I feel totally depressed and worthless. Why doesn’t he call?”

Awfulization is perhaps responsible for more needless stress than any other form

of distorted thinking. Two variations are worth noting. Egocentrism involves thinking of yourself as the center of the universe. It is assuming that you have some special status, rights and privileges that others do not have. With such imagined status, it is not surprising that the egocentric thinks life’s frustrations are “just awful”; he or she is likely to complain of being unfairly victimized. Childhood fantasy is very similar to

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egocentrism. For children whose needs are easily met, love and protection are “givens.” Alas, for many of them the adult world brings a rude awakening; there is no guarantee of a happy ending, or of love and wealth. Those who harbor childhood fantasies set themselves up for unpleasant and stressful surprises

. Minimizing. We have seen that the awfulizer tends to look at the world through a stress- magnifying telescope. The minimizer can be said to look at things through the wrong end of this telescope. The significance of stress situations is understated or ignored. The importance of personal feelings, or the feelings of others, may be discounted (Burns, 1980).

Example: Don’s roommate has not returned $10 he borrowed last week. At first, Don was irritated at this apparent lack of responsibility. However, he eventually pushed the problem out of his mind, thinking, “Oh well, $10 isn’t that much anyway.”

Section III. Distortions in Attributing Responsibility or Control A stress situation may well be bad. Your inferences and evaluations may be quite correct. However, how you attribute responsibility or control can make a situation even worse. Blaming. Blaming involves inappropriately assuming that other people or circumstances are responsible for your stress. The blamer often engages in finger-pointing, scapegoating, or idle complaining about “how bad things are.”

Example: Ben is a high school teacher frustrated by all of the low grades he gives. Although others recognize him as one of the most severe teachers in school, Ben thinks, “Why are students so poorly prepared today? They just don’t have what it takes.”

Personalizing. Personalizing involves pointing the finger of blame at oneself rather than at the outside world. Neutral events are seen as personal attacks. The personalizer also is likely to arbitrarily assume responsibility for a stressful situation.

Example: Ronald is eating alone at his cafeteria at work. A group of co- workers is dining at the other end. From time to time they look in his general direction. The conversation becomes animated with lots of laughter. He thinks, “Why are they laughing at me? What’s wrong with me?”

Helpless Thinking. The last form of negative thinking summarizes much of what we have been considering. Stress situations are problems to be solved. This philosophy applies to simple hassles as well as major life events. Indeed, even in situations that simply cannot be changed, it is possible to exert control over one’s negative feelings through defense, relaxation, and the like. Helpless thinking is a form of giving up. It involves ignoring the coping resources most people have.

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Example: Molly was driving to the store and got a flat tire. It was relatively warm out, and cars were passing by. She just passed a service station, yet she throws her hands up in the air and cries, “why does this have to happen now? I’m really stuck. There’s no way out of this mess.”

Section IV. Your Personal Cognitive Stress System By the time we become adults, most of us have developed patterns of reacting to stressful events. This has sometimes been referred to as our cognitive stress system. Distortions in making inferences, evaluating importance and in attributing responsibility or control can become a part of this cognitive stress system. Few individuals engage in distorted thinking all of the time. However, there are certain situations in which many of us are more likely to engage in distorted or negative thinking. When this occurs, we may experience stressful events and/or situations as more tension producing and disrupting to our daily routine than they actually are. Section V. Stress Reduction and Relaxation Techniques Identifying unrelieved stress and being aware of its effect on our lives is not sufficient for reducing its harmful effects. Just as there are many sources of stress, there are many possibilities for its management. However, all require work toward change: Changing the source of stress and / or changing your reaction to it. How do you proceed?

1. Become aware of your stressors and your emotional and physical reactions. · Notice your distress. · Don’t ignore it. · Don’t sugar coat your problems. · Determine how your body responds to the stress.

2. Recognize what you can change. · Try reducing the intensity of the stress? · Try to shorten your exposure to your stress, take breaks, and leave

the physical premises. · Identify the positive resources you have in place for managing

stress · Seek out positive role models.

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3. Learn to moderate your physical reactions to stress. · Slow, deep breathing will bring your heart rate and respiration back

to normal. · Relaxation techniques can reduce muscle tension. Electronic

biofeedback can help you gain voluntary control over such things as muscle tension, heart rate, and blood pressure.

4. Build your physical reserve · Exercise for cardiovascular fitness three to four times a week. · Eat well-balanced, nutritious meals. · Maintain your ideal weight. · Avoid nicotine, excessive caffeine, and other stimulants. · Mix leisure with work.

Relaxation Techniques:

1. Meditation is a proven factor to reduce stress. Relax your thoughts and your body while stifling the bad stress hormones and inducing the good ones. Meditation should ideally be practiced in a quiet environment; ultimately once you’ve successfully mastered your techniques, you should be able to meditate anywhere anytime. There are plenty of meditation techniques. Here are a few renditions and formats of meditation or relaxation

• Tai Chi/ Chi gong is a combination of meditation and slow fluid movements. The Chinese practice this slow-moving meditation to stimulate the body’s energy. It can be very uplifting and clarifying. This technique helps circulate chi flow. Chi is what the Chinese culture defines as energy in ones body; it is the flow that gives one vitality and balance. If a person is stressed they are essentially blocking a chi flow.

• Yoga in Sanskrit means to yoke, union. It is one of the best practices for the body and the mind. Mentally, yoga increases body awareness and relieves stress patterns. Yoga is known to help center and sharpen your ability to concentrate. Committed yoga students also report to heightened awareness, intuition, and creativity. There are many forms of yoga techniques.